Why I prefer to collect circulated versus uncirculated U.S. coins

[Prethen]

I thought it would be fun to put down my thoughts on the topic of why a collector (like myself) prefers to collect circulated coinage versus uncirculated coinage. There are some obvious and not-so-obvious reasons. The only uncirculated coins I own in my collection are moderns or very common late 19th century early 20th century coins. Of course, I love early proofs (no wear thank you...I don't like 'em impaired), but that's a whole different story. Here's the list:

 

1. The single biggest and most obvious reason is cost. Yes, if the cost is a simple linear change between grades and it's not a huge jump in price (it's all relative and depends on the series), then uncirculated might make sense. However, for the 19th century coinage I've collected, that's generally not the case. UNC's are usually much, much more expensive.

 

2. I have an easier time grading and "understanding" circulated coins. Also, in coordination with the first reason, there's usually not a massive jump in price with a single grade point spread like in the UNC's. Yes, you can probably come up with a myriad of examples where there are such spreads Like Fine and Very Fine mid-20's Buffalo Nickels, but I'm trying to be somewhat general. I have an easier time knowing what I'm looking at and knowing if it looks like it has been processed or not. I have a much more difficult time with UNC's for some reason. I need more experience, yes, but my comfort zone is with circulated coinage. Oh...and, yes, I can still get totally pooched on a coin that I discover later a problem I didn't know to look for or didn't think much of at the time. I've been schooled more times than I care to admit on the purchase of various 19th century UNC's (or so-called UNC's).

 

3. Usually, I buy the coins raw and I can handle them. For some strange reason, if I buy a coin in a slab, I shy away from wanting to crack it out. I tell myself, I'm buying a particular coin to crack out and it never happens. Unless it's a high priced coin or I prefer a slab for authentication and/or protection, I'll go for a raw coin. It's neat to be able to hold onto a piece of history...carefully!...and even let friends and family partake in that privelege. These coins were made for commerce, they're "used", and they were meant to be handled. Light handling won't hurt a coin that's already VF/XF, as long as it's done with care and rarely.

 

4. I aim for VF-AU coins which should be easier to find than UNC's, but not always. I usually don't like anything below VF unless the coin is extremely difficult to find in that grade (or better) or extremely expensive. For example, I own a choice F-12+ 1872 2¢. I've been looking for over 2 years for a better grade and a reasonable looking coin. No luck. I like my coins to basically show full or nearly full detail. Even in VF that's generally the case, as long as it's a halfway decent strike.

 

I'm curious to hear what you folks have to say on the topic. I realize there are those of you who disdain circulated coins and only go after the cream of the crop. More power to you. I wish I had the type of funds to collect the variety of coins I have in UNC, but I don't. Plus, when you show off these coins to lay people, they tend to understand the age and connect with the history a bit better if the coin looks like it was "used" a bit.

 

I love coin collecting. And, I love to share it with people. Let's hear your thoughts.

 

Bruce

[astrostu]

I'm with you, on your first two points. The second two are less applicable to me.

 

I pretty much collect what I find. For some unknown neurotic reason, I get a great sense of joy in searching through countless rolls of quarters, nickels, pennies, dimes, etc. for those elusive coins to fill a hole in my collection or to find better grades.

 

And then there's the cost. Change is free for face value. Coins from someone else aren't, especially if they're rare or old. Granted, I think I'd love to have all perfect coins in my collection, but I find the price way prohibitive for that. So I'm content to really do it for a hobby, and have the joy that comes from finding for oneself that elusive 1942 S nickel in a roll from the bank, even if it's only in F-12 condition.

[TJ'S Coins]

Great post and thanks for sharing your thoughts on collecting.

 

I like uncirculated coins in early commemoratives, Morgan and Peace silver dollars. I also have many mid-20th century uncirculated coins too.

 

However I love coins that are in VF-AU condition too. Cost is definitely a factor but these are coins that have seen circulation and were part of the commerce and industry of our nation. Many have sat in collections for decades and its fun to speculate who might have handled this coin, which collection it may have belonged to or where it has been since it was minted.

 

Another reason is the wear and toning that coins pick up through the years make them unique in their own right. I like coins that show "life" for lack of a better term. When you look at them there is something that appears to come alive. New coins have a clean, almost sterile look. Some coins that have been repeatedly dipped have a dull and lifeless look. A lightly or moderately circulated coin can develop a certain look that makes it stand out from others of the same era. Those are coins that appeal to me.

 

These are a few of the reasons I like collecting circulated coins.

[MikeInFL]

I like toned proofs because they are shiny and colorful and rare. I like collecting circulated moderns for the fun and ability to "fill another hole" for face-value because I've blown my coin budget on toned proofs. Take care...Mike

[Gembeeyou]

All of your points were well made BCG, and easy to relate to by most collectors, I'm sure. I enjoy the sharp detail, lustre and/or natural toning of the MS grades, but also relish the character of nicely detailed, toned or untoned VF-AU level coins! I collect both.

 

I have a 1928-S, XF-AU Standing Liberty Quarter that I bought at a Santa Barbara coin show 20+ years ago that still makes me softly groan "aaaahhh" every time I look at it; partly from sentimentality, but primarily because it's such an original, totally natural looking, character-laden coin that just exudes "class" and even a touch of "mystery" if you will!

 

So, yes! I hear ya! Great post!

[Brotherman]

I’m with ya Bruce!

 

The learning curve on grading is not as steep. The average Joe can afford them, for the most part. If you make an error on buying a common coin it will only cost you a few bucks.

 

With that said, Lord knows nothing quite turns my head like a beautifully rainbow toned Morgan silver dollar in MS64+ condition, but historically that coin has had a sad existence. All it ever did was sit in a bank bag for 150 years. You get a hold of an 1878 Morgan in Extra Fine condition. It might be cheap and common but - who knows? It might have been a coin that Jesse James held up a train for in one of his last robberies! Or it might have been used to pay a Pinkerton agent to chase him! Whatever it bought it was used and held by the people of it’s day. That is definitely cool.

 

Nothing is wrong with circulated coins – AT ALL.

 

Key dates or big dollar purchases I still have to go with graded coins - and only from NGC, PCGS, or ANACS. There are more things that can be wrong than just my poor grading skills. At least with a graded coin you know it has been looked at by experts. They may get fooled every now and then but I’m sure I could be fooled more often if I bought these coins raw.

 

Hays

[Bruceswar]

circulated coins are great and a great way for people to get into the hobby, but as time goes on a collector will want a set or collection with more challenge then alot of circulated coins offer... still great to collect I have a circ set of lincolns and a circ set of Indians, the lincolns do have some UNC coins in them, but mostly circ for the first part of it... anyhow thats the beauty of collecting.... everybody can collect what they like, granted they can afford it..

[supertooth]

BCG---Bruce---A wonderful post my friend. Well thought out. The replies, up till this point, were great as well. One must always figure out where their collection is taking them? We hope, before you get too deeply within a series---only to find out that the series is either unfinishable---or too costly to finish----or that the coins are just unavailable. This requires the owner to have done his homework ahead of time. And, you are correct that some series are harder to acquire in VF--AU grades than they are in Unc. grades. Even harder to get coins that have 'original skin'. Those folks collecting either Barber Halves or early Walkers know what I mean. And never forget---it is not inexpensive even in VF--Au grades for many series. The above two series being fine examples. Xf examples of many of the dates and mints run into the many hundreds or thousands of dollars. Yet, a nice set of 'fine' coins make the series come back to a level of expense where most collectors can afford it. But, whatever you collect, take pride in your set----make it a challenge for yourself to finish it---as this will teach you patience and satisfaction of accomplishment. Bob [supertooth]

[MikeKing]

A great post and great responses

I debated on and off if I should make my bust half collection entirely XF or thereabouts, as there are some really, really nice XF's out there that have something that AU's and certains MS busts don't have, and that is real circulation. And that's meaningful. The idea that a coin has actually circulated at a given date (most likely) is, to me, very attractive. The money saving aspect is pretty nice too, because you can save thousands of dollars you would have spent on what? Really! On what? I think, quite honestly, that it is more difficult to put to gether a set of extremely fine bust halves than uncirculated ones (if you have the money for uncirculated halves, it's not challenging to find really nice ones). I collect stamps also, and 99% of my stamps are cancelled, even if a stamp is available uncancelled for easy money financially, I will go for the cancelled one for two reasons; first, it's been actually used for what it was made for, and to me that is what makes it collectible; the other reason is that it's a challenge to find cancelled stamps in gem condition with just the kind of cancellation you want. There is something to be said for circulation!

[Jazzy]

Depends on the series for me.

 

I've often thought it would be fun to assemble a circulated date set of large cents - nice coins and so much history.

 

On the other hand, some coins like trimes are consistently fugly in circulated grades.

[Hoot]

Fabulous post. Having sets of circulated pieces is what is often needed to keep collecting interest high, and to keep a person involved when funds are thin. I have several sets of circulated coins that I work on now and then; these include Barber halves, winged Liberty dimes, buffalo nickels, and my transitional pieces of 1836-1840. All of these are challenging and fun. It's quite a task finding circulated pieces that have not been terribly abused in one form or another and that have great patina.

 

Here's one of my all-time favorites:

 

 

Hoot

[michael]

here is another ever so lightly circ. coin that has the character of a choice unc. it is an au58

 

i grade it au63

 

i like coins like this

 

with a wonderful red/orange gold skin

 

the reverse is a full choice unc.

[TJ'S Coins]

Michael, what a wonderful coin! I agree with your assessment of it

[Morgannut]

Yes I have a lot more fun with my circulated Morgan Set. I love trying to improve it -----not seeking the all-mighty higher grades-- but finding nice original undipped XF-AU examples that have the same "look". And in fact, it's a lot harder to find all the CC"s in XF/AU as well as the late O mints. At one time in the 1950's they were considered "keys"

 

Plus I don't have to worry about selling one example to afford another.

[smullen]

We (my daughter and I) collect both Curculated and Uncirculated coins...

 

As far as the Uncircs, I collect them as I like to get the best examples of a coin that I can (afford to) get my hands on... I really find it amazing that a coin could minted somewhere in the 1800s could be anywhere near as nice as some of the ones I've seen an even landed...

 

Then we also collect the Circs as they are obviously cheaper, but more so, because my daughter and I have a great time searching our coin jars, rolls and ""Lots"" that I pick up here and there, when I've got a few bucks to spare...

 

Atleast once a week, if not more I get a, ""Dad, Can we look at coins tonight?""... Then we sit at the dinning room table or living room table and seach for coins needed to fill spots in our Whitcos and or Danscos albums ...

[smullen]

Yes I have a lot more fun with my circulated Morgan Set. I love trying to improve it -----not seeking the all-mighty higher grades-- but finding nice original undipped XF-AU examples that have the same "look". And in fact, it's a lot harder to find all the CC"s in XF/AU as well as the late O mints. At one time in the 1950's they were considered "keys"

 

Plus I don't have to worry about selling one example to afford another.

 

Where do you get good finds on circulated Morgans? Most of the ones I have found were either so shot that you couldn't recognise them or were so expensive, that I might as well have bought something slabbed in a MS grade...

 

Also, what do you keep all your Morgans in???

 

Since I have a bunch that are NGC and PCGS slabbed, I just bout some generic slabs for all my ungraded ones and labled them, with the most accuarate grade I could figure on... I like to put them in the slabs as they seem to stack/store better and hopefully better protected...

[Prethen]

Here's a perfect example of a lucky buy off of eBay (no one bid against me) and why I love circulated coins. This coin is extremely difficult to find problem free and original. This crusty little Choice VF/XF CC 20¢ is my latest acquisition. If you were to buy an eye appealing UNC version of this coin be prepared to pay well over $1000, probably $2000+ dollars.

 

[skippy]

Nice post!

 

My favorite grade to buy is AU58. A properly graded AU58 will, many times, be more attractive than a low grade MS coin. A really nice AU58 can be an MS65 with just a touch of rub.

 

With AU58, I never get in arguments about what the grade really is. Sure, someone could say it's a 55, but that hardly matters. It's not like the case where a 65 is worth much more than a 64.

 

Finally, AU58 is a grade that usually shows me all of the details of the coin, sometimes at a fraction of the price of a well-struck MS.

 

The only time I buy uncirculated coins is for moderns - for example, I update a Kennedy half set every year. When the cost is extremely low, it seems silly not to buy nice coins direct from the mint.

[Prethen]

The recent post on under-$30 coins reminded me of this one I posted. Some collectors are preoccupied with getting the best-of-the-best in uncirculated grades. For me that would break the budget and not allow me to go after a larger amount of very nice coins that have at least some circulation but represent some beautiful pieces that I would otherwise not be able to afford.

 

And, now, I'm getting suckered into collecting Ancients...but that's a whole different story!

 

Bruce

[John Martinez]

Great post. Thank you.

[astrostu]

I, also, agree mainly for points 1 and 2, while 3 is not an issue for me and I'm not in a situation yet where 4 is an issue.

 

Cost is definitely a factor for me, and when I decided what series I want to concentrate on for now, I looked at cost to determine what to shoot for. And I agree with other people that the wear of a circulated coin adds a certain character to it that uncirculated just doesn't have. Plus, there's that aspect where I can trust myself to pretty accurately grade an AG through an AU coin within a few points of a professional, but I have no clue what the difference is between, say, and MS-62 vs. an MS-63 vs. an MS-64 Peace dollar. The circulated grades just make more sense to me.

 

However, there are some series that I really don't like in circulated condition. For example, I really like the modern proof SAEs (uncirculated, not so much), but I think (and I know that many of you disagree with me) that the circulated Walking Liberty half dollars are just ugly with those giant lines of wear smack down the middle of the coin. But, I think that a circulated Flying Eagle cent looks really cool.

[Prethen]

Buying raw uncirculated coins can be tricky, especially when a dealer prices it at a grade where there's a fairly large jump in price from one point lower. Even the services don't grade consistently between 1 (or sometimes 2) grade points from submission to submission. Sometimes you'll get an AU58 in an MS62+ holder and sometimes vice versa. I agree with you that it's much easier to grade circulated coins....let me restate that....it's much easier to determing the VALUE of a circulated coin.

[reid1836]

I love collecting circulated pieces. The nostalgia of a rare piece that was spent and used in commerce then retrieved by someone with collecting interests and set aside for future generations of collectors to prize and enjoy. I used to collect only circulated key dates. But, have had a recent craving for the superb details that MS coins provide. So, now a well blended mixture of circulated and MS coins have become my passion.

[DirtyGoldMan]

I like circulated coins, too. Nothing is more glorious to me than an original XF-45 No Motto branch mint half eagle.