What Causes Trails?

Generally speaking, trails are parallel raised ridges which extend away from the corners of a coin’s design elements. They are strongest at the point where the device meets the field, and then taper off as they extend into the field. They vary in strength from naked-eye obvious to barely perceptible under magnification. A single coin can exhibit multiple sets of trails going in multiple directions. These ridges are created during polishing of the die by a rotary tool.  A soft buff or bristles penetrate into the die’s recesses, gather in the corners of those devices, and then erode a gouge into the die as they exit the recesses into the higher relief of the field.  Trails can also occur on a coin’s incuse devices, which are raised on the die. In this instance, the buff or bristle concentrate against the raised wall and continue gouge out a trail into the field where the device terminates. Since there is no change in relief in this instance, the trails are weaker.  “Wavy Steps” are just trails that extend into the steps from the columns on Lincoln cents, causing the steps to have a wavy appearance.  For a more detailed explanation, please see the article “Unraveling the Mysteries of Trail Dies” by Will Brooks in the July 17^th 2017 issue of Coinworld Weekly.