Full Bell Lines….

Afternoon everyone ….

You may be wondering by the title of this what exactly “Full Bell Lines” means.

Well….

It’s a designation giving during the grading process of a Ben Franklin half dollar.

Why does this matter?

Because Franklin half dollars were well known for having very weak strikes. Thus, leaving incomplete bell lines on the Liberty Bell reverse and this affects the value of the coin dramatically.

Experts over the years have determined that only fresh dies could produce these lines. Which means shortly into production the full lines started disappearing from the strike. Until a new die was inserted. The experts believe that less than one percent of all Franklin half dollars had “Full Bell Lines”.

If you look at the graded population of these coins I’d say even less than that exist still. Obviously they were put into circulation, so most of the ones that were struck well were probably used and became worn.

This designation on the coin makes it sell for roughly 35-50% more depending on the year. There are a few years that are way more difficult to find with these lines.

So today I’m sharing with you a 1962 Denver Minted Franklin half dollar. It has been graded by PCGS as an MS64 FBL, the FBL is for “Full Bell Lines”.

Here are the specs and mintage of this coin:
Issuer United States
Mintage: 35,473,281
Period Federal republic (1776-date)
Type Standard circulation coin
Years 1948-1963
Value ½ Dollar = 50 Cents (½ USD)
Currency Dollar (1785-date)
Composition Silver (.900)
Weight 12.5 g
Diameter 30.6 mm
Thickness 2.15 mm
Shape Round
Technique Milled
Orientation Coin alignment ↑↓
Number N# 2835 Help
References KM# 199, Schön# 200
Obverse
Benjamin Franklin facing right