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<p>[QUOTE="Hobo, post: 391301, member: 11521"]I finally have time to report on the activities of Thursday and Friday. Dang, I've been busy!</p><p> </p><p><b>Thursday</b></p><p> </p><p>The last day of class. We looked another box of 27 coins. These were all gold coins. Gold coins can be the most difficult to grade, especially $2 1/2 & $5 Indians. Afterward we had a review and had a Q&A period. We graded one last box of 27 coins to test our newly-learned grading skills and received our certificates. I truly feel that I learned a LOT in this course and am a much better grader. But I will need to look at lots and lots of coins so I can learn to convert that grading knowledge into grading ability. (I worked on that for a few hours at the local coin show Friday and Saturday.)</p><p> </p><p>After class was over I went over to the ANA Bookstore where I found 13 ANA educational DVDs that I couldn't live without. I also bought a set of 3 Washington Quarter variety attribution books (and I don't even collect Wash quarters). At $10 per book (regular price $40 each) that's a bargain I can't pass up.</p><p> </p><p>Later I attended a reception where I mingled with students, instructors and staff. I got to speak one-on-one with Larry Shepherd (the new ANA Executive Director) and I must say that I feel very good about having him in that position.</p><p> </p><p>The banquet food was excellent as usual. (I had the salmon.) All the instructors, speakers, volunteers, chaperones, YNs, etc. were honored or recognized. Larry Shepherd spoke about what lies ahead for the ANA. Bill Fivaz was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Numismatics degree (one of only a handful that have been issued by the ANA from what I was told). In his acceptance speech the emotion was evident in his voice. He said his father had been a doctor and had wanted him to be a doctor. And now he was one. He was truly touched. When the banquet was over I shook his hand to congratulate him and said, "Should I call you Dr. Bill?" He said (his voice cracking), "That's what my dad was called." </p><p> </p><p>After the banquet I hung around a bull session until way too late. 4 hours sleep - again.</p><p> </p><p><b>Friday - Denver Mint Tour </b></p><p> </p><p>I was back at ANA just after 7 AM to get on the bus to go tour the Denver Mint. There were close to 40 of us on the tour. I had not been to the Mint since 1999 when I took the public tour. In 1994 or 1995 I got a private tour down on the production floor (thanks to someone at ANA pulling a few strings for me) but I had forgotten most of what I saw.</p><p> </p><p>On the drive up we were warned about what not to take into the Mint. No coins, cameras, cell phones, knives, etc. No open toed shoes. (One female YN was denied access for wearing sandals.) Unfortunately, one person was also denied access because her name was not on the list (and the Mint Police had not been able to do a background check on her). </p><p> </p><p>Getting into the Mint is tough but getting out is MUCH tougher. (More about that later.) No one - including employees - is allowed to take a coin out of the Mint. Entering the Mint there is a metal detector (that I somehow bypassed) and a turnstile that you must be buzzed through. Once inside we gathered in a room around a large table. We got a brief history of the Mint and had a Q&A period. I asked if the Denver Mint was experimenting with any new metals for cents and nickels. The answer was the Mint has not been authorized to strike any coins in any new metals but they have been experimenting with other metals by striking things other than coins. I found that interesting.</p><p> </p><p>After we were divided into groups and were issued safety glasses and ear protection the tour began. Our first stop was the collector coin room. We saw the presses used to make collector coins (e.g., coins for Mint Sets) as well as the packaging operation. </p><p> </p><p>Next we saw several coining presses spewing out cents. I watched the press operator as he inspected coins (using a loupe) in each hopper before releasing them onto a conveyor. The Denver Mint is really into quality. They want to keep the release of problem coins and errors to a minimum. </p><p> </p><p>We stopped outside a room where a woman brought out Arizona quarter dies for us to see (but not to touch or hold). She talked about die life (I think it was 150,000 to 300,000 strikes for quarter reverse dies depending on the design) and die problems. It seems the designs with a scroll have problems with die chips in the scroll (so now you know where to look when you search state quarters for errors). She said one die (I think it was a dollar die - I couldn't hear well due to noise) lasted 5,000,000 strikes. (I need to check that out and see if I heard that right. That sounds awfully high.) </p><p> </p><p>Next we saw several rolls of coin stock, mainly nickel and dime stock. We saw a roll of nickel stock going into a machine that takes the bend out of the stock. Next we saw a blanking machine making dime blanks. The tour guide let us hold and inspect several dime blanks. He also grabbed a handful of bow ties for us to inspect. Bow ties are small pieces of the coin stock that are left after the blanking process and they look exactly like a tiny bow tie. I wanted one for a souvenier but decided it was not worth a prison sentence. </p><p> </p><p>Next we saw the upsetting machine (really not much to see) and got to hold and inspect some dime planchets (with raised rims). We got to compare a blank to a planchet. </p><p> </p><p>Next we saw the annealing machine, the cooling bath, the wash and the drying machine. We got to look into the room where dollar coins are made but were not allowed in there. We were told that the Mint is very sensitive about dollar coins being released without edge lettering and they don't want anything to go wrong with that two-step process. So No Tourists Allowed! </p><p> </p><p>We watched freshly-minted dimes falling out of a press into a hopper. The tour guide grabbed some for us to hold. These dimes were so fresh they were still warm! </p><p> </p><p>Down below we saw where coins are carefully counted and weighed and bagged in huge Kevlar bags. (Gone are the days of canvas bags.) We saw a forklift moving pallet after pallet with these huge bags of coins. We saw the machine that burnishes and applies the coating on the dollar coin planchets (can't recall the name of the machine) but it was not in operation at the time. </p><p> </p><p>We got to peek into the die room but there was really not much to see. I didn't see any activity at all. That's not surprising because die making is not a round-the-clock operation. </p><p> </p><p>By the way, the Denver Mint operates 24 hours a day, 5 days a week. </p><p> </p><p>One interesting thing I noticed on each coining press was a poster of the coin being produced with areas circled and enlarged. Apparently these are the areas of coins where die problems develop first and where the press operator is to inspect sample coins from each hopper full. I wish I could have taken a picture of these posters so I would know where to look for errors but NO CAMERAS ALLOWED IN THE MINT! Oh, well. </p><p> </p><p>I think that was about it. We turned in our safety glasses and got in line to be searched on our way out. Much like going through airport security, we placed our shoes and anything metal into a tray to be X-Rayed. A handful of people had coins that they somehow had brought into the Mint and could not take out. The tour guide instructed them to deposit the coins in the Mint's "Donation Box". (She told us employees sometimes have to "donate" coins they inadvertently bring into the Mint. She told us about one employee that recently bought a Mint Set at the gift shop outside and mistakenly brought it into the Mint. That's right - he had to put it in the Donation Box.) </p><p> </p><p>No one in our group got caught trying to sneek anything out of the Mint. We got to spend a little time in the gift shop. (The last time I visited the Mint in 1999 the gift shop was inside the Mint building on the West side conveniently located right where the tour ends. Imagine that! Now it is in a modular building outside the Mint on Mint property on the East side. I asked a Mint cop about this and he said after 9/11 the Mint did not want the public entering the Mint building without going through a background check so they moved the gift shop to a building outside the Mint.)</p><p> </p><p>We had a nice drive back to Colorado Springs and had a good bag lunch. (We were also given breakfast on the way up.) This was an excellent tour and I would highly recommend it to everyone. I plan to do this tour every few years. </p><p> </p><p>After returning to Colorado Springs I went over the the local coin show that <span style="color: red">coin</span>cides with Summer Seminar. There were a good many dealers but not a lot of attendees. I hit several dealer tables and put my new grading skills to the test. I didn't find anything to cherrypick so I didn't buy a thing. </p><p> </p><p>Friday night I got more sleep than I had gotten in 10 days - 7 hours.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>
[QUOTE="Hobo, post: 391301, member: 11521"]I finally have time to report on the activities of Thursday and Friday. Dang, I've been busy! [B]Thursday[/B] The last day of class. We looked another box of 27 coins. These were all gold coins. Gold coins can be the most difficult to grade, especially $2 1/2 & $5 Indians. Afterward we had a review and had a Q&A period. We graded one last box of 27 coins to test our newly-learned grading skills and received our certificates. I truly feel that I learned a LOT in this course and am a much better grader. But I will need to look at lots and lots of coins so I can learn to convert that grading knowledge into grading ability. (I worked on that for a few hours at the local coin show Friday and Saturday.) After class was over I went over to the ANA Bookstore where I found 13 ANA educational DVDs that I couldn't live without. I also bought a set of 3 Washington Quarter variety attribution books (and I don't even collect Wash quarters). At $10 per book (regular price $40 each) that's a bargain I can't pass up. Later I attended a reception where I mingled with students, instructors and staff. I got to speak one-on-one with Larry Shepherd (the new ANA Executive Director) and I must say that I feel very good about having him in that position. The banquet food was excellent as usual. (I had the salmon.) All the instructors, speakers, volunteers, chaperones, YNs, etc. were honored or recognized. Larry Shepherd spoke about what lies ahead for the ANA. Bill Fivaz was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Numismatics degree (one of only a handful that have been issued by the ANA from what I was told). In his acceptance speech the emotion was evident in his voice. He said his father had been a doctor and had wanted him to be a doctor. And now he was one. He was truly touched. When the banquet was over I shook his hand to congratulate him and said, "Should I call you Dr. Bill?" He said (his voice cracking), "That's what my dad was called." After the banquet I hung around a bull session until way too late. 4 hours sleep - again. [B]Friday - Denver Mint Tour [/B] I was back at ANA just after 7 AM to get on the bus to go tour the Denver Mint. There were close to 40 of us on the tour. I had not been to the Mint since 1999 when I took the public tour. In 1994 or 1995 I got a private tour down on the production floor (thanks to someone at ANA pulling a few strings for me) but I had forgotten most of what I saw. On the drive up we were warned about what not to take into the Mint. No coins, cameras, cell phones, knives, etc. No open toed shoes. (One female YN was denied access for wearing sandals.) Unfortunately, one person was also denied access because her name was not on the list (and the Mint Police had not been able to do a background check on her). Getting into the Mint is tough but getting out is MUCH tougher. (More about that later.) No one - including employees - is allowed to take a coin out of the Mint. Entering the Mint there is a metal detector (that I somehow bypassed) and a turnstile that you must be buzzed through. Once inside we gathered in a room around a large table. We got a brief history of the Mint and had a Q&A period. I asked if the Denver Mint was experimenting with any new metals for cents and nickels. The answer was the Mint has not been authorized to strike any coins in any new metals but they have been experimenting with other metals by striking things other than coins. I found that interesting. After we were divided into groups and were issued safety glasses and ear protection the tour began. Our first stop was the collector coin room. We saw the presses used to make collector coins (e.g., coins for Mint Sets) as well as the packaging operation. Next we saw several coining presses spewing out cents. I watched the press operator as he inspected coins (using a loupe) in each hopper before releasing them onto a conveyor. The Denver Mint is really into quality. They want to keep the release of problem coins and errors to a minimum. We stopped outside a room where a woman brought out Arizona quarter dies for us to see (but not to touch or hold). She talked about die life (I think it was 150,000 to 300,000 strikes for quarter reverse dies depending on the design) and die problems. It seems the designs with a scroll have problems with die chips in the scroll (so now you know where to look when you search state quarters for errors). She said one die (I think it was a dollar die - I couldn't hear well due to noise) lasted 5,000,000 strikes. (I need to check that out and see if I heard that right. That sounds awfully high.) Next we saw several rolls of coin stock, mainly nickel and dime stock. We saw a roll of nickel stock going into a machine that takes the bend out of the stock. Next we saw a blanking machine making dime blanks. The tour guide let us hold and inspect several dime blanks. He also grabbed a handful of bow ties for us to inspect. Bow ties are small pieces of the coin stock that are left after the blanking process and they look exactly like a tiny bow tie. I wanted one for a souvenier but decided it was not worth a prison sentence. Next we saw the upsetting machine (really not much to see) and got to hold and inspect some dime planchets (with raised rims). We got to compare a blank to a planchet. Next we saw the annealing machine, the cooling bath, the wash and the drying machine. We got to look into the room where dollar coins are made but were not allowed in there. We were told that the Mint is very sensitive about dollar coins being released without edge lettering and they don't want anything to go wrong with that two-step process. So No Tourists Allowed! We watched freshly-minted dimes falling out of a press into a hopper. The tour guide grabbed some for us to hold. These dimes were so fresh they were still warm! Down below we saw where coins are carefully counted and weighed and bagged in huge Kevlar bags. (Gone are the days of canvas bags.) We saw a forklift moving pallet after pallet with these huge bags of coins. We saw the machine that burnishes and applies the coating on the dollar coin planchets (can't recall the name of the machine) but it was not in operation at the time. We got to peek into the die room but there was really not much to see. I didn't see any activity at all. That's not surprising because die making is not a round-the-clock operation. By the way, the Denver Mint operates 24 hours a day, 5 days a week. One interesting thing I noticed on each coining press was a poster of the coin being produced with areas circled and enlarged. Apparently these are the areas of coins where die problems develop first and where the press operator is to inspect sample coins from each hopper full. I wish I could have taken a picture of these posters so I would know where to look for errors but NO CAMERAS ALLOWED IN THE MINT! Oh, well. I think that was about it. We turned in our safety glasses and got in line to be searched on our way out. Much like going through airport security, we placed our shoes and anything metal into a tray to be X-Rayed. A handful of people had coins that they somehow had brought into the Mint and could not take out. The tour guide instructed them to deposit the coins in the Mint's "Donation Box". (She told us employees sometimes have to "donate" coins they inadvertently bring into the Mint. She told us about one employee that recently bought a Mint Set at the gift shop outside and mistakenly brought it into the Mint. That's right - he had to put it in the Donation Box.) No one in our group got caught trying to sneek anything out of the Mint. We got to spend a little time in the gift shop. (The last time I visited the Mint in 1999 the gift shop was inside the Mint building on the West side conveniently located right where the tour ends. Imagine that! Now it is in a modular building outside the Mint on Mint property on the East side. I asked a Mint cop about this and he said after 9/11 the Mint did not want the public entering the Mint building without going through a background check so they moved the gift shop to a building outside the Mint.) We had a nice drive back to Colorado Springs and had a good bag lunch. (We were also given breakfast on the way up.) This was an excellent tour and I would highly recommend it to everyone. I plan to do this tour every few years. After returning to Colorado Springs I went over the the local coin show that [COLOR=red]coin[/COLOR]cides with Summer Seminar. There were a good many dealers but not a lot of attendees. I hit several dealer tables and put my new grading skills to the test. I didn't find anything to cherrypick so I didn't buy a thing. Friday night I got more sleep than I had gotten in 10 days - 7 hours.[/QUOTE]
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