Extreme Makeover - 1829 LM-2 Half Dime
Bikergeek
Posts: 675 ✭✭✭✭✭
I was looking at 1829 LM-2 Capped Bust half dimes at the behest of my friend Louis. I saw two that had a similar scratch. The first one, a dark MS63, sold in 2017 for $652. The second one, a brilliant MS65, sold in 2024 for $2700. Same coin.
1829 LM-2, PCGS MS63, Heritage 7/9/17 lot #7257. Sale price: $652
https://coins.ha.com/itm/bust-half-dimes/1829-h10c-v-3-lm-2-r1-ms63-pcgs-pcgs-population-1-0-ngc-census-2-2-cdn-725-whsle-bid-for-problem-free-ngc-pcgs-ms63/a/1257-7257.s?ic4=ListView-Thumbnail-071515#
1829 LM-2, PCGS MS65, Heritage 11/20/24 lot #3104. Sale price: $2,760
https://coins.ha.com/itm/bust-half-dimes/1829-h10c-v-3-lm-2-r1-ms65-pcgs-pcgs-38613-/a/1378-3104.s?ic4=ListView-ShortDescription-071515
Detail:
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Comments
Interesting
Just my personal opinion but I'd rather own that coin with the look of it in the 63 holder than the look of it in the 65 holder. I know others will disagree but I'm a bit sad all that history got dipped off the coin.
and gold beans?
seems like a candidate for a details holder
Dip aside, how the heck did they get to ms65 with that scratch?
63... 65... moot in a details holder
Great eye @bikergeek. Your passion for this series shines as usual.
I'd imagine the toning (likely dip residue) on the coin when graded MS63 was relatively new since it came off so well. However, that is one heck of a scratch to have on that coin to grade MS65!
In honor of the memory of Cpl. Michael E. Thompson
Too much of a scratch for a straight grade 65
"When they can't find anything wrong with you, they create it!"
Somewhere, @Ricko is smiling.
In the last post, it looks like a staple scratch. Damaged.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
As a charter member of FACT (Fighters Against Corrosion & Tarnish),
I applaud the masterful dipping of what was a once a sad-looking coin into the
attractive blazer it is today!
That scratch, however…
30+ years coin shop experience (ret.) Coins, bullion, currency, scrap & interesting folks. Loved every minute!
I am figuring the eagle must have gone Ouch! when he got that scratch.............
One might speculate that that toning had been applied to hide that scratch, but without seeing the coin I could not say.
Wow, what a find! Thanks for sharing Sean.
The scratch is of little concern to me, for this is a half dime. If the coin is tiny, the scratch is miniscule in comparison.
"But seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you" Matthew 6:33. Young fellow suffering from Bust Half fever.
BHNC #AN-10
JRCS #1606
Look here, Crispies, just cuz you're tall... I must say, what kind of size-ist attitude is that? GREAT THINGS come in small packages! Look at any dealer's website that focuses on closeups of coins (not slab photos). ALL the coins are the same size. Therefore, the per capita crack allocation is equivalent! (Say that three times fast). Example below chosen here from Peak Rarities.
Next time I see you, I'm going to get a cinderblock to stand on, step up, look you in the eye, and tell you that a tiny crack on a half dime is, pound for pound, bigger than on any other coin! (Same size staple scratches a dollar or a 3c silver,right?)
My hobby website Groovycoins.com, new and improved!
Certainly looks much better without all that old dip residue on the coin, but that scratch is a deal killer for me.
My Collection of Old Holders
Never a slave to one plastic brand will I ever be.
The scratch is minuscule in comparison to what? A tiny scratch on a tiny coin isn’t necessarily any less bothersome than a large scratch on a large coin. And in this case, the “tiny” scratch looks to be roughly 20% of the coin’s diameter.
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
Proportionally comparing to a larger coin, say a Morgan dollar, the scratch is itty bitty. The half dime scratch is probably 2mm, while the same ratio scratch (that would most certainly detail) on a Morgan dollar would be about a centimeter. Looking at massive photos, the size of the scratch is massive when in reality it is still small.
But, the reality is grading services advertise that they use at most 5x magnification to view coins. They don't judge proportionally to other coins, they judge the coin they are looking at. And nobody can actually see detail on a half dime even with 5x magnification.
Considering how many times @Bikergeek has corrected me on my attribution proves that in-hand inspection is much more difficult than blown up internet photos. Keep it up Sean, you make the internet a wholesome, truthful place 
"But seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you" Matthew 6:33. Young fellow suffering from Bust Half fever.
BHNC #AN-10
JRCS #1606
The scratch in question - again, it appears to be roughly 20% of the coin’s diameter - should be quite easy to see with 5x (or lower) magnification.
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
I've never really thought of myself as "wholeseome," but hey, why not? Lol!
My hobby website Groovycoins.com, new and improved!
Amazing catch for such a different surface coin. But what is the deal with the left base of O on reverse?
Looks more like a die mark than a scratch and doesn't appear on 1st photo. Or am I just missing it in the tarnish/dip residue?
Jim
When a man who is honestly mistaken hears the truth, he will either quit being mistaken or cease to be honest....Abraham Lincoln
Patriotism is supporting your country all the time, and your government when it deserves it.....Mark Twain
@jesbbroken that was my take on it - the tarnish covered a lot of the smaller marks. Photography plays its part too. Initially, I wanted to synch up a few other commonalities, but the toning in the early coin I think was superficial - but highly obscuring. My $.02 anyway.
My hobby website Groovycoins.com, new and improved!