1857 Flying Eagle Cent Unc~untoned~Beautiful BU Surfaces

Ok here's my question ..Just ran across this coin on the net as you can see from the title untoned/Unc/ BU surfaces. I am not familiar with Flying eagle cents series as a collector, however My eyes see's a lot of issues with this coins strike and wear. I won't post links to the sale or seller but am I wrong or is this coin far from being Unc/ as well as a very weak strike? Again I'm asking to educate myself as well as others .

 

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Definatley weak strike. I'm not sure on wear, the reverse looks like it could be wear. Would like to hear from the experts because I'm always on the lookout for a nice flyine eagle.

 

I like it, I'm no expert. I do see some touches of wear just behind the eagles head feathers. other than that it's nice.

 

I would grade it AU58 however I bet NGC would put a MS62 on it if it were sent to them. The strike is very weak on the reverse, and I do see the slightest wear on the feathers.

 

Question - how about the color, is that a normal shade for an AU example?

 

Color looks MS to me. But I do see slight wear. it looks pretty lustrous from the pics provided as well.

 

If you look at the wheat stalks and ribbon on the rev you can see wear....and as mention the obv wear on feathers weak strike.

 

gorgeous grade, looks cleaned that orange looks funky/ or is it just a flash photograph ? still a gorgeous grade. nice find.

 

FEs were known for weak strikes(especially the reverse) so it is not uncommon to find FEs in Unc. condition with weak wreaths or words (such as ONE CENT).

However, the color looks extremely suspicious to me. I haven't been on ebay for awhile, but that style of photography looks like the signature style of KrytoniteComic's. If he photographed it then I can assume that the coin will look like such under ideal conditions/lighting. If that's an accurate display of the coin's luster and color then I would be 99% positive that the coin's been dipped/recolored. A FE in full, bright BU condition should have more luster; the coin pictured has a lot of muted/flat luster; especially on the reverse. The color is also off; FEs are Copper-Nickel composition; a bright BU example would have more of a silvery tinge to it instead of a bright Red look of Indian head cents.

Just my two cents about this one cent.

 

FEs were known for weak strikes(especially the reverse) so it is not uncommon to find FEs in Unc. condition with weak wreaths or words (such as ONE CENT).

However, the color looks extremely suspicious to me. I haven't been on ebay for awhile, but that style of photography looks like the signature style of KrytoniteComic's. If he photographed it then I can assume that the coin will look like such under ideal conditions/lighting. If that's an accurate display of the coin's luster and color then I would be 99% positive that the coin's been dipped/recolored. A FE in full, bright BU condition should have more luster; the coin pictured has a lot of muted/flat luster; especially on the reverse. The color is also off; FEs are Copper-Nickel composition; a bright BU example would have more of a silvery tinge to it instead of a bright Red look of Indian head cents.

Just my two cents about this one cent.

 

Looks like a fairly typically weakly struck AU FEC. I don't have a problem with the color.

 

First off, I'm not a copper expert (nor an "expert" in anything, really), but my "opinion" is that it is MS64-MS65 with a weak strike. I say that because of the detail of the wingtips and breast feathers.

To me, the surfaces appear natural with nice luster...but it's hard to tell without having the coin "in hand". If I were considering buying this coin based on the advertised condition, I would elicit the advice of a professional.

Depending on the price, I would prefer a more fully struck example.

 

I'm not sure I'm seeing any wear. The image is really bright. That makes me question how close the color is. I would have to see more images or hold the coin before I bought it.

 

The color is not original, but seeing no major hairlines, it would probably grade. No century and a half old copper coin is going to have full red surfaces if it is original, and NO true AU-58 should have full red.

 

Sad but true. I was in a coin shop, and I was looking at slabbed commems, and most of the "NGC MS-62" coins were cleaned AU-55s. One word. Gradeflation.

 

No flying eagle cent is going to be RED. Many may forget that they (as well as IHCs prior to 1863) are copper-nickel and the original mint color is actually more golden than red due to the alloy. It is also that harder alloy that accounts for the weaker strikes of these early small cents.

 

Here's another thread with some useful info/photos of this type of coin:

http://www.cointalk.com/t183075/

 

You get the idea.

 

yes, I do, but I didn't want anyone else to get the wrong one due to bad information

 

Food for thought....If you had a coin as such in your possession and wished to sell it ,and it was everything you're saying it is...then why would you not have it graded by a TPG to obtain the highest price and assure your buyer of its quality?
This is a question I always ask my self before laying out big bucks for a coin of that nature.