I finally completed a collection - actually two !
dcarr
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I've collected on and off since the mid 1970s. Never did I ever really try to complete a set of anything. I was more of a bargain hunter and opportunist. I do collect Colorado related items, but that is an open-ended endeavor with no criteria for what a complete "set" would consist of.
When I first saw this punchboard for sale, I thought it would make for a fun collection. Punchboards were prevalent in the 1940s and 1950s. They were generally a type of gambling device. A player would purchase from the host merchant one or more punch attempts. The player would choose one of the holes (2,000 on this punchboard). Using a small metal tool (supplied with the punchboard) the player would push it through the hole and out the back would come a rolled-up piece of paper. Printed on the paper would be a number. If the number on the paper matched a number advertised on the front of the punchboard, the player would win that prize. Vintage punchboards (both used and unused) can be bought for as little as $5. Very few punchboards actually had coins in them, but a few did. Some punchboards had non-coin physical prizes. Punchboards were withdrawn from general use at the same time that slot machines were being outlawed and destroyed.
A few punchboards with coins have been sold on eBay. Those generally have lower-quality coins in them and the coins were probably inserted into the punchboards much later on. When I saw this punchboard it was unused (no holes punched) and there were no coins in it. I decided to buy it and treat it like a traditional coin board and pick out interesting coins for it. The only limitations being the number of holes and their diameters. Each coin hole has a plastic window over it, with a foil seal under each coin. Winning a coin also wins a prize that would be indicated under the foil seal.
Being free to decide what coins to put in it, I decided on these criteria:
1) I wanted the punchboard to have coins that I would imagine that I would want to play for.
2) I wanted coins that could plausibly be found in circulation in 1940.
3) All coins 1930 or older (no President coins like Washington Quarters).
4) All coins mint-marked, except possibly for the two center holes #700 and #1300.
5) As many different coin types as possible, while keeping it symmetrical (if, for example, there was a Seated Liberty quarter in a hole on the left side, I'd want a Seated Liberty quarter in the corresponding hole on the right side).
So, given all that, I had some fun putting this "set" together. It was actually a challenge to find most of these coins for prices that I would consider a "good deal". For the center two holes I decided on a 1921 Peace Dollar and, of all things, an Isabella quarter. There is even a pair of CC-mint Seated Liberty quarters (holes #1250 and #1350).
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My other set, recently completed, took nearly 10 years. It is a complete collection of every year Colorado licensed driver chauffeur badges which were issued from 1913 to 1954. At first I could find a couple a week. Then one a month. Then one every 3 or 4 months. Then a long spell with nothing. I was outbid on a first-year 1913 when I first saw one for sale. I almost gave up then (and several other times as well), thinking about selling the ones I had. But I kept at it and after about 5 years I had all but three. But then I went two more years without finding any of those three. Then one day I saw a seller had listed on eBay a 1913 and a 1915. I needed both of those so I was not going to lose them. The 1913 cost more than the 1915, but I got the 1913 for about the same price that I had bid (and lost) for one years earlier. After that, I only needed a 1933. That is not the rarest one, and I had seen one for sale years earlier, but I was not able to find one when I was serious about it. I looked for a 1933 for over a year and then I saw someone had listed a complete set on eBay ! The starting bid was only $1,200. I was definitely going to bid on that set. But then, it ended prematurely. Somebody had made a deal with the seller to end it early at an undisclosed price. That figures. I work on the set for almost 10 years and somebody picks a complete set off eBay right under my nose. But at a recent Denver coin show a local person that I usually see came to my table and we talked about automotive stuff and I mentioned my badge collection. He mentioned that he might have an extra 1933 ! A couple weeks later we met up and did the deal. I just finished building a rigid display frame (with glass window) for the set. Here it is:
Several of these badges are marked on the back by the Denver-based maker Sachs Lawlor. They are also thought to have had a hand in producing the 1933 Pedley Ryan and Colorado Century of Progress Exposition silver rounds.
These are great sets. Thanks for sharing them with us.
I learned something new today. Thanks.
I don't remember ever seeing punch boards and I'm probably older than you. I guess I must have led a sheltered life.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
Love the punch board.
Very Cool @dcarr !...and don’t forget that you probably have an entire collection of Moonlight Mint stuff as well, and that alone, is for sure Awesome!
Played them all the time until the mid 80's. Most tool trucks(SnapOn, etc) had them, along with pool halls through the 70's and golf courses through the 80's. Mostly in Tennessee, Kentucky and West Virginia. I have wanted one like yours for a long time and been unable to even find one. One similar is on ebay for $400 with only coin photos. Little steep for me, so probably lucky I haven't found one.
Great collections. Congratulations on completing them, I know the feeling and it is GOOD!
Jim
When a man who is honestly mistaken hears the truth, he will either quit being mistaken or cease to be honest....Abraham Lincoln
Patriotism is supporting your country all the time, and your government when it deserves it.....Mark Twain
Way cool on both sets!
Congrats on multiple completions!
It is amazing the the types of gambling devices that were used to satiate ones desire to strike the mother lode. What is even more amazing is that you filled the gameboard with prizes worthy of the competition with Lady Luck.
The badge in the second pic and last in the second row stands-out to me because of the more intricate design. There appears to be a scene of a cabbie approaching a railroad crossing. The other badges are more heraldic-like.
This is very nice! Thanks for showing your two collections.
Now, can we forumites start selecting our punch-out numbers? 😃
Those are two very desirable pieces. Just out of curiosity, what's your next endeavor?
wow that's great! thanks for sharing. I never have seen that before.
IIRC there was a scene in the movie "Paper Moon" involving a punch board scam.
Who had to carry the chauffeur's badges?
Dig the badges and the board is cool. Nice.
Check out the movie "The Flim Flam Man" starring George C Scott. In the movie, they run a punchboard scam.
It's a fun movie to watch.
Pete
This thread = Very much cool!
Very, very interesting stuff [history], thanks for sharing it here and congrats on finally completing something.
Successful transactions with : MICHAELDIXON, Manorcourtman, Bochiman, bolivarshagnasty, AUandAG, onlyroosies, chumley, Weiss, jdimmick, BAJJERFAN, gene1978, TJM965, Smittys, GRANDAM, JTHawaii, mainejoe, softparade, derryb
Bad transactions with : nobody to date
Very cool idea - I really like the symmetry.
some bars in northern WI still have punch boards that look very similar. being WI the prizes are bottles of cheap liquor.
Congratulations on completing a couple of difficult projects. I do remember punch boards...they were popular when I was a kid... Of course, kids were not allowed to play, and money was always tight. However, I did see people play them at various stores... never did see anyone win anything. None were as classy as your coin board though. Cheers, RickO
Those are both ultra cool! Thanks for sharing them with us.
I like the 1924 badge shaped like the front of an automobile of the day.
Never heard of punch boards, either. Cool.
How did the badges work? Did the Chauffeur buy a badge every year or did the just buy a badge their first year of business?
Both are neato.
bob
Congrats and thank you for sharing your personal accomplisment ..... they are definitely heirloom sets to keep for generations to come
I love the 1924 badge too ..... is it made of pewter?
It is not 100% complete, but it is close. I'm lacking a few things that I was commissioned to make, but didn't want to keep any examples of due to the cost. I do have a few things that nobody else has
Yeah, that was it, not “Paper Moon.”
Yes, the 1926 badge shows a car stopped at a railroad crossing. Some of these earlier designs were shared by other states. The 1924 badge design (showing the front grille of a car) has been used for at least one other state (with the word "Colorado" substituted, of course).
I knew somebody would want to play it !
At 10 cents per punch, the entire board could be bought for $200. The coins cost me a lot more than that !
Originally, the total quantity of prizes would have been $11.50 face value in coins, plus a number of $2, $5, and $10 prizes (foil seals behind coins). There was probably only one $10 prize, ten $5 prizes, and up to 21 $2 prizes. It is unknown if every coin had at least a $2 prize behind it. There was also a $2.50 prize for the last hole purchased in each section of 200. There are 10 sections, so that would be an additional $25 in prizes. So the total prizes were, at most, $138.50 at a cost of $200. The "house" would almost certainly make money on the deal.
I'm working on a small set of all the Pedley Ryan so-called dollars. I still need the HK-823 and HK-826.
Beyond that, I'm planning to do a lot more work in 2019 towards completing a fantasy-date type set.
I believe any commercial passenger driver, or maybe anyone who made a living as a driver.
I remember the scam, but I don't remember which movie it was in.
As I remember, the con artist had an unused punchboard and they already knew which holes were the big prizes because it was rigged. They sold it to a shop owner for a price that was enticing. But then later, a cohort of the con artist came into the establishment and punched the winning holes. In that manner, they would get the proprietor twice - once on the initial sale of the punchboard, and then again later for a larger amount on the prizes.
I believe they had to get a new one every year - like renewing your driver's license.
Most of the badges are brass or bronze, and many of those have nickel plating over that.
What awesome and unique sets. Those badges are amazing!
Well done!
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Those are too cool. That Coin Board really takes me back, well done Mr. Dan.
My father drove a delivery truck in Michigan from the late 1940’s until 1985. Don’t remember seeing anything similar to this in his stuff. Maybe Michigan did not use them.
Neat stuff! Both are new to me.
Both very cool - thanks for sharing!
that's some pretty good stuff you have there. I like:)