Inquiry About Some US Coins

First thing to mention is the only proof coins you are liable to find will have a S mint mark for San Franisco.

The pre-1965 coins dime and up are keeps because they are silver which makes them worth several times over face.

Proof coins have a almost eye hurting mirror like surface that once you see one you won't forget it. Think of a brand new quarter and kick it up a few notches.

The dime you showed is not mint state it's just closer up the ladder to it. A mint state coin would look similar to a brand coin dime from 2015 or 2016. Over time this wears down unless protected. Even a brand new looking coin that is shiny and has luster still might only be about uncirculated to a trained eye. Grading is just how much the original luster and detail remain from the coin. Coins are like people and wear down after decades of abuse. However it's possible to keep them as young as the day they were minted with care and protection. While with grandpa it's just a slow downhill March.

And by all means Ouss from Tunisia!

Nice visuals and to you also nss!

What I would recommend would be if you have an ebay account go there and buy a proof dime from 1968 to 1970. There are examples under buy it now that can be purchased for under $2 with free shipping. Once you have one in hand you should be able to clearly see the difference between a proof and a business strike. Pictures on the computer can't really show the difference that well. An experienced collector could easiy see the difference but a newbie probably couldn't.

I don't recommend buying a later date coin because they will usually come with a good cameo frosting that is NOT common on the pre-1973 proofs. You want a "brilliant proof" for comparison, not a cameo proof.

That said, the dimes you pictured are circulated business strikes not proofs. The blob mintmark on the 1979 D quarter is the result of a die chip that broke off the little spike of metal in the die that creates the hollow center of the D.The close L on the 1963 cent is because they had been usig the master hub for the Lincoln Cent for decades and it was slowly spreading wider and wider. So when they cut down the diameter of the die to the proper diameterhe L was getting coser and close to the rim. Finally in 1969 they made a new obverse master hub and all of the lettering was moved further from the rim and the bust was redone to restore a lot of detail that had been lost due to the wear on the old master hub.