Circles on Lincolns

MaryJF · Advanced Member

I know you haven't heard from me in a long time now. Work is getting hectic, I've been looking for a new car, my brother moved in with me for a while, my daughter is having medical problems.. wow - I need a vacation from my overworked brain.

Ok, this has been bothering me. I've opened up one of the rolls of new cents from the "cent project" and I'm finding little dots or circles or whatever one might call them, on some of the coins. I've only found them on the obverse side for some reason which really puzzles me. And, so far, I've only found them on one particular die. Any ideas as to what caused these?

http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h253/MaryJF/2007%20Dots/8-1.jpg

http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h253/MaryJF/2007%20Dots/2-4.jpg

http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h253/MaryJF/2007%20Dots/3-2.jpg

http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h253/MaryJF/2007%20Dots/4-3.jpg

http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h253/MaryJF/2007%20Dots/5-2.jpg

http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h253/MaryJF/2007%20Dots/6-2.jpg

http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h253/MaryJF/2007%20Dots/7-1.jpg

coop · Expert Member

At first when I started reading this post I thought of water spots. But after view several images, I don't know. Does there seem to be a pattern with the marks? Is this only on the circulated examples? Did these come from a OBW roll? Interesting. Might be a new type of counting machine used somewhere? Maybe others have noticed this before? Maybe UFO's are getting smaller these days?? Wink

MaryJF · Advanced Member

LOL, Coop. Crop circles on coins? Hmmm...

When I looked at them without a magnifier, I thought they might be water spots too, but...

In answer to your questions: No, there is no pattern to where they are found on the coins. I've found them in different areas on each of the coins found so far. Whatever it is, it was done after the coin went through the squeeze process because they're on the face, lapel, hair, beard as well as the plain areas. If it was on the die, they'd be the same on each coin, right? So far, I've only found them on the same die though which is strange.

These are uncirculated, OBW's. I've only opened one roll so far, and I haven't even gone through that whole roll yet. I'll get to it later tonight and let you know by tomorrow if I find more.

Could be spaceships from the same planet the little guy in the cat's locket was from in the movie Men in Black, no?

eagames · Expert Member

Maybe something to do with the rinse they used.

Could it be that a batch of planchets with spotty rinse were fed to one set up so you see it on ones from that die.

Confused

Dick · Expert Member

This may be very far-fetched, but has anyone considered the way they seem to look very much like the gole a drill would leave on a flat surface, if it were applied to a HUB? are the "circles flat, incuse, or in relief, like the "other devices" Consider it would take a "hand-ful" of different sized drills to do this, but.....Idle minds, like idle hands....
Dick

coop · Expert Member

Dick: That would be possible with circulated coins. But Mary found these in OBW (Original Bank Wrapped) Rolls that should be tampered with...yet. Also the hole sizes look much smaller than anything we use today. You have to remember these are magnifed through a scope.

wavysteps2003 · Expert Member

Mary - If you want to, send me a couple of these coins with circles and I'll pass one on to Mike Diamond to see if he has any ideas.

From the looks, they appear indented to the coin surface which would indicate to me that the damage occurred post strike. However, I would like to examine one first hand before passing any conclusions to what it is or the cause.

Thanks,
BJ

Dick · Expert Member

Mary saaid,:I've opened up one of the rolls of new cents from the "cent project" and I'm finding little dots or circles or whatever one might call them, on some of the coins".
Chuck would love that especially since Mary also said, :
These are uncirculated, OBW's. I've only opened one roll so far, and I haven't even gone through that whole roll yet.
Now, are the "OBW" the same today, (like I get now and then, all the same date), any dofferent in the OBW rolls that were made many years ago, and naturally have a nice premium attached, today? I hear "OBW" rolls, and think in OLD rolls. Confused in CA.
Dick

KurtS · Senior Member

Interesting shapes. They remind me somehow of a chemical reaction where a compound is separating out in the small central dot, which is why they're centered so perfectly. Confused

Dick · Expert Member

I'm of the old school: What you SEE, is what you get"!
Dick

eagames · Expert Member

Hmmmmmm

I kept thinking we had a post with dots before.

If they are raised dots then you might look at this old post.

http://www.coppercoins.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1244&highlight=hardness+test

MaryJF · Advanced Member

My apologies to everyone regarding this thread. I've had a family emergency, and my thoughts were not of coins. They're still not, and probably won't be for a couple of weeks yet.

Just to let you know, I've looked at the coins again before posting, and most of the "circles" have begun to deteriorate. Obviously something caustic hit them somewhere along the way. Turns out they're nothing special after all, but they were interesting to look at before they started to errode.

Again, my apologies for not posting, and I'll be back when things return to normal.

Mary

Dick · Expert Member

Good lick, Mary, and If we, or I can help, let me know.
Dick