ASE proof

Here's a trick: To photograph a coin's edge, use the reflector from a large flashlight.



It looks a bit odd, but you can clearly photograph a full 360-degrees of a coin's edge:



Be careful: The reflector is easily scratched & smudged. (For sure, don't use a cloth to remove dust.)

 

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Thanks I'll have to go to a 2nd hand store and get one.

 

It was a short trip but the mint drove me crazy trying to keep up with all the different silver eagles. My proof just came in the mail.

 

I tried this back in 2007 - 2008 with the Presidential Dollars.

It ain't easy as your camera has to be perfectly square to the reflector and the coin has to be placed perfectly in the reflector dish.

I tried a couple of shots and just gave up.

Now, a fixed camera setup with a nice macro lens might do the trick.

 

While this "Edge Lettering thing" does produce a different "Type Coin" for the Silver Eagles, one has to wonder "WHY?"

I'd have thought that either a reverse proof or enhanced uncirculated finish would have been just fine!

 

Do you just buy the one for personal collection? Or do you find 70's and submit for grading? Just curious.

 

I just buy one for my personal collection each year. Recently picked up a 1986 in anticipation of this one. I've left them all in OGP.

 

I like that idea. What I dont like is how far behind I'd be if I started collecting 1 from each year. Those proofs get expensive!

 

I don't have anything near a complete collection. They do add up.

 

The 1995-W is very expensive as only 30,125 were minted.

 

Mine showed up this morning - Edge Lettering is disappointing. Looks like they did just enough to say it has edge lettering. Nothing crisp or deep about it. Other than that, the coin looks nice.

 

Agreed I thought the same thing.

 

No kidding.

 

Just curious. Did the Mint edge letter the 2016 gold eagle proof? Not that I'm going to buy one to find out. In fact, did anyone around here buy the gold proof?

 

Oh and this remains the only modern US Mint issue I collect.

 

Mine arrived today..........currently out of town so I'll have to wait a few days to see 'em.

Anybody know how they do the edge lettering? Is it a one part process or a two part one? I suspect it's a two part process (like the presidential dollars) based on the shoddy work shown in the above images.

 

I would expect it to be a one step process with the lettering being impressed into the planchet at the same time as the strike. If they did it as a two step process like the do with the circulation strike coins I would expect to see a lot of coins with severe damage from the lettering process. It would be like running proofs through the upsetting mill AFTER they were struck. You would see a lot of damage to the rims and probably circular scuffs in the frost on the devices. If they did the lettering first it would then be crushed by the plain collar during striking.

The way to tell how they did it woul be look at the edge of the coin and see if you see raised bars on the edge at regular intervals around the circumference of the coim. Those "bars" are the joints between segments of the collar that would indicate the lettering was applied during the striking.

 

I bought a 1986 ASE proof in anticipation of the 30th. Last night I found a 2006 20th anniversary reverse PF69 at a real nice price and nabbed it. First -- and maybe only -- graded modern coin.