When did the mint errors get super-scarce? Answered: it was 2002

kranky

I remember reading somewhere that due to changes made at the mint not too long ago, errors became very hard to come by. When was that? 2000?

Was that just for off-centers, or everything except off-centers?

You can see my memory is foggy on this!

kieferscoins

2002 and on.

Cameron Kiefer

kranky

Thanks CK.

kieferscoins

Off centers for 2003 and 2004 coins are no more than 5% off center now and are very hard to find.

Cameron kiefer

FredWeinberg

Starting in the late 1990's, the Mint started installing newer Schuler Presses;
these presses are very different from those in the past in many ways.

They have virtually eliminated off-center strikes, double strikes, fold-overs,
and other error types that have always occured in the past.

All of the "off-centered broadstrikes" (those that look 5% o/c, etc.) are about
the farthest you can get off-centers now.......except for the one or two presses
still installed in Denver apparently for Cents, and Halves and Dollars at both
Denver and Phila.

Circular errors (off-metals) and clips can still get out, but due to other factors
(new riddler machines, counting machines on TOP of the Ballistic Bag Operation,
lower mintages of coins, etc.), the number of errors struck has dropped by
probably 90% or more; the number of errors getting out, since 2002 has also
dropped by the same amount, or more.

There are now many States Quarters, 2002/03/04 that simply do not exist in an Off-Center
Strike or Double Strike, due to the new Presses.

Also, since the Mint is not releasing Sac dollars for circulation, the number of clips, blanks,
and almost any error on them have been almost eliminated; those errors on the 2000
and a few 2001 Sac dollars are mostly off the market, in collections......

Hope the above is a bit helpful in understanding why there have been so very few
errors since 2002......

Fred Weinberg

kranky

Thanks for the in-depth explanation, Fred!

cdwegner

Fred,

Does that help or hinder your business?

Or, does it just make it more difficult for you to secure error coins?

c

FredWeinberg

It helps and hinders business.

On one side, the supply of new errors in the past two-and-a-half years
has dropped dramatically, thereby limiting the supply of most items,
even simple off-center cents, clips, etc. This "hurts" in the sense that
I have to rely on buying older collections, accumulations, etc. of errors,
and have less dependency on "counting room" sources, as in the past.
Luckily,I've bought four or five major great deals so far this year, so my
inventory is good, with new fresh items. Many never hit my inventory,
as I have collector want-lists for many of the better pieces.

On the other side, it helps because both older and newer collectors
see that the exisiting supply of a particular error date, type, or
denomination is IT, and there won't be any more - so sales are
very brisk, prices on certain types of errors are very strong and
rising, and in many cases, if a particular error shows up on the
market, you have to jump to buy it now, or forever lose your opportunity.

As Lester Merkin, a very famous New York Dealer (passed away about 15 years ago
or so) once said "Sometimes the opportunity to buy a coin is much
rarer than the coin itself!" --- and thats very very true in Numismatics......


Fred

JRocco

This came out of a 2002 bank roll. Too bad the date is hiding.