I have a question on a bicentennial quarter that I have found. The first quarter is the one that I believe has an error on it current I am new to the group and new to coin collecting but I believe I have found significant error. The first bicentennial quarter if you look down at the neck it appears that it is missing part of the throat. The second picture is there to compare
This is due to die wear. As the die strikes coins the dies are often removed and polished to prolong them or remove unwanted characteristics.
Not at all. A bicentennial quarter either needs to be a conditional rarity, or it needs to be a very nice looking DDO to be worth over face value. These were hoarded by the public, it's a spender.
Die polishing is part of the maintenance cycle to increase the longevity of usage of the die. This polishing smooths out rough surfaces that have been creating in the minting process. It also can make details softer, and make things disappear such as the "floating roof" cents where the side support of the roofs disappear. Floating heads (ie, soft neck details) can also occur.
It is a misnomer to say that the line seen on a business strike coin is caused by Die Polishing when they are in fact caused by Die Cleaning. Coin dies are polished to remove scratches in the surface of a die in order to produce a proof-like coin. It is a very skilled and time consuming process. Die Cleaning is an action done to the dies while they are in service to remove debris so the dies can produce a better looking coin. This is a very aggressive action that uses course grit sanding that in turn leaves lines scratched into the dies and can also remove some of the design elements.
Did you start searching for mint errors to make money? Is that your goal? You will find that many issues you will find are so minor that there is very little or no premiums at all. Good luck.
I have collected a long time ago and enjoyed it. I'm retired due to crohns disease and I have been picking up little Hobbies to keep me busy and keep my mind off of not working anymore after working 33 years. I am mainly doing it for that reason and if I make a little money on the way that would be great as well.
