There are times when a term or terms in the error coin world can mean more than one thing. This is true of partial collars as they relate to the broadstruck coins. Those two terms are directly related to one another by circumstance but the difference between the two errors is easily seen and is hardly ever confused to say the least.

Partial collars are errors that occur when a coin fails to fall all the way into the retaining collar and is struck. This is how they are related to the broadstruck coins but the difference remains in how they are struck and the end result of it all.

With a broadstruck coin you get the appearance of off center, with a thinning of the planchet at the point of the strike with the whole image shifted to one side or another. Now, with partial collars you get a completely different result. When the coin fails to fall into the collar with this occurrence you get an edge that is similar in design to the wheels on a train car.

The partial collars are normally referred to as railroad rims and it is easy to see why. This makes them in the same region of the error coin world as the broadstruck error coins but completely different in a way.

One matter is the fact that broadstruck coins are more valuable overall then the partial collars. This speaks to the dramatic difference in the two and the appearance of the overall error in question. In most cases you can pick up a partial collar error for a few dollars while examples from the older days of coins may command a higher price.

The eye appeal of the partial collars is the most valuable thing about them. This is difficult because most collectors will want to encase their coins for protection which means that the error is not visible when it comes to partial collars.

All in all the partial collars make a neat addition for the novice collector but hold little value for those that are seeking investment quality coins.