WILL I BE BANNED?????

jeffnpcb

After reading the CoinWorld this week, I am confused big time as well as the comments in the letters??? HOW DID A CIRCULATED CENT-DIME MULE GET ASSIGNED A MS GRADE?????

cherrypickincoin

How did a cent-dime mule even get out of the mint legally? Hmmm..

freakycoinfreak

Is that the one that they sent to NGC to authenticate before PCGS would slab it?

cladking

All circulating coins aren't necessarily circulated and all circulated coins aren't
in circulation. Unc is not only a state of existence but also a grade. A coin is
minted in unc (unless proof) and it remains such until it has recieved enough
wear that the luster is broken. If people would handle their pocket change
more carefully and only by the edges than all circulation coins would still be un-
circulated. It is not unusual to find coins in circulation up to six years of age
which are unc. Beyond this they probably had the help of a collector to remain
in nice shape rather than mere chance.

stujoe

Very good Cladking. I read that letter in CW about the 'Overgraded Mule' and thought the writer has a bit to learn.

I read "coin tossed in a purse" and "bounced off the floor" as meaning it couldn't be MS65 and making in About Uncirculated at best and the first thing I thought was "Hey, guess what? Coins get tossed in bags at the mint and they get bounced out of the press and into a bin too. Does that mean there are no coins better than AU?"

It is all in the wear or lack thereof.

kranky

The coin has to show wear before it's not Unc. If you can't see wear, it doesn't matter what happened to the coin.

jeffnpcb

Cladking, we are talking about a 1993-D, not 2003-D!! I find it a case for the X-Files or Secret Service to investigate this issue!!!

It is a circulated coin by any standard, regardless of it's state of quality. Or, it was made, then hoarded by a member of a mint employee!

kranky

<< <i>It is a circulated coin by any standard, regardless of it's state of quality. >>



It's not circulated by grading standards if you cannot detect wear.

stujoe

I probably have coins (especially cents) that I received in change at one time or another just sitting around in a jar or two that have been there for years. Did you know that Coinstar processed more coins in 2002 than the mint made?

"BELLEVUE, Wash. – July 16, 2003 – Coinstar Inc. (Nasdaq: CSTR) today announced that its network of more than 10,000 machines in the U.S. recycled a total of 33.2 billion coins -- representing $1.7 billion -- back into the economy in 2002. The milestone represents a 13 percent increase in coins recycled and a 17 percent increase in the value of coins recycled by the company over the previous year; this out-paces the U.S. Mint's production of new coin for the second consecutive year. In 2002 14.4 billion new coins were produced by the U.S. Mint, a drop from 19.4 billion new coins in 2001. "

I see more higher grade, older coins in circulation in the last couple of years and I think Coinstar getting the sock drawers emptied is part o the reason. A 1993 might be a stretch but I wouldn't discount the possibility myself. It may have survived 10 years without wear. I received a 1980-something quarter a week or so ago at the post office that was, at worst, an AU58. I didn't really check it to see if it had any wear on the high points or not (I spent it) but it may have been MS. It wouldn't surprise me if it was. It had great lustre. Don't know where or what it had been doing the last almost 20 years but it had lived an easy life.

kamehameha00

i just got a '65 quarter in change which i KNOW will grade MS.