1929-S Walking Liberty Half - Does this coin look whizzed to you?

Coinhusker1 · November 21, 2005 10:53PM

Or is it just flow-lines in the metal? I am not terribly familiar with strike characteristics of the 29-S, so any comments would be appreciated"

supertooth · November 22, 2005 12:01AM

Coinhusker 1------Gee, but I do hate pictures---any pictures. But, since this is what I am supposed to know about, I'll take a stab at it. I think that the coin has been dipped---too bright and white to be 'original'. The left breast looks like it has some rub. And the center skirt lines are not complete. The center of the Eagle's breast feathers are softly struck but that is not uncommon on an S Walker from the twenties. Yet the thumb separation is not bad for an S minted coin. I would guess it is flow lines and not a cleaning or buffing. In hand, I probably could do better---be more sure of myself. But I would say the coin is not messed with other than the dipping. Mind you---I could be wrong. Again, in hand I would be surer of myself. Assuming I am right about the coin---It would be an MS piece with the usual softly struck areas. Bob [supertooth]

Nocerino18 · November 22, 2005 12:02AM

possible dipped, but still looks real nice

BuffaloIronTail · November 22, 2005 12:07AM

I agree with Bob. It doesn't look like it's been whizzed, just dipped. I can't see any evidence of cleaning on it, no hairlines visible, but it might have been lightly circulated.

That's why people dip coins........for the luster and to hide any small trace of wear.

It's a real nice coin for the date.

Pete

LanLord · November 22, 2005 12:13AM

Tough pic to make any definite determination, but I don't see any sign of whizzing. I don't see dip either, but a white (silver) coin from 1929 seems difficult to believe.

Longacre · November 22, 2005 12:20AM

Hard to tell from that pic, but I would say no.

Are all 1929 coins that shiny?

BlindedByEgo · November 22, 2005 12:21AM

I'm assuming that you don't have this in hand.

Not whizzed, probably dipped. Either very mushy strike or AU-53 level wear, impossible to determine w/o coin in hand.

If it were an internet auction and not certified MS by a major TPG, I personally would not pay more than AU money for it.

KurtHorn · November 22, 2005 12:40AM

There's a guy who specializes in making these Walkers look that way. His name escapes me right now. What he does is use a very soft brush and toothpaste. He is very skillful at it. I really believe this coin has been played with and I think it would body bag at PCGS or NGC. Most disturbing to me are the lines between the skirt and the ray of the sun. They do not follow the directions that flow lines would usually go. And, it almost appears to me that they go up onto the devices, which would be a dead giveaway.

My CYA statement here is that making these judgements from an online pic limited to 50k in size is just about impossible. So, if I'm in error, I blame it here and now on the pic! I just don't think that I am wrong on this one, which is why I bothered to post.

291fifth · November 22, 2005 12:42AM

The photo isn't sharp but my guess is that it is an AU58 that has been dipped.

TwoSides2aCoin · November 22, 2005 12:49AM

I am in concurrence with LanLord and Blinded by Ego....

This coin looks mushy on the eagle's breast and legs, so it may have seen some circulation. There are no signs of dipping or whizzing , from what I see.
I have had the opportunity to go over a very large estate collection over the past three months attempting to determine the value of over 12,000 coins.

I know it is hard to believe, but there are still some coins out there that have probably never been touched since the depression and this coin looks like it could be one of them.

REMEMBER : without coin in hand, it is impossible to determine.
from my one dimensional view, AU-58 with nice eye appeal and luster, but weak strike.

DennisH · November 22, 2005 1:04AM

Looks like a jillion other screaming white Walkers that are already in holders. Dipping is allowed these days, and from the looks of your photo that's what I'd say has been done to this one. It's a very attractive coin in my opinion.

However, the strike looks good (per the thumb), which makes the flat right breast a real concern in regard to possible wear and AU58 grade status. This is a pricey date in MS63 and up, so as others have already said, be careful.

Coinhusker1 · November 22, 2005 1:24AM

Thanks for the responses. I do not have the coin in hand, and I have no plans to buy this coin, but wanted to know what you thought from an education standpoint.

I agree the coin looks dipped, but likely has enough luster left that it would holder (assuming the surfaces are not messed with). Whether there is enough rub to make it AU-58 would need an in-hand assessment.

Per Kurthorn's post, I am still suspicious as to whether the surfaces have been skillfully altered -- the flow lines on the eagles wings looks very similar to the flow lines in the fields. It will be interesting if others know of the "specialist" the Kurthorn is referring to.

Coinhusker1 · November 22, 2005 7:29AM

ttt for input/perspective from evening crowd.

Merc · November 22, 2005 7:46AM

No, the coin does not look wizzed. Wizzing removes details and leaves very fine swirled lines cut into the surface. This is usually done to an AU coin to give it the flash of an uncirculated coin. This coin displays die flow lines which are raised.

The 1929-S often has a great strike like this coin with a full hand.

streeter · November 22, 2005 7:58AM

From auction 8355065834

The seller has 6 pics....look at the upper right in his picture gallery with the obverse on black background. That is more like the coin you are going to receive.

I bought about 40 of these things shiney things off ebay in 2003-very early 2005 and I would lay odds you are going to receive a body bag coin. I got skunked 75% of the time

Merc · November 22, 2005 8:06AM

Wow, that poor coin has been dipped to death.

BlindedByEgo · November 22, 2005 8:15AM

I'm of the same opinion still

supertooth · November 22, 2005 9:42AM

Coinhusker 1---- When I buy my Walkers, I only buy 'original skinned' coins. And I would have passed on this coin simply because I felt and still do---that the coin was far too brite and had been dipped. Now that I can see where this piece comes from [an Ebay auction] and since we have more pictures [which I hate] to look at, I would like to add the following. I am more than ever certain that the piece has been dipped. The speck under the U of Unum bothers me----left over from the dipping? From the Ebay pictures, I am now much more uncertain of the field area above the 'In God We Trust'. Those faint "hairlines"?? from the Ebay pictures could mean trouble. The "hairlines"?? to the right of the Eagle's feathers are much more apparent on the Ebay pictures. These striations do not look like 'flow' lines as the other areas did to me. Sounds like I am leaning more along the lines of KurtHorn---does it not? But, in all fairness, isn't this a coin which definitely needs to be in hand? Is it not a coin which maybe needs a decent loupe? Some higher magnification? Would you not just want to tilt this coin in hand?? Is this not a coin which, if you bought it, would definitely require you to have a return priviledge? We would not condemn the piece just because it is raw. A slabbed coin had to be raw sometime in its past. But we should be ever more cautious because of that fact. The value of the piece, naturally, depends upon what faults we find while the coin is in our hands. Could be just a couple of hundred or could be a couple of thousand----depends on our evaluation in hand. But, now that I have seen the Ebay pictures, I would pay only Au money for this piece---assuming that I could not look at it in hand. Bob [supertooth]

coinkat · November 22, 2005 10:02AM

dipped... not original. But there are those that believe dipped, unoriginal coins are the future of the hobby and I respectfully disagree

ldhair · November 22, 2005 10:07AM

The lighting in the last pic makes it look like it still has a skin.
I think it's dipped as well.

1929-S Walking Liberty Half - Does this coin look whizzed to you?

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