**** THE 1955-P JEFFERSON NICKEL ****

[James G. Berline]

 

Hello',,,? After Ckin'- the Population of this 1955-P Jefferson,,,,I'm still curious if this is

considered a Rarity. Pcgs has graded a little over (500) with only (20 being at the highest grade at MS66, none higher. However' Ngc grading service graded a little over

(200) with over (60) being at the MS66 level plus' (7) higher at MS67? Current Values,

Pcgs $1000 Compared to Ngc at only $35.00 (?)

 

How does one put a value on something like this, and be fair with both values? I strongly believe Ngc is just as good at its' grading, as Pcgs is, I also seen several times where the Slabbed coin thru Ngc,,,would make Pcgs shutter, knowing they have met their match! I would rate Ngc and Pcgs as (Equal) to grading coins thou'.

 

So that being said, back to this 1955-P,Jefferson Nickel,> I would really appreciate sound expert advice from our Jefferson Collectors, who knows both sides of the fence ,when it comes to comparing prices, to these difficult dates, and can > put a True Value on this 1955-P Jefferson Nickel...

Pls write me with your thoughts on this.

My email ( jb857450@charter.net) >>>Respectively' / Jim/jb4gpo

 

[kryptonitecomics]

It would appear that the coins are not rare but high grade specimens are scarce so the coin is a condition rarity MS66 and above. As far as PCGS vs NGC...I would always buy the coin first and not worry about the plastic as the two grading services are very comparable in most series though designations like FSB, FBL 5FS due seem to differ between companies.

 

I believe the best way to valuate a coin is by looking at past sales whether that be Ebay or Heritage auction archives etc. Price guides are usually pretty worthless and the PCGS one seems very high on most coins so saying a coin guides for $1000 on their sites means I would expect to be able to get in for around $750 to $800 in most cases especially when we are talking about Jefferson Nickels. Lehigh should be along shortly and he is much more of an expert on the series than I. (thumbs u

[kryptonitecomics]

Here are a couple of NGC graded 1955 MS66 5FS that sold through heritage in the past years...I don't see any PCGS coins that have sold through them...

 

1955 MS66 5FS

 

 

1955 NGC MS66 5FS

 

 

I found a couple of PCGS MS65 5FS 1955 Nickels that sold for $575 a piece over the past two years. In looking at the NGC examples I do not agree with the grades or FS designation based on what I see in the heritage images which is probably why they sold for far less than any guide values posted.

[James G. Berline]

Good Morning' Shane,,,(Kypton~ ,,, I appreciate your reply/views of this coin,,,an'

yes, Paul (Lehigh) is very knowledgeabe in this field as well... He certainly' has the best (Rainbow Jeffs) that I've ever seen! Thanks again' Shane, for your opinion,,,, hopefully' Paul an' others will comment on this also,,,,take care, Jim/

[kryptonitecomics]

The 1958-P's are in the same boat and I believe I have heard that planchet prep is a big part of the issue as the plachets where not in great shape when struck so a lot of the marks on these coins are marks that were already on the planchets and since the coins weren't fully struck the marks were still visable on the finished product.

[coinman_23885]

 

I found a couple of PCGS MS65 5FS 1955 Nickels that sold for $575 a piece over the past two years. In looking at the NGC examples I do not agree with the grades or FS designation based on what I see in the heritage images which is probably why they sold for far less than any guide values posted.

 

I hope that all of those scratches are on the slab and not the coin. If not, the grader must have been drunk that day. NGC should definitely seek to buy those back. Irrespective of any planchet issues, I wouldn't be interested in those at any price.

[lehigh96]

Jim,

 

While I like NGC and most of the Jefferson Nickels in my registry set are NGC coins, there should be no dispute that PCGS grades Jefferson Nickels more conservatively than NGC. The gap is so wide that I estimate there it approaches an entire grade difference. Look at the populations of any date/mm and you will see the same thing you see with the 1955.

 

Valuing high grade Jefferson Nickels is extremely difficult for this reason. If you treat an NGC MS66 equal to a PCGS MS66, you will undoubtedly overpay for the coin unless you are confident that the coin in the NGC slab will cross into a PCGS slab at the same grade. If you are not confident it will cross, then you must treat the coin as a PCGS coin one grade lower. This is important because Numismedia does not provide a price guide for Full Step Jefferson Nickels.

 

A conversation about the intricacies of valuing Jefferson is a long one an beyond the scope of this thread. But suffice it to say that in order to value these coins correctly you must be able to grade them accurately using both NGC and PCGS's standards. The Jefferson series really does require you to "buy the coin, not the holder". There are plenty of high grade Jefferson Nickels in NGC holders that meet the quality requirements for that grade of PCGS. If one were so inclined, they could buy these coins exlusively, cross them to to PCGS, and make a tidy profit when they sell them. As a collector, I seek out NGC coins that I think would cross to PCGS and have on occasion paid PCGS prices to obtain these coins.

 

But let's get back to the 1955. Here are Nagengast's comments on the 1955 from THE JEFFERSON NICKEL ANALYST. "Most of this issue is of garbage quality. Expect dark colored, poorly struck, nicked, and marked coins. Very rare as a full strike, brilliant white coin. Although a common roll coin, in the past often promoted as rare." And here is an example that proves his point. This coin is the representative of the date/mm in my registry set and is graded MS66 by NGC.

 

 

Discerning the difference between bag marks and planchet flaws along with the darkness of the coin makes grading the typical 1955 a nightmare. Upon first glance, this coin looks MS63/64 at best. But upon closer inspection, the reasons for the assigned grade are realized. The most major marks are planchet flaws, the strike is above average for the issue, and the color and luster are outstanding by 1955 standards. Still, there is no way this coin would cross into an MS66 PCGS holder. This coin is a PCGS MS65 and should be treated as such when determining it's value.

 

My advice when buying a 1955 Jefferson Nickel is to seek out an eye appealing example and forget about the grade. I have never seen a 1955 that blew me away and that includes all of the top pops an full steppers, most of which have no business having the designation. And trust me, eye appeal is more rare with this issue than any other date.

 

Paul

 

 

 

[James G. Berline]

Thanks' Paul, for your opinion on this 1955 Jeff/ an' yes, most are dark in color,,,,,I'm

going to take your advice, an' (Try) to find a Quality Clean white with full steps!

 

I'm not going to hold my breath,,,,for I may never come around! lol',,,,,you have a nice day!

Jim/jb4gpo

[kryptonitecomics]

Here was the nicest pair I pulled out of a double mint set....probably should have submitted them but back then I wasn't aware of the quality issues with the 1955's so I thought the coin was in really bad shape even though the color and luster were pretty nice.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[betterdaycoming-migration]

I just picked up an NGC PF 68 1955 Jefferson for $49.00, I may send it to PCGS for grading someday but meanwhile it sits waiting....

[WoodenJefferson]

Thanks to everyone who has responded here, a true US Coins learning thread...bout time.

[mikesartifacts]

This, a subject that interests me a great deal. I think the Jefferson series is rapidly becoming very popular, and I have noticed some startling prices in the last 12-18 months being realized for nice certified gem quality coins, whether they be white or colorful. It seems that some collectors are willing to notice Jeffersons in a way that was once reserved for the die-hard specialist.

[kryptonitecomics]

I just bought a raw 1955-P full step Jefferson nickel off Ebay that I have no idea what it will grade or if it's full step but the strike looked much better in the image than I am used to seeing and at $16 bucks I thought the downside was minimal if it doesn't pan out