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dleonard-3

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Journal Entries posted by dleonard-3

  2. dleonard-3
    I don't see anything wrong in the photos
    I just worked out a deal for this 1909 Indian Head Cent. The photos look great, with just a few little marks and tiny spots. The color looks original, and the strike is pretty strong. What do you think?

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  3. dleonard-3
    But I'm not done yet. I've still got a long way to go.
    I got busy and found the last few coins I needed to make my set show 100% for now. I added the 2010-S & 2011-S to get me up to date. I really hate the way NGC is mounting these shield cents face down. Come on guys, do it right! I also snagged a 1987-S in NGC PF70UC with a population of only 16. I was pretty lucky on that one. I have a 1970-S proof set with a nice ULTRA CAMEO small date cent, but I haven't had time to send it in for grading yet. It has a lot of "dust" particles in the mint holder, so I should probably send it to NCS first. In the mean time, I found a nice PF67 cameo to fill the hole. I also got an incredible deal on a super scarce 1966 SMS cameo cent. It's graded SMS67 cameo by NGC and I can't tell you how tough these are to find. I also changed out my 1961. I had a PF67 ultra cameo, but I found a good deal on a PF69 cameo that scores better. The seller hasn't released it yet, but as soon as he does, I'll add it to my set. With all these additions and upgrades, I've slipped into the 12th place slot, which is quite an accomplishment for me on this limited budget of mine. I look forward to the occational upgrade as they come along.

  5. dleonard-3
    What do you think of this shiney new penny?
    This one really screamed at me, so I had to buy it. The seller's photos are amazing. Do you think this one will grade? or is it too good to be true?

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  6. dleonard-3
    I guess they can change it anytime they want.
    I was the one who proposed a new (seperate) registry set for the 2009 cents and the new sheild cents. I was the first one to get my 2009 perfect PF70RD Ultra Cameo cents entered into this new set with photos & descriptions and I was under the impression that I would remain at the top of this pile until I change something. Last week, even tho I haven't changed a thing, I fell into the second slot (still tied for #1), and now I've fallen into the seventh slot. I'm not sure how this happened, because I still haven't changed a thing. My set shows a revised date of 9/16, but that was done by the registry, not me.
  7. dleonard-3
    Nice Red/Brown or "Improperly cleaned"?
    I bought this one a little while ago for my raw Indian Cent collection. It's currently in a "DETAILS" slab, so I though cracking it out would be a no brainer. I've looked at this thing alot, and I can't see anything that would indicate a cleaning, let alone an improper one. Tell me what you think.

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  8. dleonard-3
    I can't seem to "complete" a set.
    I noticed, the other day, that I have six registry sets that have that coveted 100%. This means that I own a coin for every slot in that set. I'm pretty happy about the accomplishment, but I'm not satisfied. Not Yet.
    I still remember being 11 or 12 years old and going to a boy scout meeting. One of the scouts was receiving his coin collecting merit badge and he had his collection with him. I think he had a birth year set, a Lincoln cent folder, a Jefferson nickel folder, and a buffalo nickel folder with a few holes filled. I asked where he got the buffalos, and he said he bought a roll for $7 from a mail order coin dealer who advertised in a magazine. He had some extras, so I traded him a dollar bill for 5 different dates. I didn't collect coins yet, but I was intrigued by these old nickels. We had a book shop that my mother frequently visited, and they kept a small stock of whitman folders. I bought the three Lincoln folders, and started looking for pennies to put in the holes. I would ask everyone I saw if they had any pennies in their pockets, and I would trade for any I needed. One day, my mom suggested that I run over to the local liquer store and see if they had any rolls of pennies. I asked the guy there if I could get some pennies for my collection, and he said "sure, you can pick the ones you want. Then he scooped out all of the pennies in his till and put them on the counter. I found quite a few that I needed, including a 1958-D wheatback. When I reacted to this find, he asked, "what's so special about that one"? I told him it was the first one I had found for that folder. He said, "I'll keep an eye out for those, and put them aside for you." I went back about once a week to pick up the neat coins he had found for me. I kept filling holes until I had nearly all of them filled. Then it started getting boring looking for the last few coins I need to fill my Memorial folder. This whole time, I would replace the ugly brown ones with shiny red ones whenever I could - Upgrades. Even when that folder finally got filled up, I would still try for upgrades. And every year that went by, there were always new pennies to put into that folder. I upgraded from a folder, to a whitman album to keep people from touching my nice red Lincolns. I am now 48 years old, and I am still working on that set. Now I am looking for the best of the best to upgrade with, but "TOP POP" coins are not only very expensive, they are very hard to find. The people who own these coins just don't sell very often, so I have to snag them when that rare oppertunity comes along.
    I started by filling holes. Then I progressed to upgrading. If I ever get to the point where I have all "TOP POP" collection, I guess I'll have to start going through Uncirculated rolls to find those ever elusive super gems and make my own upgrades..............
    Do you see? It never ends, and my collection will never be "COMPLETE".
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  9. dleonard-3
    Is silver and gold really worth more?
    I've read alot of journals lately by bullion holders who are getting all giddy about the prices of silver and gold going up, and up. It got me thinking about a few things. How much did a loaf of bread and a gallon of gas cost back in the early thirties? Well, they're both closing in on $4 now. Maybe gold and silver isn't worth more, but the U.S. paper dollar is worth a whole bunch less than it used to be. Back in 1932 you could trade a paper dollar for a silver dollar, and a $20 bill for a $20 gold coin. Our money was made of precious metal, and the only reason we had paper money was so we didn't have to lug around a bunch of weight. Now it takes $1500 U.S. paper dollars to obtain an ounce of gold and more than $40 for an ouce of silver. If the price of silver gets up to $1,000,000 per ounce, would you really consider trading an ounce for a million worthless pieces of paper that won't buy you a decent lunch? I wouldn't.
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  10. dleonard-3
    An obsolete NGC Registry set - Lincoln Cents, 1959-Date, Proofs
    Now that NGC has split the Lincoln Cents Registry sets into their proper sub-varieties, I have changed my collection over to fit into the proper sets too. This move has eliminated my set of 1959-Date coins. Because I was the first to create my 1959-2008 set, I am currently showing as #1 (which will change as soon as some of the other great sets get changed over). My 2009 set is #1 AND at the top of the list because I was first. My 2010-Date set needs an upgrade to get to be tied for #1. I am starting on a set of proof wheatback pennies and I have a long way to go on that one - it should be fun.
    And now on to the headline topic. I checked the set scores of my 1959-2008 set, my 2009 set, and my 2010-Date set. If I add these scores up, I get 8101 points which would put me into the #10 slot for the old 1959-Date set. That would have been quite an accomplishment, and I'm still very proud of it even if that set is obsolete now. You people that still have this registry set should consider splitting it up into the three new sets.
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  11. dleonard-3
    They've added a couple.
    I asked for NGC to add a Registry Set for the 2009 cents, and a set for the new Union Shield cents. It was done in a couple of hours.......WOW, what fast work. Thanks. I've added my coins to these new sets, and guess what? I'm #1 in both sets. I've also asked that another set for Lincoln Memorial Cents be added to the Registry. You know - the ones dated 1959 to 2008? They're done now, so they should have a set of their own. Don't you think?
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  12. dleonard-3
    I picked up one of seven
    There are only seven MS67FT 1963 dimes graded by NGC right now, and I've actually had several oppertunities to add one to my 1963 mint set over the years, but finances have always put a stopper in it. Well when a fellow collector offered to sell his to me, I had to control my excitement, but I bought it. I am very happy to add this little GEM to my set. And I would like to take this oppertunity to thumb my nose a little bit at Mr. Kiraly, because mine is nicer looking (to me anyway). Now the only hope I have for an upgrade is to get ahold of the single MS67FT*, and I just don't see that happening.

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  13. dleonard-3
    Imagine my excitement at the prospect of acquiring the "finest" 1963 Franklin known to exist. Then add in the re-assurance of knowing that I can return it for a refund if I don't like it.
    I have been working on my NGC 1963 proof set for a few months now, and I have been able to assemble a respectable PF68 ULTRA for each of these, except the Half which is PF68 CAMEO. Since I am temporarily satisfied with this, I have decided to concentrate on a mint set of the same year. I have been placing hundreds, if not thousands of bids on eBay in an attempt to procure MS66 examples, and I have been successfull on occasion. The other day, while checking some of my favorite searches, I noticed a new listing of a 1963 Franklin in MS68 which really caught my eye. I immediately contacted the seller to inquire about their return policy and when given the appropriate reassurance I went ahead and bid. I knew that my meager opening bid would need to be adjusted at the end of the auction. Imagine my surprise when I found out that I was the winning bidder, and even more shocking was the fact that NO ONE else even bothered to bid so I got it for the opening bid amount. That's when I noticed that this coin was actually graded by NTC, and it looked like the coin might be a low grade generic proof instead of a top MINT STATE coin. Oh well, I didn't think there were any MS68 Franklins out there anyway. On a related topic, I noticed that the current number one 1963 proof set has a PR70 dime in it, but there aren't any PR70 1963 dimes listed in the NGC population census. I guess that means its a PCGS coin. I wonder how they talked PCGS into that one.
  14. dleonard-3
    I just lost points for my lincolns
    When NGC re-evaluated the scores for RED Lincoln cents, I lost ground on my 1963 mint set. Check out the current #1 set, then compare it to my #2 ranked set. Yes, he has an FBL Half Dollar, but I have two TOP POP Lincoln Cents that are basically unavailable in the market place.
    The score for MS67RD 1963 was 336 points & 1963-D was 609 points.
    Now they score 450 points each - for a net loss of 45 points.
    The score for MS66RD 1963 was 6 points & 1963-D was 81 points.
    Now they score 398 points each, for a net GAIN of 1007 points.
    Is that fair?
  15. dleonard-3
    I got my Lincoln Memorial Proof set onto the first page.
    Wow, I didn't think it would be this tough to put together a nice set of Proof Lincoln Memorial cents. I wanted to get my set into the top 25 of the registry before the end of the year, and with the addition of a perfect 1991-S, I've slid into #25. I'll continue to search for additions and upgrades for this set, and with a little luck and a bunch of money, I should be able to push closer to the top 10 before the end of 2008. That's my New Year's resolution, I hope I can accomplish it.

  16. dleonard-3
    I started this set with the intention of just filling holes with nice coins, but the obvious rarity of some of these has me on a serious hunt.
    Who would have thought that "modern" proof pennies are rare? I never considered them as even collectable because after all, there's one in every proof set and there's thousands and thousands of those laying around, right? Well when I decided to put together a nice set of proof Memorials, I found out that in top grade Ultra Cameo, some of these things are extremely scarce and nearly impossible to get because of all the competition. What a way to get me going. My set is ranked as #30 so far, and it's listed on the second page on the registry. My short term goal is to get this set on the first page. Then we'll see where it goes from there. It's only 56% complete right now, and I only have seven top pop coins. The rest are second tier, and a couple are third tier. I have gone out of my way to include a scan and a generic written description of each coin, so why don't you go out of your way and check them out. I love bragging.


  17. dleonard-3
    I think I really lucked out on this one.
    O.K., here's the story. I wanted to pick up some Eisenhower dollars for use as poker chips, so I started checking some of the local banks.....nothing!! They're obsolete, right? So I decided to check on eBay for large lots of circulated coins. Bingo!!!! I started out bidding face value plus shipping, but I couldn't win any bids. So I tried bidding 1.25x face value, minus the shipping cost. I bid on quite a few before I finially won the bid on a lot of 44 coins which consisted of a roll of 1971-D, and a roll of 1972-D plus 4 extras. When they arrived, I was shocked to find out they were all nice uncirculated coins. Well, I didn't want to ruin uncirculated dollars by playing poker with them, so I put them aside and kept bidding on other lots. I got curious and checked on eBay to see what the nicer Gems looked like compared to mine, and how much they were selling for. I noticed that a certain variety (RDV-006) was selling for more than the others, which grabbed my interest. I checked my coins, and sure enough, I had 13 of them out of one roll, and a few of them should have no trouble slabbing at MS65 or better. From what I've heard, this variety is fairly common, but rare in higher MS grades. I want to send the better ones in to NGC, but I don't know if they'll attribute this particular die variety. I think I'll sell the lower grade coins raw on eBay (one at a time), then use the proceeds to pay for the NGC grading. Then when they come back, I'll pick the best one for myself and sell the others. If you know of someone that wants one of these, send me an email. I've got extras.

  18. dleonard-3
    I've added several "MONSTER" coins to my 1963 sets recently.
    I really lucked out - again. I picked up an MS67RD 1963-D cent on a recent HA auction and I got it for a very reasonable price considering the rarity (pop 2/0). This one will pair nicely with the MS67RD 1963 cent I got a while back. I also currently have two MS66 5FS 1963 nickels (pop 10/1). I will be selling one of them as soon as I decide which one to keep. With these additions and including an MS66 1963-D PCGS Half dollar into my best set, my mint set has quietly slid into the #1 position in the registry.......YAHOO!!!!! and my 1963 proof set is currently #3.
    I am currently aggressively hunting for 1963 P & D quarters in MS67 (there's plenty of these around), and a 1963 PF69ULTRA cent, and/or half dollar. If you have any of these that you would be willing to part with at a reasonable price, please feel free to email me.

  19. dleonard-3
    I've got a great example of why we need to use both NGC & PCGS population census numbers to assign values and Registry set scores.
    I have a 1963 Half Dollar that is currently residing in a PCGS holder, and is graded by that company at MS66. The PCGS population at that grade level is 14 with none higher. However, the NGC population at that grade level is 64 with none higher. There are obviously more NGC coins than there are PCGS coins in this particular instance. I would think that the PCGS coins might deserve a little higher score than the NGC coins based solely on the population or current rarity.
    I know that this topic could generate a big pile of contraversy, but wouldn't it be nice if someone could get this whole thing to work smoothly?
  20. dleonard-3
    Have you ever noticed that if you have a PCGS coin in your NGC Registry Set, the Census numbers shown are for NGC coins in that catagory?
    I wonder what it would take for NGC to show the current PCGS Population Census numbers for PCGS coins. They already have to link up with PCGS to verify certificate numbers, so it seems to me that they could work out some agreement with PCGS to include the census numbers too. It may be a little bit more complicated than I make it out to sound, but I sure would like to see the right numbers.
  21. dleonard-3
    Have you ever made a score change request, and had your request ignored?
    A while ago, I made a request for a score change on a 1963 Cent in MS67RD. With only 5 graded at that level and none higher, 237 points seemed stupidly low if you considered the fact that in the same set, a 1963 Dime in MS67 scores 437 with 219 graded at that level and 4 MS67*'s, plus quite a few Full Torch examples higher.
    Time went by and nothing was done about this discrepency, so I started posting on the chat boards. I felt like I was harrassing the heck out of the people in charge trying to get something done. Well, after months of this, I actually got a reply from ARCH, and he told me that he doesn't make these decisions. WHAT A WASTE OF MY TIME!!!!!! After I finally gave up and went on with life, I noticed that the score for the 1963 Half Dollar in MS66FBL had jumped to over 3000 points for no logical reason. I nearly had a heart attack. I couldn't let this go without at least voicing my opinion again, so I sent out a bunch more emails. I actually got a response stating that they had raised the score of my 1963 Cent to 336. WOW!!!! At least they were heading in the right direction, right? I still felt slighted with this paltry score, so I replied and stated that a 1963 Half Dollar scores over 3000 points with 16 graded at the MS66FBL level. They responded by lowering the score of the half dollar to 2197. Not exactly what I had in mind. For all of you out there with 1963 MS66FBL Half Dollars in your registry, I SINCERELY APOLOGIZE for causing your score to go down. This is not what I intended.
    Can someone please tell me why the TOP POP 1963 Cent in MS67RD grade doesn't have a score at least as substantial as this half dollar?
    1963 NGC 0
  22. dleonard-3
    1963 "TOP POP" coins scores are whacked out.
    A 1963 cent graded by NGC as MS67RD only scores a 237 with a tiny population of 4 in that grade, but a 1963 dime graded by NGC as MS67 scores 437 with 217 existing. Does that make any sence to you? Me either. I zipped of a little suggestion to the powers that be, but I'll bet nothing will ever be done about this one.
    1963 NGC 0
  23. dleonard-3
    A "TOP POP" NGC 1963 MS67 cent with only 4 existing, and I got it for a steal.
    I was checking my eBay favorite searches when I noticed something way down at the bottom in one of the fixed price listings. It was a 1963 Cent graded by NGC as MS67RD. The "BUY IT NOW" price was $219.95. I knew I wanted one for my registry set, but I didn't have any idea what it was really worth so I got onto the Collector's Society website and checked the population report. It told me that there are only 4 existing in MS67 and none higher. Wow, I thought I had better snag it quick before someone else gets it. But before I did, I wanted to check on the value. Well I couldn't find a value anywhere, but I did find someone who was trying to sell an ICG graded MS67RD 1963 for $2500, so I decided to go ahead and buy the NGC one and hope I didn't spend too much. When I registered it into my 1963 NGC Mint Set, I found that the score for this coin was only 237 (with only 4 existing). I have an MS67 Dime in the same set that scores 437 (with 217 existing). I'm not sure how these things get decided, but that seems a little off to me. So I zipped off an email to the people in charge to let them know that I thought there was a discrepancy in their scores. I haven't heard back from them yet. Anyway, I feel very fortunate to have acquired this coin at what I have come to realize was a very reasonable price. If any of you out there have any other 1963 MS67 coins that you would be willing to let go for a steal, please let me know. Especially if they are "Full Step", "Full Torch", or "Full Bell Line" examples.
    As a side note, I just noticed another 1963 Cent graded MS67RD by NGC on ebay with a buy it now of $229. Of course, I bought it too. I'm sure you could hear the evil snicker that came out of me thinking I now have 2 of the 4 known in this top grade (heh, heh, heh, heh). Well, when I contacted the seller, it turns out they accidently turbolisted the coin I already bought in a previous auction and they hadn't had a chance to cancel the auction. BUMMER. I'm still looking for top pop 1963's.
    1963 NGC 0
  24. dleonard-3
    It would be "GREAT" enough to get you top honors in the 1963 mint set catagory, even if you didn't have any of the other coins for the set.
    I have been working hard trying to find the best affordable coins for my 1963 mint set and I have actually found a nice example of each coin in the set. I am currently ranked in the #2 spot as 100% complete. Nick Cascio has the honor of being ranked as #1, but his set is only 40% complete with only two GREAT dimes in MS67FT, and P & D quarters in MS66. I would not want to take anything away from Nick, but it seems to me that there should be some sort of penalty in the set score for not having the set complete. Maybe NGC should only award 40% of the total score for a 40% complete set. Then, when coins are added, the percentage would rise as well. 50% complete would equal 50% of the total score. Even with this penalty, Nick would still have top honors and it would be well deserved. But this would be fairer to other competitive collectors, and this would give Nick a good reason to continue building the set to stay ahead of everybody else. I am not collecting these coins to get recognition as the owner of the best set, but I'm not denying that would add to the thrill if I could brag a little. What do you people think?