Featured What is a "CircCam", you ask? Look and see! And post yours!

It most certainly is!

I miss this one.

 

That's not only a CircCam, but what one calls a true black-and-white CircCam with heavy contrast.

 

CircCams on base metal coins like copper and nickel bring you into tricky territory, because of the fine line between "nice contrasting toning" and "environmental damage". The boundary there is invisible because different folks draw the line in different places.

It is all technically "tarnish". The environment working on the coin's surfaces, in other words. In the earlier stages, when it's attractive, collectors call it "toning". Later on, it might be called "patina". When it goes too far, or is accompanied by negative effects like corrosion, porosity, or pitting, then you've strayed over into "problem coin" territory.

But when it's evenly distributed and there is that nice contrast between dark and light to make the design "pop", it can look very nice to some people. I am one of those people.

It's a fine line, especially with non-silver base metal coins. Once they start to turn, they can go too far, and end up in negative territory. But if they go dark evenly, and the surfaces stay smooth, and the coin gets that little bit of natural wear on the high points to provide the visual contrast between light and dark, it sometimes looks very nice. (To people like me.)

I like your Shield nickel. It's a true black-and-white CircCam. There's a fine line, and that coin is on it, but I personally place it on the "good" side of that line. Many others would find it much too dark for their tastes.

 

The ideal look on a circulated Morgan dollar, in my opinion. That one would have fit perfectly with the album I was playing with two years ago.

 

Two new friends.

Light contrast on the quarter, more on the half.

 

Gothic florins look cool even in low grade!

 

This is not my coin (yet), though I have made a tentative offer on it.

More on the grade and so on later, if I end up buying it...

 

I liked that 1814 half above (it's a PCGS F15, BTW), but I think I'll pursue this 1818 instead.

Update: I bought this one.

 

It just dawned on me that that 1914 Barber half is a Philly, and therefore a key date. Cool!