I've been looking at some different Morgans and Peace Dollars lately and the issue of luster (at least for me) is still a bit of an issue. I understand that with good luster a coin should exhibit that pinwheel (lack of a better technical term) effect. I guess I am wondering if that effect is always there or are there times when a coin does have the luster wanted but doesn't exhibit that pinwheel effect? For example, yesterday I was looking at a 1921 Peace dollar, the condition was stated at xf//au (raw), there was very nice detail but that pinwheel effect just wasn't all that evident. Granted, I was looking at it under overhead florescent lighting which isn't always that great. I didn't pull the trigger since once bought it's too late. Hope that explained it okay.
You mean cartwheel luster. AU coins should still have some amount of luster evident until you get to AU50, but don't expect to see too much on XF. In-hand, it doesn't matter if you are looking under fluorescent, halogen or tungsten. When you tilt the coin up-and-down or side-to-side, you will still see the luster radiating around the coin like the spokes of a wheel. Chris
That is what I was thinking as well. I wasn't sure how well the luster would appear on say Peace Dollars in MS grades especially.
On MS coins it should appear very well on most of them. And probably won't on coins that saw a fair amount of circulation.
The 1921 I was looking at was very nice detail for the grade I'm thinking, I didn't buy it as I like to shop, see something I'm interested in thencome home and do a little more research.. Though I do use the PCGS mobile app whenever I'm out along with a loupe. Perhaps I will look at it again today.
All of the AU+ 1921 Peace dollars I've seen have looked like this-- no cartwheel effect to speak of. I don't know if that's typical for the date, though.
Thanks for the photo, that was what I was seeing as well. no cartwheel effect to speak of. That was what I was wondering as well, especially with the high relief 21's if the luster is somewhat softer. Nice looking 21, yours?
It's raw, and I bought it as an AU. When I compared it to my other Peace dollars, I became concerned because the luster looked different. So I took a special interest in looking at other 21s at shows and shops, and they all seemed to look like that.
I've been comparing the same thing as best I can locally though the amount of higher grade Peace dollars are very limited here to use in comparison.
While collecting Washingtons, I've generally noticed that some of the cleanest coins from the 30's and 40's have been flat, or lacking cartwheel luster. These are high grade MS coins completely void of contacts. Bowers mentions that specific dates in this series will have a more satin-like appearance. It's obviously important to know what dates before purchasing but I'm not sure what resources are available for your series. I'm almost positive I've also read that there are dates in the Peace series that are more satin-like and will not look the same as other dates.
I've read that based on specific dates for dollar coins at times and other times nothing is mentioned. I guess it depends on the way the descriptions are presented..
I've encountered the same thing... many times, nothing is mentioned. What's cool is that after all this time there's still room for personal discovery.
If you study coins enough what you will find is that all coins have different types of luster. And this is not only delineated by the various denominations, but also by certain dates and mints within a given a denomination. But it seems that too many people expect all coins to be similar when it comes to luster. This is a huge mistake for you cannot judge one coin against another unless the coins being compared are the same coin type, the same denomination, and the same date and mint. So even trying to compare a Morgan to a Peace dollar is like trying to compare the proverbial apple to an orange. It simply can't be done.
I agree with this comment 100%. I know much of it goes by date, coin and even mint location. That was why I had asked about the 21 Peace Dollar. Especially as it was a single year type before the relief changed. I didn't know if the high relief was a major factor in the luster factor.
Of course it was. Because for a coin to develop good luster it needs to be fairly well struck - the metal has to flow against the surface of the die in order to create that luster. And since almost all '21 Peace dollars are weakly struck, they also have poor quality luster - even for a Peace dollar.
Aah, okay so probably what I was seeing with the 21 I was looking at yesterday was, generally, to be expected with the year and type.. I will have to definitely take a closer look at the coin then and see.. I did like the detail for the grade just was a bit curious about the luster factor. Thanks for the feedback everyone..
