Screw Press, that is...

Picking up in the middle of my last post... At the Baltimore show on Thursday, during my journey across the bourse, I noted several coins I would consider buying. After the 1828 cent previously mentioned, an MS66 1853 no arrows half dime and an MS67/CAC 1945-D walker struck my fancy. They rose to the top of the list after checking recent auction results and price guides. There were several other nice coins, but the asking prices were just too high.

I was ready to enter the show at 10 AM Saturday. My first stop was the dealer who had previously had the 1828 and 1829 ex-Holmes large cents I wanted. He was there and confirmed that he had already sold both. So I headed over to Chris McCawley's table and bought the 1828 he had. It's a solid MS64 (market standards), but probably not PQ for the grade. Nevertheless, it looks better to me every time I see it. But it will soon be residing more securely with its siblings - where I can't enjoy it as frequently.

After spending most of my available cash, and chatting a little, I wandered around the floor noting a few more potential purchases and checking out the 1853 half dime again. But prudence temporarily took over. I told myself that I had better just go out for lunch and avoid further temptation. All that was left for the day would be the usual Region 3 EAC meeting at 1 PM of the Saturday of each Baltimore show.

While eating my meatball sub with spinach, the strange insanity many of us feel took hold. When I was done with lunch, I marched back in and bought the half dime. It's a lovely, well-struck piece with smooth reddish toning in the obverse field, and more subtle golden toning on the reverse. I couldn't find either newp in auction records, so I have no photos yet.

So, after putting myself in a deeper hole, I headed up to the EAC meeting and greeted the small crowd of usual suspects. But the group eventually grew larger than usual. Normally, the EAC meetings feature introductions, announcements, show-and-tell, and some discussion of topics of interest. This meeting was different. Our region chairman had gotten Craig Sholley to give us an encore of a presentation given at the Boston ANA on screw presses in the early U.S. Mint. The talk was very informative. The basic idea is pretty simple, but seeing old 'engineering diagrams', drawings of presses in use, and getting more detailed explanation of how the presses were designed and operated, made this an especially valuable meeting.

Finally - No, I don't mind Jackson borrowing my previous post's title. And I hope he buys that 39-S walker. He knows he wants it! And when he tells us about it, I'll know I'm in good company - as fellow collectors who spend more than we ought! But if we're careful in our choices, they'll provide enjoyment now and should pay off in the end.

Best wishes to all for the upcoming holiday season!

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