Gary D

LOL. If one of them was much scarcer than the other, THEN I'd be interested - that's my pathology! (It's why 1937 micro-varieties leave me entirely cold) As you can imagine, Mr Grooms excellent books left my approaching completeness 20th century decidedly holey. As for 1937, I even had to get both brass 3ds. I did give up on the two Davies numbers for the silver 3d though. Anyone got a 1+B? Or seen one? GaryD? No not seen one

I'm with declan, they are two difference coins so I need to be able to distinguish between them. I have wondered it you could lay the coin on a transducer and give it a frequency sweep to find the resonant frequency. It would be different for different size coins but it wouldn't take long to compile a table for the complete range of coins.

Picture me tossing my 1935 proof crown trying to determine if it's the 0.500 or 0.925 silver content Saying that it's the only way I know how to tell the difference apart from chemically which you really don't want to do to your prized coins. Buy the way the ring is low for 0.925 and high for 0.500, not as previously stated. That's what it says in Davies book, but that's not the way I hear it. Comparing the sounds with 1919 and 1921 versions is a surefire way to discriminate the two types, however it sounds to the individual. My engineering background tells me that silver is softer than a alloy of silver and copper etc. The softer the material the lower the ring for two items of a similar size. Gold would ring even lower and lead lower still if you could get it to ring at all.

Picture me tossing my 1935 proof crown trying to determine if it's the 0.500 or 0.925 silver content Saying that it's the only way I know how to tell the difference apart from chemically which you really don't want to do to your prized coins. Buy the way the ring is low for 0.925 and high for 0.500, not as previously stated.

That's just what my wife used to do in her informative years. Although I let her use the washing machine now though.

Getting quite common then.

I have a crack in my bot as well.

There is in existance a slabbed brass 3d with I believe a reverse on both sides. I'm not sure if it sold or was for sale for about $3000. I wouldn't put it pass a mint worker to have a bit of a game.

Amonia would certainly work on the verdigris, but it evaporates quickly, so cannot just be put on affected parts of the surface and if you immerse the coin in the ammonia you strip the patina. Being me, I would have to experiment, particularly as it is pretty much unsaleable as it stands. Oh, I don't know. The obverse is totally unaffected, and it's a VF coin otherwise. Although I wouldn't touch copper I'm not too anti cleaning silver. Saying that it must be UNC or near UNc as a cleaned lower grade just doesn't look right. Also only a light dip, no polishing or any treatment that would leave scratching.

The join is not always around the edge, if done properly one coin is machined as far as the rim just taking off the beads or teeth. The second coin will be then reduced in both diameter and thickness so that it just pushes inside the machined part of the first coin. Saying that I have a two sided 1970 penny and even under a microscope I can not find any join. I keep meaning to send it off the the Royal Mint but have never got around to it.

I guess we shouldn't laugth about this one sad really

Just a bit confused here.... can you tell me what edition the 1980 figures come from? I have 1972 being edition 12 and I have 1989 being edition 24. It appears there weren't publications every year. Cheers The 1970 volume is given as the 9th edition, but the copyright date is 1969, so there could be a slight mismatch here as to whether we are talking cover date or copyright date, otherwise if 1970 was the 9th, then it would be difficult to reconcile 1972 with being the 12th. Mine has 1980 on the binder and mentions 17th edition in the title although inside it says published annually 1962-1976. Volume 1 revised, 16th edition, 1978. 17th edition, 1980.

Just a bit confused here.... can you tell me what edition the 1980 figures come from? I have 1972 being edition 12 and I have 1989 being edition 24. It appears there weren't publications every year. Cheers Seaby Standard Catalogue of British Coins Volume 1 17th edition. Coins of Engaland and the United Kingdom

1980. VF £400, EF £675, Proof £1500. 1989. VF £425, EF £650, Proof £1650.

I remember a hailstorm in Southend one humid August day in 1994, which left the streets white as though it had snowed. The accompanying violent thunderstorm caused lightning damage to several buildings nearby, in fact the lightning was so incessant that if it had been night, you could probably have read a book by it. We all knew something really bad was coming as the storm approached, because even from miles away the thunder was non stop. No doubt a freak storm for Dundee, Dave. I'm in scotland on holiday in two weeks time, I've ordered good weather. The locals now know who to thank.

...and let's face it, Barack Obama isn't even Barack Obama Is Peck of African Carribean descent then? Are you swinging big guy? Not last time I looked in the mirror. But then, maybe Martin Platt had got to me first So was it cleaned again after the first sale, or is the startingly different appearance down to varying photographic takes ? Even several applications of "Photoshop Levels" wouldn't turn a normal very dark brown bun penny into a cleaned one. I'm guessing 'cleaned'.. I can't beleive MP would take a loss on a coin. Alway possible he was the higheat bidder, bit of protection

Without a photo is very difficult to tell. Usually when you come across a penny that is slightly small in diameter and about half the normal thickness someone has been playing silly beggers and have partly disolved it in acid. Oh and welcome to the forum

I stopped collecting sovereigns years ago because they were just too small, don't see farthings as an option. I've just about finished 1895 to 1936 in true BU, ok a few gaps, I just don't see the point of starting something I can't finish with the bun head series.... All East Anglian beer is muck, Derek, trust me and heaped upon that shame must be added the fact that they have no decent rugby teams. You must be going to the wrong pubs....IPA is in my veins.I also enjoy Abbot Ruddles County & Adnams offerings A few non E Anglian beers appeal like Taylors Landlord,Pedigree,Tanglefoot etc. Rugby at grass roots level also thrives We also don't like strangers. Being born and bred in Green King country (North West Essex) I find a drop of lemonade does wonders to perk the beer up a bit.

And as to the patron saints, mostly a bunch of foreigners. St David was the only home grown one as he was actually Welsh, St Partick was reportedly Romano-British (English). And as for St George and St Andrew, if they wanted to enter the country now a days they would probably have to hide out in the back of an artic crossing the channel.

I think that's the point. This gentleman in the USA has obtained a collection of coins with a statistically unfeasible bias towards a scarce variety, probably before the variety was even noted. He must have got them from somewhere. As Sherlock Holmes said, when you have eliminated the impossible, what remains, however improbable, must be the truth. I didn't realise they were hard to get I've had BUs of all four (toned and bright) for some time.

Bugger, the scrote said it belonged to his grandfather. I gave him fifty notes for it.

The only way to tell if there was an H there would be to burnish the coin and apply some acid. This would bring out the stress lines caused by the minting process and would show if there had ever been an H there or not.

I would suggest that the H wore away with the outer circle, there does seem to be a gap there.

It's a Gary Phelps £15 copy

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