So I'm checking in for comments to the long thread I started last night, and cannot help myself but to stick my nose in to other threads and give answers where I can. I know I said I was done, and I am...but until I am satisfied that my thread is dead, I'll be back in once in a while. I hope nobody minds me "going back on my word" - I signed out for the last time last night, and here I am. Oye...
Anyway...
By far sorting the coins by date is the best way to start for many reasons, not the least of which being the fact that any design differences, RPMs, or doubled dies become readily visible when you have a number of examples of what should be identical coins laying next to each other. You do not get the same benefit when looking through mixed groups of coins. Best and fastest method is to take ten containers and sort by last digit first - so that all 1970, 1980, 1990, 2000, and 2010 coins are in one container.
I laid out my coins on a long fluted stick (long enough for 25 coins) with a groove that fit a cent (3/4 inch) - it was a home-made thing (made from a 1x2 piece of ash), but worked well. This allows for a very fast roll turnaround.
Now, IF I am only looking through a few rolls and don't plan to go farther, I don't bother sorting before I lay the coins out on my stick. If doing it this way (not pre-sorted), I would sort into the following groups:
group #1 - 1973 (because it's a one year type)
group #2 - all other copper. (to keep the metals separated)
group #3 - 1982 zinc through 1988. (for RDV 5)
group #4 - 1989 through 1992. (for RDV 6)
group #5 - anything post-1992. (to separate wide AMs)
With two of my sticks, I could set one on top of the other and flip the whole rig to immediately flip obverse to reverse. This would allow for me to see the different reverses in groups, so I could notice transitional varieties.
A little better description of the stick:
Two pieces of 1x2 lumber cut to the length of 28 coins - about 21 inches. Use a 3/4" router bit to rout a flute straight down the center of each stick, about 1/8 of an inch deep. Sand and wax to get rid of splinters and roughness. Smoother the better.
Lay the coins out in the fluted area with a small gap between 'groups' - all obverse up, aligned the same. Look through the coins by sliding them under the optics of your scope on the stick.
Set the other stick (face down) on top of the coins and flip the whole rig. Now you will see all the reverses (with gaps for planned differences in design, etc.) and as a bonus you will be able to detect rotated die errors if you were careful in laying them out with the obverse side up.
When done with the reverse side, simply scoop the coins off the stick and separate as you wish...I had two reject piles - one for copper, the other for the rest (zinc).
That's my method, and I could give a detailed look to an entire roll inside one minute. I could make it through four to six sorted boxes in any given day. I have never heard of a method or seen a method that is anywhere near as efficient.
