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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;GDJMSP, post: 2774862, member: 112&quot;]This is not true, all struck coins, including those struck with fresh new dies, have flow lines on them. Flow lines are what cause and create the luster of a coin, so if there were no flow lines there would be no luster. And since coins struck with new dies do have luster, then obviously they have flow lines.</p><p><br /></p><p>But again the problem with your comment Mike is one of using the wrong terminology. And this is where you describe it.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>What you&#039;re describing here are wear lines in the die, also known as die erosion. Wear lines in the die are caused and created by the repeated metal flow of the planchets across the face of the die. The two terms that are often used incorrectly are &quot;flow lines&quot; and &quot;wear lines&quot;. They are two very different things, and in point of fact the one is created by the repetition of the other.</p><p><br /></p><p>Wear lines begin immediately, with the very first coin that is struck. But it takes a while before wear lines become actually visible, detectable if you will. At first you cannot see them, can&#039;t tell that there even are any. But with each repeated striking of coins the wear lines grow ever so slightly bigger and deeper in the face of the die. And the bigger and deeper they get the more easily their effects can be seen. And eventually they can even be picked out themselves, individually.</p><p><br /></p><p>The first visibly detectable effects of wear lines is a disruption and lessening of the luster on a coin. The highest quality of luster is present on coins struck with new dies and it is of the highest quality because of its consistency. The flow lines are all basically equal in size and depth, and it is this consistency that cause them to reflect and refract the light the way they do, producing the highest quality luster. But as wear lines begin to become visible, that consistency is disrupted, broken up if you will because the wear lines become bigger and deeper than the flow lines themselves are.</p><p><br /></p><p>Think of it like this. If you look in a mirror you see a high quality image of yourself. That is because the silver backing on the mirror is smooth and even, consistent. And it reflects everything quite well because of that consistency. But if you were take a piece of steel wool and rub the back of that mirror with it, and then look in the mirror, the image would be somewhat distorted. And if you rubbed it again it would be even more distorted, the reflection of the light would be broken up because of the wear to the backing imparted by the steel wool. </p><p><br /></p><p>The same kind of thing happens with coins as the wear lines on the dies get progressively worse and worse. The more wear a die has, the lower the quality of the luster on a coin will be.</p><p><br /></p><p>Another way of looking at it is Proof coins. Some people think and might even claim that Proof coins do not have luster. But not only do Proof coins have luster, they have the highest quality of luster of all coins ! And again this cannot be disputed because metal flows on all struck coins. And if metal flows then luster is created. And it cannot be created unless metal flows. And the reason that Proof coins have the highest quality of luster is because it is the flow lines on Proof coins are the most consistent, much more so than they are on business strikes due to the additional polishing that the dies, and the planchets are given. And this is easily seen in the reflective qualities of Proof coins. </p><p><br /></p><p>Proof coins also prove the point of wear lines in the dies disrupting and lessening the quality of luster. For the more coins that are struck with a Proof die the more the reflective quality of those coins lessens, and thus their luster lessens.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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