New to the community! After coining for a couple of years, I may have found something in pocket change that I can justify getting help with!
I’m not familiar yet with all of the possible errors, and was unable to find a coin with this type of damage with research. The closest I’ve found is those in the title. I hope someone can look over the photos I was able to take and let me know what error(s) this is, if it may be worth grading and what possible value over face it may have. I don’t have the best scope and was only able to take photos with my phone, which doesn’t focus on the rim.
To me, it looks like a coin which had a traumatic experience inside some machine.
There are several sites on the Internet which list and illustrate all kinds of mint errors, but "Totally beaten up and ruined" is never given as an option. Mints do make mistakes, but totally beating up and ruining coins is usually done somewhere else.
Hello again and thank you both for your replies. My original, more detailed post, somehow reset itself and I had to retype everything. I was using my phone and I just put in the basics.
Originally, I stated I would just like a second opinion, as to whether this was mint error or PMD. Normally, a coin such as this would end up in the damage/"spend it" jar and I wouldn't waste any further time on it. However, knowing that 2015 coins were steeped in mint damage and quite common, I decided to research this one. I only found the one that was similar for sale on eBay. I also realize that there are many on top of many more scam coins available there as well. So, I wanted to upload for an analysis, somewhere that people were more familiar with the hobby.
I know the pictures I initially sent were junk, as it didn't capture the pristine state of the coin (outside of what I thought as well to be machine damage). I tried your suggestion of the magnifier between the coin/scope, but those photos were even worse. I do need a better scope, but can't afford one currently. I ended up needing to get an SD card in order to take photos with the scope, which are still awful (in my opinion), but there are many different ones (for different lighting and such). I'm also uploading the photo of the posting that made me decide to get a second opinion. Also, please notice the "bulge" in the center of both my dime and the seller's.
1. My Dime
2. Listed Dime
3. My Dime
4. Listed Dime
1. My Dime
2. Seller's Dime
3. My Dime
4. Seller's Dime
Also, please ignore the time/date stamp. I'm not able to make my scope update or not show the date. It's trash, really. I'm able to see what I need to with it, but photos have proven to be a terrible reproduction of what I see. I have a type of loupe but can't figure how to take pictures through it. These are honestly the best I'm able to accomplish. I've been trying during my downtime since the first reply. It's just hopeless without a better scope.
Again, thanks for the replies. Please understand that even after years of coin hunting, I'm still a novice and don't wish to assist in diluting the market with junk, which is why I asked for help. I truly searched for 2 days to find information on this coin/possible error and the only thing I came up with was what I posted here and the common mint error year. I also researched for ways to take legible photos both through my lope and scope, yet got nothing of value.
Hi the dime you are showing 2015 is real and I have proof because I have an exact one just like it no one has ever seen this coin I have been asking for 8 years now and I seen this page but couldn't find it now we both have a jem of a dime now I'm getting mine graded in a few days and then I'll be asking a wopping amount because I believe we have the only 2 and I will post the one I have on my page my name is Jason
It's the real thing it's a error I have the same one only 2 exist I have seen ur post a while ago then I lost the post ment to send u pics of mine and don't take no less then huge number for it he'll they should bring 1 million because they are the rarest dimes ever so I'll send u my pics of mine urs is in worse shape then mine though
I think u are mistaken how can the same thing happen to 2 coins that are from the same date and same error ?
Now if I have one and this other person has one that I have never met and lives in a total different state how can it have the same wear marks and same dime struck in same mint on the same die can I please tell me a answer besides the one that is a fact it's a mint error if it is not . I'll ship u my 1955 dub 1955 it's a 68 graded so u wouldn't cause I'll have this dime check and graded today
If that were true there would be tens of thousands or more of them. Don't waste your money trying to get your coin graded. It's PMD, nothing more.
It might help for people who see “mint error” in any coin that has some obvious post mint damage to understand the rudiments of how modern coins are made to understand what errors are and are not possible for the mint to make.
It resembles the wear pattern of coins left in a washing machine. I made a quarter or two like that by accident. They got stuck in the gap between the rotating agitator and the tub's base. They thus spun around in there for weeks before I tweezed them out. Sorry, don't quit your day job.
Honestly, weather it's worth anything or not, it's still a neat coin. There's the excitement of trying to figure it out. The story. It's not just money to me. I've got several that I should have graded and such but they all have a story to them. I guess I collect for different reasons. I'll never sell any of my coins. Ever.
well great, if you think it’s a error coin, good for you, well we don’t think so, so you must accept our opinion but you can still think it’s some mint error and keep it and not sell it
I am more experienced in the field of ancient and chinese coins, south-east asian coins included too!
I never said it was an error. As I mentioned I am newer to this and still learning. But thank you for being so welcoming and sharing the knowledge you have. I'd like to see your qualifications before taking your word.
Either way it's still a neat coin and story. I.learned so much about the coin collecting community today
1. the rim and lettering appear more worn/flattened than expected for a nine year old coin. This is most likely some kind of damage.
2. the surface has been scratched or abraded by some foreign object. This is clearly damage.
3. there is something going on at the center of the face that gives an uneven appearance. Unclear what has caused this, but could be consistent with suggestion upthread of something affixed to the coin, then removed.
st!! Their isn't only two of these dimes that exist you know why? I have the 3rd one the same exact markings I have been searching for a few days as I just barely found this coin and then this post
Now that “I ALSO HAVE ONE!!!” (OK … my wife found it in pocket change and said she'd let me have a look at it as long as I give her the first $10,000 from any sale 😂) it can be seen that the reverse has been abraded and/or polished so much that the weight is 2.1 grams (7% below specification) and the cladding has been removed completely near the edge in some places.
Whatever was done to the coin originally (a post for jewelry or a tie tack for example as someone suggested), somebody put a lot of work into removing the original alterations just so it could be put back into circulation.
Or … someone's just playing a joke on all the new-to-the-hobby error collectors.
Please stop posting this picture to explain these coins, unless you can explain why someone would solder button loops to both sides. It's no wonder these Numista members don't believe us when told they are not a mint error but post mint damage.
You were posting as I was composing my post. Yours is different in that the wear/abrasion only occurred on one side. But it clearly is from rotational damage as is all the others.
Anyone who think those “washing-machine” coins are errors should…
watch a video or find a blog post about how coins are made;
while watching, wonder how in the world and when in the process such “errors” could happen.
Spoiler alert: never, nowhere in the process. These are not friggin mint errors.
I'm not sure about any of the contributors to this tread but I've noticed in the past several years that people who don't see the difference between mint error and PMD often don't have an interest in working manually with tools. This is not a 100% situation. There are people who work with tools or other instruments who remain clueless, and others who are clumsy who still get it.
I guess rationality takes a beating when brain cells get excited for illusory $$$.
John Regitko in the Canadian Coin News has a column in every issue (2 per month) about error coins and all the time he shows damaged coins that collectors insist are errors because they paid hundreds of dollars for them on eBay.
These are all PMD. They're damaged coins with no extra value and not worth spending the money to get graded. If any of you want to spend the money to send these in and prove us wrong please do so.
1. They are not all alike. Each one has a substantially different pattern of damage. A defective die, on the other hand, would give multiple coins with abnormalities always at the same location on the coin.
2. One simple explanation mentioned above is that something was attached to the surface of the coin and then later removed.
3. If someone “mass-produced” by hand whatever item these dimes had been made into as part of a business, that would be a simple and believable explanation for why there are a lot of them, each with a slightly different pattern.
As with other Numista members who have posted these, there is the option to submit your coin to third party graders like NGC or PCGS if you would prefer an opinion from a recognized numismatic authority.
My god, talk about a thread that has taken on a life of it's own for nonsense. Post mint damage. Run over by a car in a parking lot for all we know. We cannot say how the post mint damage was caused for certain but what we can say for certain is that these are not mint errors and simply post mint damage whatever the cause.
Yes, there is a certain zombie nature to the subject 😁.
There are a few sayings about hope (or imagination) overcoming experience or comon sense. Experienced collectors know there is a part of the hobby where this applies.
It's why “I have one too” translates to “so it MUST be a mint error” rather than the more rational explanation that somebody was mass producing a craft item that used clad Roosevelt dimes.
Would this be caused by an old vending machine? Perhaps like this one?
Note how it's for a single 10c product and how you have to manually push a lever down, which might have caused some damage (perhaps this machine isn't old enough, but you get the point).
Now, did a thirsty kid find this 1888 Newfoundland $2 coin on his father's desk and tried to pass it for a Coke??
The Newfoundland silver 10c and gold $2 are of exactly the same diameter (17.98 mm).
I have several more examples of dimes with a circle error on one or the other side (never both). It's almost always dimes. Beside the gold $2, I've seen a Canadian silver 5c once with such a circle. I show this just as an example that very similar damage can be found on several coins from different places and periods.
That guy who responds with bold type is about to be reported. Numista does not need any more arrogant and ignorant members.
Sorry I missed it.
Sorry, scroll back to old posts in July. I did not notice the original posting date due to the fact that this thread unfortunately still lives to this day. Just look at all the effort exerted, irrelevent tangents, explanations, and time wasted by good people for nonsense perpetuated by a simple question about an assumption but ultimately simple PMD once again.
That guy who responds with bold type is about to be reported. Numista does not need any more arrogant and ignorant members.
Sorry I missed it.
Sorry, scroll back to old posts in July. I did not notice the original posting date due to the fact that this thread unfortunately still lives to this day. Just look at all the effort exerted, irrelevent tangents, explanations, and time wasted by good people for nonsense perpetuated by a simple question about an assumption but ultimately simple PMD once again.
Ah yes, I the $1million coin. And I agree, “Numista does not need any more arrogant and ignorant members.” We have plenty already.
I have one just like those and would like to know how PMD would cause this and how there are others just like this and 2015 as well .Thank you
I would like to know how two mints 1,700 miles apart with completely different equipment could produce these identical mint error coins but only in 2015 and never before or after.
This “error” goes for only $350 … It's very similar to some of the damaged coins at the start of this post, though it was caught earlier and removed from whatever spinning machine it was in.
Has to be damage at the mint I live in Tennessee. I got this coin about five or more years ago I just didn't know who to ask about it. I have a quarter from 2000 with similar strike errors
Yeah I agree. I've looked at them both thru microscope and they don't seem to be done by hand. I don't know if that makes a difference or not, but I'm sure no expert in microscopic images. I'll upload some microscope images
High friction events like getting caught against the spinning wheel of a coin counting machine can cause this.
May explain why dimes seem to be prevalent as they may get trapped more easily because of their small size. Just a theory and obviously still PMD and still could be considered a “washing machine coin.”
For those who still think they are rare mint errors worth thousands, here are the major steps involved in minting modern US dime coins:
1. Blanking - punching circular disks from a sheet of coin material
2. Annealing - heat treating to soften the blanks
3. Washing & Drying - cleaning the blanks to their original color
4. Upsetting - forming the edge of the blank to create a raised rim (now called a planchet)
5. Striking - creating the obverse/reverse designs on the coin by striking with two dies and the edge by being forced into a collar
6. Bagging & Packaging - self explanatory
Where in this process could a mint error happen to explain these damaged dimes? (Hint: it would have to come after Step 5.)
