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Message:: [QUOTE="Conder101, post: 2944362, member: 66"]No Longacre doubling is on the dies when they are new and fades from use or lapping of the dies either before use or later after after having been used for awhile.  (Longacre doubling can be found of proof dies, they are hardly the result of trying to extend their life.) Longacre was trained as an flat plate engraver, not a die sinker. (Supposedly he got his appointment as Chief Engraver not by merit but by political influence.  The problems he had in creating his first original coin designs, the gold dollar and double eagle, seem to confirm this.)  I still believe the "shoulder" around the lettering and device punches were put their deliberately  to act as a visual aid to tell when the punch had been driven deep enough into the die.  When the "shoulders" began appearing you were deep enough.  Later when the die was polished and basined to the proper curvature you once again watched the "shoulders" and when they disappeared you stopped and the die was properly finished.  This would be a big help to someone not experienced in die sinking, and would also allow less trained workmen to create dies from standard punches.[/QUOTE]