How are double dies made? 0

[Keith Dee]

How is it that in the process of making a die that it gets struck twice resulting in double dies on coins? I mean it not like they’re pumping out dies like they do coins so you’d think it would only take one shot. Do they always stamp a die more then once to get a better impression or am I looking at this wrong?

[GBrad]

On 12/5/2021 at 1:53 PM, Keith Dee said:

How is it that in the process of making a die that it gets struck twice resulting in double dies on coins? I mean it not like they’re pumping out dies like they do coins so you’d think it would only take one shot. Do they always stamp a die more then once to get a better impression or am I looking at this wrong?

This can be a semi-complex question.  Especially since the introduction of the single squeeze method. Hang on and let me see if I can find a great article I have stored about the hubbing process. 

Until I can find the article I mentioned, here is a very common link to Wexler's on how dies are made.  This should keep you busy for a moment reading this one. I'm not sure if this article mentions the single squeeze method or not, it's been a long time since I read this particular writing.  

http://doubleddie.com/58201.html

Edited December 5, 2021 by GBrad
link supplied

[Woods020]

Keith,

The process of making working dies has changed through the years. Prior to 1996 dies required multiple presses from the master hub. Since then we have went to a single squeeze hubbing process, but doubled dies can still occur albeit differently than before. They are much rarer in the single squeeze process and almost always will present in the middle of the coin due to shifting. Here is a good resource that discusses the various ways a doubled die can occur. 
 

https://www.error-ref.com/doubled-dies/

[Just Bob]

On 12/5/2021 at 12:53 PM, Keith Dee said:

How is it that in the process of making a die that it gets struck twice resulting in double dies on coins? I mean it not like they’re pumping out dies like they do coins so you’d think it would only take one shot. Do they always stamp a die more then once to get a better impression or am I looking at this wrong?

The two articles posted above by Brad and Woods should be bookmarked and studied. Both contain lots of good information about the making of dies, and how hub doubling can occur.

 

[RWB]

In the past, a coinage die took two to seven blows (squeezes is a better term) from the hub to fully transfer the design. Between each blow the die had to be heated and softened to relieve work hardening. If any blow were misaligned with any other blow, a "doubled" or "tripled die" could result. (Morgan silver dollars took 7 blows; DE 6; Indian cents 2 or 3; MCMVII double eagles took three from a hydraulic press, etc.) The success of transfer was supposed to have been carefully inspected, but with the Philadelphia Mint making thousands of dies per year, things occasionally slipped through quality control.

Edited December 8, 2021 by RWB