Is a SET really worth more than the sum of its parts?

[MikeKing]

Or is that just a gimmick to get people to buy more coins?

[gmarguli]

No, it is worth less. There are a FEW exceptions, but not many.

 

Most people don't want to purchase a set. There is no fun in collecting this way. The buyers will also likely value certain coins less than you, so they will price them lower.

[paigow_johnny]

i'm also betting with some dealers...if you buy that "set of Roosies/short set of Walkers in a Dansco"...that you'll get at least a few sliders....

[DonHeath]

I'm with Greg and Johnny. I occasionally buy complete sets raw when they are too cheap, and cherry the set replacing the keeper coins with ones of similar quality to the ones I don't keep, but I think selling a complete set precludes many of the potential buyers who have partially complete sets from bidding or buying, as their interest is probably in the few key coins, and they would then be left to resell all their duplicates. Besides, as Greg pointed out, it isn't nearly as much fun as collecting individual coins. It's sort of like painting by numbers.

[TomB]

There is the challenge and enjoyment aspect of completing a set that makes it very alluring, however, I don't think a set is worth more than the individual coins because in almost every instance there will have to be coins replaced from that set, and that costs extra money.

[jtryka]

A case in point (and I know it's not exactly what you are talking about) what is the cost of a mint set for any particular year, and then compare it to the cost of raw unc. singles for the same year? The singles almost always cost more! I have purchased sets before, one was a BU set of Roosevelts, and I just wanted the set, not the highest grade etc, so if some were a little less than perfect, that was fine by me! I do often look at sets or partial sets in auctions, but usually so I can find a BARGAIN, and get some coins I might need, and then sell the rest.

[Tradedollarnut]

I have paid a premium for an eye appealing set in a series for which eye appeal is not common. Whether that premium was for the individual coins added together or for the set as a whole was not calculated. But in general, the answer is NO.

[Higashiyama]

The only set I own that I believe will be more valuable than the sum of the parts is my circulated set of classic commems. Mine is now 50 % complete, and I think it will take 20 years of legwork to complete. With another twenty years of legwork to find I buyer, I think it can be sold for a profit.

 

(By the way, a circulated Antietam just sold for an amazing price on ebay - $ 305. I was quite interested in the coin, but there was no way to tell from the scan whether it had been cleaned)

[EZ_E]

Analogy: Buy a new car for $20K but buy it piece by piece and pay $100K.

[Hoot]

We've only spoken of monetary worth so far. A set has worth far beyond its monnetary bounds for the individual who assembled it and for those who are influenced by the intrinsic worth of the endeavor. We talk all the time of the great sets of American coins that have been assembled and since dispersed hither and yon. What is spoken of is their intrinsic value. And value it is; something we each recognize but have difficulty quantifying, verbalizing, or exposing for all that it moves inside of us. Great collections and sets, large and small, have far greater value than the sum of their parts.

 

Hoot

[BillJones]

As a dealer when you buy sets, you have to take the good with the bad. The "bad" is not limited to sliders and the like. It also includes that common dates that are slow sellers.

 

In many cases a dealer makes his money on the key date coins. Those pieces often sell quickly and sometimes, but not always, they bring some good premiums. The comon date stuff can set in inventory of years, unless you are ready to "blow it out" cheap, usually to other dealers.

[BillJones]

Analogy: Buy a new car for $20K but buy it piece by piece and pay $100K.

 

What you fail to note here is that there are marketing efforts and expenses here to sell each of the parts that far exceed that effort to sell the set intact. Yes, it might look the dealer has made a "killing" from a distance, but one often has to sell most all the coins before the "killing" is realized. And selling them involved a lot of sales effort to get the value out of the merchandise.

[MikeKing]

Thanks everyone for your insight into this question. Very much appreciated.

 

[sanmary]

The one set I have that perhaps will be worth more collectively rather than seperately, when completed, is my PF66 Rainbow Merc Set. Someone may see the advantage in paying a premium as opposed trying to find matching coins.