Please guess the grade of the 1959 Franklin Half Dollar shown below. I have attached a poll for you to cast your vote and you may select up to 3 different things: the numerical grade, Full Bell Lines, and the "+" grade Please remember to vote in the poll and choose either FBL or NO FBL. As always, comments welcome!
No 'full bell lines'.......'64 While the coin appears, lustrous, lovely, and well struck, I think there are a few hits precluding it from a '65 or better.
MS 65 FBL ....FBL by PCGS standards...very lustrous but the reverse would make me think it didn't make 66
MS65, great luster. Went back and forth on FBL, but I think the left side on that last line precludes it from the designation.
Wow, super clean obverse and sharp, crisp strike for the date. No questions asked FBL at PCGS, probably not at NGC. Luster appears off the charts. Obverse is a clear 66. Reverse, however, has that unfortunate mark under Unum, and a decent number of tickmarks. I'd call it a 64+. Overall, 65FBL at PCGS, I think.
Now thats how you grade a Franklin Half Dollar. I threw you guys a "hanging" curveball, but unfortunately most of you still whiffed. This coin was in PCGS MS65 FBL plastic but @Springford CC thought it had a shot at an upgrade, and I agreed so we cracked it out and sent it back into PCGS, and voila, MS66 FBL. Before Photo: PCGS MS65 FBL After Photo (PCGS TruView): PCGS MS66 FBL Congrats to everyone who said MS65 FBL or MS66 FBL, you hit it out of the park.
I think the angle of the lighting in the first shots over-emphasized some of the marks on the reverse. (To be fair, I'm guessing the PCGS "true view" de-emphasizes some of the marks). I very nearly said 65+, and given the two shots that's probably where I would like the coin best.
I agree, 65+ is probably the most appropriate grade, but Lehigh and I have recently discussed the reluctance of the TPGs to give 65+ vs much more common 66+. The ratio is disproportionate for 66+. Wonder if it’s because 65/65+ just doesn’t carry the same weight. Thoughts? Regardless, I was thrilled to get the 66. And here is the back story to go with it. https://www.ngccoin.com/registry/competitive-sets/217986/coins/1753254/
Haha, that was a great story. I love those sorts of stories about the thrill of the hunt, the circumstances, the people, the show. That's the sort of thing that makes a collection come alive. As for the 65+ vs 66+ - I think it probably more likely comes down to the price jump. 65FBL to 66FBL is a 10x jump, but is really only $150 to $1500. 66FBL to 67FBL is also a 10x jump..... $1500 to $15,000. I'm not sure if its a conscious effort, I'm not sure if they're trained to hedge their bets, I'm not sure if its the intention of a TPG..... but depending on which conspiracy theory you listen to, the graders are instructed to limit pop-tops and limit liabilities. It might just be that professional graders, like CT members, tend to get more conservative the higher up the scale you go, and are less likely to give the high grades when warranted. Even in my teaching profession, we have a subjective grading scale for oral interviews. The scale goes from 0.0 to 4.0.... but the vast majority of interviews are in the 2.9 - 3.2 range. Even students who are exceptional rarely crack a 3.3. Is there a reason for this? Not really - the graders are just hesitant to give out a high grade, for some reason. I wonder if the situation is similar in the grading room?
That's a fun story and certainly adds to the appeal! I've experienced similar things with certain dealers. They seem like a great source to buy or sell from and then one day it's like everything changed and you barely recognize them.