Like to hear 'Ol timer wisdom on designations

While I can't disagree with many of the points made so far in this thread, I must admit that I lend more weight to the importance of some of these strike designations than do most collectors. I think the primary reason for this is because my chosen series, Jefferson Nickels, is one of the key players with regards to strike designations. IMO, both the FB (Mercury Dime) and FS (Jefferson Nickel) designations are important because they are the focal point of the reverse devices and are both located very near the center of the coin. Your eyes simply cant help focusing on these ares of the coins. The other strike designations (FH, FT, FBL) are much less evident at first glance and fall more in the category of marketing tools IMO.

And while it is true that the presence of full steps on a Jefferson Nickel is not an automatic indicator of a good strike, I would bet that most full step Jefferson Nickels have better strikes on average than their non full step counterparts. I agree whole heartedly with the advice given earlier in this thread which is to gauge the quality of the strike on the overall strike of the coin without focus on the strike designation which encompasses only a small portion of the coin. Here are some photographic examples of what we are talking about:

Full Step Jefferson Nickel with Below Average Strike​

This coin has 6 full steps but note that the windows, doors, and columns are all incomplete. As Doug pointed out, the details of Monticello are a much better indicator of overall strike than are the steps.

Well Struck Jefferson Nickel with No Step Detail​

Contrast this coin with the one shown above. The hair detail is excellent save some flatness over the ear. The queue is bold and the cheek is smooth and devoid of planchet flaws. The detail on Monticello is amazing yet the steps are non existent. What really sets this coin apart is that the 1953-S was the second worst struck of the entire series with only the 1954-S more miserable. This coin is the quintessential example that strike designations can't always predict overall strike quality. That said, everyone who has seen this coin has said to me "wow, don't you wish it had full steps?" And it is that lasting impression that incomplete steps leave you with that make the strike designation important.

Full Step Jefferson Nickel with Hammered Strike​

And then we have this, a full step Jefferson Nickel with a superb overall strike. Now there is nothing wrong with the two previous examples, but when collecting Jefferson Nickels, this is what you should be looking for with regards to strike. That said, finding coins that look like this for most date/mm's is nearly impossible.


The reason why I stated that I give lend the full step designation more weight than the other collectors in this thread is because I have learned that the full step designation is coveted by Jefferson Nickel collectors. As a result, if you buy non full step examples for your collection, the liquidity of your collection will suffer severely. That said, paying ridiculous premiums for the dates that are extremely rare in full steps also carries a serious financial risk. My personal philosophy is that if the date/mm is common (greater than 1:10) with full steps then a full step example should be included in the collection. Of course there are exceptions to every rule:



The 1944-D is among the most common with full steps. This coin has a very good strike but a small defect under the 3rd pillar prevents a full step designation. But since the coin has incredible booming luster and immense eye appeal from the delicate rainbow toning, I have no problem including a coin like this in my collection.

Jefferson Nickels are the Rodney Dangerfield of numismatics IMO. People just assume that since they are rather modern, have high mintages, and no real key dates that collecting the series is easy. Nothing could be further from the truth. Collecting Jeffersons is full of pitfalls and none more serious than the full step designation. In addition, NGC & PCGS employ different standards for grading Jefferson Nickels both with respect to numerical grade and FS designation. The FS designation can't be ignored and I promise you it is here to stay. The best thing to do is to learn as much as you can about each date/mm before you buy a coin.

 

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