I've been having a hard time with this one. Take a look at the scans. They've got this blue tint to them due to my scanner. It's 1881-O. Reverse: http://img244.imageshack.us/img244/9499/untitled1np3.jpg Obverse: http://img322.imageshack.us/img322/8030/untitled2pr5.jpg
It's very hard to tell from the scans, because luster is a factor in grading (the blue tint interferes with this). But, I'm thinking MS63 as a technical grade, although there may be some wear which would put this AU50-55 depending on luster. I'd like to see this in hand. Also, this coin may have been cleaned a little too heavily. Nice coin though!
It looks like it's seen just a hint or wear. That would knock it out of MS range, but I'll give it an AU-58. Very nice coin. Take Care Ben
Here are some pics from my camera to show the lustre. Unfortunately they turned out blurry a bit but the scans should help with the detail. Reverse: http://img117.imageshack.us/img117/6201/dsc00575tz2.jpg Obverse: http://img117.imageshack.us/img117/9504/dsc00576dv8.jpg
I just looked up the 81-o in the VAM book. The 81-O's are usually fully struck, so this coin may actually have just a little wear. I also noticed some possible wear around the point of the cap. Judging from the luster, I think this coin would be an easy AU55-58. If there is no wear, I'm still sticking to a 63 (all my opinion).
The coin appears to have AU details, but if it were sent to NGC or PCGS I think it would be body-bagged because of the scratches on the obverse.
I too looked it up. THere is no indication of weak strikes that I can find. I see some wear above the ear on obverse and on hair above eye. Close call, but I'd say AU 55. IMHO Again, hard to tell from the scans.
I would not grade this in MS. Plus, there are some distracting marks on the obverse. Still a nice coin though. -Rob
My opinion would be about AU52 to AU54, with damage. Which would be rejected by some grading companies, however the coin does show signs of a weak strike. How you recognize these issues, particularly those of the branch mints, often come weakly struck on the eagle's breast, and allowance must be made for grading these in this type of instances. I located this information in an old photograde book.
