Joe G.

Order placed on resource books for early silver dollars, some good used examples of Milferd Bollender/Jules Reiver on Amazon. The more recent Bowers-Borckardt (2013 edition) required paying full price ($70).

The reverse seems to be a direct match with the O-116 example (600dpi scan below). My scanner does a decent job but far from the high resolution quality some collectors and auction houses seem to achieve. I filled out the JRCS membership form and will send it out with a check in tomorrow's mail. Thank you for the recommendation! I enjoy the reference books, might also spring for the Milferd Bollender/Jules Reiver or more recent Bowers-Borckardt volumes to prepare for one dollar purchases (Mint set tracks 3 coins for 1795 - Flowing Hair 2 Leaves, Flowing Hair 3 Leaves, and Draped Bust).

Thank you Chris, RWB, and Bob. Sorry to hear that cross-overs are not more straight forward. In the end I desire a common appearance for display but may settle for an NGC and PCGS split. A slight variation to my earlier question, if PCGS graded my coin XF40 in the late 90s, is there a good chance it would grade the same today? RWB, there doesn't appear to be an issue with the coin at the 2:00 position. This early generation PCGS holder has plastic tight against the coin full 360deg and what you note as an irregularity at 2:00 is on the PCGS slab. The coin denticles define the perimeter, the smooth ring just outboard the denticles is actually the slab. Then again, I really can't study the perimeter so I guess there could be an issue at 2:00 Bob, the website you linked to is perfect, thank you!, O-116 it is. Some of these early coin variations are neat, adds another dimension to collecting them. I've identified some half cent die variation favorites that I'll be keeping an eye out for.

A couple years ago I completed an 1887 mint set and have had the itch to attempt another. I've always admired the early flowing hair coins but was confused by the many variations and steep price tags. After researching them a bit further I realized that the 1795 mint set might be a good fit with the beautiful Liberty Cap coppers and the Flowing Hair silvers (I will skip the gold coins . . . way out of my league). The 1795 year avoids the scarce and expensive first year issue of each denomination with sufficient mintage to make them collectable. 1795 also provides an early look at the Draped Bust dollar, a beautiful coin in its own right. This will be a collection I build slowly due to my budget but will enjoy the journey. At the close of this year I purchased my first coin, an XF40 50cent piece in an old PCGS holder. The holder doesn't identify the die pair but I believe it to be O-116 after comparing to other examples online. To me the coin presents very well with pleasing toning. Couple questions (1795 specific to far more general) . . . 1) Does the die clash of "UNITED" and "LIB" automatically make this O-116? Likewise, does O-116 mean the same as T-11, R.4, & Tompkins die 2/2? 2) Is there a good resource on the early halves and silver dollars that outlines all the die pairs? I recently purchased the David Bowers Red Book on half cents and large cents. Is there an equivalent on the early silver coins? 3) I collected my 1887 mint set in all NGC (old holder), not going to limit myself in the same way on the 1795 mint set but once complete will likely cross-over everything to same holder. Do old PCGS holders cross over well to new PCGS or NGC holders (grading standards same)? 4) From an obverse and reverse wear perspective, I think this coin is a strong XF40. However, I note a small obverse rim nick at 11:00 position (difficult to see in scan - the old PCGS holder makes it difficult to see the outside perimeter of coin). Should I be concerned over a perimeter rim nick with modern grading standards?

Many thanks for the responses. I'm far more familiar with the old baseball cards and on a whole there is far less value with cards that have been altered. I suspect the early coins are a bit different but would still rather an unaltered example. It makes it difficult when the 3rd party authenticators provide straight grade on many early coppers that have been altered. I'd also like to pick up a silver and gold coin from 18th century (pre-1800), maybe these are a little easier to find unaltered, then again maybe not. I'll continue to study the many options that appear on eBay, Heritage, and the many other auction houses. These early coins are gorgeous, I'm in no hurry, will keep studying my options until I feel comfortable pulling the trigger. Thank you.

I've been studying early copper Half Cents and Cents with interest to add an example to my collection. The beauty of the early coppers and the interesting history of our first US mint have made these coins of great interest to me for many years now. I'm leaning towards a Liberty Cap in VF to XF grade. I'm writing today as I see damage on some of these early coppers that I'm not used to with the newer coins I've previously collected. There is an attractive example of the 1794 "Fallen 4" (Sheldon 63) on eBay that I also found Heritage Auction history on as follows (I like the misaligned date): eBay listing: https://www.ebay.com/itm/1794-S-63-R-2-PCGS-XF-40-Fallen-4-Liberty-Cap-Large-Cent-Coin-1c/282872091427?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649 Heritage listing: https://coins.ha.com/itm/large-cents/1794-1c-head-of-1794-s-63-b-37-r2-xf40-pcgs-pcgs-35651-/a/1271-3188.s?ic4=ListView-ShortDescription-071515 The Heritage description mentions "minor reverse corrosion". Would this be the pitting found at ~8:30, 10:00, and noon? Did the coin leave the mint with this pitting or is this damage from perhaps being buried for a time? I'd expect corrosion of copper to be green, not a pit. Maybe the corrosion reference and the pitting I'm looking at are two different things? Here is another coin I was bidding on but dropped out just last week, this time a 1795 Half Cent (I like the "I" as opposed to "1"). Heritage: https://coins.ha.com/itm/half-cents/1795-1-2-c-lettered-edge-c-1-b-1-r2-vf35-ngc/a/1321-3510.s?ic2=mybidspage-lotlinks-12202013&tab=MyBids-101116 I thought this a good looking coin, but didn't like the green corrosion on reverse. Heritage called it "active corrosion" which I assume means it is still corroding? Last but not least, I've heard that many old coppers were previously "re-colored". Is it easy to tell if a coin has been colored? Would the cents linked to hear be possible re-colors? Thank you for any responses here as I come up to speed and get closer to a first purchase.