Heartbreaker

[coinman66]

Found this in my sisters yard. She lives next to an old park that closed in the 1930`s. Also there used to be an old mill nearby that was built around 1833. I found it at a depth of about 4 inches. When i first saw it i thought it was a head of nail. But once i knew what it was i was pumped. A 1853 Three Cent Silver! It was slightly bent when i found it. I took it into my sisters house to show her, but she wasnt home, so i showed my nephew. He said look uncle Frank its bent. Then he took his finger and pushed on the coin and you know what happened next. I said how do like that, that coin has been in the ground for probably 100 yrs and 5 minutes out of the ground and you break it in two. I wasnt that mad because the coin really wasnt worth that much anyway. But let this be a lesson if you find something delicate!!!

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Family Maps of Hinds County, Mississippi, Deluxe Edition - Grab it through Amazon!

[Dimeman]

A keeper and a story , can't beat that !!!!!!!

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Upgraded Night Vision Monocular Digital Infrared Monocular Telescope for 100% Darkness with 8X Zoom - Grab it through Amazon!

[jewelerdave]

TO FIX A BENT COIN!

Silver and other preciouses metals do what is called "work hardening" The stamping process does a lot of it but any further stress from banging around in pockets and bending etc will cause it to become springy and brittle.

If a coin is bent it can shatter under just a little bit of force as seen here. However the crystalline structure of the metal can be "reset"
What has to happen is the metal must be annealed. this involves heating the metal to a dull red then dropping it in water to quench or rapidly cool it, This regrows the crystals in the metal from a crushed flat state to a uniform soft state making the coin very soft.
Once softened the coin can then be pressed down, either with a book or in a press with either leather or urethane to keep from scratching the coin.

After the coin is flattened out its done, since it will not be used for circulation the softer metal state is of no concern. Otherwise if you wish to re harden it leave it in an oven at about 550 degrees and let it cool in the oven for several hours, this will harden the metal.


As for welding the coin back together yes this can be done, I use a laser welder to work on things so small but the problem that one will run into is the weld will always show. just as nicks and dings on a coin cant be repaired blasting the coin back together at 5000 degrees at .25mm wide will leave a familiar weld mark across the damage, and its impossible to polish it away and now look as if it has been tampered with. Its great for restoring and repairing jewelry because that is supposed to be polished, but a coin surface and detail cant be "restored"

Either way the collectible value is gone but its still an example. but at least it can be flat and together if need be. It would be like a "holed" coin or something hit by a lawn mower.

 

[Iron Patch]

I think it was mostly your fault if you handed it without warning. A person with no undestanding of this type of thing would think a coin is a coin and no way in heck they could ever break it... not bend it either, but why not give it a shot...because it's there. Anything along that line I give a 30 second speech about it's condition and what you can't do.

 

[Jeffro]

OH MY GOSH! I have one of those! What is it exactly? I thought it was a Jewish coin......I can't see a date, where would that be? More inf. please!

This is a silver three cent piece also called a "trime", made from 1851- 1873. The date is on the obverse, below the star.

http://cgi.ebay.com/EARLY-US-MINT-1...722956QQihZ001QQcategoryZ149927QQcmdZViewItem

Another version made from nickel was made from 1865-1889 and was meant to replace the silver version. These have the head of Liberty on the obverse, and the roman numeral "III" on the reverse.

http://cgi.ebay.com/1874-Nickel-Thr...Type-Coin_W0QQitemZ250148315376QQcmdZViewItem

 

[RON (PA)]

Nice coin. Sorry about it breaking. Now you will have to take him with you so that he can find you another one . I can't wait until I find one.

 

[austin_silver_hunter]

Not much of a sense of humor, eh?

I think it was mostly your fault if you handed it without warning. A person with no undestanding of this type of thing would think a coin is a coin and no way in heck they could ever break it... not bend it either, but why not give it a shot...because it's there. Anything along that line I give a 30 second speech about it's condition and what you can't do.

 

[Iron Patch]

Not much of a sense of humor, eh?

I think it was mostly your fault if you handed it without warning. A person with no undestanding of this type of thing would think a coin is a coin and no way in heck they could ever break it... not bend it either, but why not give it a shot...because it's there. Anything along that line I give a 30 second speech about it's condition and what you can't do.

Tell me what the joke is and I'll tell you if it's funny.