silver liberty dollars - get them graded? - getting back into coins - help

[Guest]

just thinking of getting back into coin collecting a little, i haven't been involved since i was in junior high, and i have a few questions?

 

first, i have several proof liberty silver dollars that i received as gifts and bought myself. they were directly from the mint, should i have these graded? is that the trend? what about the cases and 'boxes' they came in, seems as if they just get wasted?

 

second, what does everyone think of the state quarters? i have several hundred dollars in ones i collected in my change, is this even a worthwhile pursuit, given their condition? i have a roll or, in some cases, two of most of the quarters that i received direct from my bank, is this a worthwhile pursuit?

 

lastly, i have small numbers of random coins not in the best of condition (silver dimes, quarters, mercury dimes, eisenhower dollars...etc). would any collector be interested in such items? i would like to liquidate these items and use those funds to collect some new items.

 

thank you in advance for any help, and i would appreciate any random advice you may throw my way. i am pretty excited to once again start collecting

[Hoot]

first, i have several proof liberty silver dollars that i received as gifts and bought myself. they were directly from the mint, should i have these graded? is that the trend? what about the cases and 'boxes' they came in, seems as if they just get wasted?

 

Collect these as you wish to keep them. That may sound funny, but the fact is that some people prefer them slabbed and some (myself included) who simply like these in the original Mint packaging. I see no point in slabbing these unless you wish to participate in the registries. In that case, you will prbably want to seek out PF69UCAM and PF70UCAM specimens. That will be more expensive.

 

second, what does everyone think of the state quarters? i have several hundred dollars in ones i collected in my change, is this even a worthwhile pursuit, given their condition? i have a roll or, in some cases, two of most of the quarters that i received direct from my bank, is this a worthwhile pursuit?

 

One of the neat things about state quarters is that a person can collect them from circulation. Think albums. Intercept Shield makes a couple of nice state quarters albums - one for MS and one for MS and PF. Once you have filled the holes, spend the rest. If you have a discerning eye, look for MS67 and MS68 examples first - these can garner big bucks, as they are rather uncommon.

 

lastly, i have small numbers of random coins not in the best of condition (silver dimes, quarters, mercury dimes, eisenhower dollars...etc). would any collector be interested in such items? i would like to liquidate these items and use those funds to collect some new items.

 

You might try offering them here in the Marketplace. You can also try the same on PCGS. List them honestly for what you think the grade is and guarantee them with a return privilege. If that does not work, try eBay or your local dealer.

 

Hope that helps. Hoot

[Guest]

thanks for your reply. in response to some of the help you gave me, i have another question or two. mint libertys or proof sets..etc anything from the mint, generally, i know this a difficult question, but what grade are most items that come from the mint?

 

with regards to the state quarters, and i suppose grading in general, i find the prospect of knowing the grade so difficult, it almost boggles my mind. as i explained, other than the numbers i have collected via my everday change, i do have the uncirculated ones from the bank, and having opened one of the rolls, they look so new, i do not believe i could ever determine if i had a higher grade coin even if it was right in front of me. how have you been able to get the discerning eye you speak of?

 

thanks again

[EZ_E]

but what grade are most items that come from the mint?

 

 

I recently asked the same question of a coin dealer. One would think most modern proofs would grade at average pf 69. He disagreed. Getting a pf 70 or ms 70 grade is even more difficult. An apparent flawless coin to you or me would not necessarily grade ms/pf 70 because of a weak strike. I have two slabbed Binion Morgan silver dollars. One grades ms 63 and the other ms 64. I personally think that the ms 63 is a better looking coin. But why is it graded less? The answer lies in the sharpness of the strike. The ms 64 has more contact marks but the breast feathers on the reverse show more detail.

The mint produces millions of business strike coinage for use in everyday circulation. Their goal is mass production so it is difficult to get a high graded coin over ms 65 from circulation. I've notice that even the recent mint sets that I've purchased do not have high quality coins that would grade high. I don't know why this is since the mint is suppose to take extra care for collector coinage.

I'm interested in what other numismatists have to say on this subject myself.

 

[Hoot]

butkovsky - "what grade are most items that come from the mint?"

 

In response to proofs - My own experience tells me that most modern proofs range from PF64 to PF69. It depends on the denomination, but in general, the larger the coin (quarters, halfs, dollars [including American Eagles]), the better it usually grades. There are several reasons for this, but I'm convinced that the Mint pays more attention to those coins in the minting process and they handle them better while getting them into containers. Remember though, a small tick mark on a Kennedy half translates to a large mark on a Roosevelt dime. Anyway, I have, through a process of much trial and error, come to narrow most of my modern submissions to the PF67-69 range, with many in the 68-69 grades. One must also develop a sense of degrees of cameo. This is hard.

 

What does this tell me? Look at a lot of coins, look at a lot of coins, look at a lot of coins, look at a lot of coins, look at a lot of coins..........

 

Look at coins that are graded and try to pick up on whatever imperfections that they may have. Over time, these will start to stand out for you and you will begin to develop that "discerning eye."

 

As for mint state (MS) qurters, I'm getting okay with silver, but I'm no good with clad. Clad coinage is way tougher, in my opinion, to grade in MS than silver. Something about the way that the metal reflects light. Tough for me anyway. Again, look at a lot (hundreds, thousands) of graded coins - and stick to NGC or PCGS graded coins for the time being.

 

I mostly collect buffalo and Jefferson nickels. I intend on starting a new club - NA - nickelholics anonymous, as they are quite addictive. Believe it or not, buffalo and Jefferson nickels can teach you a great deal about coins in general. I still tend to overgrade by 1 point some Jeffersons although I've looked at thousands. I rarely miss with buffalo nickels, but that is subject to change .

 

Good luck, Hoot

 

p.s. Read all you can, and practice, practice, practice.

[EVillageProwler]

I'm sorry, Mark, but is that ``practice, practice, practice'' or ``look at a lot of coins, look at a lot of coins, look at a lot of coins''???

 

 

EVP

 

[Hoot]

Yeah, both. I wish there had been another way but my own knot-headed way of PRACTICE to have learned what i've learned. I probably could have bought a few nice buffs for all the money I've lost!

[paigow_johnny]

I know practically everybody has done it at some point...but it's kinda sad to think that the way we all learn at some point is to make a bad purchase and learn thru our wallets....