Rotated Die???

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i believe that it appears that way because it is crooked in the 2x2.

 

I say the way to figure this one out instead of assuming and guessing, Is to take something thing and long, maybe like some mechanical pencil lead, and Lay it over the front of the coin like a crosshair. One piece of lead going perfectly horizontal, the other going perfectly verticle.
Second, flip the whole thing over now, so the reverse of the coin is facing you(and the front of the coin is facedown on the table), Match up and replicate the positioning of the front 2 pieces of lead but on the reverse. Basically, match the front crosshair on the back, regardless if you see it perfectly centered on the reverse. Once you have made 2 crosshairs, front and back, seeing the extra lead sticking over the side of the flip should indicate to you if the lead is matching or not. If they match, no die rotation. If they Don't Match, you found one!

Maybe too complicated and may not even be solid proof, but just an idea. Trying to help..:thumb:

 

ok so this was the term my brain was lacking yesterday on the buffalo nickels!

I think the pencil lead is a good idea.

 

Even if there is a minor rotation, it's too small for any premium IMO.

 

I here you I am going through a large collection of possible errors that I have been sitting aside for the last couple of years trying to empty out my box that is flowing over.

 

rotations up to 15 degrees were nothing short of common on this series.

 

Interesting! Curious if anyone knows how PCGS or any coin grading service can measure precisely the amount of degrees in a rotated die? What machines or tools? Very curious.

 

I use a protractor to measure the amt of rotation.

 

Great question and I think I'm going to go to drafting set right now.

Thanks Rob.

 

+1
I line one side of the coin as close as I can to the edge of the 2x2 then flip over and measure.

 

I don't know about any other grading services, but I just asked NGC why the degree of rotation wasn't listed on my rotated die, and they said that they don't list that on the label, just Rotated Dies - Mint Error and the grade. I think there's a flip you can use to do this though.
http://rotateddies.50webs.com/meas.htm
Otherwise like was already said, use a protractor, you can download photos of them from google and use those as well.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/70/Protractor_Rapporteur_Degrees_V3.jpg

http://api.ning.com/files/RgvbmV5ue...sjymA8sIaunsoZkRWqf/2000pxProtractor1.svg.png

 

How I measure is to level out the date so it is completely horizontal then grab the top and bottom of the edge, gotta be kinda precise and just do a rotation and then guesstimate the amount of rotation.

 

I have a kennedy half dollar that when its head is stright up faceing you when you flip it over the other side will be upside down.
Its a perfect 90 degree rotation die.
Would it be worth the time to send it for gradeing?
I found this while i was takeing 10 halfs at a time placeing them face up then flipping them over checking the other side of the coins.

 

You can also put your coin on a clock to measure how much of a rotation it has.

put the coin on a clock (not a digital one!, one of the olf fashioned one that has a minute hand and an hour hand). Orient the coin so the top of the reverse would be facing 12:00 if it were NOT rotated.

If it is oriented towards ... then it is rotated ...
1:00 PM, 30 degrees
1:30 PM, 45 degrees
2:00 PM, 60 degrees
2:30 PM, 75 degrees
3:00 PM, 90 degrees
3:30 PM, 105 degrees
4:00 PM, 120 degrees
4:30 PM, 135 degrees
5:00 PM, 150 degrees
5:30 PM, 165 degrees.
6:00 PM, 180 degrees.

These are all for clockwise rotations.

Rotations in the counterclockwise rotation should also be measured up to 180 degrees, using the above as a guideline.

 

Are you flipping it side to side or top to bottom?
Side to side, if one side is right side up and the other is opposite, it is aligned correctly.
Top to bottom, if both sides are right side up, it is aligned correctly.

 

I've seen Kennedy half dollars that were cut apart and put back together, like a magician's coin, with rotated dies of 180 degrees. There is a seam around the edge, near the rim, in those coins.

 

From the sounds of it you have a 180* rotated die, as long as you are flipping it top to bottom like the other poster said, it would be upside down normally if you're just going side to side. 180s are nice and more valuable than the 90* ones I think. I haven't found one of those yet, but I'm still looking. You should post a photo.

 

What's the date and MM? There are some Kennedys listed on the census page at rotateddies.com that slippinin linked to that have 180 deg. rotation.

 

Easiest and cheapest way to measure rotation is with a straightedge and a properly sized 2X2.

Draw lines connecting the centers of the opposite sides of the 2X2 and the opposite corners. These lines will meet the hole at 0, 45, 90, 135, and 180 degrees (clockwise and counterclockwise). lines half way between each of these by the hole will establish (roughly) 22, 67, 112, and 157 degrees. If you put a mark halfway between each of these you will have a mark at roughly every 10 degrees. You can do it again for every 5 degrees if you want but even with just the 10 degree marks you should be able to put the coin centered and upright on the marked half of the 2X2, close it, turn it over and read the rotation to within about 2.5 degrees. Make up one of these tools for each denomination, cost about 18 cents.