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Homepage updated 08/06/2008

Recent Finds ...
Clash Mark Common But Educational

Image © Ken Potter 2008 / Coin courtesy of Paul Guzewicz

August 06, 2008 -- This interesting 1922 Peace dollar came in that boasts what at first glance appears to be fairly prominent die break on the reverse to the right of the olive branch just below the word dollar. However, it is not a die break! According to Society of Silver Dollar Collectors, President , Ash Harrison and CONECA Silver Dollar Attributer, Michael S Fey this is a die clash. Harrison said that this is, " ... one of many 1922's with that mark. It is a clash mark and quite common throughout the series. It would not be listed as a VAM solely on that mark." So if you found one of these and thought it was a die break, now you know better. Paul Guzewicz of Mass., submitted the coin in January 2007. Read more about die clashes here: CONECA Glosssary

CONECA News ...
CONECA Members:Time For Elections!

August 06, 2008 -- All CONECA members should be looking for their 2008 election ballot in with the September-October 2008 issue of ErrorScope. It will be enclosed as a separate insert in the bi-monthly publication. Your ballot must be postmarked by December 1st 2008 and returned to the address indicated on your ballot. EXERCISE YOUR RIGHTS - VOTE!

CONECA News ...
CONECA To Attend The Central Florida Coin Club Show

August 03, 2008 -- "CONECA will be at the Central Florida Coin Club show. The show dates are from September 5th through the 7th, 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM. If you have an interesting coin that you are not quite sure what it is, bring it to this show and have a CONECA representative take a look at it. We are offering free verbal attributions on error and variety coins.
The show is located at the Central Florida Fairgrounds, Building "C" on West Colonial Dr. (RT # 50), Orlando, Florida. For more information see; www.centralfloridacoinclub.org"

Recent Finds ...
2007 Clashed Die Reported

Image © Ken Potter 2008 / Coin courtesy of Ray Mobley

August 03, 2008 -- Ray Mobley of FL submitted the 2007 Clashed Die Lincoln cent shown here. It shows best as a rectangular area below Lincoln’s ear. While most clashes are generally considered fairly minor they are interesting and fun to collect. Read more about die clashes here: CONECA Glosssary

CONECA Club News ...
CONECA Celebrates With 25th Anniversary Medals Program
Medals Now Available!

A look at some of the normal and mis- strikes being offered!

Here's a look at what our 1oz. pure silver and silver-clad versions of the medal looks like.

    The Combined Organizations Of Numismatic Error Collectors Of America proudly announces its 25th Anniversary Celebration of commemorative medals! There are a total of five different versions of the medal including three normal and two mis-strikes. They were struck a diameter of 39 mm and are offered in 1oz .999 pure silver, silver-clad, and golden-bronze. The silver-clad version of the normal medal is identical to the silver version in all outward physical appearances only differing in weight, which is 26.4 grams, (the mis-strikes, of course, expanded beyond the normal 39 mm size).
    The CONECA Logo is featured on the obverse along with a special 25th Anniversary design on the reverse. They are offered as normal strikes in pure silver, silver clad and golden-bronze and as Off-Center and Double-Strikes in silver-clad. The exact mintage of the medals will be determined by the number of collectors who order by the closing date or a total mintage of 300 for each format - whichever comes first. A portion of the donation to CONECA in purchasing these medals may be tax deductible. Documentation of your donation will be sent with each order.
    While early-bird orders from CONECA members will be accepted effective immediately, the official order period for non-members starts on July 30 with the kick-off of the club's annual Errorama celebration held each year in conjunction with the American Numismatic Association's Summer Convention -- The World's Fair Of Money where the medals will also be available to those who want to pick them up. The closing date for ordering the medals will be July 31, 2009.
    Order limits are five medals per person in each striking format in any combination ordered. Prices are as follows: .999 1oz. pure silver version $36.00 each, silver-clad and golden-bronze two-piece set $19.95, off center and double strike silver-clad two-piece set $29.95, complete five-piece set of all medals $84.00. Optional cherry wood presentation cases for complete sets with the medals encapsulated in air-tite holders are available at $59.00 each or velvet presentation cases with encapsulation at $25.00 each. For domestic shipping, add $3.50 for one medal, $3.75 for two medals, $4.50 for three or more medals. Add $3 per Presentation Case. Foreign orders please contact B.J. Neff for exact charges.
    The Double-Strikes were produced in a variety of "types" including: first-strike-normal with second-strike-off-center, both-strikes-off-center and some flip-over double-strikes. Persons ordering more than one Double-Strike in either ordering format will be given the greatest variety possible.
    All mail orders should be directed to: CONECA 25th Anniversary Medals Program, c/o Robert "BJ" Neff, 321 Kingslake Drive, Debary, FL 32713. All checks and money orders should be made payable to CONECA.

Click Here For A Printable Order Form

In The News ...
Major Die Crack Reported on Proof Bald Eagle 50c

Images © Ken Potter 2008 / Coin courtesy of Daniel Sanger

August 01, 2008 -- According to an August 12 Numismatic News story, Daniel Sanger of Maryland has reported the first proof, non-circulating type commemorative coin with a major die crack. He found it on a 2008-S Bald Eagle half dollar. Other coins new to NN's continuing list of die cracks on proof coins are a 2005-S clad dime, a 2006-S clad Colorado state quarter and our first Spiked Head report for a 1999-S Kennedy half dollar.

See The Numismatic News Story Here

See More Spiked Head and Other Proof Die Cracks

Note to authors/publishers: CONECA is interested in publishing news releases highlighting current stories published elsewhere that are associated with error-variety coins and/or the minting process. Interested authors/publishers are encouraged to send an abstract along with a photo or more and details of when and where the article was published to the CONECA webmaster at: conecawebsite@koinpro.com (please -- only email submissions).

In The News ...
Bronze 1943-S 'Rediscovered'

Images courtesy of Numismatic Guarantee Corporation

    August 01, 2008 -- A previously unrecorded 1943-S Lincoln cent, erroneously struck on a bronze planchet and found in circulation over a half century ago, has been acquired by Rare Coin Wholesalers of Dana Point, California. The discovery coin now is certified as AU-53 by Numismatic Guaranty Corporation. "The coin was found in 1944 by architect Kenneth S. Wing Jr. of Long Beach, California who was assembling a set of Lincoln cents at the time," said Steven L. Contursi, President of Rare Coin Wholesalers (www.RCW1.com).
    Wing co-designed the terminal building for the Long Beach Municipal Airport in 1940 and the Long Beach Arena in the late 1950s.
    "When his heirs recently asked me to examine the coin, I doubted it was genuine. But then I got a magnet and was surprised when the coin did not stick to it. So, on behalf of Mr. Wing's heirs I submitted it for certification," Contursi explained.
    "It's delightful and amazing there are still examples of great numismatic rarities to be 'discovered' and reported to the hobby."
    A week after buying the coin, Contursi publicly displayed the 1943-S bronze cent at the American Numismatic Association World's Fair of Money® in Baltimore. To honor the memory of the coin's finder and the family that owned it for 64 years, he requested that NGC include the notation on the encapsulation insert label, "Kenneth S. Wing Jr. Coll."
    "The 1943 bronze Lincoln cent really transcends a wrong planchet error. Today, it's widely considered to be a classic twentieth century rarity, more kin to a transitional type, and now is collected as part of the regular series by devoted Lincoln cent enthusiasts," commented Dave Camire, President of Numismatic Conservation Services and a mint error consultant to NGC.
    "This piece is particularly important because it's from San Francisco, a scarcer mint for the issue compared to better-known Philadelphia Mint specimens. This coin is also a recent discovery to the numismatic community," Camire stated.
    Common zinc-coated steel cents will stick to a magnet but the handful of known 1943-dated Lincoln cents mistakenly struck in bronze (in this case, an alloy of 95 percent copper and 5 percent tin and zinc) will not. The zinc-coated steel metallic composition was used in 1943 to conserve copper that was needed for U.S. efforts in World War II.
    "When I purchased the coin I also received Mr. Wing's interesting file of correspondence dating back to 1946 as he tried to verify the coin's authenticity. Some of the responses he received from the Mint, the Smithsonian Institution and well-known dealer of the era, Abe Kosoff, may seem a little humorous today."
    In a letter to Wing dated August 20, 1946, Acting Director of the Mint Leland Howard wrote: "In reference to your letter of August 11th, there were no copper cents struck during the calendar year 1943 at any of the coinage Mints. Only the zinc coated steel cent was struck during that year."
Today, though, the hobby is aware of more than a dozen 1943 bronze cents with at least one example known from each of the Mints producing Lincoln cents that year: Philadelphia, Denver and San Francisco.
Contursi acquired the coin and correspondence for $72,500. The letters from and to Wing indicate he tried for decades to get information about his historic, off-metal cent.
    Wing wrote to Encino, California dealer Kosoff on October 3, 1958: "In 1948, on a trip to San Francisco, it (the coin) was shown to the Director of the mint and his 'private' opinion was that of authenticity. In 1957, my Father was in Washington, DC, (sic) he attempted to have the Treasury Department examine it, however, they refused and referred him to the Smithsonian Institution."
In his response dated October 8, 1958, Kosoff replied: "It would be of prime importance to determine, beyond any doubt, that your 1943-S Cent is a genuine one. This would require a number of tests and the outlay of considerable cash."
    Additional correspondence regarding the coin's journey to Washington with Wing's father is a June 18, 1957 letter from V. Clain-Stefanelli, Curator of the Division of Numismatics at the Smithsonian in which he wrote: "The authenticity of this piece is in my opinion beyond doubt. In fact, as you certainly recall, Mr. Mendel L. Peterson, Acting Head Curator of the Department of History, fully concurred in this opinion."
    Contursi said his recently-acquired 1943 bronze Lincoln cent is quite special for him. "Of all the million dollar coins I've bought or sold - from Brasher Doubloons to the King of Siam set - this is the first 1943 'copper penny' I've ever owned!"
    For additional information, contact Rare Coin Wholesalers, P.O. Box 3873, Dana Point, CA 92629. Phone: (800) 347-3250. E-mail: RCWcoins@rcw1.com. Online: www.rcw1.com.

See The Numismatic News Story

See The CoinNews.Net Story

In The News ...
Die Breaks, Clashes, Feeder Damage, etc., Featured

Image © Ken Potter 2008 / Coin courtesy of Fred Weinberg
A 2003-P Arkansas 25c with strike-through areas and feeder die-damage.

Images © Ken Potter 2008 / Coin courtesy of Philip Buttermore
A deep strike-through on this 2008-P New Mexico 25c might be traced to feeder die-damage.

August 01, 2008 -- Philip Buttermore of Pennsylvania sent in a very interesting strike-through error on a 2008-P New Mexico quarter. The strike-through is displayed on the obverse as a deep trench that runs diagonally from the central region of Washington's neck and through the word LIBERTY. One of the interesting characteristics of this coin is the pattern of parallel scrape marks that appear in the recesses of the strike-through.

See The Numismatic News Story

In The News ...
Centrally Located Doubled Dies Featured

Images © Ken Potter 2008 / Coin courtesy of Jerry Kennison

The upper section of an extra claw can be seen just above the Beaver's foot on this
Canadian 1965 five-cent piece. It is one of three different "extra claw" varieties
now listed in the Variety Coin Register for the country/date/denomination.

    August 01, 2008 -- Ken Potter's August installment of Coin World's, Varieties Notebook column features a look at three different centrally located doubled dies that all occurred prior to the full implementation of the single-squeeze hubbing process of making dies in the US and Canada. He points out that the discovery of secondary images restricted to the center of the design on the 2005-dated Minnesota State quarters in 2006 led collectors to begin searching other recent issues for such aberrations which resulted in many finds ranging from cents through dollars. Potter states, "After a time, many observers started to think that restrictive centralized hub doubling was a phenomenon applicable only to single-squeeze era coinage. However, as I have stated before, and must emphasize again, centralized doubling is nothing new; the limited-pressure titled-hub theory I advanced for single-squeeze doubled dies is a phenomenon that most probably applies to the multiple hubbing era as well. With this in mind some astute cherrypickers are starting to take a closer look at coins produced prior to the full implementation of single-squeeze, hoping to find centralized doubling where nobody has bothered to look so far."
    He leads off his examination with a look at a Canadian 1965 five-cent piece with an "extra claw" on the beaver's foot. It is one of three different 1965 5c "extra claw" doubled die varieties reported by Jerry Kennison of Portland, OR who decided to check the center area of the design for doubling.
    Other coins featured are a 1992 Lincoln cent with a doubled eyelid and the newest Canadian 1974 nickel dollar doubled die with an "extra yoke" over the ox's collar.

In The News ...
'Monster' Malaysian Doubled Die Featured

Images © Ken Potter 2007 / Coin courtesy of Harold Kuykendall

August 01, 2008 -- The lead coin featured in Ken Potter's latest, World Coin News, Visiting Varieties column is an extremely strong doubled die obverse on a Malaysian 2007 10 sen. It was submitted by Harold Kuykendall and listed in the Variety Coin Register as VCR#1/DDO#1. Other coins featured include a potpourri of repunched dates, overdates and possible overdates on Colombian, French, Costa Rican, Angolan and Austrian Netherlands coins submitted by Curtis Miller. See the August 2008 issue of WCN for details.

In The News ...
Shifted Edge Lettering Washington $1 Found

Images © Ken Potter 2008 / Coin courtesy of Mike Bozynski
Here you can see on the edge of the lower coin that the final 7 and P Mintmark are
obliterated by the edge scrape; the entire motto E PLURIBUS UNUM has been
skipped over completely and replaced with IN GOD WE TRUST which is
positioned closer to the date area than normal. The coin laying on
top is normal and shown for comparison.

July 23, 2008 -- Long after most folks have given up searching the 2007-dated George Washington Presidential dollars for the well-known smooth-edge “Godless dollars” a few die-hards are still at it obtaining what BU rolls can still be had from banks and still finding errors. Numismatic News reports that one of those searchers is Mike Bozynski of Michigan who found a shifted edge inscription error.

See The Story Here

Note to authors/publishers: CONECA is interested in publishing news releases highlighting current stories published elsewhere that are associated with error-variety coins and/or the minting process. Interested authors/publishers are encouraged to send an abstract along with one for more photos and details of when and where the article was published to the CONECA webmaster at: conecawebsite@koinpro.com (please -- only email submissions).

Recent Finds ...
Piazza Finds Two 1917/17 1c in Rolls

The above five images are of the higher grade example Piazza found.

Images courtesy of Bob Piazza
The above three images are of the lower grade example Piazza found.

    July 19, 2008 -- Have you ever had those days, weeks, or even months where it doesn't matter how much you search, you never find anything worth keeping? CONECA member, Bob Piazza, has had plenty of those days with over 40 years of searching. That all came to a halt when he found not one but two 1917 doubled dies (DDO-001, FS-01-1917-101 (013)) while searching two rolls of teen-dated Lincoln Cent rolls he had purchased for $4.00 each. According to Piazza, the majority of the coins in the rolls were either culls, or covered with grime. One coin, that was hardly identifiable as a cent caught his attention. He was about to throw it into the junk pile, when something told him to spend a bit of time on it, and after carefully removing the gunk around the date, he spotted the tell tale notching on the 9.
    "I was pretty excited because I knew exactly what I had" said Piazza. After spending nearly an hour cleaning it up, he had a nice specimen of the elusive variety. He posted some photos of his first find on the coppercoins forum to show other folks that things like this are still out there.
    About two hours later, he resumed his search of what was left of the two rolls. After going through a dozen or so, he placed a coin under his scope, only to find out he had found another one! This one didn't require any cleaning and it was a somewhat lower grade than the first, but there was little doubt that he had hit the jackpot again. "I was pretty much speechless. I knew the chances of finding one nice 91 year old scarce variety was slim, but to find two within a couple of hours, and from such a small sampling had to have astronomical odds."
    According to the Professional Coin Grading Service price guide, these varieties have skyrocketed in value recently with an EF-40 example selling for around $1900.00. Piazza grades his two finds at EF-40 and VF-20. Not bad for a day of searching … not bad at all!
    Piazza is currently running for the CONECA Board and is an attributer for coppercoins.com.

Note: While neither Piazza or any advanced numismatist encourages the cleaning of coins, there are rare instances of when cleaning is the only option available to find out what is under the dirt and grime that can sometimes build up on a coin and or to guarantee the continued safe storage of the coin. In this case Piazza used a non-abrasive, non-acidic solvent that removed the dirt and grime because it was safe and his only option. As a general rule, because cleaning usually reduces the value of a coin, (most often because it is done improperly), it should be left to professionals or those with years of experience who know what to avoid and when and were the choice to clean is appropriate. If you're not 100% sure -- don't do it!

Members Share ...
Weirded-Out Israeli Error Medal!
by Mike Diamond

Above: a look at the error medal. Below: A look at a normal version.

Images courtesy of Mike Diamond

July 16, 2008 -- This is an Israeli "greetings token," issued in 1976 by the Israel Government Coins and Medals Corporation. This quasi-private organization has a status similar to the U.S. Postal Service, in that it is controlled by the government and issues all of Israel's coins and medals. A new token is produced each year and is sent to subscribers of the Corporation's products. This particular token commemorates the 25th Anniversary of State Of Israel Bonds.
The error token is a double strike in which the first strike was very weak and the second radically misaligned, both horizontally and vertically. During the second strike the obverse die shifted toward the 4:00 position, producing a 50% horizontal misalignment. This is one of the largest horizontal misalignments I've come across. At the same time, the obverse die tilted down so that the die face was oriented at an angle of about 30 degrees relative to the coin's surface. This produced an equally equally dramatic tilted die error (vertical misalignment).
It's possible that the obverse die fell out of its recess during the second strike. It's also possible that the die broke across the shaft or at its base, freeing the portion that carried the die face.

In The News ...
Finding Errors In Circulation Change

Images © Ken Potter 2007 / Coin courtesy of Brian Higgins

July 12, 2008 -- While many cherry-pickers of modern coins often restrict their search to brilliant uncirculated rolls of current coins, looking for doubled dies and other varieties, Brian Higgins of Naples, Fla., is one of those folks who doesn't hesitate to sit down and search good old-fashioned circulated coins. He has a penchant for Jefferson nickels and his luck is pretty good as we can see by some of the Jefferson nickel errors that he sent in.
Probably his neatest coin is a 1996-D Jefferson nickel that was double struck. In this case, it was struck normally for the first strike and then it re-entered the collar for a second strike with very wide rotation between strikes.

See The Online Version Of This Numismatic News Article

See the July 22 issue of Numismatic News for the fully illustrated version of this story.

In The News ...
Collecting Die Progressions For Fun

Images © Ken Potter 2008 / Coin courtesy of Chuck Chichinski

July 10, 2008 -- Most collectors ignore the proliferation of typical die cracks, die chips and small die breaks found on modern coins because they rarely carry any numismatic value. However, searching them out and assembling them into what collectors call "Progression Sets" can be fun and educational. Chuck Chichinski of Ohio recently went through some uncirculated rolls of 2008 cents finding a progression of interesting cracks on a series of coins all struck from the same die pair. His progression starts with two or three very faint die cracks that eventually develop die chips and at the end, a neat looking small die break.

See The Rest Of Story Here

In The News ...
Die Dent On 2006-D SD 25c Featured

Images © Ken Potter 2008 / Coin courtesy of James Rather

July 08, 2008 -- A 2006-D South Dakota State quarter featuring a die dent (or the closely related die gouge) above the D of DOLLAR, was one of several varieties featured in the Varieties Notebook column published in the July 7, 2008 issue of Coin World. The coin was submitted by James Rather of TX. While die dents and gouges are generally considered minor varieties (or errors) they are still interesting and fun to collect especially when they get big enough to see with the naked eye like this one.

Note to authors/publishers: CONECA is interested in publishing news releases highlighting current stories published elsewhere that are associated with error-variety coins and/or the minting process. Interested authors/publishers are encouraged to send an abstract along with one or more photos and details of when and where the article was published to the CONECA webmaster at: conecawebsite@koinpro.com (please -- only email submissions).

In The News ...
Liberty Enjoys A Puff Now And Then

The red arrow points to the cigar shaped die aberration.

A closer look at the "cigar." Note the tip of the "cigar" is separated by a scratch on the coin. This is not a diagnostic for the variety. A closer view shows us some die breakage or die damage above and below the "cigar." Is it related to the "cigar?"

Images © Ken Potter 2008 / Coins courtesy of Saverio Barbieri
A look at a second specimen shows the same "markers" above and below the "cigar."

July 05, 2008 -- For over eight years, Numismatic News reader, Saverio Barbieri has been searching for 1857 Liberty Seated quarters featuring a "Smoking Miss Liberty." On the variety he seeks, even under low magnification, it appears that she is relaxing with a cigar held between the forefingers of her right hand. It seems so unmistakable that Barbieri is convinced that the "cigar" may have been cut into the die in jest by an engraver or other workman inside the Mint on a slow day when they had nothing better to do. What are the other possibilities? See the rest of the story in the July 8, 2008 issue of Numismatic News.

Members Share ...
Fred Weinberg's Fantastic 1c/10c Bowtie!
by Ken Potter - NLG

Images courtesy of Fred Weinberg & Co.

June 29, 2008 -- Here's a look at a 2005 Lincoln cent that was struck over a piece of bowtie shaped webbing, (or what is technically known as "scissel)," that landed in the die underneath the planchet that was struck into the 2005 cent shown here. Bowtie strikes are unusual enough to find but when they are struck into another coin it is even rarer to find both the coin and the bowtie strike. Even more unusual is that the bowtie featured here is of a cupronickel clad composition suggesting that it is from the production of dime blanks! To the best of my knowledge this is the only known bowtie shaped scrap from dime stock struck by Lincoln cent dies!
Blanks are punched from long coils or strips of metal that are passed through a blanker press where ganged punches, punch and shear out a number of blanks in a single stroke. As the process continues, the strip advances and the press cycles again to blank out another section while the forward section containing the webbing is simultaneously sheered off to be chopped into small pieces for recycling. This chopped up webbing is one source of bowtie shaped scrap. Another source is from a section of strip that has already been blanked out that fails to advance far enough to clear the punches for the next cycle. This wayward section of webbing may be punched out again with area between where two blanks were already processed punched out as a bowtie shaped blank.

Here is a look at a section of blanked out coinage strip (webbing) from a German Mint.

Images of webbing © 2008 Ken Potter
Here we illustrate with the black circle where a bowtie shaped blank might be cut from if the
punched out strip passed under the ganged punches a second time.

YN News ...
Young Numismatist Finds Madison Dollar Error!

June 25, 2008 -- Young Numismatist, Nadine Hall, has found a 2008-D James Madison dollar that is missing the obverse clad layer. The 12-year-old discovered it while helping her mother search through Presidential dollar rolls. This is the second missing clad layer Presidential dollar reported on the CONECA homepage in just over a month that involved young numismatists. The first one reported was found on a John Quincy Adams dollar as reported in a story further down this page. It is extremely gratifying to see our youth getting involved with coins. The full story on Hall's find will be in a future CONECA Errorscope. Congratulations Nadine!

Members Share ...
Error Jefferson In Mint Set
by Mike Diamond

Click on image for enlarged view

Images courtesy of Mike Diamond

    June 21, 2008 -- This 1972-D mint set contains a nickel with an unusual error. It's an in-collar double-strike with no rotation between strikes and with a low-pressure brockage and indent on the second strike. The only evidence of the second strike seen on the reverse is some subtle smearing of the door of Monticello. There is a slight partial collar next to the brockage.
    Evidently something prevented the dies from approximating normally during the second strike, so that they were too far apart at their closest approach to leave a deeply recessed partial brockage and indent. There is no evidence that the obverse die contacted the coin's surface during the second strike in the area not covered by the intrusive coin and planchet.
    From 1968 to 1974, the Denver Mint produced a fair number of low-pressure brockages, mostly on nickels and dimes. This is the first I've seen in a Mint Set, and the first I've seen with a partial brockage and an indent on the same coin.

In The News ...
WV Proof 25c: Burning Bridge? Or ...?

Image © Ken Potter 2008 / Coin courtesy of Todd Bucholdt

June 18, 2008 -- This week's, Collectors' Clearinghouse column in Coin World features a 2005-S Silver proof State quarter on which it appears that the bridge over New River Gorge is on fire. It is explained as being the result of improper die polishing. Another example of the effect is shown on the obverse of a 1994-S Proof Lincoln cent. Other coins featured, include "Struck Through Grease" errors on a 2002 Louisiana State quarter and a 1991-P Kennedy half dollar. A 1996 American Silver Eagle bullion coin presents mysterious raised areas on the obverse that are examined by a panel of experts with mixed opinions along with a call for CW readers to help solve the mystery by reporting any others that may be found. More details can be found in the June 30 issue of CW now being mailed to shops and subscribers and accessible via the online version.

Recent Finds ...
Pope Finds Possible New 3-Legged Buffalo

Images courtesy of Ron Pope

June 18, 2008 -- Longtime CONECA member Ron Pope wrote to say: "This is a 1916 Philadelphia Mint coin and I think it's weak enough to call a legitimate 3 legged variety. Don't know yet whether it's due to a filled die or an abraded die so, collectively, the more of this one we can find the easier that question may be to answer. I've sent it to Bill Fivaz for his opinion and hopeful inclusion in the next Cherrypickers' Guide."
For those of you who enjoy abraded die varieties on Buffalos, watch for this one so that we can help Ron nail it down to the exact cause! He can be reached at coinquest_sixtyone@yahoo.com. He is the author of the excellent book, Buffalo Nickels - The Abraded Die Varieties, which contains a special section on all the 1914/3 overdates.

In The News ...
Doubled Die Found On Felix Schlag Medal

Image © Ken Potter 2008

June 16, 2008 -- The subject piece is interesting in that it has numismatic ties to US coinage; Franklin Mint medals and Masonic collectables. It’s a Paul Revere medal struck by the Franklin Mint in 1967 for the International Fraternal Commemorative Society. The society issued a 50-piece set of 39 mm sterling silver medals honoring famous Freemasons in a limited edition of 1,293 sets. The Revere medal contains an obverse doubled die that I would have completely missed it wasn’t for collector/researcher Dave Andreas who expressed an interest in any medals designed by Felix Oscar Schlag of Owosso, MI (1891-1974). On his list of medals were two pieces that I had in stock including our subject piece. Quite frankly, I wouldn’t have given this medal a second look if it weren’t for Adreas pointing out the fact that Schlag, designer of the Jefferson nickel, had created it.

See Details And More Images Here

Recent Finds ...
Neff Reports On Neat 1992 Dbl Eyelid 1c

Image courtesy of BJ Neff

June 14, 2008 -- According to BJ Neff, "An unusual doubled eyelid has been confirmed by Dr. James Wiles and listed in the CONECA files (which Wiles oversees) as 1992 Lincoln cent, DDO-001, I-O-VIII. While doubled eyelids were more common on the wheat cent, this is the first to show this type doubling in this era. This doubled die was brought to my attention by John Knabe." Wiles said, "The white arrows point to the major doubling. The rotation of the secondary image caused me to list it as a Class VIII, rather than a Class IV." According to Neff, the variety has also been listed by all other attributers that he is aware of seeing it so far. Nice find John! KP

CONECA Club News ...
CONECA Celebrates With 25th Anniversary Medals Program!

A peek at one of the double strikes that will be offered to members!

June 13, 2008 -- CONECA proudly announces a 25th Anniversary Medals Program similar to the highly successful 20th Anniversary Program of five years ago. This time, through some innovative decisions resulting in a pick of more economic metallic compositions, the program will be less expensive and offer more variety than what we were able to do in 2003! There will be 39mm, 1oz. pure silver, silver-clad and bronze versions of normal strikes and a variety of Double Strikes and Off Centers offered individually and in sets of all five. CONECA Membership Chairman, BJ Neff, will handle sales this year. Watch for more details as we work them out in the next few days. KP

Recent Finds ...
Collector Finds Wrong Planchet JFK!

Images courtesy of RHM

In the two images above we can see the stretching of letters and digits closest to the rim due to metal flow of the undersize planchet attempting to fill the collar under the pressure of the strike.

A look at the edge of the coin reveals a copper core typical of clad planchets.

June 13, 2008 -- RHM of PA reports one of the nicer finds that has come in recently. On May 30 he said: "I found this 1980-P Kennedy half in a roll yesterday and I think it might be a wrong planchet error but I'm not sure. There is only a slight trace of reeding on the edge and the condition is probably about uncirculated (AU). It's also smaller in diameter and a little thinner than a normal Kennedy half. I don't have the proper equipment to weigh it. Any help in identifying it would be greatly appreciated!"
On June 13, he was finally able to weight the coin confirming my suspicion that it was struck on an SBA planchet!

See The Full Numismatic News Story Here

Recent Finds ...
Another Lettered-Edge $1 Planchet Found in Monroe Roll

Images courtesy of Jim Landers
Here you can see the weak lettering on the edge of Landers' planchet

June 09, 2008 -- Jim Landers of NY wrote to tell us about finding a 2008-P Presidential dollar planchet with edge lettering while searching through a batch of James Monroe dollars. He was looking for the errors struck on a quarter planchets that the Mint acknowledged producing some time back (scroll down to see related story) but found this instead. He said, " I bought a few thousand dollars worth two months ago and searched all but six rolls then stopped because life got busy and I was getting tired of the search. Well, on Thursday June 5, I opened the first of those six rolls and out popped the blank in the middle of the roll. Needless to say I ripped through the remaining rolls but found no additional errors. I was wondering how to get the coin graded as a Monroe blank planchet with edge lettering and where to get the coin graded. I live in upstate New York and bought the coins from several local banks."
Landers' find is fantastic in that very few edge lettered planchets have actually been verified to date (scroll down for the related story). However, once the Mint has issues a second Presidential business strike dollar for any year it becomes impossible to distinguish which dollar a planchet was intended for since it could have been for either the first or the second issued (or any minted thereafter). As such only those lettered edge planchets found for the first president issued for any year that are submitted before the release of the second Presidential dollar is issued will be designated to a specific president. After that they are attributed simply for the date and Mint. This is possible because the date and the Mintmark are on the edge of the coin.

See The NCG Story: "Presidential $1 Error Coins: James Monroe" for more info on how they attribute lettered edge planchets

Recent Finds ...
Cherrypicker Finds 1992-D Close AM 1c In Roll

Images courtesy of Dave Olsowy

June 08, 2008 -- Dave Olsowy of Michigan reports finding a 1992-D Lincoln cent with the Close AM reverse. He said he found it on June 7 while looking through some rolls of cents that he obtained from a bank in Houghton Lake, MI. It came from a BRINKS box with the cents rolled in the plastic wrappers.
"Close AM" and "Wide A"' refers to the two reverse design styles known for the 1992, 1992-D, 1998, 1998-S, 1999, 1999-S and 2000 cents. The two varieties exhibit several distinct differences from each other. The most significant are in the AM of AMERICA where the A and M are either very close to virtually touching each other or wide apart. The Close AM variety also exhibits Frank Gasparro's designer initials, FG, far from the right side of the Memorial building while the FG on the Wide AM variety is close to the building. The 1992, 1992-D and 1998-S Close AM varieties are rare to exceedingly rare. The 1999 and 1999-S are very scarce to rare (with the 1999 perhaps tougher than the 1999-S) while the 1998 and 2000 are relatively common in circulated grades but scarce in brilliant uncirculated grades (with the 1998b several times scarcer than the 2000 in BU grades). I'd guess that Olsowy's find is worth in excess of $1000 even in circulated grade. Only a small handful of this date are known with the Close AM.

Learn More About Lincoln Memorial Cent Transitional Designs Here

Recent Finds ...
Normal Appearing Coin Turns Out Laminated

Image courtesy of Tom Mathews

June 09, 2008 -- Tom Mathews wrote to say: "I'm not sure if you'd like to use this for the CONECA website, but here is the story. I collect die varieties. Jose' Cortez has been great help to me doing so, and in February I met him in Las Vegas for a coin show. We got together along with another guy, Mike Pezak, who carves hobo nickels. To make a long story short, I started carving hobo nickels. I was carving this 1936 nickel yesterday when I hit a place above the brim of the hat where a chunk of the planchet popped out. I had planned on doing a copper inlay for the hatband, so that was no problem until I started digging a little deeper. The missing piece of the planchet kept getting larger as I went deeper with the cuts. Finally, I pulled up what I can only call a deep lamination. The coin had no indication of this lamination before I started carving it into a hobo nickel, so I though it was kind of a neat piece. Laminations aren't always obvious!"

In The News ...
Rotated Dies Featured In New World Error Column

Images courtesy of Mike Diamond

May 31, 2008 -- CONECA president Mike Diamond has began penning a new column, "World Errors," for the bimonthly magazine World Wide Coins. WWC is published by Amos Press, publishers of Coin World. Diamond's column started in the November 2007 inaugural issue. The latest installment of World Errors appears in the July 2008 issue where he presents an overview of rotated die errors. He makes the distinction between fixed and dynamic rotated die errors and discusses their probable causes. One of the coins featured is a 1975 Mexican 20 centavos. The reverse face is rotated about 150 degrees clockwise relative to the obverse face (eagle side). If you orient the obverse face vertically and flip the coin from left to right, the reverse face appears as you see it here. It should normally point down (coin rotation). However, it's pretty clear that it was the obverse die that was rotating since the coin's obverse face also shows a dramatic horizontal misalignment.

Members Share ...
Cracked Up Indian Highlighted

Image courtesy of Mike Diamond

May 31, 2008 -- CONECA President, Mike Diamond send in a neat one. He said: "I thought you might like to post this on the CONECA website. This 1864 Indian cent shows a network of die cracks, most of them bi-level. I suppose some might call it a shattered die. Interesting looking whatever you call it. This is the third cent I've come across struck by this particular die." Neat one Mike! Anybody else got something to share?

How To Get "Your" Story Told/Images Shared
by Ken Potter - CONECA Webmaster

November 05, 2005 -- If you have a story or just images to share you may have already tried sending them only to notice later that they never got posted. You probably wondered what happened. In actuality, there are a lot of good reasons for a story and/or images to NOT get posted on the web site but there are many things you can do to help get them up.

Let me backtrack just a bit to make note of the fact that this website is edited 100% on a voluntary basis. Thus, it is is updated on an "as time permits basis." However, the fact is, I simply do not have enough time to tend to my own affairs, (which includes administering my own website, filling orders and penning my columns/feature articles for Coin World, Numismatic News, World Coin News and Canadian Coin News), to add much more time to the CONECA site than I already am. What that means is the more complicated the information is that you send for me to edit the greater the chances are it will get pushed to the back burner or will get lost in the cracks.

I should also point out that many articles or images that needed extensive editing were on my old computer and are no longer assessable to me. In most cases they were stories that needed to have images worked in. Often the images were sent in formats that needed to be resized, edited or cropped to remove extraneous backgrounds. Some are sent in formats not suitable for the web and need to be converted from one format to another before they can be used. I have not found all formats easy or even possible for me to convert.

My suggestion is the make sure images are saved in standard formats used on most web sites. The CONECA website uses the jpeg format most and it is preferred. I also recommend cropping images to show the subject only. Images with large backgrounds need to be cropped by me to remove excess background so that the coin does not appear as a small dot lost in a sea of background after the image is resized to the format we use on the website. In general you can figure that we will show our images on the homepage at 500 pixels in width and on a feature page at 800 pixels wide. In effect send them cropped down to the subject with narrow borders for a background at 800 pixels in width and I will resize from there to fit the homepage. Additionally, please keep clutter out of the images.

The #1 reason for an image not getting used is the coin being shot in a 2x2 holder. Ugly staples and handwriting do not add eye appeal to a coin and are distracting. To make matters worse, the Mylar plastic in the window of a cardboard 2x2 or plastic of a flip often causes less than desirable reflections. These can sometimes be minimizes through some image editing but can never be eliminated completely and takes time to get to an acceptable level. I often set these to the side for processing later with the hopes I can find the time to rework the image(s) to remover the unsightly holders and/or reflections from view. Others images have less than desirable objects in the same view that need to be cropped or cloned out. All to often I just never get to images like this. If you take a half a second to remove the coin from the holder before shooting the image it will save me a lot of time editing and increase the odds that it will be usable. If you send your material at least almost ready to post the chances are much better I will get to it. If it has been awhile and you did not see your material posted you might consider resubmitting it. Things do get past me. I hope these suggestions help!

In The News ...
Not All "Cheerios" Dollars Valuable

This is a look at the rare Reverse of 1999 with enhanced feather detail.
Images Courtesy of Mark Goodman

This is a look at the normal tail feathers on the common Rev. of 2000 variety.

May 27, 2008 -- In 1999 the U.S. Mint came to an agreement with General Mills to randomly distribute 5,500 specially-packaged 2000-dated Sacagawea Dollars among 10 million boxes of Cheerios cereal to promote the new coins. Five years later, it was discovered that at least some of the so-called “Cheerios” dollars were actually from a different reverse die style featuring enhancements in design detail. These became known as the Reverse of 1999 while the normal variety that followed was called the Reverse of 2000. Many observers assumed that all of the Cheerios dollars were of the Reverse of 1999 but such was not the case. At least three grading services including PCI, Numismatic Guarantee Corporation and the Professional Coin Grading Service have reported Reverse of 2000 dollars found in these packages. PCGS is the latest to issue this warning posted on their homepage on May 16 and again in the PCGS Library on May 27. If you've purchased one of these coins for a hefty premium without removing it from the original packaging, (in which the reverse cannot be viewed), you may have made one gigantic mistake.

See The PCGS Story

See Mike Wallace's Small Dollar Site Article On The Cheerios Rev.'99 Dollars

See Mike Wallace's Small Dollar Site Article On The Cheerios Rev.'00 Dollars

In The News ...
Belgium DDR Featured In WCN

Image © Ken Potter 2008
Here we see very strong doubling on the date, stars and the goddess Ceres' nose.

    May 26, 2008 -- Shane Lerch of Il shares a 1962 1 franc from Belgium (with French legend). It features a very strong Class IV - Off Set Hub doubled die reverse that is listed in the Variety Coin Register as VCR#1/DDR#1.
    Within the broad division of Hubbing Varieites are the doubled dies, which are separated into eight distinct classes. Lerch’s coin falls into the Class IV – Off Set Hub type of doubled die which means that the entire design is doubled with a shift in a single direction due to a hubbing accident that involved one impression into the die presumably normal and another hubbing off set in one compass direction or another relative to the initial hubbing(s).
    Hub doubling is possible due to a phenomenon known as work hardening. This causes the metal of the face of a die to become too hard and too brittle to allow a complete image to be sunk into the die in one operation without causing it to crack or shatter (during the multiple hubbing process). As a result, several impressions or hubbings are required to produce a die when using this process. Between each hubbing the die is removed from the press and annealed (softened) thus allowing for another impression without shattering the die. If for some reason a partially finished die is reinstalled into a press for strengthening and the hub and die is improperly indexed, resulting in a misalignment of images, or if the hub varies in design from the one(s) used for earlier impressions -- hub doubling will result. The multiple hubbing process was replaced by a number of countries in recent years by the more modern “single squeeze” restrained hubbing process.
    More photos of this variety and others can be seen in the June 2008 installment of the Visiting Varieties column in World Coin News (pages 36 and 40).

See The Entire Article/More Photos Here

In The News ...
Searcher Finds 1968 DDO 10c In Mint Set

Image © Ken Potter 2008

May 24, 2008 -- Susan Stewart of Virginia shows us that there are still some very nice doubled dies out there to be found by diligent searchers. She found a 1968 Roosevelt dime boasting a very nice doubled die obverse. It is listed by CONECA as DDO-001 – 1-O-V-CCW (Doubled Die Obverse #1). More images of doubling in other areas of the coin can be seen on page 42 of the June 2 issue of Coin World now being delivered or accessible to subscribers from the online version by going here: Coin World.

In The News ...
Mint Still Delivering AE '07 Reverse $1s

Image Courtesy of NGC
The style of 2007 with serif-less lower U and pointed lower right vertical of the N.

May 24, 2008 -- According to a page 4 story in the June 2 issue of Coin World by CW Staffer, Paul Gilkes, "As of the middle of May, Coin World continued to receive a handful of reports from collectors saying they had received the Reverse of 2007 coins from orders placed one or more days before." This suggests that the errors may be mixed in with inventories struck later and might continue to dribble out of the Mint over a period of time. Earlier, the Mint estimated that approximately 47,000 of the 2008-W Silver Eagles with the special burnished finish were sold to collectors struck with the Reverse of 2007. According to Mint spokesman, Michael White, the Mint was unaware of using the 2007 reverse on any of the 2008 Eagles until being advised of it by CW. White suggested that the 47,000 pieces minted of the variety represented about three shifts of production at the West Point facility. According to CW's latest estimates of selling prices the coins have advance shapely in value. In the May 12 issue, CW reported prices on the secondary market as ranging from about $99 for certified MS69 examples to about $400 for certified MS70s. The current market pegs them at $300 to $700 for the same certified grades according to CW. Scroll down for more stories on this variety.

In The News ...
John Q Missing Clad Layer Found In Roll!

May 23, 2008 -- An Ohio trio, Richard Stachurski and his grandsons Zak and Joe El khamiri, has found what may be the first Missing Clad Layer error reported on a 2008-P John Quincy Adams Presidential dollar. According to Stachurski, he and his grandsons routinely search Presidential dollars for errors with each of the boys assigned different tasks based on age. Four-year-old Joe is assigned the task of clearing away the wrappers from which the coins are quickly removed by 8-year-old Zak who passes them on to Stachurski, who does the actual searching.

See The Rest Of The Numismatic News Story

Recent Finds ...
Roll Search Yields Cud Cent

Photo courtesy of Charlie Fantasia

May 09, 2008 -- Charlie Fantasia, found the above shown 1983 Lincoln cent with a Major Die Break Reverse (Cud) while searching rolls of cents from his local bank. It is one of seven reverse cuds listed for the date and denomination by Sam Thurman and Arnold Margolis between their 1997 edition of The Cud Book and their 2001 The Cud Book Supplement. It is listed by Thurman and Margolis as LC-83-49R. Nice find!

In The News ...
Mint Estimates 47,000 AE '07 Reverse Type

May 05, 2008 -- According to a front page story in the May 12 issue of Coin World, the Mint estimated that approximately 47,000 of the 2008-W Silver Eagles with the special burnished finish were sold to collectors struck with the Reverse of 2007. According to Mint spokesman, Michael White, the Mint was unaware of using the 2007 reverse on any of the 2008 Eagles until being advised of it by CW. CW was first notified of the existence of the variety by Georgia collector, John Nanny, who advised them of the find on April 15 after making note of it the day before. Apparently, Nanny is the first person on record so far to have noted the variety, preceding the NGC observations by about two days. White suggested that the 47,000 pieces minted of the variety represented about three shifts of production at the West Point facility. According to CW, prices of the Rev of '07 variety on the secondary market have been ranging from about $99 for certified MS69 examples to about $400 for certified MS70s.

In The News ...
NGC Confirms Major Hub Variety
For 2008-W Silver Eagles

The style of 2007 with serif-less lower U and pointed lower right vertical of the N.

The style of 2008 with large lower serif of U and broad based foot of right vertical of the N.
Also note the spacing differences between the N and I.

Images Courtesy of NGC

May 03, 2008 -- Numismatic Guarantee Corporation of Sarasota, FL has revealed the discovery of two different major hub design varieties of the reverse of the 2008-W Burnished Silver Eagle. The differences involve the design style apparently last intended for 2007 production found on 2008 dated pieces and a new hub design introduced in 2008. Early reports suggest, that for the most part, the 2008-W Eagles boast the new enhanced style reverse or what is being referred to as the "Reverse of 2008." The scarcer "transitionals" are being referred to as bearing the "Reverse of 2007." The variations are many involving differences in the style of characters, the size and spacing of the stars above the eagle, the distance of characters from the rim and from each other, the style of the tilde that separates the word SILVER from the word ONE and perhaps the most easily spotted differences between the styles of UN of UNITED.

See the NGC Story Here

See The PCGS Story Here

"Oh, No It Ain't ...!!"
"Spooned Coins" Fool Many Newcomers

Photo & coin courtesy of Jennifer Cheshier

January 09, 2008 -- It's been quite some time since we have had a discussion on "spooned coins" but one recently came in from Jennifer Cheshier that is a bit different than any we've seen so far. In most cases "spooned" coins -- all of which many not actually have been "spooned" but have similar effects -- have a rim that overlaps upon itself as if metal from the edge and rims had been rolled over into the fields and designs, on both sides of the coin. In this one the "roll over" is only on the obverse. What we are hoping for is help from anybody who might know more about how these interesting alterations are made.

See The "Oh No! It Ain't ...!" Feature Here

CONECA News ...
See CONECA's Errorscope Online Supplement#3!

September 16, 2007 -- CONECA's Errorscope Online Supplement#3 is now available for viewing! This document has the same look and feel as the current bimonthly printed Errorscope and is the second in a regular series that will made available as a PDF file on the CONECA website. It is edited by Errorscope editor, Frank Leone. It can be accessed here: CONECA Errorscope Online Supplement No.3. Thanks Frank!

CONECA News ...
CONECA Variety Vista Website
Features New 1988 Lincoln Cent Variety!

Images by James Wiles/Coin Courtesy of Jeff Snow
A look at the newest Transitional Design Variety that is detailed on Variety Vista
This variety is a 1988 obverse mated to a reverse style used largely for the 1989 and later issues of the Lincoln cent

August 24, 2007 -- Fellow CONECA members: www.varietyvista.com is CONECA's new online center for all things related to 20th (and 21st) Century United States die varieties! This is the fastest, most convenient place to find the latest research and photos. Here you will find a website filled with high-quality, high-magnification photos of the most sought-after and newest die varieties. Check it out today and check it out often. We are in the beginning stages of what promises to be the premier reference for die variety collectors. The site is continually expanding as we post both new and older varieties.

Our Favorite Errors ...
1970-D Jefferson Begs Explanation
Explanation & Images by Mike Diamond

January 18, 2007 -- Mike Diamond sent in neat images of a 1970-D Jefferson five-cent piece with an unusual error that at first can be rather baffling as to how it occurred. Mike's explanation is: "Here's an interesting error I recently obtained from Fred Weinberg. The first strike was normal. The second strike was about 20% off-center and very weak. It's die-struck on the reverse. The obverse shows a weak, mirror brockage that covers about 80% of the obverse. It is more-or-less aligned with the die-struck design on the reverse, but is rotated about 90 degrees relative to it. Most likely something interfered with normal die approximation on the second strike so that, at their closest approach, the two dies were almost as far apart as the combined thickness of the two coins between them.

See More & Larger Images Of The Coin Here

Members are invited to send images of some of their favorite errors to be featured in this column. Send an image(s) and some text explaining what the coin is or why the coin is one of your favorites to the editor by clicking here: Our Favorite Errors

Interesting Coin Facts ...
When Did Single-Squeeze Hubbing Really Begin?

June 25, 2006 -- So just when did single-squeeze hubbing really begin in the US? It's a darn good question and the answer is a bit clouded. However, until lately, in spite of your webmaster for years repeatedly stating that it started in 1985 or 1986, everybody else kept quoting 1997 as the year of introduction. And they couldn't have been more wrong! Read why by clicking the link below!

See The Mint Report Here

Free Classified Ads!

April 02, 2004 -- It Official! The CONECA BOD/Officers has approved free classified advertising as another club benefit of CONECA membership! To view the ads already up or to submit your ad click on the link below!

Click Here To View Or Place Ads

Commercial News ...
Crawford Announces Die Variety News

July 4, 2006 -- CONECA member, Billy Crawford announces that he has launched a new online newsletter dedicated to the study and advancement of variety coins. According to Crawford, "Die Variety News is a free, on-line bi-monthly newsletter devoted to updating collectors on varieties and errors for all denominations. Each issue will cover various die varieties such as doubled dies, re-punched mint marks (RPM's), over mint marks (OMM's), dual mint marks (DMM's) to name just a few. Special sections has been included reporting on a continuing "Educational Series," as well as "World Varieties" and "Mint Error" categories due to popular demand. With new and exciting discoveries being reported almost on a daily basis -- Die Variety News will keep you abreast of all the latest up-to-date information available. Die Variety News is in PDF file version which requires Adobe Reader© for viewing. If you do not have Adobe Reader©, a link for a free download is provided on the DVN home page." You can visit Die Variety News here: http://home.sc.rr.com/dievarieties/Die_Variety_News.html

Fred Weinberg Releases New List

March 11, 2005 -- Fred Weinberg writes: "We are proud to present our first Price List of 2005. All of the new coins (Over 225 new Certified Errors, and lots of new Raw coins) are listed right now on our website: http://www.fredweinberg.com/
Many of our customers like to download and print our 16-page Price list, find the coin(s) of interest, and then view the actual coin on our website.
Please note the “Raw Errors" attachment is for the first 6 pages of non-Certified Errors, U.S. Mint Defaced Dies, and misc. errors. These are listed on the website.

The "Certified Errors" attachment is for pages 7-16, containing only Certified Major Error Coins.
All of the new Certified Errors, plus our existing Certified inventory are scanned and pictured on our website for your convenience. All of the items under “U.S. Mint Medals and Errors” (on page 5) are also scanned and pictured on the website. All other “Raw” coins can be scanned upon request.
We have also added some great dramatic Currency Errors to our website under the Raw section of our Inventory page. Just click on “Currency Errors” to see the list and scans of them.
When ordering, please try to be as specific as possible as to which coin(s) you are interested in – Raw or Certified, Date, Denomination, short description, grade, and price.
You may call on toll free line (800) 338-6533 or email us with your orders. All items are subject to prior sale.

Fred Weinberg

Mint Error News Magazine
Issue #15 Now Available

April 25, 2006 -- Mint Error News Magazine #15 is now online! You can download a PDF copy of it here: http://minterrornews.com/issue15.pdf Give it some time to load because it is plenty long. If you are on the mailing list your copy will be mailed soon. Also, Mint Error News Magazine recently placed the error article content of every issue in one place. See the index here: http://minterrornews.com/contentlist.html

Mike Byers' 2006 Catalog Now Available

December 12, 2004 -- Mike Byers has released his massive 128 page catalog on Major Minting Error and Trial and Pattern strikes. It is available in printed and pdf file formats. The pdf version can be viewed here: http://byersnc.com/2005catalog.pdf. Contact Byers at mike@mikebyers.com for information on how to order the spiral bound printed version.

Jim's Coins & Stamps Releases Mail Bid Auction Catalog

November 12, 2004 -- Jim's Coins & Stamps has released their fifth Major Mint Error Coin and Currency mail bid auction catalog. Issue#5 boasts new sharper images of many of the over 500 auction lots brought about by a new technology now being employed by the auctioneers. To get on the list for future mailings send $8 for six catalogs to Jim's C&S, Hillsdale Shopping Center, 702 N. Midvale Blvd. B-2, Madison, WI 53705 or see it on the Internet here: www.jimscoins.net. Addendum: Jim's continues to send new issues all of which have been great! We have not had time to update the image but otherwise all the above info is still current as it applies to the newer issues of Jim's catalogs.

To get news of your mint error and/or variety list/catalog in this section, send a brief write up on how to obtain it along with an image if desired. As long as we aware of the fact catalogs are continuously being issued we will leave the notice up , however, we will not change the dates or issue numbers or update images unless that information is specifically supplied to us for the website with a short press release (in other words, don't wait for us to write the release). Offer open to CONECA members only. Thank you!

New To The Web Site
Two-Headed Coins Unlucky For Some
by Ken Potter -- NLG

Above is an image of a so-called two-headed nickel
still sealed in the blister-pack card that it was marketed in.
Photo courtesy of Ken Potter

October 26, 2003 -- Without a doubt the most frequent question that we receive is about two-headed or two-tailed coins. There are occasional variations to the theme such as a Kennedy half dollar mated with a Mexican 20-centavos reverse or a Lincoln cent mated with a Roosevelt ten-cent reverse or a dime mated with a foreign coin reverse, etc., that are all related. What we say here will most often apply to them also ...

Read The Rest Of The Story

CONECA's Glossary Expanded!
Includes Color Images

    July 19, 2003 -- While the CONECA web site has offered a Glossary of Terms for several years -- it was unillustrated. However, all that is changing! If you go in and look now, you will see we are adding images in the form of links to many photos that we used on this web site in the past and many new ones. In fact -- most are new!
    This will be a work in progress so please come back and visit often to see what has been added. Also, your help in the form of images to illustrate the glossary is needed. At this point you will notice that the majority of images are of coins that your webmaster supplied! Your webmaster wants that to change! If you have high quality photographs of error and variety coins available (that you took or otherwise own the rights to), we encourage you to look through them and send some of your best shots.
    Do not be afraid of duplication. We are interested in showing more than one shot of most error types. For example we already have two images up to illustrate the curved clip error.
    Additionally, there will be some changes to the way the glossary is set up. As it is now, it is hard to find things. For example: if you are looking for a definition of curved clip you must scroll down to "single curved clip" to find it. That's not the way it should be! In the near future we will begin to reorganize and you will then be able to find "curved clip" under "curved clips" with the variations subcategorized under that main heading. We will also be adding in many popular terms that are not present at this time.
    Again, this will be a work in progress but as we see it -- we have the "guts" to best online error-variety coins glossary out there already -- and now it's just going to get better!
Sincerely yours,
Ken Potter
CONECA Board Seat #5 - Webmaster
Send images to: CONECA Website Images

Visit the Glossary

Interesting Coin Facts ...
Not All Silver Dated 1964
Was Struck In 1964!

Photo © Ken Potter 2005
This 1964 Curved Clip Dime Could Have Been Minted
Anytime Between Jan 1964 and April of 1966

While most collectors believe that 1964 was the last year that the United States Mints struck 90% silver coins for circulation -- 1966 was actually the last year of the 90% silver coinage output for circulation! Specifically, 1964 dated 90% silver coins were produced from January 1964 through April of 1966!

Celebrating Our 25th Anniversary!

1983 - 2008

CONECA was formed through a merger of CONE and NECA in early 1983. In what seems to have been such a short time -- we are now celebrating our 25th Anniversary! To learn more about the fascinating HISTORY OF THE ERROR HOBBY and THE HISTORY OF CONECA, we encourage you to visit those pages on our site! We thank everybody who has helped make CONECA the great success that it is today!

CONECA Webmaster Activity Report to Membership of 04/23/04

Persons with items of interest to the CONECA Web site or with questions relating to it may contact the webmaster, Ken Potter at: conecawebsite@koinpro.com

Since 03/24/07
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