(I'm still here!) Can anyone share their thoughts on this dime? weak strike or damage. Is there a term for the "sun ray lines" on the coin?
Not a weak strike.. Looks to be a Deteriorated Die Strike with some Debris Filled Die. The striations is a result of the worn die.
What paddy said. Severely deteriorated die that should have been taken out of production a long time before it got this bad.
BTW, you will mostly see this on Philadelphia coins, rarely on Denver coins. Philly uses their dies to the bitter end and have very little respect for quality control. This is very much the norm and can be seen in the 2015 Homestead Quarters and the 2009 Lincoln Cents. There never should have been so many doubled die coins from Philly in these years. A lot of people suspect it was intentional to create a plethora of errors and interest. Some of these coins went for a lot of money when they first hit circulation and then the furor died down when so many were found. A lot of folks anteed up a lot of money for the more pronounced ones, only later to find the huge price drops caught them with their pants down.
I've almost gotten to the point where when I see a messed up coin I automatically assume it's a Philly. I wondered if maybe PA had legalized maryjane.
