im gonna say AU, there is alot going on with that coin, smudges, dark spots, not sure what they are and if they will lower the grade but i would assume so, so that is MHO. nice coin none-the-less, I would say it values for about $4 bucks, but since i am such a nice guy i will offer you $10 for it.:whistle:
Bruce, You sure that 09-s VDB is genuine? I only ask because the S mintmark looks a little big and there seems to be a large amount of red coloring, which would imply AU or higher, but the details are not as crisp as you would expect. I have seen this first hand on some chinese counterfeits coming off of Ebay. Also, if you have a closer shot of the VDB, it would help. Just so you know, it very well could be genuine, I would need to see it in hand. Jim
something is off with those angles of the photograph. I can't see the whole lincoln cent, either it was shot that way to hide a problem, or the fact that its a counterfeit.
I'll post better photos soon. I left my good camera at work, charging my only battery. I have to use some other camera. Bruce
The angle makes it tough to tell. My personal feeling is that there is a 99% chance it is counterfeit. 1. The mintmark looks completely wrong, the serifs are either way too small or missing entirely. 2. Look at the loops of the 9's in the date. They look bold and fully connected to the stem of the 9. 3. On your coin, the 1 in the date appears to have a flag on it. On genuine coins, the 1 has no flag, and is essentially just a straight line. That's what it looks like from your pictures. The wear on the obverse doesn't look right, neither do the rims. AZJack will be able to help out with these. If I'm wrong, I would be very surprised.
Not sure on if it's genuine or not, but the color looks quite a bit off. Look forward to the better pics. Phoenix
The biggest issues I see with this coin, in order: 1. F details, AU+ color -- often seen on fakes (Chinese counterfeits from ebay in particular) 2. MM is in correct location, but seems too big, and the serifs seem off. Do you see a chip missing in the inside upper loop of the S? 3. The area just inside the edge on the obverse and reverse seems "uneven" and maybe kinda of "bubbly" (although this is tough to see from the photos). This is consistent with a cast. 4. The B in the VDB doesn't seem to be quite right (but again, a better picture would help). I can't see the angle of the middle branch of the B, but it doesn't seem right. The B also looks like it lacks the right detail and spacing for. Do you have the PCGS counterfeit guide? If so, take a look and see if your coin matches up with the genuine specimens in the book. I still say there is a small chance this is genuine, and we are just getting a weird angled picture and the lighting and focus were off.
The details are much more than F though, even at that angle. That being said, it should be assumed that any raw SVDB is fake until proven otherwise.
I don't know...I can't see any seperation on the stalks (maybe I need better eyes). The hair and head are VFish-XFish, but not the wheat stalks. I think this is why I'm leaning toward a fake.
See what you're saying, but I imagine this is a bad picture. The wheat grains look really well defined and I can sort of see the lines, picture is just too small.
Don't know if it's a weird camera thing or what, but to me it seems the whole date itself is on a horizontal allignment that is about 40 degrees off from the rest of the coin. Seems a bit fishy. Guy~
And the final answer is... I'm not going to slab this coin as it IS a counterfeit coin.:whistle: The people on CoinTalk are as sharp as can be. I knew you'd ID it as a fake so I misspelled Lincoln in the first title of this thread. This is one of a small collection of fake, retooled and altered coins that I like to collect. No, I didn't get taken by paying SVDB prices. Maybe these photos are clearer.
I wouldn't buy a key coin without it being slabbed either. There are way too many fakes out there so why put up big bucks with that doubt in your mind. Bruce
I will dig out my pics of all 4 09-SVDB obverse dies. I cannot post them here because they are copyrighted, but I will be glad to send by email to anyone who asks. I have a busy weekend, so I may miss your pm's untill late Sunday or Monday evening, but I will reply and send pics.....
