Who moved my Cheese ( Coin ) ?

[RichH]

Dealer to dealer sales and coin movement can be hard to track but with a little luck...

 

A collector may be able to find a coin on the "rebound".

 

This just happened to me at the Baltimore Show. Right after large shows (in this case Long Beach) , I make it a point to search dealer inventories for new offerings. I have noticed that the dealers can take anywhere from 3- 7 days to post new coins on their respective sites. About a week after Long Beach , before 8 AM on a Saturday I viewed the most lovely 1851 3 cent silver in a NGC holder graded MS64, but it had already been marked "sold ". This amazed me as I had checked this site Friday evening , and no new offerings had yet posted. Anyway, I wasn't a happy camper as 3CS's with the toning and strike I am looking for are tough to find.

OK, so I figured some lucky collector got to this coin ahead of me and so be it.

At the Baltimore show I was not really focused on 3CS's as I have just begun a Buffalo set (see my prior journal) and this was my primary attention. I had done most of my buying on Friday, so on Saturday morning I hit the floor hoping to add one Buff if the "right" coin came my way. So it was that after over 1 hour of searching without buying another coin , by absolute luck I came across the exact 1851 3CS at another dealer's table!!! This coin has the most amazing green and purplish obverse rim toning with a distinct green, purple , yellow swash on the lower portion of the reverse. My wife was in the lobby reading her Kindle, and I couldn't get back to her quick enough , "Honey where's the checkbook ?!!" I excitedly told her the story, went back to the dealer , was able to negotiate slightly, but paid a strong premium for the coin. I have learned that when opportunity knocks like this you go for it, that coin's destiny was to find a home in my set for the foreseeable future. I will send it in to NGC when I get a chance for re-grade and hopefully it will Star or 65. I don't have a pic of this one, as I usually pull the images from sites. Coin photography is on my list of "to-do's".

I can share a pic of a very well struck 1921 Buffalo that I added to my growing set. Regarding the Buffalos, I am really happy with the decision to move into this area. I learned an incredible amount about strike and toning at the show. The set has a magical draw, and will keep my attention for years to come.

As always thanks for reading, and happy collecting journey's.

RichH

 

See more journals by RichH

[Six Mile Rick]

Sounds to me like you were destined to be the caretaker of the 1851 3c Silver.

[jpcienkus]

Nice story Rich. Glad it worked out and the 3c found the rightful home!

[Mr Bo Jingles]

I love to hear stories of how coins pick their caretakers! Great find!

[Yankeejose]

Hi Rich- what is the grade on the Buffalo? Looks nice. Have you had much luck with regrades that were already certified by the same company?

[RichH]

Hi Dave- MS65 grade on the Buffalo, I've been successful on a few same holder Indian Cent and Flying Eagle regrades, but as a general rule, I don't do a lot of this and pick my spots only when I think a compelling case. Regards, RichH