Saw this on eBay and decided to gamble on it. Seller's pictures are below. These Franklins are part of a complete 1963 mint set being sold still sealed in its original cellophane. Think it would/will hit a FBL grade with PCGS? I'm 99% sure that the '63-D (first picture) is FBL and am not sure about the '63-P, since TPG's seem to be more lenient on the FBL for tougher dates, such as the P mints for '61-'63. Thoughts?
Based on the pics I'm going to say no on both as they both appear to have lines, hits, scratches (pick your word) across the lines.
You may have a slim chance on the first but not the second at PCGS. Neither would get FBL designation from NGC. TC
UPDATE: I finally received the mint set in the mail. Both coins are FBL with a bit of scuffing on each; the scans that the seller posted (the OP pictures) don't show the separation of the lines the greatest. Unfortunately, the 1963-D has some deep gashes on the obverse, including a deep streak across his head making it appear that Franklin had a recent lobotomy. Good news is that the 1963-P appears to be in good shape and after viewing pictures of various MS65 FBL and MS64 FBL pictures of 1963-P Franklings I believe this has a shot at gem (65) grade...here are some quick pictures I took below of the '63-P (I apologize for the lack of quality as my computer is down and cannot crop/edit the photos!)
I collect pictures of Franklins that look like they were graded by crackheads. Your coins look 1,000,000 times better than this piece of junk that they put in a FBL holder.
no on both There's too many hits for FBL and the coin has too many hits for MS-65 but that's just one man's opinion
Thanks for all your input. Here is a picture of a 1963P MS65FBL that PCGS graded and decided to post on their CoinFacts site. Wear/hit wise, this coin is similar to the OP one. It has notable scuffing on Franklin's cheek, hair, and bust, and a couple of coin rim hits on the reverse Bell. Here is a picture of a 61P MS64FBL that PCGS graded and decided to post on their CoinFacts site as well. By all means this one should not have the FBL designation either. I think Toaster hit it on the head with the picture of the Not-FBL-But-Graded-FBL coin. After viewing a lot of other '60s-P Franklin FBLs in PCGS's registry and CoinFacts pages, it seems to be hit-or-miss for the FBL designation. Ultimately, I think I'm going to send mine in to get slabbed solely for the educational purpose if not for an unlikely profit as well. Thanks again for all the responses! I definitely learned a lot about Franklins and FBLs researching them.
PCGS plays the "grade by pop" and "grade by value" game. Its a crap shoot.I sent in a 53-S.First try MS64.Second try MS65.Third try MS65+. Sent in 2 1949-S Frankies.They got MS64 and MS65 on the first try.Both got MS65FBL on the second try. Sent in a 1982 Large Date Zinc Lincoln.Compared to the plate coins on the PCGS site,the coin was superior.Of course since a MS68RED grade would make the coin worth big $$$,they gave it a 67+. The plate coin example of a MS68RED has HUGE GASHES on the eyebrow. Crap Shoot I Tell Ya.
