Whiskey Tango Foxtrot is This Goofy Thing 0

[Dascher]

Hello everyone; I hope y'all are having a successful start to 2023.

What exact type of error is this strange coin I came across recently? An off-center strike, a broadstrike or neither?
And, of course, the 64 cents or 64 thousand dollar question - is it worth the time to try & sell it on eBay.

Thanks in advance for any insight - JFD

[GoldFinger1969]

Looks like someone tried to melt a penny, nothing more.

[J P M]

I see no coin ?

[Sandon]

    This appears from your photos to be a legitimate off-center strike of a copper-plated zinc cent of the type made since 1982.  According to Appendix A (p.1407) of the 7th (2021) edition of the Deluxe Or "Mega" Redbook, such a coin is worth all of $8.  They are preferred if the date and any mint mark show and in uncirculated condition.

[EagleRJO]

I think that's a keeper off-center strike cent, but as Sandon indicated not worth that much without the date and mark.  Attached is an example 75% off-center strike 1971-D cent, which does still have a date and mark that is preferred by error collectors.

Also, the following is a link to a site with some approximate values and a little more info for these errors ... https://coinquest.com/cgi-bin/cq/coins.pl?coin=925

 

Edited February 15, 2023 by EagleRJO

[VKurtB]

So a gazillion people come on here and claim, wrongly, to have an error coin. This time it’s a fully legit error coin and it’s a “goofy thing”. Ladies and gentlemen, THIS is an error coin. And it’s worth a few bucks. Read and learn. 

[J P M]

On 2/14/2023 at 8:21 AM, J P M said:

I see no coin ?

Thanks for fixing that . I have a couple of these and as everyone is saying it is a error. Not a great one without the date but still a keeper in my collection.

[Dascher]

On 2/14/2023 at 8:35 AM, Sandon said:

    This appears from your photos to be a legitimate off-center strike of a copper-plated zinc cent of the type made since 1982.  According to Appendix A (p.1407) of the 7th (2021) edition of the Deluxe Or "Mega" Redbook, such a coin is worth all of $8.  They are preferred if the date and any mint mark show and in uncirculated condition.

@Sandon Hello & thank you very much for this great info. Next time I'm at Barnes & Noble I'll check out p. 1407 of the Mega... maybe even rent a forklift so I can buy & get it home :-) 

[Dascher]

On 2/14/2023 at 9:58 AM, VKurtB said:

So a gazillion people come on here and claim, wrongly, to have an error coin. This time it’s a fully legit error coin and it’s a “goofy thing”. Ladies and gentlemen, THIS is an error coin. And it’s worth a few bucks. Read and learn. 

 

On 2/14/2023 at 9:58 AM, VKurtB said:

So a gazillion people come on here and claim, wrongly, to have an error coin. This time it’s a fully legit error coin and it’s a “goofy thing”. Ladies and gentlemen, THIS is an error coin. And it’s worth a few bucks. Read and learn. 

@VKurtB Hey buddy, nice to hear from you and thanks for the vote of confidence!

[Dascher]

On 2/14/2023 at 10:06 AM, J P M said:

Thanks for fixing that . I have a couple of these and as everyone is saying it is a error. Not a great one without the date but still a keeper in my collection.

@J P M Hello bud! Thanks for chiming in with a few upbeat notes, and how very apt of you to say that because (IMHO) it looks like it would make the perfect guitar pick!

[Dascher]

On 2/14/2023 at 8:58 AM, EagleRJO said:

I think that's a keeper off-center strike cent, but as Sandon indicated not worth that much without the date and mark.  Attached is an example 75% off-center strike 1971-D cent and the following is a link to a site with some approximate values for these errors.

https://coinquest.com/cgi-bin/cq/coins.pl?coin=925

@EagleRJO Hey, Hey my friend! Great to hear from you and thanks for these pics. Although I wonder how current a/o accurate it is, I love & frequent coinquest.com. Fascinating to me how my specimen and this one are almost identical in shape.

[Sandon]

On 2/14/2023 at 11:23 AM, Dascher said:

Next time I'm at Barnes & Noble I'll check out p. 1407 of the Mega... maybe even rent a forklift so I can buy & get it home :-) 

   Every year this book has a different special section and revisions, so the pagination changes from year to year. I think that there is always an appendix about mint errors. The current (8th) edition is available at whitman.com and probably at Amos Advantage.  The regular Redbook has also had a shorter appendix about "errors and misstrikes" with a basic price table.

[EagleRJO]

On 2/14/2023 at 11:40 AM, Dascher said:

@EagleRJO Hey, Hey my friend! Great to hear from you and thanks for these pics. Although I wonder how current a/o accurate it is, I love & frequent coinquest.com. Fascinating to me how my specimen and this one are almost identical in shape.

If you are into error coins the attached book is a needed reference.  The value of an error coin is a very important piece of information, and that number may be significantly less than expected or there may be no value found if it's not an error coin.

Edited February 15, 2023 by EagleRJO

[Dascher]

@EagleRJO @J P M @VKurtB @Sandon:

I focus almost exclusively on foreign coins and more importantly, y'all have been so helpful to me in the past (see below) that if any of you have a particular interest in this Lincoln error penny, it'd absolutely be my pleasure to give it to the 1st one who replies for free. Please just email or otherwise give me your address and I'll drop it in the mail today.

(... particularly on the topic back in November of doubling on my 1888 Germany 20 pfenning, which I still plan on sending in for certification pronto):

 

[EagleRJO]

I appreciate the offer, but I just participate on the board as a way of sharing and gaining knowledge about coins which I find particularly interesting.

[EagleRJO]

On 2/14/2023 at 11:40 AM, Dascher said:

... I wonder how current a/o accurate [coinquest.com] is ...

I would take the info there with a grain of salt, but there is often useful information and ballpark values that are helpful.

About offset strikes, how about the attached which is a matching pair 40% off-center strike of an Ike dollar die on cent planchets, which has nice toning.  I am curious to see how much it goes for, but it should be big money as a single 40% off-center strike Ike on the correct planchet went for $3k earlier last year at GC.

Edited February 14, 2023 by EagleRJO

[The Neophyte Numismatist]

Nice off-center strike!  They are worth a little more if they have a date, but nice find for sure!

[VKurtB]

On 2/14/2023 at 11:06 AM, Dascher said:

@EagleRJO @J P M @VKurtB @Sandon:

I focus almost exclusively on foreign coins and more importantly, y'all have been so helpful to me in the past (see below) that if any of you have a particular interest in this Lincoln error penny, it'd absolutely be my pleasure to give it to the 1st one who replies for free. Please just email or otherwise give me your address and I'll drop it in the mail today.

(... particularly on the topic back in November of doubling on my 1888 Germany 20 pfenning, which I still plan on sending in for certification pronto):

 

Thanks for the very kind offer, but I don’t really collect errors. That niche is too “nowadays” for me. I’m a traditionalist - looking for ultimate condition. 

[Sandon]

    If you're not interested in this off-center cent, consider giving it to a young collector.  That will be your thanks to us.

[Dascher]

On 2/14/2023 at 7:22 PM, VKurtB said:

I’m a traditionalist - looking for ultimate condition. 

Amen to that!

[Hoghead515]

On 2/14/2023 at 11:30 AM, Dascher said:

@J P M Hello bud! Thanks for chiming in with a few upbeat notes, and how very apt of you to say that because (IMHO) it looks like it would make the perfect guitar pick!

 That was the first thing I thought of as soon as I seen it before I saw this reply. Thought of a guitar pick. 

[R__Rash]

On 2/14/2023 at 11:46 AM, EagleRJO said:

I would take the info there with a grain of salt, but there is often useful information and ballpark values that are helpful.

About offset strikes, how about the attached which is a matching pair 40% off-center strike of an Ike dollar die on cent planchets, which has nice toning.  I am curious to see how much it goes for, but it should be big money as a single 40% off-center strike Ike on the correct planchet went for $3k earlier last year at GC.

I can’t believe this is a real assessment. This error has no more value than a cud, crack or mechanical doubling. There is no way in reality and controlled functionality an error like this can exists. These planchets had to be placed purposely in the press by hand in the attempt to achieve fullness and the single press ran manually in an attempt to fraudulently create error. It is no more than a counterfeit deception.  It is like everyone at the mint that day was high and said “let’s try this”…This is the one only times I have fully agreed with Kurt, error collecting has no controlled boundaries other than proven varieties.

Edited February 15, 2023 by R__Rash

[EagleRJO]

On 2/14/2023 at 10:52 PM, R__Rash said:

I can’t believe this is a real assessment. This error has no more value than a cud, crack or mechanical doubling. There is no way in reality and controlled functionality an error like this can exists. These planchets had to be placed purposely in the press by hand in the attempt to achieve fullness and the single press ran manually in an attempt to fraudulently create error. It is no more than a counterfeit deception.  It is like everyone at the mint that day was high and said “let’s try this”…This is the one only times I have fully agreed with Kurt, error collecting has no controlled boundaries other than proven varieties.

I have also heard rumors of other "errors" created in the middle of the night at the mint when some workers were bored.  

I would be curious to know if there were other error coins out in the wild involving an Ike die and cent planchet, which should exist if there was a mistake run with the wrong planchets.  And they are certified by NGC, so there is that.

[R__Rash]

On 2/14/2023 at 9:57 PM, EagleRJO said:

I have also heard rumors of other "errors" created in the middle of the night at the mint when some workers were bored.  

I would be curious to know if there were other error coins out in the wild involving an Ike die and cent planchet, which should exist if there was a mistake run with the wrong planchets.  And they are certified by NGC, so there is that.

All I can say is all of the OMG stuff in error collecting only shows the lack of knowledge of the process or a lot of processes for that matter. What kind of fumes were floating around the mint the night they started minting the famous 1955 LWC DDD. If you were in the headstone business you would have to have filed bankruptcy. But because it came from the USMint the blunder became a valuable collectors piece. I wonder what kind of whiskey they were drinking the night they punched that one.

Edited February 15, 2023 by R__Rash

[Just Bob]

Cool find. I agree with the suggestion to give it to a YN (young numismatist).

Edited February 15, 2023 by Just Bob

[JKK]

Hey there again, SG plates. Yep, that's a legit error and people seriously collect those. By the way, I'm looking at trying to get back home sometime this summer. I've never really coin shopped back there, but I'll definitely be getting down toward Hutch and Wichita with most of the time spent around Chase and Lyon Counties. Any shops you respect along the turnpike's surrounds?

[EagleRJO]

On 2/14/2023 at 8:31 PM, Sandon said:

    If you're not interested in this off-center cent, consider giving it to a young collector.  That will be your thanks to us.

That is a really good idea, and I second that suggestion.

[The Neophyte Numismatist]

On 2/14/2023 at 10:52 PM, R__Rash said:

This error has no more value than a cud, crack or mechanical doubling....

I am going to have to go ahead and respectfully disagree.  To put this coin in the same category as mechanical doubling is inaccurate.  You may not care for errors, and maybe this was manufactured by someone at the Mint.  However, your assessment on value is incorrect.

[EagleRJO]

On 2/14/2023 at 11:57 PM, EagleRJO said:

I would be curious to know if there were other error coins out in the wild involving an Ike die and cent planchet, which should exist if there was a mistake run with the wrong planchets. 

I did a quick search and there were a number with the Ike dollar die struck on cent planchet error coins for sale, like the attached examples which included a double struck one.

[VKurtB]

I firmly believe that VERY MANY of errors are intentionally done by Mint personnel, and also a healthy number of “varieties” as well, such as the extra stuff in the window panes on the Nebraska ATB quarters. Ditto the extra leaves on the first Wisconsin state quarters. Fully intentional. This is what our hobby has been reduced to. Demand creates its own supply. If people want it, Mint employees will create it. It’s one reason I don’t collect them. All that said, this particular one is completely legit. A broken feeder leaves the planchet in an incorrect position and down comes the hammer die.