Question about MAD strikes

[pyrbob]

I have noticed on online auctions and on other forums people posting coins that are uncentered on the obverse but with the entire design on the coin with slight finining on one side and they are told the coin is a MAD. They are told a MAD has no value unless part of the design is missing. I was told in the past that in order to be a MAD part of the design must be missing on the coin. So the coins they are posting such as the above coin are just normal strikes and are not MAD strikes. By the first definition a MAD strike could be an error coin or it could be a normally struck coin.

The internet is a fantastic tool for learning but unfortunately it can quickly spread misinformation. I have seen this with the term CUD. The term CUD is used often for a simple die chip. At least on the forums I see this being corrected regularly. But if the second definition of MAD above is correct then the term is being used incorrectly and not yet being corrected. I figured this forum is the best place to see if I have the correct definition of a MAD before bringing the topic up on other forums.

So my question is at what point does a coin become a MAD strike?

[wavysteps]

A MAD strike is when a die is misaligned and the strike is a bit of center on the planchet. The most obvious culprit in this case is the obverse die on the Lincoln cent; a hand full of those coins will yield at least a few that fit this category.

While it is most often the obverse die that is MAD, the reverse die can also be MAD and in some rare cases, both dies can be MAD. The one point to remember is that the coin must have been struck in the striking chamber if both dies are MAD.

As for their worth, I do suppose that extreme MAD dies have some value. However, one must realize that the restraints of the collar limit just how much off center or a MAD can be.

As for "CUDS", it is a constant battle trying to keep that term in perspective In the long run, I prefer the term die break, which covers the rim breaks and interior breaks.

BJ Neff

[pyrbob]

Thanks BJ. I guess I now have one more question so I understand this completely. You say the strike is a bit off center. By off center do you mean some of the design must be missing as compared to uncentered meaning the design is not centered but still complete on the coin? Or is the difference between off centered and uncentered not as defined as I assumed. Maybe that is where I am misleading myself.

[diamond]

A misaligned die error is only of interest to the collector if some of the design is cut off. Minor MAD's (where the design is complete) are quite common. The most trivial examples do not even count as errors.

[pyrbob]

So if the design is complete it would still be considered a minor misaligned die. That's what I was looking for. Thanks Mike and Thanks again BJ. This helped clear up the terminology for me.