1960D "Bar O" Nickel - anything special?

burghman

Going through an inherited coin collection and spotted a mini-manila envelope labeled "1960D 'Bar O' Nickel" - the 'E' and 'R' in "LIBERTY" also have some bars. I tried to chase this down - I found some references to this being a possible "common" error (someone on a different forum has a roll of them) but didn't have great luck so I figured I'd ask here... I realize that the coin probably isn't in good enough condition for it to mean anything, but is this worth setting aside or is it basically just $.05?

FredWeinberg

They were, and are, VERY common die chips.

Someone back in the '60's promoted them as
"Morse Code" Nickels, because the chips are
known over other letters/digits, and they
must have reminded at least one person that
they looked like the 'dash/dash' Morse code marks.

Today, they have no premium at all, and are still
easily found.......but good eyes to spot it.....

Type2

I don't think in that grade maybe in UNC. I have some roll's in unc but never had any graded because I did not see any pulling big $$$$ so just kept them raw, Cool but not big money.

Welcome to the board keep posting.

1630Boston

Once again, I learned something new here
Thanks for asking that question @burghman and keep posting

burghman

Thanks, all, for the quick responses!

JBK

I am pretty sure I still find those while roll searching.

PocketArt

Yes, all of what Fred Weinberg indicated.

My Dad picked these back in the day during that advertised "hype." I have a few more, and many other oddities that Dad saved...probably spurred on by that hype around the bar over '60! I'll have to ask him- thanks for posting.

cladking

These were quite popular in the early '60's and were still being promoted as late as about 1995.

They come in a staggering array of chip combinations. As a rule the toughest ones involve numbers other than the "0". The "R" and "0" tend to be the first to chip.

Buyers are very few and very far between but I still add them to my collection if I see something different.

Around one in eight '60-D nickels are affected so they are exceedingly common even in nice condition.

mannie gray

These are quite common on 1960-D.
As @cladking said they used to be promoted.
Some old timers still have these in their display cases with crazy prices on them.
Likely they have been in inventory since 1960.
I think Frank Spadone had a number of these listed in his Variety and Oddity book that was popular 40-50 years ago.
If you thumb through that book, you can see that we have come a long way!

thebeav

As a kid, in the early sixties, these were quite the rage. I remember finding quite a few of them. In some way, they may have fueled my love of numismatics, being that they were a way to 'play' for someone that didn't have any money.

ricko

I see these occasionally in change.... maybe one or two a year... I remember putting a couple aside, but they have no numismatic value. Certainly interesting and were popular at one time.... I was a Radioman in the Navy, and we looked for the 'Morse Code' nickels then...However, at that time, one could still get a five cent draught beer in some bars.... Cheers, RickO