1987-P

Philadelphia produced 762,709,481 Roosevelt dimes in 1987, a rebound from the 1986 contraction and a return to the upper-700-million range that characterized the middle of the decade. Federal Reserve coin orders climbed as the late-1980s economy expanded and dime demand at point of sale recovered from the 1986 trough. The P mintmark sat in its established post-1980 position above the date, the clad sandwich kept the 2.268-gram, 17.91-millimeter cupronickel-on-pure-copper specification, and strike quality came up cleaner across the date than on the 1986 production. Within the 1980s arc the 1987-P is an unremarkable mid-decade issue at the production level, with the collecting interest concentrated in condition rarity rather than absolute scarcity.

Authentication on the 1987-P follows the standard clad-dime workflow: 2.268 grams on a calibrated scale, P mintmark sharp above the date under 10x magnification, and Full Bands evaluation across the central torch. Full Bands, the third-party grading designation that the two parallel horizontal bands at the torch midpoint show complete separation, is comparatively easy to find on the 1987-P relative to the 1986 issue because central-torch strike quality runs a step better. The Full Bands premium therefore concentrates at MS67 FB and finer rather than at MS66 FB. No major business-strike die varieties carry premium attribution at the Cherrypickers level, and the date carries no recognized RPM, doubled-die, or transitional variety beyond routine die-state material that trades without premium.

The 1987-P circulates in heavy quantity through MS66 and trades at standard type-coin levels at and below that grade. The condition-rarity tier opens at MS67 FB where PCGS and NGC population reports thin enough to support registry-set competition and a meaningful price step. MS68 FB examples reach four-figure territory at public auction when slabbed by a major service. Original Mint sets and bank-wrapped rolls remain the practical hunting ground for upgrade-grade examples, since the bulk of 762 million pieces entered circulation rather than collector hands and Mint set distribution captured a relatively small fraction of total output. The 1987-P shows no fundamental scarcity at common grades and remains a routine fill in modern Roosevelt year-sets. For the broader picture of Philadelphia output through the late 1980s, see the Roosevelt Dime series history.