Vertical scratches before or after minting?

[VAB2013]

Thanks Viv! I've enjoyed collecting Lincoln Cents for a long time but only recently got onto the forums. I'm not normally a variety collector and have always concentrated on older Wheat cents.

You're welcome David and thank you for stopping by the LCF! Hope you will stick around and have some fun learning with us! You have definitely started off on the right track to do what you enjoy most... collecting high grade wheat cents! How long have you been working on your registry set?

[GrumpyEd]

Always nice to find a variety in one of your own slabs, I've had several cherrypicks come like that.

Since grading is an opinion, there are norms but sometimes they don't follow exactly, even the same coin might grade differently if sent again.
In general die state, polishing lines, die wear should not lower a grade.
They might break that rule and hold a coin back from ultra high grades like top pops based on the reasoning that eye appeal is effected but in normal grades like 66 and below they should not matter. On Lincolns that seem to have no defects what might hold a coin back from top grades is chatter in certain areas like on the shoulder. The reason is it's so deep in the die that unless it's a great strike the little defects on the planchet still show on the shoulder so if you look there you'll often see that a coin ended up as a 65 even though it was great looking but the same coin with a really clean fully struck shoulder will get a 66-67. It's probably not held back because of the strike as much as that the chatter still shows there. Things like that matter more around 66 and above.

Variety collectors often like earlier die states that show a variety well, just my opinion... early die states don't always grade better maybe because defects show better. If a coin has lots of flow lines (radiating from center to rim) they tend to hide defects and those lines are what gives a coin cartwheel and cents with lots of cartwheel tend to get high grades mostly because it looks appealing even though it means the die was wearing.

Variety attributors often try to say a coin is EDS, MDS, LDS but graders don't really care they only put a grade on the slab not a die state. The thinking is almost reversed at TPGs like they give labels saying "early strike" but that is only based on it being sent in early in the year, it has nothing to do with die state, you can find LDS coins with that meaningless "early strike" label.

[Petespockets55]

Jon... I'm not going to let you get by with that statement! You NAILED it Bro!!!! Awesome job!!!!

Yes he did.
(But he is still a nut! )

[Petespockets55]

Several years ago I purchased a photography setup from the great Ray Parkhurst and have never had any photography complaints since!
Here is a link to my cent collection with photos using the same setup. https://www.pcgs.com/setregistry/hal...8/album/140888

Thanks for the link to the eye candy.

[makecents]

Yes he did.
(But he is still a nut! )

That's NIT (Nut in Training), thank you very much!! We all know who the Head Nut (HN) is!

[makecents]

Thanks for the link to the eye candy.

I second that!! Very nice set!! Lots of AU and MS in tough coins!

[jfines69]

Nice coin... Way to go Jon you nailed it!!!