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 Replies: 23 / Views: 3,461 |
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New Member
United States
23 Posts |
Edited by Opne
01/31/2012 12:20 pm
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Moderator
 United States
23522 Posts |
Nice pics.
FB, certainly. There's a postmint hit on the left end of the center band, but it's not hard enough to hide the fact that this coin was struck as FB, and not enough to kill the designation.
Grading is a bit more difficult. Mercs get scrutinized carefully. Your coin has a noticeable mark behind the nose, one near the back of the chin, and my attention is drawn to the twin vertical marks under the chin, which may or may not have a bearing on the grade. The reverse is excellent; only the "business" in the fields below UNUM and above the O in ONE draw the eye.
The mark behind the nose is probably the key to the grade. Without it, the coin is an easy 66FB with a shot at 67 (understanding that a FB Micro S is a pricey proposition indeed in that grade). With it, I can't be so sure.
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New Member
 United States
23 Posts |
Hi Dave.
Thanks for your opinion. I do agree that it deserves an FB designation, but I wasn't aware that it would grade that high without the mark.
I'm aware it's hard to pinpoint grades of coins in this condition, but would you group this coin in AU or MS? if MS, what is the *lowest* grade you would give it?
Thanks for your time.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4132 Posts |
I have several Mercury dimes in the MS64FB-MS67FB range. Even with the mark it looks better than MS64FB, though it might get that on a bad day. I think it would probably get a 65, maybe a 66 even with the mark by the nose. It should not grade as AU in my opinion. Micro-S is pretty scarce with full bands in this condition (Numismedia lists it at $670 in MS65FB). Edited by CaptainFwiffo
01/31/2012 12:53 pm
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New Member
United States
23 Posts |
captain, thanks for your opinion.
I was going to save these facts until after I got more replies, but the opinions seem consistent.
I bought this coin from a dealer that stated it would be graded as an au 58-59, 1945-s. I'm certain that the dealer was unaware that the coin had a micro s mint (which I'm confident about but feel free to disagree).
I am going to send this coin, along with others, next week to pcgs and will post the results when I get them in case any of you were curious of the final verdict.
To be honest, I really like this coin. If it's grades high I'll probably sell it, if not I'm most definitely keeping it.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4132 Posts |
You don't have a close-up of the mintmark, but it looks like a micro s to me. Without a side-by-side the easiest way to tell is by the serifs, which are a sharp, vertical modern style on micro s, and are more swooshy on the other styles.
Micro s serifs look like s
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New Member
United States
23 Posts |
captain, thanks for your info.
I do not have my camera so I can't take pictures but I'm aware that the serifs of a micro s are like trumpets while a normal s has knobbed serifs. I'm looking at it now, comparing it to one I know is a normal s (which I did at the dealer's store) and not only is the s smaller, but it is a bit lower and sharper.
I'm really hoping it gets graded high so I can flip it. Though, I must admit, the profits would go only towards continuing my coin collection. In fact, I would most likely hunt down a similar coin once again for my collection.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3276 Posts |
Wow, if the dealer thought it was AU and not a micro s, you must have gotten an awesome deal on this coin!
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New Member
United States
23 Posts |
murrellington, since you said " dealer thought it was au", I'm going to assume that you too would grade this coin as uncirculated. and thanks for the compliment! I'm glad other people share the same opinion about me when it comes to this coin. it's beautiful. edit: any further grades are still appreciated. I want to make sure it's a good idea to get it graded. actually, I pose a new question - Should I get this graded? or will a buyer be just as willing to spend money on this coin due to my pictures? Edited by Opne
01/31/2012 4:19 pm
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4132 Posts |
The price curve is very steep, so I would lean toward having it graded if you want to sell it.
Numismedia for 1945-S micro S
MS64FB - $192
MS65FB - $670
MS66FB - $1,220
Your coin might carry a bit of a premium over another of a similar grade because its periphery is also better struck than an average '45-S.
Edited by CaptainFwiffo
01/31/2012 4:51 pm
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New Member
United States
23 Posts |
That's really helpful captain, I appreciate your time. I'll definitely take the condition of its periphery when selling the coin. thanks.
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Valued Member
United States
54 Posts |
Very nice coin it should grade well.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
5854 Posts |
I agree with captianfwiffo on the grade, MS-65 FB maybe a 66 FB. Nice coin!
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Moderator
United States
23522 Posts |
Keep one thing in mind, Opne. This is a wonderfully-struck coin, with vanishingly few detracting marks. Your images are quite good enough to make this clear. What your images are not, and the same could be said of even the very finest photos posted online, is definitive of that tiny difference between "circulated for a week or two" and "never circulated at all." When I made my first post in this thread, I naturally assumed the coin was Mint State. Given that your dealer considered it to have even the slightest circulation gives pause. I could never tell from these images, one way or another. That doesn't mean the dealer is right. You have to make that decision, looking at the coin in your own hands. Especially with something as small as a Merc, that's the only way to know. Me? Even knowing what the dealer said, I'd probably risk the money on submitting. The upside is staggering.  |
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New Member
United States
23 Posts |
thanks for your opinions everybody, I'm on the way to submit my coin as I write this. fingers crossed! as mentioned before I will post the pcgs grade when I receive them. again, many thanks!
edit: just got back from the dealer's. he said that, in his opinion, it is not an fb merc and will therefore not grade and list it.
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are there any other alternatives to getting your coin graded? or will I have to sign up for pcgs? I know the membership is fairly cheap but as a college student I'm trying to save when possible.
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also, I'm unexplicitly attracted to pcgs and would prefer to get the coin graded by them specifically.
again, thanks.
Edited by Opne
01/31/2012 8:36 pm
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Rest in Peace
United States
9104 Posts |
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Replies: 23 / Views: 3,461 |
Posted 01/31/2012 12:41 pm
