1. Sort all the coins in a batch by date if the batch is more than a couple of rolls. I recommend sorting them a bag at a time (5,000 coins). One of the reasons for doing this is so that the more 'expected' dates can be gone through first, and the lesser 'expected' dates can be set aside for a rainier day. Another reason for doing it this way is purely logical and makes perfect sense - if you have 250 examples of 1985 cents to look through, you will get a better sense of how thick the design is and what some of the smaller details look like, and don't have to rethink your knowledge through every time you go from one coin to another. Additionally, you can get out a list of all the known dies for that given year and have them handy while you search, without having to flip back and forth through a LOT of stuff with each coin you look at. If your group is mixed, you might see a 1985 cent, then not see another one for another 60 coins and won't have the visual memory of what the other one looked like. This is more or less a waste of time.
2. Sit in a comfortable environment. If you're using a loupe, sit with a window or other light source behind you. This allows you to sit up in the chair and look at the coin in a comfortable position. Those who try using a desk lamp sitting in front of them have to bend over in different positions to light up the coin, which is a killer on the back after an hour or so of looking. If you are looking through a microscope make sure you set the lighting, magnification, and focus to a comfortable range and LEAVE IT THERE. Constantly changing the settings can play games with your eyes and cause you to miss stuff that's there, and see stuff that's not there.
3. Don't try to look through too many coins at once. Find your limit and don't exceed it. If your eyes start to blur and lose focus after three rolls, call that your daily limit and don't exceed it. I found that my limit is about 20 rolls a day, and I don't go over that. If you get tired of looking, you'll get lazy and stop looking. Your eyes will be catching most of the details, but your brain won't process them, and I promise you'll be missing stuff and wasting your time.
4. Know what you're looking for. Don't just go by what's been listed. Pay attention to all the details and pick out any differences and hold them aside. Keep looking, and if that difference appears over and over, you probably have nothing...but if you see something different on one out of 500 coins of the same date, you might have something worth further investigation.
5. Keep examples of the "nots" as well as the good coins. If you keep the things that aren't collectible, you'll be able to look back on them when you find something else in question and probably answer many of your own questions.
My method:
I have a stereo-zoom microscope with good lighting that did not come with the microscope. More so than not I find that microscope lighting that comes with the scope is not the proper type or intensity of light to use for searching through coins.
I have a stick I made out of ash 1x2 boards that has a flute cut into it that's the right size for cents to fit onto it. I line up half a roll at a time on the stick, obverse facing up and look through them sliding the stick through under the scope. I then have an identical stick I use to flip the coins over so I can look through the reverses. I can often accomplish a half roll in under 3 minutes, or my entire 20 roll daily quota in about an hour, including holdering and marking everything I find.]]>
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