Need to understand the GW 'Starburst' coin. What is causing this?
RVDavis
Posts: 1,137 ✭
There is a sub-variety (my term) of the plain edge GW coins. Everyone who has found them in rolls (8 individuals with whom I have spoken) have found this error that we all are calling starburst. I thought I saw a thread on this a couple of weeks ago but can not find it. It is quite difficult to convery the appearance. In ordinary light, this coin looks like nothing else but that George Washington has a bright light behind his head and these are rays of light.
I put one under the microscope today. I was surprised to see Washington's right eye (viewer's left) was marred. I thought originally this was some sort of die error now I am wondering if it is struck-through. Thoughts?
By the way, the number of these coins to conventional plain edge seems to run around 2%.
Rick
I put one under the microscope today. I was surprised to see Washington's right eye (viewer's left) was marred. I thought originally this was some sort of die error now I am wondering if it is struck-through. Thoughts?
By the way, the number of these coins to conventional plain edge seems to run around 2%.
Rick
Proud recipient of YOU SUCK more than once and less than 100 times.
0
Comments
TD
<< <i>Looks like struck through grease that was squirting outwards towards the edge under pressure.
TD >>
On both sides of the coin though? I don't know how that works. As the bottom photo best captures it is an interest visual effect.
Rick
What is now proved was once only imagined. - William Blake
<< <i>There was a thread posted on this recently and I came to the same conclusion. Interesting that it should turn up on such a large number of coins - I wonder if there is some sort of production issue here. >>
Indeed. Would grease last long enough to produce a lot of coins? Also, the effect is almost exactly the same on the 43 coins I have.
Rick
What is now proved was once only imagined. - William Blake
San Diego, CA
<< <i>I think there must be an issue with the die if you have many coins with the same exact pattern. Are they exactly the same? >>
Al,
Yes they are.
Rick
What is now proved was once only imagined. - William Blake
<< <i>The pattern on the three coins you picture appears different to me. >>
Part of the difficulty of photographing these things. They are very, very similar. Some have a bit stronger appearance som eweaker but the pattern is consistent. Curious.
I found some struck thru grease coins and they so not look like that.
But that is just my opinion.
San Diego, CA
A variation in the strength and/or location of the starburst pattern that you describe could be due to coins struck through grease on the same run.
What is now proved was once only imagined. - William Blake
<< <i>Part of the difficulty of photographing these things. They are very, very similar. Some have a bit stronger appearance som eweaker but the pattern is consistent. Curious.
A variation in the strength and/or location of the starburst pattern that you describe could be due to coins struck through grease on the same run. >>
Could be, like I said originally I am not expert. It challenges me a bit to believe that grease could last through hundreds of coins, but maybe so. I want some of that grease on my car's CV joints.
Random Collector
www.marksmedals.com
I found some stuck thru grease that are kind of circular in appearance on a few coins. If these starburt are struck thru grease also, why they would look like the same on so many coins ?
San Diego, CA
It's a rather common form of Struck Thru that
you see on quantities of States Quarters,
amoung other denominations.
The Starburst "look" is the result of the die pressure
forcing the oil/grease/whatever out toward the path
of least resistance when the dies come in contact
with the planchet.
Capt. Henway is correct, again.....
Would dealers pay more than $30 for a double error coin?
San Diego, CA
or some other foreign material.
<< <i>So I am guessing that the coins that are struck thru grease and does not have this pattern were struck with lower pressure?
Would dealers pay more than $30 for a double error coin?
Try to splatter some paint on canvas in the same exact pattern twice.
TD
<< <i>If they are exactly the same, they dies must have been damaged somehow, you would not get the same pattern on all 43 struck thru grease coins.
I found some struck thru grease coins and they so not look like that.
But that is just my opinion. >>
Consecutive strikes from dies can be issued very close together. This is the principle
behind varieties turning up in a single location; the coins are produced and issued in the
same breif span and geographical locartion.
Granted that all the varieties which are dicscovered in a single roll are usually over a rel-
atively large part of the life of a die but this is caused mostly by the mixing that occurs as
they go through bins. As the bin is being filled many of the coins will fall off the top all the
way to the edge. These can then be passed up by coins filling the void in the center which
developes as coins are drawn off the bottom. In this way there will usually be some mixing
of the various die stages from a specific die. A typical variety which appears in a roll will be
over a range of about 50,000 coins, but it doesn't have to be that large a range. If the stream
of consecutive strikes hits low bins or emptying bins each time then you can actually get six
or eight consecutive strikes in a roll.
You may well be right but the argument doesn't prove it.
GW dollar starburst thread
San Diego, CA
of "starburst" effect" on the reverse only, obverse only, and both sides. Some have a strange double curve going through
GW's right eye....and some have just a flat-out gorgeous "Starburst" effect, and others are not so attractive.
Just my observations from the ones I found.
Brian
I LOVE
The "error" that you are describing has been commonly refered to as a "SUNburst", and was previously listed on TPG certified coins as 'Struck Thru'.
I have found these (not a lot, but enough to compare) on both the smooth edge and some of the incused edge dollar coins. What I have found is that some are 'full' sunbursts (extending towards the rim) and some are localized sunSPOTS (near the center of the coin).... but in all cases the effect is seen in the same areas on multiple coins (some just more extreme than others)... as if the the "strike" was either increasing or decreasing through multiple runs.
jmo...
That's what the Mint calls
"Starburst" when they retire the
Die.
It's been in use a bit too long.......
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The three coins also showed some light Die Clash marks