Is there such a thing as first strike and is it possible to get them? Does the number on the Mint Box mean anything? The first box I had was like 3750, this one is 58, does that mean anything? Paul
Obviously, every die is used for the first time once. The mint doesn't specify in what order coins are struck, and probably would have no way to identify the first ones from the later ones. That I don't know about, and can't help you. Try a search of the forum on "first strike". I'm pretty sure there was a thread on that subject not too long ago.
To answer your question - is it nothing but hype ? That's all it is - hype, it's marketing at its best. And what makes it so successful is the play on words - for there really is such a thing as a first strike. The Mint has first strike ceremonies all the time where the present the first coin struck in a given series to somebody. But in reality, not many collectors would even want a genuine first strike, for typically they are low quality coins and most go into the reject hopper. You need to strike a few to get the new dies seated properly, to adjust the strike pressure and generally just make sure everything is working properly. It may take 3 - 6 or a dozen coins to get to that point. So like with most things in this hobby, it is a little bit of knowledge, or a total lack of it, along with misinformation - that causes too many collectors to fall prey to a marketing campaign.
Plus, as has been mentioned before, many dies are used to strike an issue. The 300,000th coin might have been th first to be struck with a new set of dies, and the 1,000,000th also.
Let's see...2005 coins started getting minted in late 2004. They are placed in inventory. More coins are made. They are placed on top of or in front of the coins made in late 2004. What do you think your local mint warehouse man is going to pick up first? The first coins in the back or bottom of the pile? No...he is going to take out the last one put in...or "LIFO" for you accountants. Also...let's say you had the 20,000th coin of a die struck in January or a the first strike of a die struck in June. Which coin would you rather have? All this is BS and shame on PCGS for selling these along with Jessica Lynch signed slabs. They need to keep to authentication, grading and slabbing. Do that well and they will always more than enough business.
