1943 nickels - various die cracks, etc.

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woodie101
Posts: 13
Joined: Sat Feb 15, 2014 6:12 pm

1943 nickels - various die cracks, etc.

Post by woodie101 » Tue Feb 18, 2014 12:53 am

Hi Everyone - I am new to this forum, and I am looking for input on rough values of error coins - specifically 1943, 44, and 45 victory nickels. I have a total of 30 nickels, I would say averaging VF-20 condition, and the majority have die cracks, some with 2 or 3 , and also couple with cuds.
What I am wondering is that if a nickel in vf-20 is worth say $.50 , then what about one with an average die crack ; would it double? , triple? , big deal? .
Am asking because I am not a collector ( I was given these to dispose of ) , and I have a collector who wants them,and he wants me to name a price, but I have no idea what is fair for both of us ..... any suggestions would help me a lot !!

Thanks
Dave

Bill in Burl
Posts: 1457
Joined: Thu Sep 04, 2008 7:41 am
Location: Golden Horseshoe, ONT

Re: 1943 nickels - various die cracks, etc.

Post by Bill in Burl » Tue Feb 18, 2014 3:26 am

In my opinion, and that of most collectors, a die crack or cud actually lowers the value of a coin, especially at the higher end. Die cracks serve as a valuable tool to track down a specific working die that it came from, or to serve as a marker for a scarcer variety involving repunching, handpunching, or reverse/obverse types. Die cracks themselves are as common as dirt and really add no value, except when they are spectacular .. and then they are just an oddity. There are exceptions to any generality and, if a coin is scarce enough, then there certainlu could (and should) have a premium attached, but common nickels don't seem to be in that realm. If you have someone that is interested in buying them and offers you anything near Trends or a little above (from Canadian Coin News or the Coinsandcanada website), then take it to the bank. Most dealers will offer about 40% of Trends, even lower for common stuff, so do your own calculation.

If you have clips, overstrikes, die mods, more than 45 degree rotation, brockages, or any other highly collectible error, then a nice premium would be expected. But die cracks are just way too common to be considered a true error or variety.
Bill in Burl

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