1955 "poor man's" DDO

baccaruda

i posed this question to dwood but i'm sure coppercoins also has the answer.

i recently got a 1955 "poor man's" (that's me) double die on e-bay along with a bunch of other nice UNC red wheats. i paid hardly anything for it but i don't see any doubling at all - anywhere, even with a loupe. is there actually doubling or is there just a diagnostic to look for somewhere that distinguishes it as such?

and, what do they mean "poor man's". is it just a less dramatic version of the full-blown DDO?

Russ

baccaruda,

You were supposed to get a fifth of vodka with the coin. Helps you see the doubling.

Russ, NCNE

BillJones

The so-called "poor man's doubled die" is a machine doubled coin that has the last digit in the date doubled. In the old days it retailed for a buck or two. It's just a minor error that is worth more as a curiosity item than anything else.

Cam40

I think ALL `55 DDO Lincolns are highly visible even without a loupe.Maybe seller only thought they sold a real `55 DDO.
The poor man`s DDO is usually a very late die state piece the shows the affects of a deteriorating die.
Alot of them are mistaken for fakes they look so bad.

baccaruda

You were supposed to get a fifth of vodka with the coin. Helps you see the doubling.

i got gyped. see what happens when you venture where you shouldn't.

btw russ, those jeffs are on the way.



thanks for the input - i'll have to check it out again, so just the last digit, eh?

baccaruda

The poor man`s DDO is usually a very late die state piece the shows the affects of a deteriorating die.

i just saw one on ebay and the strike was complete mush.

wallstreetman

Bill Jones is correct, except that they sell in the $6 range now!

braddick

Machine Doubling, for sure, but kind of a fun "variety" (I use that term loosely with this one-).

Here's one:

1955/55

commoncents

Die deteriorating doubling on the last digit of the date. It isn't machine or (strike) doubling.

wallstreetman

commoncents, Its a combination, one leads to the other! Most have cracks, so some collectors tend to point only to die wear!

commoncents

I guess a strike doubled could also be called a "poor mans" double die, but I have a roll of the die deteriorated 55's that only have the last digit doubled and have seen them pictured as the poor mans DD.

braddick

Commoncents. I had no idea. What you state makes more sense, but I'd always heard it was simple machine doubling. Your explanation sure takes the "glamour" out of this coin!

wallstreetman

I too have a roll with all kinds of things going on, they sure didnt change the dies often!

coppercoins

The truth behind the identity of "poor man's DDO" cents is that they are normal cents struck from very late die state dies. The visible effect is on the outside edge of the last digit in the date. What happens is the die begins to chip and break away in small bits in areas parallel to and close to the rim. This causes the doubling you see on these cents. Thing is, there are literally hundreds of thousands of them - they are very, very common and are not really worth the time of day, but simply because of the hype they've received for so many years, collectors tend to like them for more money than they would pay for an earlier strike normal 1955 cent.

I have seen and held back examples of this exact same effect on 1946, 1948, 1949, 1953, 1954, and 1955 cents for educational purposes...I guess it's time to photograph them and write an article for the site...it's just the 1955 that gained notariety because of a true hub doubled die from the same year.

I have roll after roll of these things, and actually would prefer I didn't. The coins look horrendous under a scope because all the detail is mashed out - the motto merges with the rim, the face detail is all washed out, VDB on the shoulder is nearly gone, and the last digit of the date is working on merging with the rim (the proported "DDO").

Anyhow, these coins are not strike doubling, they are not machine doubling, and they are not doubled dies. They are simply dies that are worn out.

braddick

Ok, Coppercoin- now you've pounded the last nail in the 55/55 PoorMan's coffin!

wallstreetman

Have you read the article in Coin World? Coins like this may become worth more than you think! These poor quality coins may be a thing of the past!

indianabyron

I have to bow to coppercoin. From one lincoln guy to the almost professor of lincolns. Coppercoin is right up there at the tops in knowledge of lincolns. If you havent checked out his site dont waist time its awsome it has to be the best site on lincolns.

Id do the linky thing but I suck at doing it .

Byron