Hi: I'm new here but you guys seem really knowledgeable and I thank you for your information (I've been reading the other posts and learning quite a bit). This is a 1942 Lincoln Wheat I found with a blank back. My local dealer weighed it and said it was correct weight so apparently there's another one out there with no obverse. Do you think this is correct? Would like your opinion on the grade and what you think I could possibly get for it.
Hi, The coin has been machined. It was planed down on one side. It was probably a part of a magician's coin , as they are called that got separated from the "shell" that it would have fit into. One like this would have been placed in a nickel that was hollowed out. The trick is to make the nickel change into a cent or the other way around. Thanks, Bill
What weight did you get? It has to be weighed to 1/100th of a gram to be accurate. The machining done to create these is really quite amazing. Your coin, as seen in the pictures, also has scrape marks all going in the same direction. Also, the rim is not raised on what should have been the reverse, which also means it had to be machined to be flat. A split planchet is ruled out due to the flat rim and what is say is a close to original weight. There is no other possibility. Thanks, Bill
I seriously doubt it is the correct weight. Even it this coin seperated, it would be under weight. It can't be struck on one side as nothing would give resistance to shape the normal obverse. If the coin came from the mint it would have a rim on the reverse like it has on the obverse and not having the grinding marks on the reverse.
My dealer told me it possibly was stuck to another planchent when it went under the press. He said that would mean there's another penny out there that only has the reverse printed. Is that possible? I held it side by side with other wheat lincolns and the width is virtually the same. Would it be worth sending it to get it slabbed if the weight is the same?
Hi Kevin, Welcome to the forum! Altered coins are a question that brings many here. We hope you stay and participate. I agree with the others on it being an altered coin. There are several sites on the web about mint error coins, you can google with "mint errors" or "strike errors", etc. Reading and learning about the errors take a little more time, but you have more insight to the coin. The positive thing is that you can keep the coin forever ( or months ) while you learn more and maybe save yourself slabbing fees. Dealers expertise can vary according to types of coins and few are experienced with errors. If he knew errors well and your coin was worth slabbing, he would have made offers to you for it. So hang on to it, read, research , and then it will be an easier decision. Again Welcome! Jim
Hi, No, it's not possible on this coin and I'm sorry to say that your dealer was only guessing. It troubles me that guesses are made without really knowing what a coin is or isn't. It means that collectors are not getting the kind of numismatic education they should be getting from those who are supposed to know what's what. This is not anything against any particular dealers but we see a lot of guesswork on the part of dealers particularly in the area of errors and die varieties. While it does happen that two planchets can get stuck together during a strike, a few things happen. One is that the planchets leave impressions in each other that we call indents. An indented strike when it is full on has a specific look to it that is not seen on this coin. The surface of the fields of coins that are indented strikes (in this case, if your coin was an indented strike, the reverse) are really smooth looking as the pressure of the strike through two planchets is magnified because of the double thickness of metal between the dies. Another thing that is sometimes but not always visible is evidence of the details from the die that resulted in the blank side actually having struck the coin. You might see weak details of the reverse on your coin since the pressure would have transferred the details through the extra planchet and on to the reverse of your coin, in this example. So a combination of factors can be used to determine what your coin is. It does not have the characteristics of an indented strike. AND. It does have evidence of machining (the scrape marks and flat rim). Thanks, Bill
Believe it or not you can actually grind away the entire design away from one side and still not reduce a cents weight enough to be outside of the tolerance range. The flat even juction of the field and the edge also condemns the coin as an alteration. Planchets don't have flat fields and if two of them are in the press at the same time the centers of the two planchets will not be touching and during the strike one will end up being very slightly concave and the other convex. Also the planchet will not expand out to the collar exactly evenly all the way around. Whichever planchet reaches the collar first will start spreading towards the other planchet first. When the second reaches the collar it can't toward the first because the first is already in the way. So as you go around the field edge junction it won't be smooth and even. There will be high and low areas. Your coin shows none of this.
I would like to know that "exact" weight myself. If he is using the new coins weights(82 and on), then it might weigh what one of those weigh. I think it is 3.11 grams for the old, and 2.5 for the new. I might be wrong , but pretty close.
1942 uniface cent If your coin is correct weight, it may be a uniface die trial or trial strike coin. Lots of things happened at the mint in 1942. Also, sometimes coins are struck on type one blanks. (non upset rims) I would get it examined and certified. Good luck. Look at this coin's reverse....http://coins.ha.com/c/item.zx?saleNo=422&lotNo=1640
You may want to look at this dime. Hard to tell anything from pics. http://coins.ha.com/c/item.zx?saleNo=454&lotNo=2555#Photo
