Before Mint vs After Mint

[Algots]

I am fairly new to this hobby (and forum). I'm having difficulty determining how to tell the difference between what marks are produced in the process of minting the coin versus what marks are caused by every day circulation. I'm not talking about the obvious, like mis-strikes or doubling, but the what's the difference between a small crack in the planchet over a simple scratch.

Case in point. I have two pics of each coin in question. I took two, because I wanted to change the angles to prevent any shadowing effects. Images 1 and 3 appear to be a split thumb on the Lincoln cent while images 2 and 4 (different coin) appear to be a hole in the knuckle of the thumb. How do I determine if these were a product of the minting process, or due to every day wear and tear while being in circulation?

Thank you for any help.

[Rollem]

see below post I am sure it answers all questions.

James

[coppercoins]

I'm having a lot of trouble making sense out of the first response. To clear it up:

Die scratches and cracks stand out in relief on a coin.
Scratches on a coin are incuse (sunken-in).

I see no doubling on either coin posted above.

[Rollem]

I'm having a lot of trouble making sense out of the first response. To clear it up:

Die scratches and cracks stand out in relief on a coin.
Scratches on a coin are incuse (sunken-in).

I see no doubling on either coin posted above.

Thanks for clearing that up chuck,

[Algots]

Thank You.

[GrumpyEd]

One point to add.

It's best not to use the term "post mint damage", somehow the term PMD became widely used.
A better term to use is "post strike damage".

Coins can get damaged at the mint after they were struck. They can still be in the mint package or mint set cello or in a proof set or whatever. People using the term PMD may think they're valuable since they were damaged at the mint and are not PMD.
Most collectors don't care if the damage was done at the mint if it happened after the coin was struck. If it was damaged after the coin was struck but before it left the mint it's still post strike damage and most collectors would give no premium for it.

The dies strike the coin. If it bounces and gets damaged by the die some folks will still say it's post strike. Others will say it's post strike once it's ejected away from the dies.
Most coins get their first post strike damage in that first millisecond as they land in the bin at the mint.

[simonm]

When I say PMD, I imagine the word mint as in after the coin was "minted", which is the same thing as saying after the coin was struck. I can see how some people might interpret it as afer the coin leaves the mint, but I never really imagined it that way.