Parsippany show report

[Wihlborg]

I arrived at the monthly Parsippany coin show today at 8:30 a.m. and found the show quite active already. By about 9:30 a.m. or so, the floor was extremely crowded and the dealers were very busy. I saw an assortment of fresh material, most of it from the recent FUN show according to the dealers I spoke to, but I couldn’t find anything I needed for my early commem or buffalo nickel sets.

 

The fresh commems I did see, while very nice, were issues that I already had, so no help there. I did see a Grant in MS-67 with beautiful green and red reverse toning, however the obverse was a little hazy and had a few areas of toning that looked like stains. I already have a really nice Grant in MS-65 so if I ever do upgrade it will have to be a coin that knocks my socks off.

 

As for the buffalos, I did see a 1917s in MS-64, a 1916d in MS-64, and a 1920 in MS-65. While they were all nice coins, they lacked the color that I prefer my nickels to have so I decided to pass on them.

 

I was able to find three very nice so called dollars to add to my growing collection of them. The first is an 1892 Liberty Head Dollar graded Proof 66 ultra cameo by NGC. This medal was struck in high relief out of aluminum and is listed as being very scarce (only 251-500 pieces known) in the Hibler & Kappen so called dollars book. The eye appeal of this medal is extraordinary, my scan pales in comparison, but here it is.

 

The second medal is a 1958 Alexandria, Douglas County Dollar. It is the gilt bronze version and is graded MS-66 by NGC. This medal is listed as scarce (only 501-1500 pieces known) in the Hibler & Kappen book. The reverse design is quite interesting in my opinion.

 

The last medal is a 1960 Pony Express Centennial in bronze. It has been graded MS-66 Red by NGC, and while not being listed as a scarce in the Hibler & Kappen book (meaning that there are more than 1500 pieces known) this example has wonderful eye appeal. It is well struck, mark free, and its luster is radiant.

 

As always comments are welcome.

 

John

[jom]

 

jom

[DaveG]

John,

 

Sorry I missed you today. I got there about 9:40, so it was easy to miss someone in all that crowd! Those are some real nice so-called dollars!

 

My show report is on the US Coins page.

[michael]

[Hoot]

John - Your HK-222 Lib is quite an amazing piece. I simply love these aluminum SC dollars. Their detail is often amazing and they come from a time when aluminum was an uncommon metal (dicovered by Hans Christian Oersted in 1825), especially in industry. These were made with the intent of showing the world this "new" metal for manufacturing processes. Very, very nice piece.

 

(I recently picked up an AL SC dollar with the HK-240 reverse, depicting Columbus' landing in America, but with an obverse of Grover Cleveland! Cool piece. I'm hoping that NGC will grade it but sometimes they won't if it has no reference.)

 

I also like the HK-520 Alex., DC SC dollar. I like what Hibler-Kappen have to say about it: "Reverse depicts carving of famous Kensington Rune Stone found in Alexandria area in 1898. Runic characters carved into stone purportedly told the story of visit there by Norseman 130 years before Columbus discovered America." Great story, if it's true.

 

And your Pony Express HK-583 is quite a nice specimen. Those that I've seen for auction (only a few) have mostly not been well preserved with blotchy surfaces or verdigris. Yours is a really fetching specimen.

 

Off the topic of your pieces, I also recently picked up an HK-303 Louisiana Purchase centennial SC dollar of 1904. It is a very even chocolate brown with no spots or verdigris and no breaks in luster. Goes to show that the copper pieces can be readily collected without having to be pure red.

 

Anyhow, congrats on some great purchases!

 

Hoot

[Wihlborg]

Hoot,

 

Thanks for your comments about the so called dollars. I didn’t go into much detail about them for fear of boring any hapless soul who happened to click on this thread. Outside of you, Tomb, and me, I don’t think they are very popular with many here. Never the less, the history behind the so called dollars is fascinating.

 

For instance, as you have said many of the early aluminum pieces were minted during a time when most people had probably never had any contact with aluminum. Imagine the wonderment that someone must have felt when they first saw and handled this ‘new’ white metal. They must have thought ‘How could it be so light’.

 

Even more remarkable to me is that you can find some of the issues in such a high level of preservation considering the extremely low mintages and the fact that most were sold to the general public as souvenirs at various events.

 

Both of your pieces sound really nice, especially the HK-240 with the Grover Cleveland reverse. I have been told by a couple of dealers that occasionally some issues can be found with a mismatched obverse and reverse, although I have never seen an example of such a piece yet. Let me know how you make out with NGC regarding your piece.

 

Take care

 

John

[GP_]

Very Nice! I can just imagine what that 1892 must look like in person!

[TomB]

That aluminum Lib is absolutely spectacular! As has been mentioned, aluminum was quite an exotic metal "back in the day" and these pieces must have been quite fascinating for their appearance, reflectivity and light weight. It is astonishing that any of the aluminum pieces survive without considerable spotting or wear as I would assume that most folks would have to touch it and feel it over and over.

 

Is the aluminum Lib extremely thick? I ask because the fields look almost concave and the high points of Ms Liberty seem to be well removed from the surrounding fields.

 

[DaveG]

John,

 

I see that Jon Lerner has a "wanted" listing on the PCGS B/S/T board for SCDs.

 

I guess that means that these items are the "new hot thing."

[Wihlborg]

Dave,

 

I do think that SCD’s will become much more popular. I’m not sure if NGC just recently started grading them or if they would have graded them all the while if people submitted them, but I do know that until only a few months ago I had never seen a SCD in a slab. Now, it seems that every time I go to a show there are more dealers selling them. I have also been told that NGC is working on a pop report for them, although I have no idea if this is true.

 

Anyway, do you remember the dealer we were talking with at White Plains two shows ago? I can’t remember his name, but he had a large personal collection of raw SCD’s that he was showing us. Well that dealer always sets up next to or with Jon, so I think that maybe he is having an influence on him.

 

John

[Wihlborg]

Hi Tom,

 

Thanks for the comments about the Liberty Head SCD. I have never seen an example raw, but it does appear to be fairly thick because the rims are almost flush with the holder’s core on both sides.

 

The fields are not concave, but the devices, especially the obverse are in very high relief. In fact the high points of Liberty’s head are so close to the holder’s plastic that I can’t make out any space between them, although I’m pretty sure the medal is not touching the plastic.

 

You know, I just have to say that if you think it looks good from the scan, wait till you see it in person!

 

John

[Scarsdale Coin]

the fellow you mention is Dave ....Dave and I work together ....he is the behind the scenes guy with me (does more the wholesale end of the business-hey some people just dont like talking - guess Im full of hot air) and has been doing the regular comm's for years and years....the so called are really the same as comm's just not legal tender (as you know) ....

 

PS: I have always liked the so called's but never saw that much interest in them until the past year......we will be bringing some out to future shows since it really is gaining in popularity!