I don't know if it's an error or not yet, as I have only seen 2 Jefferson coins yet, but the edge writing is upside down on one of them. That is, if the coin is laying flat on a table, with the obverse up, on 1 coin the writing is right-side-up, and the other coin, laying in the same position, the writing is upside down. Is that common? I haven't really looked at many dollar coins yet. Thanks for the input.
There is no such thing as upside-down edge lettering on Business Strike Presidential Dollar coins. The edge lettering is applied randomly. (For Proof Pres Dollars the edge lettering IS applied in a particular orientation because the process is entirely different.)
Would you be so kind as to explain.. in a point form explanation of the differences? Or a site I could go to?
Business Strike Pres Dollars are made in a two-step process. In Step 1 the obverse and reverse images are pressed into the planchet (like any other coin) creating a coin with a smooth edge. In Step 2 the coins are fed through a machine that applies the edge lettering. The coins are run through that machine with no attention to their orientation. So about 50% of the coins will have the edge lettering applied in one orientation and about 50% will have the edge lettering applied in the other orientation. Proof Pres Dollars, on the other hand, are made in a one-step process where the edge lettering is applied at the same time the coin is struck. This is accomplished using a segmented collar what contains the edge lettering. After the coin has been struck the segmented collar opens up to release the coin. So all Proof Pres Dollars will have the edge lettering applied in the same orientation.
I was at a coin show last year, and a coin dealer was selling both varieties of each pres. dollar released so far. I was aware that there really is no such thing as varieties like this, I was amazed that a coin dealer thought people would actually fall for this. I proceded to a different dealer with standards.
There are those collectors out there that do collect both orientations of the rim lettering. PCGS goes as far as to slab these coins as "Pos A" and "Pos B" (I am sure NGC does something similar) Anyway, if you look at the PCGS registry for the Presidential dollars. They list four different UNC sets. 1. Presidential Dollars Basic Set, Circulation Strikes and Statin Finish 2. Presential Dollars with Major Varieties, Circulation Strikes and Satin Finish 3. Presidential Dollars with Major Varieties, Satin Finish 4. Presidential Dollars Complete Variety Set, Circulation Strikes and Satin Finish. The variety sets include, Pos A and B, Missing edge lettering, doubled edge lettering, etc....
Hobo.........Is that really your picture??? You have a stunning resemblance to the Illinois Govenor....Blagojovich (sp?). He's on the news so much it just caught my eye. And, no offense meant. Also, I agree on the 50/50 orientation of the circulation strikes vs. Proof strikes.
LOL! Hobo wishes he looked that good! That IS the Illinois Governor! Hobo... he's such a jokester!:kewl:
I'm still not convinced. It sounds like another way to empty out the overfilled [with presidential dollars] bank vaults.:secret:
Since the edge lettering is part of the design, there are collectors that believe different orientations are indeed varieties that should be collected. I doubt that either orientation has a cost premium over the other, so what's the harm? If someone wants to collect two of everything rather than one, does anyone really care? Also, is it really any different from recognizing a San Fransisco mint coin with an upside down mint mark as a collectable variety?
Yes it is different. It is different because that mint mark was not supposed to be upside down - it was a mistake. The orientation of the edge lettering on the modern dollar coins is not a mistake. It was left to chance intentionally. But if people want to collect them - more power to them.
