1943 D Die Cracks? 1 1

[bobbyboshay]

Edited August 13, 2023 by bobbyboshay

[Mike Meenderink]

The short answer is yes. That is evidence of a stressed cracked die that struck the coin. BUT.... If you look at the overall appearance of the coin itself you will notice the overall poor details and strike to and otherwise lightly circulated coin. This is an example of a coin struck from a late stage deteriorated die set. The dies are very worn and in the final stages of usefulness. They have also developed small cracks which you see on your coin. They are common. It is interesting but most coins of all types have these types of minor errors in some fashion. The more bodacious or obvious an error is the more they are worth.  Minor die chips, strike throughs or die cracks are not extremely valuable.  

[emabigpiglet]

Huh, I think the severity of the crack could add value to the coin, especially if it is rare.

[ldhair]

On 8/15/2023 at 4:31 AM, emabigpiglet said:

Huh, I think the severity of the crack could add value to the coin, especially if it is rare.

There are those that collect die crack coins but they won't pay much for them. 

There are also those that just don't care to own them.

[J P M]

There  area lot of coins out there with die cracks, just look at all the Morgan VAM,s and you will see many. I have quit a few nickels and cents with cracks it is fun to save them but I do not think that the crack will change the price of the coin.

[ldhair]

On 8/15/2023 at 1:42 PM, J P M said:

There  area lot of coins out there with die cracks, just look at all the Morgan VAM,s and you will see many.

Also the Bust half dollars. 

[EagleRJO]

On 8/15/2023 at 2:42 PM, J P M said:

I have quit a few nickels and cents with cracks it is fun to save them but I do not think that the crack will change the price of the coin.

Agreed that small die cracks, particularly like ones on the op's coin where you need a scope to clearly see it, typically don't add any value to the coin.  It generally has to be an attributed variety, like from NGC VarietyPlus which includes the Top 100 Morgan VAMs, to even have a chance of adding value to a coin.

Then look at price guides, like the NGC Price Guide for that variety to see if there is any added value.

On 8/15/2023 at 5:31 AM, emabigpiglet said:

I think the severity of the crack could add value to the coin, especially if it is rare.

Sometimes it does add value, like those noted above that are significant.  But collectors generally want to be able to see the die cracks or chips without needing a scope to see it, and possibly in a pattern like a 1891-CC VAM-3 "Spitting Eagle" Morgan.  Also, the more popular or rare the coin is, the more an error will add to the value.

Also, I would put the scope away while looking for errors or varieties that may add value, as it can be very misleading in terms of the magnitude of what you see on a coin.  A scope should really only be used to confirm something you see without magnification, evaluating surface conditions (e.g. hairlines, whizzing, etc), and looking for die indicators to authenticate a coin or confirm a variety.

Edited August 16, 2023 by EagleRJO

[Sandon]

On 8/15/2023 at 5:31 AM, emabigpiglet said:

I think the severity of the crack could add value to the coin, especially if it is rare.

   A 1943-D wartime composition five cent piece isn't rare, with or without die cracks. Nearly 15.3 million were minted. Large numbers of uncirculated rolls were saved, as well as large numbers of circulated pieces. Only Gem Uncirculated (MS 67 or better) pieces with 5 or 6 full steps have NGC Price Guide values over $100. The posted coin appears to be AU or low-end mint state and not to have quite five full steps.

  Die cracks are quite common on both older and modern U.S. coins and generally worth little no premium to knowledgeable collectors. They are indicative of worn dies.  The die crack on Jefferson's coat isn't "severe".