I have identified a large die crack on a 1983 penny. It starts at the edge of the reverse, crosses the "D" in United, runs to the left edge of the monument, and then turns horizontal across the length of the roof: Under 20x: Another at 20x:
Nice die crack and a strange one at that, to take such a sharp turn. That die was definitely long past it's usable stage.
It may be interesting to some, but for me, it is just one of the millions of other die cracks that are common to almost all denominations of US coinage. If it happened to be one stage of a nice progression, then I would probably change my mind. Chris
But isn't this die crack the result of one worn die? Therefore, this particular die crack is visible only on the 1983 coins that were minted using that worn die. If this is the case, there should be a small number of examples of 1983 pennies with this exact die crack visible on the reverse, in the exact location. I would venture to guess that the number of pennies with this die crack is a lot less than a million, by several orders of magnitude. By using this perspective, the coin is rare.
Chris is correct in die cracks being common, especially on Lincoln Cents. However, if you had found this in a solid date bag or box it would be more likely that you would have found many similar and could have made for an interesting look into the progression of this crack. Possibly where it began and maybe ended. A good case study so to speak. I doubt that millions were made with this crack as someone in QC would have caught this and had the die taken out of production, probably for good. Thousands perhaps at the rate of speed that they are made but by this time most are probably long since worn to death that made it past QC to the public.
Is this not the same reasoning behind the doubled die? From my understanding, the impression from a misaligned die results in a doubling of certain ares in the penny, which gives rise to the "Doubled Die" error varieties. The cause of the misalignment is the enormous pressure from the hub strike which causes a slight displacement of the die. As such, only a given quantity of pennies exhibit the die doubling due to quality control checks at the mint. Die cracks, like doubling, both stem from issues with the die during the minting process, and not damage caused after minting (which would be less quantifiable).
I took my definition from the history of the 1955 doubled die obverse. Perhaps the quintessential doubled die cent. Is there another type of doubling I am missing?
Rather than me goofing up on terminology/technology, there is a lot of information on die cracks, die chips and cuds and their cause/effect in addition to the difference which causes doubled dies. Check John Wexler's site at www.doubleddie.com and www.cuds-on-coins.com. Others may add their favorite links also. These two just come to mind quickly.
From Wexler: "In the Wexler Die Variety Files we define “doubled die” doubling as doubling produced on hubs or dies as a result of a misalignment of the images on the hub and die at some point during the hubbing process. A more accurate term would be “hubbing doubling,” but the term “doubled die” is clearly fixed in our culture and here to stay. The misalignment of the design images may have been when the master hub was squeezing an image onto a master die, when a master die was squeezing an image onto a working hub, or when a working hub was squeezing an image onto a working die. Just where the doubling occurs in this sequence will dictate how common the doubling will be, and that will affect the subsequent values for the doubled coins that are ultimately produced. Doubling can also occur in the process of transferring the design from the galvano to the master hub. Links are provided here to get more details on the doubled master hubs, the doubled master dies, and the doubled working hubs." According to this definition, doubled dies result from: a) misalignment; or b) engraving defect. What I am attempting to establish, is that die cracks, like doubled dies, are the result of a defect with the die or the die impression.
It's just a minor die crack. It's right there along with die chips. Nothing special and very common. Some folks collect them for fun but not rare and they have little value.
It's a pretty spectacular crack, and I'm one who finds them interesting, but not nearly $50 worth of interesting. Maybe $10 worth of interesting, but I'm not doing Lincolns at the moment anyway. The differentiation between hub doubling and die cracks is that the former is a genuine "error;" the Mint screwed something up in order for it to exist. A die crack is a normal artifact of the striking process, and could happen to any die at any time in its' life. There are series where few dies escaped without some sort of cracking. It's purely their commonality - that, and they fail to meet the "quality" test of a substantial subdemographic of collectors - which puts them on a lesser level of interest than doubling.
Even a crack like the one below adds very little to the value of this dime. Some collect cracks and some would not care to own one.
Misalignment of the images in referring to doubled dies is not the same as a misaligned coin with the edges slightly off center. This is usually the result of chatter in the coining chamber and possibly a loose collar or other loose component that needed to be adjusted. Die cracks and chips are the result of an originally good die that was over used, that, though correct in it's image originally is beginning to fail in it's job, whereas the actual die develops a crack creating a die crack or loses a piece of the edge of the die resulting in a cud. Metal flows to these cracks and appears raised as yours does. Master dies/master hubs have the image already doubled before any coin is made causing a doubled die coin. This will last only as long as until an inspection finds this and it can be corrected if possible. It is too easy not to read between the lines of his mentioned cause and effects. The huge amount of doubled dies that came from Philly mostly, in 2009 are a case of very poor quality control and the fact that billions of these coins were produced in too much of a hurry to get them out in time for the celebration. 2005 was another banner year for minor doubled dies on the cent, but for what reason then I have no idea.
On ebay anything is possible but don't wait around too long for somebody to pick it up anytime soon at $50.00.
@ldhair @tommyc03 I'm not going to waste any more time on him. I don't think he would know the difference between a master die and a master sergeant. Chris
