I'm on the hunt for a 1882-O/S...and seeing the term "strong" and "weak". Does this have to do with the strike of the "O/S" mintmark? and is strong better than weak? Is this a die that was once used at the San Francisco mint, then sent to New Orleans? Thanks.
The nder mintmark can be weak, or easier to see. Th edie was (?) probably sent to New Orleans with the wrong MM
Strong is usually better than weak but it depends on the coin and MM involved. A word of caution, don't try altering one yourself.
So, if the die/s was originally made with an "S" MM, did the engravers at New Orleans mint try to fill it in, then retool the die with an "O" MM? Or did they just retool over the "S"?
It was repunched with an O in Philadelphia. If you are looking for a nice, strong O/S, you want the VAM 3, which is what the TPGs call "strong" (VAMs 4 and 5 are called "weak"). All three varieties are valued the same, although there are rare, early die stages known for each variety which are worth considerably more, especially the EDS of the VAM 4. The dies probably wouldn't have been returned form San Francisco, because they were minting dollars like crazy in 1881-82. All three reverses show fine pitting, so they were environmentally compromised at some time.
