BUFFALO NICKEL

ONE-PAGE SORT GUIDE 1913–1938

KEY DATES • TYPE 1 / TYPE 2 • DDO • OVERDATE • 3-LEGGED • HORN / DATE DIAGNOSTICS

SORTING LEGEND

P1Pull Immediately / Authenticate

P2Check Carefully / Better Date

P3Common / Condition Pull

DDODoubled Die Obverse

DDRDoubled Die Reverse

OVDOverdate

RPMRepunched Mintmark

FHornFull Horn Candidate

ESSENTIAL TOOLS

Microscope
or 10x loupe

0.01g
Scale

Good
Lighting

Reference
Guide

1P1 MONEY COINS

Date / Issue	Pri.	What To Check
1913-S Type 2	P1	Key S-mint Type 2; recessed FIVE CENTS
1916 DDO	P1	Strong date doubling; also lips/chin
1918/7-D	P1	Overdate at final digit; Denver mint
1921-S	P1	Key San Francisco issue
1926-S	P1	Lowest regular mintage Buffalo nickel
1937-D 3-Legged	P1	Missing front foreleg on reverse

1913-S T2

1913-S Type 2 Buffalo nickel placeholder

Confirm S mintmark and Type 2 reverse.

1916 DDO

1916 Buffalo nickel doubled die obverse placeholder

Doubled date is dramatic.

1918/7-D

1918 over 7 D Buffalo nickel placeholder

Authenticate overdate.

1937-D 3 Legs

1937-D three-legged Buffalo nickel placeholder

Missing front foreleg.

2KEY DATES & MINTMARKS

Date	Pri.	Notes
1913-D Type 2	P2	Better Denver Type 2
1913-S Type 2	P1	Major key date
1914-D	P2	Better early Denver
1915-S	P2	Better San Francisco issue
1921-S	P1	Key date
1924-S	P2	Condition-sensitive S mint
1926-S	P1	Very low mintage; especially important in grade
1931-S	P2	Low-mintage late issue

Mintmark location: D or S appears on the reverse under FIVE CENTS. Philadelphia coins have no mintmark.

Buffalo nickel obverse and reverse Type 1 placeholder

OBVERSE / REVERSE

REVERSE DIAGNOSTIC

3MAJOR VARIETIES

Variety	Pri.	Diagnostic
1913 Type 1	P3	Bison on raised mound; FIVE CENTS in high relief
1913 Type 2	P2	FIVE CENTS recessed under ground line
1914/3	P2	Overdate-style variety; authenticate
1916 DDO	P1	Doubled date, lips, and chin
1918/7-D	P1	8 over 7 in date
1935 DDR	P2	Doubled reverse lettering
1936-D 3½ Legs	P2	Weak / polished bison leg variety
1938-D/S	P2	D over S over-mintmark

Type 1 vs Type 2: 1913 Type 1 has FIVE CENTS on the raised mound. Type 2 recesses FIVE CENTS below a straight ground line to reduce wear.

4STRIKE & CONDITION DIAGNOSTICS

FULL DESIGN

Buffalo nickel horn and leg detail placeholder

HORN / LEG DETAIL

Feature	Pull If
Date	Readable and original; no acid-restored damage
Horn	Full horn visible on bison; strong grade candidate
Hair / Feather	Sharp detail on obverse portrait
Reverse	Strong bison shoulder, head, and tail detail
Surfaces	Original color; avoid cleaned, polished, corroded coins

Date warning: acid-treated “restored date” Buffalo nickels are damaged coins. Useful for ID, but do not treat them as normal problem-free coins.

5ERROR COINS

Error / Variety	Pri.	What To Look For
1937-D 3-Legged	P1	Front foreleg missing; back leg has weak / rough look
1936-D 3½ Legs	P2	Partially weak front leg from die work
Two Feathers	P2	One feather removed by die polishing
Wrong Planchet	P1	Wrong weight, size, color, or metal
Off-Center	P2	Visible date preferred
Major Die Break / Cud	P2	Large raised break at rim or design

Normal specs: Buffalo nickels weigh 5.00g, have a plain edge, and are 75% copper / 25% nickel. Weigh suspect wrong-planchet pieces.

6QUICK SORT CHECKLIST

CHECK FIRST

1913-S Type 2
1916 DDO
1918/7-D
1921-S
1924-S
1926-S
1937-D 3-Legged
1938-D/S
Full horn candidates
Major errors

Fast workflow: read date → check mintmark → identify Type 1/2 if 1913 → inspect date for DDO/overdate → inspect bison legs/horn → pull major errors.

Authenticate: 1916 DDO, 1918/7-D, 1937-D 3-Legged, 1914/3, and expensive key dates before sale.