<< <i>while i can't speak for the other strike designations, i will try to help our esteemed collector of ten cent coins understand the relevance of the FS(Full Steps) designation. as Jackie Gleason used to say...............And away we gooooooooooo!!!!
the dies used to strike Jefferson Nickels have been a problem ever since the design was approved. buildings are not a good thing when it comes to coin design and to have a building running east-to-west opposite a portrait running north-to-south means very, very bad metal flow at the center of this coin(i would also mention that compared to the relatively soft nature of a Silver alloy, Nickel is a nightmare). complicating things is the fact that the deepest part of the obverse die lies directly opposite the most detailed feature of the reverse die. that means that while metal is trying to flow into the step area it is simultaneously being pulled away to fill the obverse die.
any Jefferson Nickel collector knows that the two areas of unstruck planchet tend to be Jefferson's jawline and the area of the steps under pillar number three, typically from the third step down. the best struck coins will have those areas completely filled and smooth, while some of the higher graded coins may have the step area mentioned incomplete and/or the jawline showing minute pinholes. collectors have come to realize these facts so they place a premium on fully struck coins and have sought to recognize the completeness of strike by counting the Full Steps. a purist will count by quarter steps but collectors in general consider an entire step either complete or incomplete.
in plain english, the steps are fairly reliable indicator of strike quality. while not perfect by any means, the Hobby has come to accept the FS designation as an indicator of quality relevant to a coins overall grade. >>
Very Well explained Keets!
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Comments
<< <i>while i can't speak for the other strike designations, i will try to help our esteemed collector of ten cent coins understand the relevance of the FS(Full Steps) designation. as Jackie Gleason used to say...............And away we gooooooooooo!!!!
the dies used to strike Jefferson Nickels have been a problem ever since the design was approved. buildings are not a good thing when it comes to coin design and to have a building running east-to-west opposite a portrait running north-to-south means very, very bad metal flow at the center of this coin(i would also mention that compared to the relatively soft nature of a Silver alloy, Nickel is a nightmare). complicating things is the fact that the deepest part of the obverse die lies directly opposite the most detailed feature of the reverse die. that means that while metal is trying to flow into the step area it is simultaneously being pulled away to fill the obverse die.
any Jefferson Nickel collector knows that the two areas of unstruck planchet tend to be Jefferson's jawline and the area of the steps under pillar number three, typically from the third step down. the best struck coins will have those areas completely filled and smooth, while some of the higher graded coins may have the step area mentioned incomplete and/or the jawline showing minute pinholes. collectors have come to realize these facts so they place a premium on fully struck coins and have sought to recognize the completeness of strike by counting the Full Steps. a purist will count by quarter steps but collectors in general consider an entire step either complete or incomplete.
in plain english, the steps are fairly reliable indicator of strike quality. while not perfect by any means, the Hobby has come to accept the FS designation as an indicator of quality relevant to a coins overall grade. >>
Very Well explained Keets!
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