Mercury Dimes

I am seeing a lot of dimes on ebay talking about "full bands" "split bands" and other things . I'm not quite sure what they are talking about. I understand what someone asks for something and what they actually get for it is two totally different things , but I am curious as to why some of these dimes are posted with large prices when the year does not seem as one of the key years desired but has some statement like previously mentioned .... I am still going through mine and will post some soon for your judgement on if they deserve being sent for grading and such ...

 

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It has to do with the horizontal bands that hold the bundle of sticks together. If the lines are full intact (thus full bands) then it shows a superior strike of the details and this a superior coin over a a mercury of the same year that isn't FB, thus the premium for the coin.

Mercs are my favorite coin.

 

This link should offer both a fine start and interesting read.

http://blog.davidlawrence.com/index.php/reference-books/the-complete-guide-to-mercury-dimes/

 

Here is a example now even I can see mine is not the high quality but yet would this be worth grading ? or worth more than just silver value?

 

From reading the grading part of the link you sent would I be fair to assume this as vg to f? sorry for being so ignorant to this but I hope to get the knack for this to alleviate so many questions on you guys.

 

Also would it be possibley a smart thing to use severely damaged coins and recover the silver to maybe have my buddy who is a jeweler and silver smith possible set a vg to f coin in a pendant to draw more worth from it ?

 

Absolutely not - no pendants. A monumental nuisance, ultra-thin market, expensive to ship (must go as a package). Damaged junk silver, just add it to one of your rolls (if you're a stacker) or throw it into a deal. Present (silver) value $1.40 to $1.60 for damaged.

 

F-15 seems about right, however only mint state coins are eligible for the split bands designation should they deserve it. Personally, I feel that all of the designations like full bands, full torch, full head, full horn and full steps are a bit overkill and are not really the measure of strike quality that they claim to be. The only exception to this is the full head designation of standing liberty quarters. Otherwise, any small bag mark on the devices will keep the coin from the grade suffix.

 

No that coin is not FB it is nowhere near FB !! FB coins are usually Mint state coins and in some cases Au coins because the bands are the high point and any wear on the coin will remove it from the FB category, also many BU mercs dont have FB it is a special thing !!

 

Thank you guys , and that clears up the FB thing very well ... onto how to grade for worth just to see if I am getting this anywhere close could I take it that this coin grades higher than the last and might place in the high F range to low VF? Also does being a S mint mark mean anything at all like other coins?

 

I thing VF-30, but it is from Philadelphia, not San Fran which is what the S mint mark would denote.

 

Right I have others that are S marked that's why I ask

 

I plan on gathering as many coins that warrant sending off from this collection as I can then pursuing sending them away , I still have ben franklin, walking libertys, kennedys and many other types to go through ... Some of the 1964 and earlier Kennedy are really nice! as are some of the pre 1964 quarters

 

What is your intention by sending them off to be graded? Are you looking to sell them, or something else? I ask because grading is pretty pricey if the coin doesn't warrant it.

 

I may sell some ( if I found one worth a big amount or had someone that really wanted it ) and if they are truly something special that deserves it. I would like to have them graded to verify their worth and preservation. This is the main reason I came to you guys because I could spend years and not have the vast knowledge found here to help me make the decision if something is worth spending the money to grade. For instance my 1928 peace dollar .

 

The 28 Peace dollar would be a nice choice for grading, but I would strongly suggest that you make a thread of the coins that you intend to submit for grading. It can get very expensive to send in a bunch of coins only to be disappointed in the outcome. It's much better to learn on here for free before sending anything off.

 

yes over the next couple weeks, months I hope to draw out the coins I think are wroth your guys time to look at and go from there

 

quick someone post a close up of what "full split bands" looks like.

 

here's a close up of the horizontal center full split bands looks like. hope this helped you. I have some FSB merc dimes, but my camera does not get to detailed on close up pics.

 

the dates I would look out for most mercury dimes would be:
1916-D
1921
1921-D
1926-S
1931-D
1942 2 0ver 1 error
1942-D 2 over 1 error
and these would not have to be full split bands either.