I’m Back in Dixie After the York Sale 0

[VKurtB]

12 hours driving northeast starting Friday at 8:00 AM, then some sleep in York, and a hearty breakfast, then I spent LITERALLY  2 hours and 15 minutes at the auction and started back west on US 30. An hour at the auction was spent examining coins, and I was out of there at 10:15 AM. There was a huge list of Large Cents in better grades. A few of them had flaws which disqualified them for my collection - verdigris treated and not, gouges, miscellaneous damage, the gamut. I had marked 9 coins for closer examination. I eliminated 5 of them for various issues, leaving 4 to bid on. I won the bid on 3.

1802 VF 1/000 variety

1817 AU/UNC 13 stars

1838 CH AU

I will add photos later after I liberate them from cardboard and Mylar 2x2’s and prep them for cotton pouches and 2x2 Manila envelopes. 

[Greenstang]

Sounds like nice additions to your collection.   
Looking forward to seeing the photos.

[VKurtB]

I’m making an exception and photographing these with my Amscope microscope. A Large Cent is about the maximum field. Oh, there were GORGEOUS Indian Cents also, but only one date I needed. 

Edited Sunday at 04:52 PM by VKurtB

[VKurtB]

I averaged 27 mpg with my Ford Explorer ST with the twin turbocharged 3.0 liter V6. It is rated at 430 hp, but alas, my brain is not. If my wife had gone, it would have shaved more than an hour off each way.  The secret of great mileage is tire inflation. 

Edited Sunday at 04:58 PM by VKurtB

[VKurtB]

My Sony digital camera has a “the battery doesn’t want to take a charge” issue. After I get it to take some juice, my photos will go up. The 1817 cent is especially gorgeous, looking like it was minted last week, but somehow fully brown already.  The 1802 1/000 exhibits a bit of a grainy field, but the bust is nicely detailed. The plate coin in Mega Red Number 1 has a similar look. Mine is an earlier die state because the weakness in STATES is minimal.

Edited Monday at 12:29 AM by VKurtB

[Just Bob]

Congratulations on the new pickups. They sound like great coins. Looking forward to the pictures.
How were the prices realized and the general mood of the auction?

[VKurtB]

On 9/15/2024 at 8:05 PM, Just Bob said:

Congratulations on the new pickups. They sound like great coins. Looking forward to the pictures.
How were the prices realized and the general mood of the auction?

These sales in York, PA have a steady clientele that is primarily local (south central PA) coin show and flea market / farmer’s market dealers. The rest is made up of older collectors, such as yours truly. The prices realized are lower than almost anywhere else I bid. Why? Because four figure and high three figure coins are being sold overwhelmingly RAW. Yes, there were some slabbed pieces, but they were by far the exception. A number of years ago, a solid MS65 1916-D Mercury dime, RAW, was in their sale. It had a secret reserve that did not get met, but it remained raw. There is a badass resistance to slabbing in that area. Collectors seem suspicious that their coins will be swapped out by the TPGS. Many of the bidders own no Internet accounts. 
 

At the beginning of my trip home, I drove through downtown Gettysburg. The crowds were magnificent. On the way in Friday night, Siri took me via Maryland Route 77, which is the car route into Camp David.

Edited Monday at 03:54 PM by VKurtB

[powermad5000]

On 9/15/2024 at 11:42 AM, VKurtB said:

I had marked 9 coins for closer examination. I eliminated 5 of them for various issues, leaving 4 to bid on. I won the bid on 3.

I call this a great success then as events can unfold sometimes leading to making zero acquisitions. And I am sure your coins are very nice considering your discerning demands for making acquisitions for your collection.  

[VKurtB]

As my age has advanced and my available resources have increased, I have only become more discerning. These guys who run these auctions in York, PA are, to my eye, decent graders. Their auction listings are just that - listings, no pictures. I almost stayed the extra hour to bid on a stunning Gettysburg commemorative half dollar, but I did the cost/benefit analysis of staying and decided to drive through Gettysburg an hour earlier instead. 

[Just Bob]

I have never been to the battlefield at Gettysburg, but it is on my list.

[VKurtB]

On 9/16/2024 at 8:02 PM, Just Bob said:

I have never been to the battlefield at Gettysburg, but it is on my list.

I hope you like monuments. The best parts other than monuments are Little Round Top and where that faces Devil’s Den. The land between is where the Alabama soldiers were decimated by Joshua Chamberlain’s 20th Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment.