I think it's almost uncirculated. But has worn dieon the reverse cause no fs. No other type of damage. Tell me what y'all think.
Very nice! Ive noticed some 40's and 50's nickels coming around just in pocket change.I find that so cool.That one is in good condition,a keeper!!
The 1954-S is the worst struck of the entire Jefferson series. Your coin has a very good strike and is an excellent album coin. To give everyone an idea of the typical strike characteristics for this date/mm, I present the following 3 coins. Above Average: One might not think this coin is well struck when compared to other date/mms but for a 54-S, this is about as good as they come. Average Strike: Notice the almost non-existent step detail in combination with significant loss of detail in both the hair and on Monticello. Below Average: This is the depths to which the horrible quality of strike sunk to in 1954 at the San Francisco mint.
Ok - So as a newbie - how does one differentiate a "poor strike" versus "wear" - To me, this looks heavily worn, but you (as someone who has a respected eye and experience) see this as a poor strike, worn dies, etc...
The easiest way is to look for wear in the fields. If you see what looks like high point wear on the devices but full luster in the fields, it is pretty safe to assume that the what your are seeing is poor strike for coins that are typically found with strike issues.
