2009 Gold Double Eagle Ultra High Relief Question

I should have added that when doing the depth of field comparison,
there are subtle differences between the image of the scratch itself
and its reflected image. I usually can tell which is which. If you
do the parallax effect comparison while viewing for the depth of field
effect, you have a pretty good chance of arriving at the correct
diagnosis.

"mazorj" wrote in message
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"Michael Benveniste" wrote in message
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"PC" wrote in message
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Hmmm... looks like on the plastic to me but that is not easy to
determine from a photograph. Have you tilted the coin under
bright light? That usually works for me.

I have, both with and without a loupe, to no avail.

What power loupe? With a 10x or 20x magnifier, two things happen.
First, you get a better picture of the scratch itself and may be
able to determine whether it's on the plastic surface or on the
metal. Second, you can use the lens' shallow depth of field effect.
Focus back and forth on the plastic surface and the coin surface by
slightly increasing/decreasing the distance from the lens. When
you're sharply focused on the plastic surface, minute details on the
surface will be sharp. If the scratch also is sharp and gets blurry
when you shift focus to the image of the scratch on the coin
surface, it's a surface scratch. You get the opposite effect if
it's a coin scratch. This really pops out at you with a 40x stereo
microscope but even a cheap 10x or 20x lens can work.

Another method is parallax shift. Any scratch on one surface likely
will be reflected off the other. Carefully note the scratch image
that's showing on the coin surface and move your head side to side
or slightly tilt the coin. If the apparent location of the scratch
shifts from its location on the coin, it's a reflection of a scratch
on the plastic. This effect is subtle and depends on the separation
between the coin and the plastic case.

Maybe I'm just lucky, but it's been my experience that scratches on
Mint encapsulated proofs always have been on the plastic. In one or
two doubtful instances with presidential dollars I cracked the cover
off - quite easily done with the 4-coin proof sets - and verified
that the scratch was on the plastic, not the metal. The only reason
I wouldn't discount the possibility of coin damage to a proof is
that I have 6 first-year presidential $1 proof sets, ordered in
separate batches of 3. Each batch has 3 nearly identical flaws on
the GW dollar caused by breakage of the edge lettering mechanism at
the 10 o'clock position, one set of 3 being an early stage and one
being a late stage. The damage is visible without magnification.
If those slipped past quality control, anything is possible. Note,
however, that the damage to my proofs occurred during the stamping
process. Scratches can occur at any stage. My guess is that the
Mint's handling and QC procedures do a good job of preventing
scratches but were blind to the possibility and occurrence of die
damage.

"Michael Benveniste" wrote in message
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"PC" wrote in message
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Hmmm... looks like on the plastic to me but that is not easy to determine
from a photograph. Have you tilted the coin under bright light? That
usually works for me.

I have, both with and without a loupe, to no avail.

I'm assuming that the scratches are on the plastic as well. I took
that shot with a high light through a diffusion panel, which is
about perfect for picking out fine scratches.

It should be fairly easy to locate the scratches by simply passing a light
source over the slab while you look at the coin at 7-10X mag. If the
scratches are on the plastic as you suspect, they should cause shadows on
the coin surface which will "move" as the light source passes over.

"Bruce Remick" wrote in message
...

"Michael Benveniste" wrote in message
...
"PC" wrote in message
...

Hmmm... looks like on the plastic to me but that is not easy to
determine from a photograph. Have you tilted the coin under
bright light? That usually works for me.

I have, both with and without a loupe, to no avail.

I'm assuming that the scratches are on the plastic as well. I took
that shot with a high light through a diffusion panel, which is
about perfect for picking out fine scratches.

It should be fairly easy to locate the scratches by simply passing a
light source over the slab while you look at the coin at 7-10X mag.
If the scratches are on the plastic as you suspect, they should
cause shadows on the coin surface which will "move" as the light
source passes over.

Yep. That's even simpler than my techniques.

"Michael Benveniste" wrote in message
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On Sun, 15 Mar 2009 15:54:23 GMT, "jack" wrote:

Hi, does anybody know how many of these coins the mint is going to
strike?
It's a beautiful with a high quality box.

I don't know, but I'm thinking seriously of sending mine back to the
mint. Anyone for a round of that all-time favorite game, "Are those
scratches on the coin or on the plastic?" Here's a shot of the
reverse of my UHR: (Warning, big image).

http://wemightneedthat.biz/reverse.jpg

--
Mike Benveniste -- (Clarification Required)
And as always, no wagering.



Some people have been complaining about die striations or polish lines.It's
really hard to tell from your pictures but most striations I've seen are in
the fields not the devices,like the eagle.There's another type of lines from
some kind of roller called what else?Die roller striations.Threse can go all
the way across. Either way,if they bug you,sell it or return it.

send it back

"Michael Benveniste" wrote in message
...
On Sun, 15 Mar 2009 15:54:23 GMT, "jack" wrote:

Hi, does anybody know how many of these coins the mint is going to strike?
It's a beautiful with a high quality box.

I don't know, but I'm thinking seriously of sending mine back to the
mint. Anyone for a round of that all-time favorite game, "Are those
scratches on the coin or on the plastic?" Here's a shot of the
reverse of my UHR: (Warning, big image).

http://wemightneedthat.biz/reverse.jpg

--
Mike Benveniste -- (Clarification Required)
And as always, no wagering.

On Tue, 17 Mar 2009 15:45:05 GMT, "mazorj" wrote:

Maybe I'm just lucky, but it's been my experience that scratches on
Mint encapsulated proofs always have been on the plastic. In one or
two doubtful instances with presidential dollars I cracked the cover
off - quite easily done with the 4-coin proof sets - and verified that
the scratch was on the plastic, not the metal.

The UHR isn't a proof, but taking off one side of the capsule while
wearing cotton gloves made it clear that it was indeed on the plastic
as suspected. With my aging eyes, that was infinitely easier than
trying to see parallax or shadows through a 10x loupe.

Thanks for the suggestions!

--
Mike Benveniste -- (Clarification Required)
Amo conventum instituti. -- Artifex Hannibal