Advice please.

[goomolique 3]

I find it difficult to distinguish wear from weak strike.

any tips please?

Thank you

[bronze mad 4]

A weakly struck coin is due to the dies becoming worn away slightly, and this causes the struck coin to become less 'sharp' so the design looks in low relief, and to the untrained eye can be deceptive.

Wear is due to flattening from circulation, try to compare coins in high grades and it will become clearer.

I hope this helps, it is difficult to explain!

[declanwmagee 122]

Have a look at some of the lettering on some 1806/7 copper. Lots of them have weak legends that are really obviously not wear.

[Michael-Roo 777]

True. Although the Soho coins were a huge improvement on those which came before there is often a weakness in the lettering which would have been there in the original strike, and not as a result of subsequent wear.

[RLC35 288]

I find it difficult to distinguish wear from weak strike.

any tips please?

Thank you

Attached are samples of a well struck coin, and a weakly struck coin. Both of these coins are lusterous uncirculated, but there is less detail on the weakly struck one. (my camera does not show the extremely shiny surface, but both coins are very shiney, and uncirculated).

You can notice in the middle of the coin (the highest point), there is loss of detail, which means the coin was not fully struck. Additionally the head, and the center, lower skit lines are not as clear on the poorly struck coin. Usually a poorly struck coin is due to either die wear, as the die ages, or a coin that has been struck with less pressure, as might be in the early punch press setup, for the start of a coin run cycle.

[Peter 615]

Well said Bob

That is why you must always buy the coin and not the slab.

A great reason for me to always buy raw and ignore TPG's and their fantasies.

If you can see a cracking coin through the slab Great.

[goomolique 3]

Ok its easy on UNC coin but how about EF or VF?

[Rob 3,002]

Why would anyone slab a VF coin in the first place? The difference between mint state and the faintest trace of friction is far more obvious than the same amount of wear to a vf coin.

[Peckris 579]

Ok its easy on UNC coin but how about EF or VF?

By the time a weak strike has become VF, it's VF full stop. It just took less time to get there than a strong example.

[Paulus 1,942]

Ok its easy on UNC coin but how about EF or VF?

By the time a weak strike has become VF, it's VF full stop. It just took less time to get there than a strong example.

Couldn't agree more Peck, eye appeal is all for me, not really bothered whether the 'worn' appearance is down to weak strikes, worn dies, cabinet friction or whatever, it is what it is in the eye of the beholder