- March 12, 2020
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Image courtesy of PCGS TrueView. Click images to enlarge.
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Here is something you don't see every day. This is a (1980-85)-Mo 5 Peso graded PCGS MS63 struck on a Mexico Mint feeder finger.
What's a finger feeder, you ask? It's used to feed an unstruck planchet into the collar of a coining press to be struck by dies.
Due to the tremendous speed and the number of blank planchets that are fed into the coining chamber, sometimes bolts and screws can become loose, altering the feeder finger's intended path.
Feeder fingers that are struck by dies that are in use is not uncommon, but many of the struck feeder fingers don't make it into public hands.
Instead, they are usually recycled and reused if they can still function properly. Most feeder fingers, struck and unstruck that appear on the coin market,
are from scrap metal dealers who are commissioned to take metal from the mint for melting but find it more profitable to sell as numismatic pieces;
many of these pieces also make it into the marketplace by way of mint employees who take them home legally or illegally and sell them.
Here is an image below, provided by the ANA, that shows the inner workings of a coining press.
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Images courtesy of American Numismatic Association. Click images to enlarge.
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2018 10 Sen D/S onto Feeder Finger, Malaysia, PCGS MS65. Click images to enlarge.
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Other examples that we have seen in the past, such as this one from Malaysia, have the planchet still inside the feeder finger.
This is another example of a feeder finger malfunction in which the feeder finger's path was altered, causing the dies to strike the planchet and feeder finger together.
This results in the planchet wedging itself in between the feeder finger's prongs.
When these pieces enter the grading room, they are graded just like any other coin.
Only the struck part of the feeder finger is graded.
We at PCGS can encapsulate feeder fingers in our Deluxe Oversized holders for an additional $20.
Del Bosque, Briggs & Bustos Numismatic Auctions will be auctioning off the (1980-85)-Mo 5 Peso graded PCGS MS63 struck on a feeder finger,
as well as many other stunning pieces on March 12-13th at Hotel Del Prado in Mexico.
About Professional Coin Grading Service
Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS) is the premier third-party coin and banknote grading company that was launched in 1986.
Over nearly 35 years, PCGS has examined and certified some 43 million U.S. and world coins, medals, and tokens with a combined value of more than $37 billion.
For more information about PCGS products and services, including how to submit your coins for authentication and grading, please visit www.PCGS.com or call PCGS Customer Service at (800) 447-8848.
References:
Article provided by PCGS at www.pcgs.com