eBay Coin - 1958/7 OVERDATE Error

[georoxx]

Question: Has anybody heard of the 1958/7 Lincoln Cent OVERDATE ERROR..?

LINK (http://www.ebay.com/itm/1958-7-Lincoln-Cent-OVERDATE-ERROR-ANACS-MS66-RD-RED-1958-over-7-Wheat-Penny-191-/400566458794?pt=Coins_US_Individual&hash=item5d439f19aa)

[hasfam]

Yes, but most attributers and professionals have dismissed it as a die gouge and not an overdate. It still shows up for sale once in a while and those less in the know will find it appealing.

[georoxx]

I though I'd heard something along those lines, but my thread search here didn't yield any results.

Thanks.

-George

[hasfam]

Here are a couple of links on the subject
LCR (http://www.lincolncentresource.com/FAQ/1958overdate.html)
ERROR REF (http://www.error-ref.com/1958-D_Lincoln_cent_with_extra_7_digit_in_date.html)

[willbrooks]

There are no "overdates" (by definition) in the Lincoln cent series. Breen is correct that the 1957 master hub was re-used in 1958, but if the 7 weren't completely ground off, it would stand to reason that each subsequent master die, working hub, and working die would show a more consistent similarity of these remains. (which they do not) At least I would think so.

[liveandievarieties]

I've studied this "variety" a bit. In fact, it was the first coin I ever sold to Peter! I have seen multiple dies attributed as 1958/7 and strongly believe that this is a hub issue (not arguing that the diagonal line in the 8 could be a die crack or scratch on an isolated die). I think it could have been a number of things including a die gouge on one of the hubs for the year, but agreed, not a 7 under the 8, but Breen's theory still is plausible (IMO).

[ray_parkhurst]

Yeah, I've seen quite a few of these from multiple dies. Could be remnants of a 7. Some dies are more pronounced than others, and some have doubling on the 8 as well. Interesting coins, though tough to say what caused them. I put them in the same bucket as the 5/56-D and some 57/7's I've seen where there is something there in each case but it's hard to say what...Ray

[trails]

There is a extremely slim possibility that the 7 digit was not entirely abraded off the 1957 hub that made the 1958 master die. If that were the case, a portion of the 7 digit was engraved over by an 8 digit on the new master die that was for the year 1958. The initial working hubs that were produced by the master die would show that partial 7 digit. As increasingly more working hubs were made from that master die, the partial 7 digit would fade and finally not be seen.

However, like most people, I believe this to be another type of anomaly.

[coppercoins]

I cannot tell one way or the other, and I wasn't there. I respect the work of Breen, but a number of things he initially listed have since been disproven and dismissed by the students of numismatics. I am happy enough letting this one slide into the change bucket - not enough there to cause any excitement even if it is a master die overdate of some sort. They are very plentiful, and even the 'best' examples require a decent amount of imagination to see a 7.

The thing that bothers me is seeing people pay a premium for these coins because they are in old generation holders with the Breen number attached. Yet another case of people not doing their homework to find out they could buy a $7 roll of coins and find 50 of them.

I have thousands of them - all neatly tucked away in rolls. At one time, back when I was on a vigil-ante quest to teach the world about coins I ran a bunch of them on eBay for a dollar. Even did a dutch auction (no longer allowed) for a hundred of them. Many I sold at a dollar, but some went out of control and closed at $10 or more...even though I completely explained what they were in the description. I found my quest fruitless after a while - eBay fees eating me alive, and it didn't seem most of the buyers were learning anything. After a couple of months of selling them, I pulled the listing and haven't sold anything since with the description. I now simply call them "1958" cents, and they are hard to push in BU for more than a couple of bucks...just like it should be.

[Peter]

I remember that coin Chris. I wanted a sample in hand to see for myself and had stayed away from it before.

[coppercoins]

By the way - the story in my previous post occurred in 1998-1999.