Has anyone explained how wavy steps get made?

[eagames]

I found 2 nice 94 wavy steps, they are similar but have different markers. My first wavy finds. : ))

After looking at them I'm puzzled, we call them double die but it seems like they are a unique type of error. I mean it's not like there are flat steps and a second double set with waves. It's more like a new type of error, wavy die error.

It would make more sense if it was on masters, I could almost imagine something being loose and shifting as they copy from the master hub to the master die but I don't think any of the existing wavy coins have been linked to master dies so I don't have any reasonable theory. Another interesting thought is why only reverses, why does this same wavy type of error show up on obverses? Is that a clue? It would be neat to see a wavy obverse!

I'm wondering how they get made? Has anyone got a theory?

[murphy]

Hiya Ed@ Have you received your DDO yet? Let me know how you like it.

The way I see it, wavysteps are made when Lincoln gets up off his chair, walks across the street to the bar and gets very drunk. When he has to crawl back up all those steps they just become... nah?

Ok when a die is being made it is under pressure for the image to be impressed into the die. The surface of the die is a little concave, curved. When it is mashed flat it drags some of the metal from the columns down into the steps and sometimes even drags the steps downward into the other steps. Buy that?

[murphy]

Oh, congrats on finding your first two wavysteps! Some of the best are from 1994.
Speaking of Obverse wavysteps... I think wavysteps2003 or was it Bob P who found something like an obverse wavy a few months ago?
Then I recently found a variety of 2006P cent where Lincoln has a beard that looks like fish scales. It's the same action that takes place to form a reverse wavy step.

[coop]

I liked your first explination as many of us have experianced those WAVY STEPS after drink. But I believe you second explination is correct. I found two more of these today. a 1990-D and a 2004-D so with the other one the 1991-D that makes three so far in one box of circs.

[murphy]

Hahaha, Coop you're tearing those D's up buddy! Excellent.

[coop]

Well I can't find the Philly ones and the Denver mint ones are just too handy...

[eagames]

Hi Murph,

Yea I got the 06 DDO, it's neat! I say a 66+
I have to agree it must be the neatest DDO since 95.
Now I'm wondering what you will find next! Congrats on your discoveries!!

Yes I think your wavy theory must be right, so it's like a strike smear but on a working die?

[coop]

Just heard from BJ that the three I found are all New to the Wavy Step files. Always nice to help out in discoveries.

[murphy]

Coop ...and somebody's gotta do it huh? lol

Thanks Ed. Like I said before, I've been looking all along for a 2006P Monster WavyStep and I'll keep on looking until I find one if I have to go through all the other Doubled Dies too, lol.
"...on a working die?" I dunno, I just find them. I try not to explain them.

[murphy]

Coop, I guess there's a lot more of us searching Pilly cents for wavysteps than are searching Denver mint cents for them. You should do well with Denver cents. You might have found a hot spot like I did with the DDO's. Keep lookin'.

[murphy]

I see Bob has listed some of BJ's wavysteps here. I like the 1994 and 1999 ones. I have the 1999P-1DR-003 wavystep. It's the King of them all. But then I haven't seen them all.

[wavysteps2003]

Congratulations on all those wavy step finds guys, it is great to start seeing them be found out of the Denver Mint. I have long suspected that the Denver mint did produce wavy steps (maybe not as many as the Philadelphia Mint) but since I get few D minted coins, there was no way of telling. I am still very sure that SAN FRANSISCO MINT has produced a wavy step also and would sure like to see one.

Now to get to what this topic asks.

John Wexler was the first to attribute a wavy step in early 1995 (the 1994P-1DR-004 was that die) and he classified it as a doubled die. In 1999, Ken Potter also had the opportunity to attribute the same die and came to the same conclusion, that it was a doubled die and assigned his number VCR #2/DDR#2 to that die. Things started to heat up in 2003 when another wavy step was discovered, this time on a "single squeeze" coin. Through cross analyzation, it was agreed among the experts in the field (with the exception of James Wiles of CONECA who withheld his judgement and even to this day is still on hold) that the 2003 die and the 1994 die, even though being from different hub procedures, were in fact caused by the same effect and thus doubled dies.

What is the exact cause? Ken Potter has written two articles on the subject and his comments can be viewed by going to this link; http://koinpro.tripod.com/Articles/2003CentsSept20Article.htm
The Mint's stand on the cause is what they called "metal flow" along the grain of the planchet, which when looked at in depth does not hold up to be true. I have looked at hundreds of wavy steps and the theory of offset placement of hub to die is pausible until you come to a die like 1999P-1DR-003 and you have to ask yourself "can the error be that much?". So where does that leave us; yes, wavy steps are a doubled die; no, we are still unsure of the exact cause.

Are wavy steps a true doubled die? About a year ago I had the opportunity to see photographs of two wavy steps that were different, a 1995 and a 2003. Since that time, I have actually had the 1995 die in hand and have listed it as 1995WSDDR-015 (Bob P. has indicated that he will list this die in the future, but will wait until a better photographable coin is found). The 1995 is the "rosetta stone" of the wavy step for it has both elements of doubling, split serifs (or termini; which ever you prefer) and fluting line extension with step deviation. These die analomys were both caused by the same action, an offset hub to die. The 2003 had the same features, split serifs on the designer's initials and wavy steps (this was a unique wavy step in that the step deviation was to the north!!!, the only one of its type). Both these dies lend positive creedance to the theory that wavy steps are true doubled dies.

Are they collectible? That is up to the collector and what he or she fancies. In the next few days, I will be adding the 300th die to the files and I estimate that by the end of the year, the files will have around a total of 400 different dies. Most of these are minor, however, there are some true monsters out there that will rival any othe type of reverse doubled die for complexity.

I hope that this does answer some of the questions about wavy steps and I will be happy to try and answer any other questions about this odd doubled die. You all have a good one and keep on searching.

WAVYSTEPS2003

[Earwig]

Ive also heard from a friend of a friend that they are sqeezing some dies more then 1 time. And while i do have a bit of experience as a die maker i can tell u that im sure they are expermenting with new materials and alloys to increase die life. Not to mention depending on the source of the die material (US, Japan, China, Russia...) The same material from a dif source will act different upon machining. Now i dont think they are annealing between squeezes but i do think that they are squeezing them more then 1 time to obtain a complete impression. I can tell you that im sure they are using the cheapest die material they can buy so its not made in the US.

Eric

[Bob P]

Very well done BJ. Your description was right on the money. I was also intrigues by Erics comment. I hadn't though of material directly, but it could be a factor. Of course, we have wavy steps from 1987 on to the present. I am sure the source of the metal has changed a few times. As far as squeezing them more than once, I would tend to believe that is the most likely scenario. No one has been able to convince me that some of these recent doubled dies can come from a single squeezing. Of course the mint says they don't do multiple hubbings anymore. We all know the mint has always been straight forward and honest with the public Their public affairs people are always coming up with good stuff. Maybe they ought to be writing for the reality shows on TV???

[Earwig]

I dont believe they perform what they call multiple hubbings which involved annealing to resoften the metal between every squeeze. I think they are just resqueezing after inspection of there impression. Ive heard from an indirect source that they squeeze 2 or 3 time frequently. And i have also heard that on occasion they still must anneal the dies they make for half dollars to finish them, I wrote in another thread that is why i dont think we will see the big 1 as in the past. They look at them but i dont think they handle them enough to create the big 1

Eric