LordM 2026 FUN show report (live updates from the floor)

He has good videos on YouTube. Has had many specialists and covers tons of topics.

 

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Nice thread. I hope the Thaler grades well!!

 

I did not click like on each of your posts, so give yourself an additional 30 likes off the books!

 

My all time favorite coin.

 

I ran into Dan late night at the hotel on Saturday. We were in the smoking area above the pool. It was nice and quite and were able to talk for a while. Really cool guy. He is a walking text book. Didn't know he is a teacher.

 

Sorry I missed you Rob. I was watching for you. Don't know how I missed that hat. I did see Randy. We were both resting our feet outside. I was worn out mid day on Saturday and went back to the hotel. The smoking area there was like a coin show. Folks there were passing around 35K coins. This was the best FUN Show I have ever been to. I may do the FUN summer show.

 

Thanks for the entertaining thread. I'm amused by the Gallery Mint's presses being "Invincible No. 1" models.

I'm reminded of an old movie quote (probably Mel Brooks?) where the bad guy unleashes his "Indestructible 2" machine and the good guys ask "What happened to Indestructible 1?"

 

Gallery Mint was set up right across the aisle from my coin club's table, the Central Florida Coin Club - an unabashed plug there.

For those who did not have a chance to get to Gallery Mint's table, herewith a recap of what they were doing:

They endeavored, successfully, to reproduce live the actual way that coins were produced from the Mint's inception in 1793 up to it's move to the Second Mint in 1836.

Note: They performed all the following steps at the table, in full view, with the machinery they brought with them.

First, they were melting, at the table, an alloy of tin, antimony, bismuth and a tiny amount of silver - melting point of the allow 485F. Yes, silver doesn't melt at that temperature and they told me they added it just to add a little strength.

Then they poured the melt into molds to create ingots.

Then they rolled the ingots in a rolling machine into strips about 1-1/4" wide by about 36" long.

Strips went over to the planchet cutting press. Both the planchet cutter and the coin press were the same basic machine, which they told me were small presses that were typically used by jewelers and similar artisans. Small enough for transport and cutting and striking white metal alloys.

The planchet blanks were then moved over to the Castaing Machine. This was obviously a modern incarnation of the 18th century device. It's purpose is to round the blank, upset the edge, and impart the edge devices/lettering. It does so using almost parallel straight bars that are engraved with the devices/lettering.

The planchet then goes to the final step, the coin press. The planchet cutter press and the coin press are both C-frame machines with a large ACME screw and a double-ball weighted bar at the top. The turn/spin the bar which lowers the screw and cuts the planchet or stamps the coin. In this case, they were manually placing the planchet atop the fixed die and then lowering the upper die into it. This was done in this case without a collar so as to make coin striking quicker and easier. Plus the low force required to strike the white metal allow did not really require a collar. Nonetheless, due to various factors, they occasionally struck slightly off-center tokens.

The result was, as @lordmarcovan showed, a beautiful little souvenir token. I was delighted to get one and to discuss their setup at some length with some very nice people.

If they set up at a show, I'd strongly recommend you take a look, as this is probably the closest any of us will get to the actual minting that took place at the First U.S. Mint.

 

WOW. That I would've liked to see!

(I might have needled them a little bit about not starting with ore instead of metals. But refining produces gasses that can get a little stinky. Right before they kill everyone in the room.)

 

Great to see you, sir!

 

Always my pleasure!

 

Dang LordM.... That eagle is super sexy..... Yes, @messydesk absolutely does some first class work.

 

I like the chain cent.

 

No he didn’t. I had just bought that one and didn’t even think about it when I saw Him. Dang!