I was looking through my silver dollars last night, I hadn't in a while. I am not an avid collector like most of you guys so excuse this dumb question. Compared to my Morgan silver dollars the Peace dollars are not nearly as attractive. They all seem to be much fainter in detail even though they are newer. Also what was the metal makeup between the Morgans and the Peace dollars? The Morgans I assume have a higher silver content. The Peace dollars are whiter and dull looking. In fact I think they are kinda ugly. Are the Eisenhower clad dollars worth keeping? I only have maybe 8 of them. Thanks, Mike
Mike, Welcome to Cointalk! Morgan and Peace dollars both have the same amount of silver content: .7734 oz per coin. However the strike and luster on BU Peace dollars is often not as sharp or brilliant as that seen on BU Morgan dollars. You can sell the clad Ikes for a dollar a piece generally if they're circulated. It they're mint state coins, you might get a little more. But I'd hold onto them just because they are cool.
Well I think the Peace dollar looks good too. As far as why the Morgan looks better, I have noticed too that a lot of Peace dollars look like weaker strikes. Also for some reason the Peace dollar doesn't tone as much as the Morgans. The only thing I can think of is that since the Peace was issued later many were circulated. While a lot of Morgan dollars were kept in bags and stored in bank vaults.
I love the peace dollar, Just picked a 1923 today and it has some vague tonning going on. They do have a weaker strike next to the Morgan but They were a great coin for the era and the Gangsters loved em. I'll post pics of mine later tonight in a different thread.
Yes there are Peace dollars known for weak strikes. But there are even more Morgan dollars known for weak strikes. The reason the Peace dollars are fainter in detail is because they have a lower relief than the Morgan dollars, not because of weak strikes. They were really the beginning of the trend for the low relief coins we have today. And yes the Peace dollars have an entirely different luster, not less luster - different luster - than Morgan dollars do. And it is that difference in luster that explains the difference in toning between Morgans and Peace dollars. But that difference in luster was completely by design, it isn't caused by weak strikes either.
A coin dealer once told me that the difference between the way Peace dollars and Morgan dollars tone is due to the way the Mint prepared the planchets.
There's all kinds of theories and different explanations that have been used over the years. But a simple examination of the various types of luster found on all of the different series of coins over the years, and the way those coins tone, quickly proves that luster is the real answer.
I have a recommendation for you, LSMODELS. Save up your money and but a 1921 peace dollar in MS63 or higher. In my opinion, this is how the whole series should have been minted.
