Message:

<p>[QUOTE=&quot;brg5658, post: 1319103, member: 29751&quot;]Ah, no worries.&nbsp; I didn&#039;t take it as smart-alecky. It&#039;s hard to convey tone of voice in typewritten communication.&nbsp; Thanks for the link.&nbsp; I wish too that the mint would be more transparent with their processes.&nbsp; It was my impression of the sheer beauty and almost perfection of the SF coins that they must have been handled in a special way as compared to mint set issues from 2003 or 2004.&nbsp; There are many more contact marks on specially struck mint-set coins from earlier years than for SF years.&nbsp; While the pre-2005 mint sets may have been struck differently from &quot;general circulation&quot; coins, they must have still been dropped into hoppers before packaging.</p><p><br /></p><p>I agree with you that the extra striking force likely accounts for the improved mint-set strikes.&nbsp; That, and the fact that the coins are only dropped into a hopper likely once before they are packaged.&nbsp; General circulation coins are struck at a weaker pressure, are dumped into hoppers, and then thrown around into bags, eventually most making it to the &quot;N.F. String&quot; rolls to be distributed to banks.&nbsp; I wonder if (in general) the rolls purchased directly from the mint fare any better than N.F. String rolls for quality?&nbsp; For example, I know that the 2004 and 2005 Jefferson Nickels were almost impossible to find in higher than MS66 quality, even from mint-direct rolls.&nbsp; MS67 is the exception, and MS68 circulation strike 2004 and 2005 nickels are almost unheard of.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

Your name or email address:

Do you already have an account?

• No, create an account now.
• Yes, my password is:
• Forgot your password?

Stay logged in