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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;foundinrolls, post: 112375, member: 4350&quot;]Hi,</p><p>I&#039;m gonna throw a few other things into the damage vs. wear debate.&nbsp; Let&#039;s start with a circulated coin.&nbsp; For me, it is simple to determine what is damage vs. wear. Let us consider a VG (Very Good) graded coin. (The principle is the same no matter what the circulated grade is) If everything is evenly worn, and details are obliterated to an extent based upon normal wear and tear from circulation, I do not consider each little nick and line as damage.&nbsp; It&nbsp; is assumed based upon the VG (Very Good) grade, that the coin has seen circulation and as a result, has been worn to a point that I have subjectively decided as a grader is a VG (Very Good).&nbsp; </p><p><br /></p><p>Now, take that same coin and on it you see a deep gouge or a deep scratch that has gone beyond what we might guess (Yes, it is a subjective guess) is a result of the normal wear on the coin and you have what I would consider damage. We&#039;ve all seen it.&nbsp; An evenly worn coin, for example that has been on a parking lot surface. We can grade the coin, based on it&#039;s state of preservation but if it was scratched up by virtue of being driven over a few times, it is damaged.&nbsp; This also assumes the fact that being driven over is not &quot;normal&quot; wear and tear in the circulation of a coin. Circulation does not equal damage although if one gets technical, each little thing that occurs to a coin is a damage and one might argue that the accumulation of all the little damages is what causes the grade to be whatever the grade is.&nbsp; It is a matter of semantics to an extent.&nbsp; What is generally accepted as damage on a circulated coin is something that appears to be beyond the realms of normal, even wear.</p><p><br /></p><p>On an Uncirculated coin, I grade&nbsp; a coin by looking at details, luster, strike, eye appeal etc. and then apply known standards of grading to subjectively decide whether a not a coin is an MS-62 or an MS-63, for example. An uncirculated coin has degrees of preservation that can be&nbsp; described.&nbsp; I then subjectively decide if a coin meets the specifications required to reach the pre determined standard for that grade. </p><p><br /></p><p>&nbsp; When looking for damage on an MS coin,&nbsp; you look for something not within the realms of the minting and normal delivery process that detracts from the appearance of a coin.&nbsp; As ugly as a bag mark might be, I do not cosider it damage. Of course, we cant prove whether or not a coin has been&quot; bag marked&quot;&nbsp; in a hopper at the mint, in a bag, or on a dealer&#039;s counter but it is an accepted part of the minting process so is generally not viewed as damage.&nbsp; It will affect the grade, of course, but is still considered omething that is assumed to be part of the minting process and delivery system. </p><p><br /></p><p>Some nicks and scratches are easily identifiable as bag marks.&nbsp; We&#039;ve all seen coins with marks that were made by the reeded edge of one coin crashing into the field of another. Other marks that we have become familiar with can be determined to be normal too.</p><p><br /></p><p>When I see a scratch or mark on a coin that has altered the appearance of the coin and does not look like what we&#039;ve learned to be normal is damage.&nbsp; I include rim-dings as damage, although they may have occured in a bag or in the mint hopper but I can&#039;t tell if that was the case or if someone dropped the coin after it left the mint. If i see a coin that is of a high state of preservation and it has some form of meandering scratch on it that would not be the result of two coins banging into each other in a bag, that&#039;s a damage. Examples of what I consider damage would be things like&nbsp; hairlines caused by someone rubbing a coin with a cloth that leaves small lines on the surface of the coin.&nbsp; These small abrasions (lines) can disrupt the normal flow lines of the metal and they are noticeable. To me , they are a damage.&nbsp; </p><p><br /></p><p>It is subjective, as all grading is but experience in grading hundreds or thousands of coins teaches us what is &quot;normal&quot; and what is a gouge created by a staple that held a cardboard 2X2 closed.&nbsp; Actually, there are thousands of coins out there that have marks made by staples, caused by people taking coins out of or putting them into 2X2 holders. They are so common that they are easily identifiable as damage.</p><p><br /></p><p>Again, grading is subjective and in some cases deciding what is and what isn&#039;t damage is guesswork.&nbsp; I&#039;ll admit that.&nbsp; Most times however, damage is easily distinguished from what would be expected on a coin.&nbsp; The more coins you see with damage vs. wear, the easier it becomes to tell the difference. </p><p><br /></p><p>Have Fun,</p><p>Bill[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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