Explain the odd so called "toning" on this 1914 D Lincoln

Crazy4Coins

Hello forum members,

I purchased this Lincoln from someone who called it wood grain toning.Anybody got any ideas what it is from or seen it before.The pics kind of make it look like it's on the surface but it's not.It's actually a goldish bronze toning of the copper.

What do you think the net grade would be?

ksteelheader

It has been explained to me that its an improper mix of the alloys in the planchlet.....Ken

Lightside

Man, that Lincoln is in great shape.

MS67??????

MICHAELDIXON

I have to agree with ksteelheader.

goose3

It looks borderline VF/EF

millennium

<< <i>It has been explained to me that its an improper mix of the alloys in the planchlet.....Ken >>




Ken nailed it. Bad mixing of the metals...

mozeppa

what ken said

Coppernicus

XF, maybe AU - the steel man is probably right - planchet flaw. No way this is MS though, IMHO - just check Lincoln's ear and cheek - circulation rub.

Mike

IrishMike

Bad alloy mix, you see this a lot in IHC's too. As far as a grade from the picture I would guess XF.

Steve

Unfortunately, no matter what the grade, I would not want this one in my collection because the obverse is so distracting. Crazy4Coins, I hope you got a real bargin on it. If you like it that way, then it's fine. If you are looking to sell, I really question if you can get VF or XF money for it. JMHO. Steve

MrEureka

I posted the two images because I wasn't sure the mintmark was in exactly the right spot. Can anyone tell us if the streaky brown coin is authentic? If not, perhaps the irregular toning was exacerbated by a heating and retoning process. But that's pure conjecture, probably moot if the coin is authentic...

merz2

Ken is quite right.The streaking is the result of a planchet flaw.There are quite a few IHC and Lincolns that have it.As to grade it is XF,IMHO.
MrEureka
You must remember the Mint Marks were applied by hand.So the placement is not a big problem.

cladking

My first thought was counterfeit but it looks good to me. I'd feel more confident
if it were in hand. This effect is not too unusual on copper from this era and will
not normally have much effect on pricing. It looks attractive to many people.