1969 lincoln cent major die break?

Have you ever seen a die crack that looks like that? Why is the coin a different color on both sides of the line going across the line?

 

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Rather a bold statement if I do say so. Now THAT is a crack!

 

Larry, sometimes you crack me up!

 

I’m with staining. Given the wear on the jaw and cheek bone I would expect “crack” to be flatter across the face if raised.

 

I cleaned the coin to see if it was the stain causing the line. It is not the discoloration. It is a break, maybe in the beginning stage. Here is another pic,

 

Please show us any crack that has smooth lines like this. Don't think you will find one.

 

Looks like a clean stain now.

 

When a die has its first break, is it dramatic in the beginning? Or does it gradually get worst with each strike? I'll have someone check it out in hand. Thanks.

 

It looks raised and a bit wavy to me. I'd wait for more specialists to chime in. Good luck

 

May have even been etched by something acidic on the "clean" side of the coin. It just doesn't have the look of a crack at all, and there would be no reason for the coin to be a different color on either side of a crack.

 

Bingo.

 

Cracks in a hard metal like tool steel tend to be jagged and irregular. The gentle curves on your coin isn't what you would expect from the metallurgy.

However, it's not unreasonable to believe that whatever caused the environmental discoloration left a light ridge either by corrosion or residue.

Don't you think it's strange that the discoloration goes right up to the "crack"?

 

Who cleans a coin to find out if it has a crack? That should end this right there.

 

I do. Thank you very much!

 

If the argument has to do with the stain, get rid of the stain. Make sense to me.

 

You've received responses from members that are very knowledgeable of the minting process, errors/varieties, chemistry, and metallurgy. It's your choice if you choose not to believe the information.

So far, nothing you have presented is a convincing explanation that you have a die crack, IMO

 

You violated the cardinal rule, dude. Just to make a point to a bunch of strangers. You asked what we think and we said it. Now we think you don’t know what in the world you’re doing.

 

I will end with this, a bi-level die crack could explain the difference in color since one side of the crack has sunk below surface. If you don't address my question with an educated guess, then I'm inclined not to except your response. It's not personal, I'm still learning.

 

It appears as the bottom half of the coin at the crack is sunken slightly.

 

Your second set of photos have pushed me 100% to stain caused by some sort of corrosive substance - the lines are too fluid for a crack, and there appears to be some evidence of pitting on the darker side.