I've decided to do something different than the normal guess the grade, so here it is: If this is an NGC 1949-S MS66 And this is a PCGS 1949-S MS66 Then what is the grade of this Raw 1949-S Jefferson Nickel? Please vote in the attached Poll, thank you.
I agree I thought that at first, (maybe 67+ or 68), but looking at it longer I am not a fan of Jefferson staring down that big scratch in front of him. Therefor I would say 66 even though at first glance it is a FAR superior coin.
On the first coin, besides the cheek chatter (minor) there are 3 gouges with missing metal all on the collar. The reverse is a blurry mess. The steps and Monticello (you can blame a weak strike) look terrible. If that coin is a 66 and I believe it is over graded, the second coin is a bit closer, than your coin looks to be 67. I would be at 63 and 65 on the 1st 2 coins.
When I viewed the photo, my reaction was “what the heck is that in the left obverse field?” I knew the mark was there but it almost appeared like a wipe/cleaning. Upon further inspection under a loupe, it appears only at certain angles and is very slight. I doubt that a grader would view it as a grade limiting disturbance. My photo makes it look much worse than it really is.
Both coin #1 and #2 appear to be overgraded - bumped to MS66 for color and eye-appeal...? The new coin looks like a 65 with a shot at 66. Yes, the fields are clean, but it’s short on luster and too “white” for my taste. I voted MS66 as it seems PCGS is lenient with those.
+1 I do believe if graded by NGC the grade would been a lot tighter if they still grade Jeffersons as I've experienced in the past.. ALL 3 are nice coins and perhasp the photos are more revelling that actual in hand. As some of the hits on coin #3 to my eye look worst that the op stated. I gave it a 65 based on the images..again in hand probably a 66
The sad part is that even if the coin in question comes back MS67, it still might not earn its way into my registry set.
BOTH services have tightened considerably. NGC was generally looser by 1 point; however, it is now on par with PCGS IMHO and both have tightened. I would call it an old 67, a new 66. The original old 66s probably would be 65s today.