jefferson nickel 2005, why are so many coins with die chips and cracks ??
mok13
Posts: 105 ✭✭✭
Hi there,
I was wondering how come there are so many die chips and cracks on these coins ?
Is it always like that with a first (one) year design ?
have 4 or 5 like this !
and several chips
Henri, From the French Riviera with love
1
Comments
Cracks & chips happen when the mint tries to squeeze a few extra coins from the dies rather than change them out.
All denominations over all years will show cracks & chips, it is quite common.
Well I know how they happen etc but I am asking the proportions. Here it is more than 10% with either chip or crack. It seems a lot to me
Henri, From the French Riviera with love
Not the same coin but here is another year with tons of cracks.
There are too many variables to establish a percentage.
http://ec2-13-58-222-16.us-east-2.compute.amazonaws.com/wiki/1921-P_D2_Die_Crack_Break_Guide
Maybe a better way to answer your question would be.....
Yes, sometimes design elements make for weak spots on the die and therefore cracks can be more common on certain areas of the die.
65-70 tons of pressure, times a few hundred thousand,
tends to deteriorate the dies in various ways, including
die crack and die chips.
Certain designs are prone to die chipping or cracking. The Morgan dollar was one that never got better.
That said, the Mint orders die steel in batches from private steel makers. Occasionally a batch is received that is harder or softer than desired, The too hard ones tend to chip and/or crack. Lincoln cents 1956-on are a good example.
I am not familiar with the 2005 nickels having this problem, but I offer this as a possible explanation.
Early 60's nickels had many die chips in LIBERTY and on the date. Many were labeled "Bar Nickels".