1962 Nickel Full Steps?

there is not enough light on the bottom of the steps to assess the last one. TPG's are all over the place with this designation and its pretty much a dice roll as what they would say. they do not go by their own guidelines.

in order for a 62(P) to cover the cost of slabbing it would have to grade MS66FS or better. don't think this one is at that level.

my bet is the coin is AU58. FS designation only applies to MS coins. nice find though

just for your knowledge base

two reasons to slab

1. its a rare coin that needs authenticated and preserved
2. you are planning on selling the coin and the cost of acquisition plus the grading fee's would warrant it without chewing up all your profit

PCGS charges a minimum of $69 for a subscription other subscription levels include grading vouchers though so you could reduce these costs. add to the subscription cost, per coin grading cost which I think for this one might be $22, shipping & ins both ways (1-4 coins is $27 if the total value is under $1000)

NGC - economy grading tier is $23, plus $10 handling fee, plus $28 for shipping (1-5 coins).

ANACS grading would be $16 but there's a 5 coin minimum. Shipping would be $29-35.

i don't slab coins for these reasons especially the cost involved. I don't know why this is so popular today. just making the grading companies wealthy imo

Very nice example. Would make a strong album hole filler until better comes along.

Looks like a Proof, so yes to full steps.

So should I soak it in some acetone?

You can buy a 1962 proof nickel for $1 on ebay with free shipping. In rolls of 40, I think they sell for maybe 25¢ each. Probably there are a lot of leftovers from cutting up mint sets because collectors seem more interested in the silver proof halves, quarters, and dimes. I happen to know that because I have been working on a 1956-2005 proof nickel folder. The vast majority of them cost me about a buck apiece.

Acetone shouldn't hurt that coin. It will strip the patina, but my subjective opinion is that the current toning is unflattering. If by some miracle it's an actual 6FS 1962 nickel circulation strike, then I apologize in advance.

Happy to be of service. I have learned way, waaaay more from you guys in the past year than you've learned from me! =)

Correct, before 1968 the Jefferson proof nickels had no mint mark because they were made at the main U.S. Mint facility in Philadelphia. Proof Jefferson nickels were made in Philadelphia from 1938-1942, halted during WWII, struck again from 1950-1964. In 1965-1967 the Mint struck no proofs, but instead made Special Mint Set coins which are sort of a proof-business strike hybrid. Then in 1968, proof Jefferson nickel production began at the San Francisco mint, which is where it has remained ever since.

If you examine a proof nickel in hand, there is little doubt as to what it is. The fields are deep and super flat, the lettering is thin and sharp, and the devices stand way up from the field. You shouldn't see hardly any die deterioration—very common on business strikes of that era—because the dies are repeatedly re-polished for the perfect mirrored fields. Even if you circulate a proof nickel, it is usually recognizable for what it is. Unlike copper cents and silver coins, the Jefferson cupronickel coin is extremely durable.

After you circulate a 1965-1967 SMS nickel, it gets much harder to distinguish from a normal nickel. The steps are the biggest giveaway, since 1965-1967 nickels had notoriously poor step definition.

Assuming your nickel doesn't have actual surface corrosion, after a long soak in pure acetone, you will pull it out and immediately know that it's a proof.