Good morning CT! I'm curious to hear what you have to say about potentially sending this in for grading... eventually... and if it would be worth the cost. As you may already know, I've let my PCGS membership lapse and I am not in much of a rush to join any TPG's for the foreseeable future, but this is one of the coins I'm considering sending in whenever I decide to pull the trigger. It's got an (obvious) obverse cud and some minor cuds on the reverse, as well as die cracks on the reverse which are not rim-to-rim. For what it is, this coin seems to be suffering from a weak strike due to the cracked dies and thus is lacking some of the more intricate details on the obverse. The denticles, "liberty" in tiara, and hair above her forehead and ear seem to be affected the most from the weak strike on the obverse, and denticles on the reverse as well. The cuds don't intrude into the fields, so I would like to think they wouldn't detract from a potentially higher grade, but the lack of the aforementioned details is what's concerning me. Would this weak strike limit the potential for something like MS-64 or higher? I see almost no signs of circulation with the exception of extremely small marks on her jaw. Please let me know what you think this might grade as and if you think it would be worth the cost to send it. It would be accompanied with other coins (for a total of maybe 6-8 coins being sent in) but again, I'm not in a rush to do so. Just fielding opinions currently. Thanks!
Die cracks, clashes etc, really shouldn't detract from the grade. These nickels were a bear for the mint to produce. The nickel composition was very hard and caused a lot of problems. As far as grading them I don't know. it isn't my series at all. Does the coin look that way in hand? It has a dull and lifeless look to it in the photos.
Nice coin . . . completely natural, good luster (apparently the photographic lighting didn't help), no marks without magnification, and well struck elsewhere. I think that despite the localized weaknesses, the coin should grade MS64 every day of the week.
That's my scope in action, there. Great for details, horrible for luster. It's definitely got original surfaces but my scope lighting doesn't show it. Without much of a doubt, this is a BU coin. I'm just not sure where on that spectrum it would fall.
Thanks! That's good to hear. I'm kind of on the fence in terms of having it graded, but hearing that is assuring.
Do you know which Variety this is? I couldn't find it? Just the FS-301. This isn't it is it? 1881 3CN RPD FS-301 (Regular Strike) Three Cent Nickel - PCGS CoinFacts
It all depends on the coin itself. Any coin with a minor mint error, like a die crack, cud, etc., shouldn’t be graded. Your Three Cent Nickel probably should be. The reverse has a rim cud and a near rim to rim die crack from 1 to 9 to 3 o’clock. A nice cud on the obverse. It may be weakly struck or a bit of grease on the die. That does not affect the grade of the coin.
This one, I think? The 1881/81 https://www.ngccoin.com/variety-plus/united-states/three-cents/nickel-three-cents-1865-1889/815907/
Is that something worth mentioning on the forms when submitting? The weak strike, I mean. From what I've gathered, any notes on those forms are generally ignored when evaluating each coin, especially considering their time constraints.
