Error question

NJCollector · December 18, 2003 9:36AM

Received a 1982 P Roosevelt dime in change. Instead of 3 layers, copper surrounded by silver, the coin has 2 layers. The obverse is silver and the reverse is copper. Both sides are struck very sharp and clear. Is this common?

NJCollector · December 18, 2003 9:51AM

No one?

itsnotjustme · December 18, 2003 10:03AM

If legit, you have a nice error. Not common, but certainly not unheard of.

cladking · December 18, 2003 10:10AM

It could be a missing layer coin. With sharp details on the reverse it would have
been struck after splitting. Look at the edge; it should either be all dark copper
color or it should be mosly "silver" color toward the obverse side. If neither than
it's probably plated on one side. The weight will be the best indication. A regular
coin will weight about 2.3 g.

A missing clad layer is by no means common.

NJCollector · December 18, 2003 10:21AM

Mostly silver, towards, the obverse side. It appears that the silver layer normally on the reverse was never there when struck.

NJCollector · December 18, 2003 12:12PM

I browsed completed sales on Ebay and found similar dimes for $50. A few State quarters in the same state were several hundreds. Does this make any sense. Is this just a common error or is it really a rarity?

Conder101 · December 18, 2003 11:10PM

It isn't common, but it isn't extremely rare either. The figure you saw for the dime on eBay is probably about right. Actually this type of eror seems to be more common on the state quarters than on any other series. Before the state quarters I would hear about one of these on occaision. But in the five years of the state quarters I have seen lterally hundreds of these reported. You would think that with that many reported the price would be low, but for some reason almost ANY error on a state quarter brings much more than the same error type would bring on say a 1998 quarter.

hookooekoo · December 18, 2003 11:40PM

I browsed completed sales on Ebay and found similar dimes for $50. A few State quarters in the same state were several hundreds. Does this make any sense.

Yes this makes sense. The State Quarter series has created a new set of collectors (it's what got me started). Since the State Quarter series began, a major error such as your missing clad layer or major off-center strikes (where a significant portion of the coin face is missing) or coins with multiple strikes (i.e. the coin gets stuck in the machine and the coin gets turned a little with each re-stike of the machine resulting in multiple images on the coin) have been selling easily from $100 to $500.

But not as many people are collecting modern cents, nickles, and dimes. There isn't anything "new" about these coins, so a major error on them doesn't pull as much of a premium.

NJCollector · December 19, 2003 12:00PM

I've always give my pocket change a cursory look before tossing it into my change jar. Now I think I will examine each coin a bit more closely than before.

richbeat · December 21, 2003 12:03PM

If it's missing a clad layer, it should be thinner than normal, and lighter in weight. If the thickness and weight are normal, then it's probably plated.

Conder101 · December 21, 2003 4:29PM

<< <i>If it's missing a clad layer, it should be thinner than normal, and lighter in weight. If the thickness and weight are normal, then it's probably plated. >>

Not always. When the strip is rolled, at the ends it is possible for there to be just two of the layers present but the thickness is still correct. (As it is rolled it smears out. Think of the ingot as a rectangle of three metal layers. As it gets rolled it is squashed over into a parallelegram asnd drawn out so from end to end you get just bottom layer, bottom and middle, all three, middle and top layer, just top layer.) Normally those ends are trimmed off before the blanking is done but if the strip isn't trimmed properly it is possible for part of the two layer section to remain. Planchets cut from this section will be proper weight, since the thickness is correct, but with only two layers.

Error question

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