I bought $15 worth of Half Dollars last week on my bank run, and went through all the other coins, but not the Kennedys. So I go through them tonight so I can make my bank run tomorrow and found this coin pic 1&2. :bigeyes: When picking it up, it was about 35% to 40% lighter....very obvious to the naked hand (I don't have a scale). I then looked at it closer and it is thicker than a regular half (pic 3&4) , and the edge has no rounding to it at all like a regular Kennedy. Finally, in the 5th pic, I sense that the strange half is just slightly bigger around than the normal one. That 5th pic is meant to show that with the odd one behind a normal one, it is every so slightly bigger. What do you make of this? Could this be a Kennedy struck on a foreign planchet? Opinions please....
I was so caught up with the thickness and weight that I didn't even notice. Yep, it is an S MM. So, what are your thoughts on this?
Some coins may feel lighter based on color. Sometimes the mind plays tricks. If you balance a popsicle stick over a pen and put one on each side, you will know for sure. Also, its not thicker, just more fully struck and with squared off edges. I may be wrong, lets wait for others to chime in.
What you may have is a thick planchet and it's an error and can be worth a nice premium,I don't know the weight on a kennedy half dollar. The rim looks like it's doubled the thickness of a regular half. JC
I am not sure about he thickness of a Proof but should weight that same as a MS coin. but your photo sure make me want to check in to thickness of Pr to MS coinage
Without an accurate weight your observation that the coin is unusually light must be evaluated with a degree of skepticism. The edge view indicates that it is the same composition as a normal half dollar. Now, it's possible that it's a proof struck on a rolled-thin planchet, but in that case it should not be so well-struck. Your coin shows finning of the rim, which is a sign of abnormally high striking pressure. One possibly puzzling feature is that the coin shows no trace of typical proof "frosting" on the design. Can anyone tell me in what year intentional frosting was introduced?
Mike, The thin Kennedy is the normal Half Dollar and the thick one is the subject of the OP's Thread! I have seen some thick Kennedy Halfs before but never one as thick as that one! I am not sure if the Mints were producing coins for other Countries in 1983 but I don't think that it is thicker than normal planchet stock. To be almost twice as thick as and possibly lighter in weight than a normal Kennedy Half, then wouldn't it have to have been struck on a Foreign coin planchet or "Struck Over" a Foreign Coin? Frank
I know the coin with the thick-appearing edge is the allegedly underweight specimen. You can find normal-weight coins with this appearance in all denominations and it's due to finning of the rim. The thickness of a coin's edge is a poor guide to its overall thickness and weight.
OK, I feel stupid. They both weigh the same. My son, my wife and me all thought it was significantly lighter. Weird. The coin shop just said that the rims were just full, but I'm telling you it looks really weird and looks quite a bit wider. My local coin shop is terrible about asking questions, though. They act as though you are putting them out. And it is not like I haven't spent money in there. Anyway, it weighs the same, but it is a proof, and it is wider as the pics show. I still say it is strange....
It is counterintuitive but the greater striking pressure and the double striking done on the proof coins make them "thicker". Most people would thi that if you strike the planchet with greatpressure you would make it thinner, but it actually results in the edge and rim being more fully struck up to its full squared off thickness and in the case of this coin the metal is actually squeezing out between the collar and the die making the edge thicker still. On a regular pressure strike the metal preses against the collar and forms the reeds, but the edge and rim are almost never fully struck up so instead of the wide square edge you get a bevel fom the rims down to the reeds and a thiner appearance.
One side of the edge of the smaller one seems to be rounder(not fully struck?)...I think if the reeding went all the way it would look alot closer to the size of the thicker one.
