Ok guys I am still trying to learn the lingo. UCAM = Ultra Cameo DCAM = Deep Cameo Strange that all of the online coin dictionaries I've found only have DCAM. Aparently, only NGC uses UCAM on their products and does not seem to use DCAM at all. PCGS, ANACS and ICG all use DCAM and not UCAM. So in my endevour do these two acronyms mean exactly the same thing??? :headbang: Could it be that UCAM is a tradmarked term? Also, I've noted that all use the term CAMEO (CAM) without the U or the D to grade some coins. I still haven't looked too far yet but was there a chage from the use of CAM to the UCAM and DCAM over the years? As you can guess I am looking into collecting proof coins specifiically Silver eagles and some gold. Should I just buy US Mint items or look for graded items?
Yes they mean exactly the same thing. And CAM - DCAM are varying degrees of the same designation. Kind of like hot and very hot.
Unless you are studying to be a Language major, do yourself a favor anf forget all this nonsense. You can enjoy coin collecting without any of this knowledge and spend your time looking for the coin that you really like, regardless of any ot the above. If not, all you will be doing is :loud:spinning your wheels.
ucam vsdcam So did any one get a answer back to you about the difference between cameo and dcameo and ucameo? I am just getting into this crazy hobby and am trying to figure the differnece between the two. If you have an answer I would really love to know the answer.:headbang:
This was very confusing to me when I first started collecting proofs for my registry set of LIncolns. As GDJMSP said earlier, DCAM and UCAM are the same thing just used by differant graders. I think the easiest way for you to understand the differance between nothing, CAM, And UltraCAM is the same thing as the humber differances after the grade of the coin. A PF62 is better than a PF61 which is better than a PF60. A Ultra Cam or Deep Cam is better than just a CAM which is better than no Cam at all. Hope this helps. It sounded a lot better in my mind before I started explaining it
I'm going thru the same thing as these beginners. This was very helpful, dcam ucam it don't mean a thing, I got it! But coin sellers seem to think it means you can charge more, why? "Burnished" is another term, what does it mean as comparing coins, it's sure pretty but does it make a difference in price or is a dull coin just as good and dealers are taking advantage of buyers? Do I make sense?
Burnished is a VERY tricky word and can mean several different things At it most basic Burnish means to polish by rubbing with metal. A coin that has had rough surfaces smoothed by rubbing with a metal tool are said to have been burnished. This is bad. Planchets, after annealing, are cleaned by burnishing. They are tumbled with cleaning compounds and tiny steel balls to polish and smooth the surfaces. Proof planchets are tumbled longer and possibly with other compounds to give them a more polished surface. Then there are W wintmarked silver eagles which are called Burnished, They have an unusually whiter color which the mint says is because they are struck on burnished planchets. Which is meaningless because ALL planchets are burnished. I don't know exactly what they do to get that whiter color, but I suspect it is NOT by burnishing. I suspect a fine sand blasting or picking of the planchets pre strike. So a "burnished" silver eagle is good, a "burnished" circulation strike coin is bad.
To be clear it doesn't make a difference what term is used, but the CAM and DCAM/UCAM designations absolutely do mean something and can have huge impacts on the value
Coins with a cameo and deep/ultra cameo finish and very different from coins without and there is a often a significant value difference. The threshold from Cam to DCAM/UCAM is not always rock solid as each coin needs to be evaluated on its own merits but the CAM finish is highly desired. Some coins had a burnished finish from the mint. Some ASEs have a burnished finish which is different from the standard business strike. I have also occasionally seen the satin mint sets from 2005-10 referred to as having a "burnished" finish but I think this is a bit confusing myself.
