I hate to tease, and I'm not too much of a braggart in general, but I am so geeked about a coin I just got in the mail today. I picked up a 1939-D Jefferson nickel in a PCGS MS-67 holder. I am generally skeptical of these things until I see them in hand, but this one is the real deal. It is exactly what I would grade the coin if I saw it raw (and I'm quite the grading stickler.) Anyway, back to the teasing part, I don't have pics yet, but I'll bust out the camera soon and share. Thanks for listening!
It's the reverse of 1940. According to Nagengast's book, about 3/4 of this date are reverse of 1940, and the remaining quarter are the reverse of 1938. The steps aren't great, but the rest of the strike is very nice. Step count, if I remember correctly, is 5-5-2-3. the_man: I know there's a good reference out there with pictures, but I can't find it right now. The reverse of 1938 has poorly-defined steps. They look "wavy". If you look at nickels starting in 1940, the steps are straight, and the top step is about double the thickness of the others. That's the difference. The change took place partway into 1939, so some of the nickels were struck with the old reverse, and most were struck with the new, strengthened reverse.
here is what I can find for you on the 2 different reverses. Q. David Bowers writes in A Guide Book of Buffalo and Jefferson Nickels: "reverse of 1938: The steps appear mushy and not clearly defined, even on Proofs. The steps are uneven and wavy and the indentations between the steps vary in depth. There are many bridges present between the raised portions of the steps. reverse of 1940: The reverse of 1940, used on Jefferson Nickels through 1967, and with modification 1968-1970, has straight, sharply defined steps. This definition, however progressively deteriorated as the master hub wore. Thus the steps on earlier dates will be sharper and deeper than on later dates." hope that helps, Noodle
I found it on eBay. It had what I considered to be a good starting price, and no bids down to the last few seconds. I knew I couldn't be the only one watching it, so I placed a reasonable bid with just a few seconds to go. Sure enough, someone else bid at the last minute, but their bid was weak.
