Kennedy halves typically bore the snot outta me, but I needed a type coin and it’s from my birthyear.
I remember that when these first appeared, some thought that Gilroy Robert's initials (underside of Kennedy's neck) was a communist hammer and sickle.
I thought it was some kind of weird twisted wire attachment, as though to mount the head on a mannequin. (Bear in mind I was six or seven years old at the time and knew nothing about coins OR mannequins.)
Yep. No matter what grade you get, it still looks just like him, lol. Just joking. To be doing something, I completed the set from 1964-2025. But, the most important thing I took away from your post, the year you were born is the year I graduated high school, lol!
I'm old and slow. Guess that could look like it took me that long to complete the set. But, I didn't hurry. I worked on the set for a couple of years. Found a few proofs that had gotten into the circulating group, and found a 1987 D that was mint set only, if I remember right, but I was missing several common dates that weren't circulating in my area. I saw an opportunity to buy a group of uncirculated coins that covered all the ones I was missing and then some, so that's what I did. That was in 2025. So I just completed that set. Still not excited about the design, but glad I completed it since 2025 was the last year, I guess? If they start back with the Kennedy Half in 2027, I don't plan on picking it back up. I'll let 2025 end it for me.
I was being a little hard on the coin, by a tad LM. The 65 SMS coins are definitely more difficult to find as cameo. The surfaces tended to be mostly satin and there wasn't much distinction between the fields and the devices. That sets your coin apart from the majority of them. It's a real pretty coin, I just think that they were too lenient on the large scuff up and down the cheek. Here is a quote from NGC on the SMS coins struck between 65 and 67. "Since the coins did not receive special handling between the time of coining and the time of packaging, contact marks are not unusual for these issues, making very high-grade examples quite rare." United States Special Mint Set Coins | NGC
Love the coin you chose. Actually I've been hunting for that exact issue myself 1965 SMS. I've included that special finish within my overall typeset has a unique type within the Kennedy series. I've already purchased a few but I'm not sure I'm completely satisfied with them. I also think sometimes the grading services get it wrong and grade and normal business strike as an SMS since essentially there's no way to tell them apart of there is no cameo effect, except for like a squared off rim. (Please correct me if I'm wrong). I see some SMS graded coins that very much look like business strikes, especially in 1965. Perhaps I should have just started with a coin like yours so there could be no mistaking it.
Those are the satiny surfaces that I spoke about above. The cameo is hard to find especially for the 65.
