Modern Kennedy Halves: not all are created equally...or are they?

I recently picked up a lot of modern Kennedy's.
I really don't know how these stack up compared to the average Kennedy half leaving the mint since I haven't had much experience with them.
However, I thought I would share some that really seem to stand out.
Blazing luster, great tones and overall extremely clean, making them very eye appealing.

I'm curious as to what Kennedy collectors think about these. Standard fair or what?

 

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Great batch of coins gbroke!

 

Very nice Kennedy's, and some Nice toning too.

 

Lovely coins! Every one is a keeper!

 

alot of bu kennedys i have seen are full of bag/reed marks

 

Very nice.

Most appear to be mint set coins and select examples at that.

With Kennedys the finest examples are clean at the top of the shield as some of theseappear to be.

 

I'd say that these are great for coins from the 90's...seems to be easier to find them from the 80's and back in good shape, but I'd "keep" yours if I came across them...

 

You are definetly right, the first couple appear to have been man handled. I actually didn't notice the prints until I saw the image.
I also believe that fingerprints don't necessarily detract from the grade. Maybe someone can correct/educate me on that.

Thanks for the info. Are the mint set coins handled any differently at the mint?

 

I also feel like the coins in the mint sets still have lots of bag marks and scuffs on them. Even the Mint Roll NIFC coins I have are marked up...but yours are pretty clean. And I'm willing to bet you got them for a song...good purchase!

 

"Everything" is different with mint set coins. Dies are changed frequently so they're always new and the coins are struck more slowly and under higher pressure. Many of the planchets are polished and many of the dies are basined. Some dies recieve other treatment like frosting. All mint set coins are washed and dried.

But, they aren't necessarily superior to regular issue strikes and some are just mangled in the process. Like 99% of the '80-D mint set half dollars have shallow scrapes.

As a rule if you want a Gem modern looking in mint sets is like shooting fish in a barrel while finding them in the wild can be impossible. About 2% of mint set coins are Gem and about .05% of regular issues are Gem. The problem is that many of these coins are almost impossible to find in rolls because people didn't save clad and nickel availability is spotty. Even cents aren't extremely common for all dates.

 

My understanding is that all planchets are processed through a bath and dried; not just those bound for mint sets.

 

My comment--first two have fingerprints. The others are strong gem condition, and very high-end Kennedys, with lovely toning. I would think they are definitely superior coins, clad or Silver--that isn't an issue in the beauty of the coin. These are so far above average MS that they are at the upper end of Kennedy eye appeal.

 

Perhaps I should have said that so far as I know all mint set coins are washed and dried. The information on mint set coins and packaging is very hard to come by. Tom Delorey reported that the coins are washed in a cleaning solution and then dried in a sort of cement mixer with crushed corn cobs. There is some doubt that this necessarily applies to all mint set coins and 1968 cents usually tarnish which might indicate they weren't cleaned.

If you poke through a bag of new coins your hands (fingers) will turn black. This doesn't happen with mint set coins.

 

The vast majority of mint set coins are marked. Some are severely marked and most are lightly marked but better than 98% have marks. Most marks appear to be from collisions but there are also scrapes and dings.

Only about 2% of mint set coins are Gem. But this is far better than coins made for circulation and the Gems made for circulation are far less likely to have good strikes from new dies. Finding Gems in mint sets is like shooting fish in a barrel but there's still a lot of "water" even in the barrel.