Buffalo nickel 1916 obverse

buffalo_5c_fanatic

Comments welcome.

The primary characteristic of mechanical doubling on coins with raised design elements is that the secondary image (doubling) has a flat, shelf-like appearance. On genuine doubled dies the secondary image is raised and rounded just like the primary image. Also, genuine doubled dies are characterized by a splitting of the serifs on letters with serifs, or a “notching” of the corners of the letters which are doubled. This splitting of the serifs or notching of the letter corners will not be found on coins with mechanical doubling.

buffalo_5c_fanatic

If its magnified sufficiently it looks pretty convincing.

gumby1234

Mechanical doubling

LanceNewmanOCC

ricko

Good picture for study..... Cheers, RickO

BuffaloIronTail

MDD.

The doubling also shows on the date and Iron Tail's neck. Strange how the doubling on the middle feather extends all the way through to the end of the feather, but there is no doubling on the small third one.

Pete

CaptHenway

@BuffaloIronTail said:
MDD.

The doubling also shows on the date and Iron Tail's neck. Strange how the doubling on the middle feather extends all the way through to the end of the feather, but there is no doubling on the small third one.

Pete

Mechanical Doubling is caused by the die moving away from the coin (normal) after the strike and sideways (abnormal, caused by loose nuts and bolts on the press). By the time that the die moved far enough to contact the higher relief long feather, it had already cleared the low relief short feather.

BuffaloIronTail

@CaptHenway said:

@BuffaloIronTail said:
MDD.

The doubling also shows on the date and Iron Tail's neck. Strange how the doubling on the middle feather extends all the way through to the end of the feather, but there is no doubling on the small third one.

Pete

Mechanical Doubling is caused by the die moving away from the coin (normal) after the strike and sideways (abnormal, caused by loose nuts and bolts on the press). By the time that the die moved far enough to contact the higher relief long feather, it had already cleared the low relief short feather.

Thanks for the explanation, Tom.

Pete