So I have a silver proof 2012 set and one of the dollars has something that looks like a piece of small wire or maybe thread. Recently I bought a 2011 silver proof set and again on a dollar found some foreign object. Can anyone tell me for sure what it is and how it ended up there?
The Cleveland looks like a hair. Just open the case and use a meat baster or ear bulb to blow the hair off then close it up again. Do not blow on the coins with your breath. Proof Coin cases have not been "sealed" since 1999.
The 2012 set I ordered directly from the mint so I know for sure it was not tampered with. I am not going to open these cases. I will leave them how they are. Looking at it under my cheap digital scope I have, it does not look like a piece of hair. It actually looks like a thin piece of wire or maybe even a thread. As you can tell in the picture it appears to be lying on the coin which is why you can see the shadows underneath it. Whether or not it is actually stuck to the coin or not is a mystery right now. The cool thing about it is the Johnson one has what appears to be something exactly like the other. Which leads me to believe it is something left over from the process of these coins getting packaged from the mint. I'm curious as to what would leave these things behind and what it is made of. If it is in fact a thin wire then one could assume that the coin is probably damaged or flawed from this being packaged with this on it and not only it would be a mint error but you would have the culprit encased with the coin which to me is really cool. If it's a piece of thread from the mint that falls off time to time from sort of process they have, well that to me would be pretty cool. Since I found two sets like this I can only imagine there are more.... but the questions still remain. What exactly are these, how did these coins get through quality control, and how many others are there out there like these?
Mint Error? I think not. Its just debris that was packaged with the coin. Packaging often employs the use of robotics as does quality control. But as with anything in the manufacturing arena, things can and often do go wrong. Personally, I would not lament over the fact that something is in the package as much as I would remove whatever the contaminant might be. Hair, wire, whatever, simply to insure the integrity of the coin. With these Proof Sets from 1999 until now, opening the cover and removing the debris is a simple act.
I guess you're not understanding why I like these so much. These are out of silver proof sets. Yes they are in fact an error from the mint because those things are not supposed to be in there. The mint let them through and sent them on so yes in fact it is an error. The mints quality control are not supposed to let them come through like that. If you don't like them thats fine but I do and am curious what these things are. Finding out more on what they are will help to know if they are stuck to the coin without even opening the casings. I let the dealers who lack the appreciation of silver proof sets continue to break there's open and lower the mintage of these sets. As a collector I think telling someone to break these sets open is absurd and that these sets should stay together exactly how they came. I have no idea why dealers seem to think it is more apealling to break these sets open and try to sell them as graded coins. This to me ruins the set completely. I could care less on the grade of these coins in the sets. But if in fact that is a piece of metal then there would be a scratch if it was removed. That scratch would be an error on the mints part. and you would have proof in this case of what exactly caused it. To me that is pretty cool. Whether or not anyone else thinks so is up to each person. I dont look to sell these anyways so value isn't as important to me as the story is behind these mistakes. But doesn't seem like anyone who has seen this can give me an answer as to what these are yet.
Yes they are an "error" but a packaging error not a mint error. And yes they shouldn't get through quality control, but that just tells you the QC isn't as high as it should be (For one thing the QC is applied mostly to the coins not the packaging. Premium value pretty much zilch and over time the foreign material could actually damage the coins and reduce the value. As to the "Breaking up" of the sets, the holders are not sealed and can be opened and closed with no damage to the holder or any trace that the set was opened. Sure you can open up and disburse a silver set and in theory cause the surroundin sets to increase in value, but you can also take an empty holder put the coins back in it and voila an new "original" set that can't be told from one straight from the mint. So opening the holder to remove potentially damaging material and the reclosing it could be considered a smart move.
It is not an error from the mint. It is a packaging defect and opening the plastic lens does not require any "breaking" at all. These have tops and bottoms and the tops are NOT sealed on so removing the top is as easy as opening a can of pringles. As such, removing the hair or contaminant does nothing to "lower the mintage of these sets" but instead preserves the integrity of the coin. You asked what caused this and with the Cleveland, I told you. These are not packaged in clean rooms and occasionally, contaminants do get introduced which, up until 1999, presented a problem. The Johnson, however, is a different story since that appears to be a die scratch which could not be removed without damaging the coin. That one, could be considered a mint error, but not the Cleveland. But, you'll never really know until you look at the coin with out the plastic now will you? Since were on the subject, I've got a 1972-S Proof Eisenhower Dollar that has a bug entombed with it in the OGP. Note how the contaminant has clouded the surface of the coin? But, since these slabs were actually "glued" shut, removing the bug would literally "break" the plastic slab. Would a "bug" in the OGP be considered a "mint error" coin?
That's awesome!! I wouldn't open any set or incasing of any coin that came directly from the mint. that devalues it in my opinion and I won't by a set if I know or see that there are any signs that the casings were tampered with. And so what if that piece is embedded into the coin? That would not be a mint error either? Just normal everyday stuff. Years from now someone may break it open and find out for sure but in the mean time I'm looking for an answer as to exactly what these are. Also worth noting is they are similar in color to the coins themselves. You can't say it's not a mint error when you have no idea what it is. Lol.
