Hey gang, a few days back I posted this in another thread somewhere and I was told it may be the inverted "S" variety. I am coming to you guys for help. Let me know what you think and thanks in advance.
I think you are going to need a Mercury Dime expert for this one. Do we have one on this forum? Here is a photo I found on Variety Vista. 1945-S 10c RPM-003 Inverted S over Horizontal S I have compared them and have no idea. Good luck!
The OP's is not inverted. Note the teardrop shape on the upper end of the "S" and the flattened/trumpet shape on the lower end. That is the typical orientation. It's just a shallow placement.
It is certainly the "knob Tail" (termed as such by David Lang in his book on Mercury dimes and also called the "ball serif with flat spot on lower ball" by CONECA) MM in the correct orientation. As noted by Quarter-back, the tear drop shape at the top and the ball shape with flat spot is on the bottom. The "trumpet tail" MM has a different design altogether including a point on the top serif making it very easily identifiable. I agree with Larry that it shouldn't require an expert to see this one. Also interesting to note, and I may be the first one to publicly mention this theory...the 45 s RPM #2 dime is actually an IMM with RPM! Rpm #4 looks suspicious as well for being IMM. Look at the photos at CONECAs websight of the 45 s rpm dimes. Tell me what you all think! Above is a photo of my 45 s IMM PCGS MS65FB Unattributed Dime. See the flat spot on the end of the ball serif AT THE TOP? It should be at the bottom.
What "S" you have is a "Knob Tail" mint mark. According to the "S" mint marks, compiled by Bill Fivaz, on Mercury dimes and other coins of this era. Since, the mint marks were installed by hand, all will not be the same. This "S" is more common on 1944s dimes. The same mint mark are common on 1946s cents, and rare on 1944s cents. The most Ex-Rare mint mark, is 1943s 10c "Trumpet Tail", the same was usded on 1941s & 1944s 25c. The Ex-Rare dime, is the 1946s 10c Sans Serif style "S". Now, for a real rare dime find [besides a 1916d or a 1894s] is a 1945 FSB in ms70. -D)
