Looking for a 1970-D Half - any advice?

[pendragon1998]

Hi all,

 

I was on the verge of buying a PCGS MS-63 1970-D half to crack out for my album, but at the last moment, I decided to hold off for a few days. I'm not 100% sure I really need to buy a slabbed coin, and would just as soon save a few bucks and opt for a raw one if I could be sure it was going to be bright white and of a not-too-banged up 63-65 grade. I don't want a hazy or toned coin - I want a crisp, bright, sexy half dollar. Who thinks I should just get a slabbed coin and crack that bad boy and who thinks I should just take a best guess on the bay and get a coin in the mint wrapper? In your opinion, what's a fair price for a slabbed 63? Raw in mint packaging? I'm thinking along the lines for slabbed 63 - around $15 shipped. I'd be willing to pay that for a raw one if I was sure it was what I'm looking for.

 

Heck, anyone got one they want to sell?

[bsshog40]

Ebay? That's where I always look first.

[WinstonWare]

I would go for mint-cello. You’ll know that it hasn’t been played with and you won’t pay any “slab premium.”

[cladking]

$15? You can get one for that but if you order one it will probably be a problem coin. Not too many years back you could look at a small handful of '70 mint sets and be sure to find an MS-64 and a few MS-63's but not anymore. These sets are heavily picked over for the half dollar. Just finding an attractive coin without problems is getting tough.

 

If you can find some original sets most of these coins are still nice but there aren't a lot of original sets anymore.

 

The best bet is probably to plan on spending a little more and grabbing the first nice one you see. At $20 the dealer might let you look at the new sets.

[pendragon1998]

I ended up buying a set of 2 mint sets - 1970 and 1971 off of eBay for around $20.00, shipped. This actually works out well, as I can upgrade my 1971 halves also and I can probably swap out my 70 and 71 cents in my dansco as well. The seller said "Today I'm listing several mint sets that I recently aquired from an elderly couple in my neighborhood. They are exceptional examples as they have all been in the same hands since originally purchased from the mint."

 

If that's true I think it should be a nice deal. The link's here. Whatcha think?

[WinstonWare]

They look great, good price, nice pickup

[jgrinz]

I created a Roll of these still in Mint cellos ... Out of 20 sets to create it there was maybe one or two 65/66's the rest 60-63. So its pot luck on what you get Good Luck

[James_OldeTowne]

I have a very nice MS-64++ in my Kennedy set, but I've had it awhile. I don't think I paid more than five dollars, but that was some time ago, and of course, it was not certified. Even though everyone knows it's a key date, it is still an underestimated issue in my opinion.

 

I really do wish you good luck. I'm very glad I already have that darned coin!

[cladking]

I created a Roll of these still in Mint cellos ... Out of 20 sets to create it there was maybe one or two 65/66's the rest 60-63. So its pot luck on what you get Good Luck

 

 

You got very lucky. Even original sets back in 1970 you'd have to look at about 80 sets to get a 66. It wouldn't be at all surprising if you got an original run and the nice ones are from the same die pair. This is the way they are often found. If they're nice enough take a peek at the zip code and postmark and you can find more from the same run.