All good advice in the various posts above, but after seeing the pictures I am not inclined to go the "buy a Red Book" route.
For someone getting into coin collecting, that is good advice, but for someone trying to got out of a hoard of common coins, that will only cause frustration and confusion over grades/value, etc.
A trusted person (whether the dealer or other) to scan for more valuable coins would be advisable, but otherwise it appears to be an easy sorting process for an experienced person.
The good thing about threads like this is that there’s enough good advice and information for an intelligent person to get a feel for the best course of action.
Cool collection. Your story is one that happens daily somewhere in the US. I’m glad your grandfather had fun with coins. That’s the point, after all. I agree with the sentiment to dispose of it slowly, keep a few important pieces for a family legacy, and absorb some of his character that still resides in the collection.
The history behind the coins is tremendous. Learn about it if you like, but be careful - it’s addictive and FUN. Find a trusted collector or dealer, don’t begrudge them a fair profit for their time, get more than one offer, and make sure you’re comfortable with it before selling.
i'm looking at a CF 2019 auction listing for the pcgs MS68 that it is.
I know they're 67s- that's my point. There are only a handful graded higher, and yes- they are expensive. So what is the owner (who is not a collector and cannot be expected to be able to distinguish between a 67 and a 68- can you?) supposed to do with the knowledge that one is worth substantially more than another and what are the chances there is even a 66 in that group? As has been pointed out, to get the big bucks, the coins need to be in plastic and it'll get expensive real fast sending coins in for grading if you aren't sure what you're doing.
Again, I'm not trying to give you a hard time here but I believe it's better to be realistic about potential value and it's a disservice to non-collectors to build up their hopes based on a best-case scenario. Of course, it's always possible that lightning might strike and there's a Brasher doubloon hidden in the bottom of one of those boxes but from the pictures shown, it's highly unlikely- the lottery offers odds than that.
Again, I'm not trying to give you a hard time here but I believe it's better to be realistic about potential value and it's a disservice to non-collectors to build up their hopes based on a best-case scenario.
who is building hopes? MFeld pointed out it was misleading, I made an addendum and now there is an open hard time case on it.
I'm leaving what I wrote without further explanation
@MsMorrisine said:
who is building hopes? MFeld pointed out it was misleading
I didn't see Mark's post until just now. He posted while I was typing out my response to you. I read your reply to my comment without going back to re-read the previous posts in the thread. Had I seen his comment, I would not have made mine.
I would suggest that the original poster (OP) buy or borrow a "Red Book" and read it through before doing anything.
The "Red Book" is A Guide Book of United States Coins which is published yearly by the Whitman Publishing Company and has a red cover, hence the name.
I suspect that the OP knew he had no rare coins as his grandfather would have mentioned them at some time.
My family knew since I was a kid that my grandmother had a 1909-SVDB cent, a 1916-D dime, and a three-legged buffalo nickel, all of which she had pulled out of circulation in the 1940's or 1950's.
@jmlanzaf said:
Because collections of heavily worn common coins always have a rare date in them
So you're saying that there is a 100% chance of not finding any sort of GOOD and/or valuable coin in this collection?
I'm saying there's a 99.9% chance of not finding anything valuable (define "good") and that unless your time is free, it is not an effective use of time. Especially if you consider that a complete novice is going to have to spend 5x longer than an experienced collector.
This is so blindingly obvious that it is sad that you have to keep repeating it in this thread. I’m hopeful the seller ignores some of the specialist advice advocated in this thread.
@Hydrant said:
Instead of being in a hurry to sell and deciding very quickly that no one in the family is interested in the collection try this; Take your time. What's the hurry? Look through the collection. Hands on. Do some research, buy some books. You might just discover that dear old grandpa was an expert coin collector and you just might become one yourself. There are worse things than that. Bottom line....."Haste Makes Waste." Don't set yourself up to get the short end of the stick.
@jmlanzaf said:
Because collections of heavily worn common coins always have a rare date in them
So you're saying that there is a 100% chance of not finding any sort of GOOD and/or valuable coin in this collection?
I'm saying there's a 99.9% chance of not finding anything valuable (define "good") and that unless your time is free, it is not an effective use of time. Especially if you consider that a complete novice is going to have to spend 5x longer than an experienced collector.
This is so blindingly obvious that it is sad that you have to keep repeating it in this thread. I’m hopeful the seller ignores some of the specialist advice advocated in this thread.
there is middle ground on time spent vs. unlocking value
@jmlanzaf said:
Because collections of heavily worn common coins always have a rare date in them
So you're saying that there is a 100% chance of not finding any sort of GOOD and/or valuable coin in this collection?
I'm saying there's a 99.9% chance of not finding anything valuable (define "good") and that unless your time is free, it is not an effective use of time. Especially if you consider that a complete novice is going to have to spend 5x longer than an experienced collector.
This is so blindingly obvious that it is sad that you have to keep repeating it in this thread. I’m hopeful the seller ignores some of the specialist advice advocated in this thread.
I've just seen hundreds of collections like that. I've bought dozens of collections like that. They are just never worth the time you put into them...especially if you are going to start hunting for minor varieties.
I know everyone means well, but I think they forget what it's like to be a complete novice. Every polished coin is going to look like a proof. Every bit of strike doubling is going to appear to be a rare DDO. Every damaged coin is an error.
It takes a lot of time to get competent at such things.
We don't value our time because it is a hobby. But if you value your time...you are better off working at the 7-11 than coin roll hunting.> @MFeld said:
@coinpalice said:
wow. this guy sure didn't go out of his way collecting high end stuff, this is just coins he pulled out of circulation mainly
That’s how a lot of people collect.
Yes, it is very common to see "collections" like this. I've seen so many hundreds of them, I've lost track.
@jmlanzaf said:
Because collections of heavily worn common coins always have a rare date in them
So you're saying that there is a 100% chance of not finding any sort of GOOD and/or valuable coin in this collection?
I'm saying there's a 99.9% chance of not finding anything valuable (define "good") and that unless your time is free, it is not an effective use of time. Especially if you consider that a complete novice is going to have to spend 5x longer than an experienced collector.
This is so blindingly obvious that it is sad that you have to keep repeating it in this thread. I’m hopeful the seller ignores some of the specialist advice advocated in this thread.
there is middle ground on time spent vs. unlocking value
Not much. The middle ground is to pull out the clad and throw it in a Coinstar and pull out the silver and sell it for scrap. Then you've got a few dozen collectible coins you can play with if you want.
The middle ground is not to go variety hunting or trying to find an XF wheat cent in a pile of commons. You've got $1000 collection. If you spend 40 hours to get an extra $200, is that really a good use of time?
@jmlanzaf said:
The middle ground is not to go variety hunting or trying to find an XF wheat cent in a pile of commons. You've got $1000 collection. If you spend 40 hours to get an extra $200, is that really a good use of time?
For variety hunters who enjoy the search, it certainly could be. For someone looking to sell a collection, probably not.
@jmlanzaf said:
The middle ground is not to go variety hunting or trying to find an XF wheat cent in a pile of commons. You've got $1000 collection. If you spend 40 hours to get an extra $200, is that really a good use of time?
For variety hunters who enjoy the search, it certainly could be. For someone looking to sell a collection, probably not.
Agree. And the variety hunters need to show a little empathy. Look how many hundreds of hours someone like Joey has put into CRH and he still isn't batting 100% on identifying varieties and hasn't found anything that would justify the investment of time. If it is not your hobby, you need to think of it more as a business and not a passion. Spending hundreds of hours to unlock a couple hundred dollars in value is a waste of money not just time.
Not to mention the time and money you need to spend to get educated before you can even go treasure hunting. REdbook, CPG, loupe, etc.
Every coin shop in the country has buckets of stuff like this that wasn't searched when it was purchased. If there's really any significant value to be had from similar collections, people suggesting it's so would be buying the stuff up as fast as it came into the shop. That they're not tells you something.
@MasonG said:
Every coin shop in the country has buckets of stuff like this that wasn't searched when it was purchased. If there's really any significant value to be had from similar collections, people suggesting it's so would be buying the stuff up as fast as it came into the shop. That they're not tells you something.
I think a lot of them assume that the dealers searched it all.
@MasonG said:
Every coin shop in the country has buckets of stuff like this that wasn't searched when it was purchased. If there's really any significant value to be had from similar collections, people suggesting it's so would be buying the stuff up as fast as it came into the shop. That they're not tells you something.
I think a lot of them assume that the dealers searched it all.
I think a lot of people have an incomplete understanding of how the hobby operates from the dealer side.
@MasonG said:
Every coin shop in the country has buckets of stuff like this that wasn't searched when it was purchased. If there's really any significant value to be had from similar collections, people suggesting it's so would be buying the stuff up as fast as it came into the shop. That they're not tells you something.
I think a lot of them assume that the dealers searched it all.
I think a lot of people have an incomplete understanding of how the hobby operates from the dealer side.
LOL. That's definitely true.
Especially if you are a high end collector who mostly goes to shows or high end auctions, you don't realize how the average Main Street dealer spends 90% of their time wading through crap and scrap.
My suggestion would be to visit the local coin club and ask for a suggestion on who might help value your coins. While my experience is limited to my local club, our members tend to be the type who would be willing to help a novice learn the true value of their coins. Meaning, they value the reputation of those associated in the hobby, and tend to want to help vs. take advantage of someone asking for their knowledge and guidance.
I don’t think a local coin club will offer much value beyond what is already in this thread.
Plus with COVID, not sure how excited strangers will be to go through your change.
My suggestion would be to visit the local coin club and ask for a suggestion on who might help value your coins. While my experience is limited to my local club, our members tend to be the type who would be willing to help a novice learn the true value of their coins. Meaning, they value the reputation of those associated in the hobby, and tend to want to help vs. take advantage of someone asking for their knowledge and guidance.
I don’t think a local coin club will offer much value beyond what is already in this thread.
Plus with COVID, not sure how excited strangers will be to go through your change.
If you can find a willing volunteer, someone experienced could sort the clad from the silver pretty quickly. It won't really add much value, but it'll be easier to get dealer offers if he only has to count the silver face and not sort through the clad first.
@jmlanzaf said:
Especially if you are a high end collector who mostly goes to shows or high end auctions, you don't realize how the average Main Street dealer spends 90% of their time wading through crap and scrap.
Or a variety collector who closely examines every coin he gets his hands on. How can a business possibly justify the hours it takes to look for minor varieties that aren't worth more than a couple of bucks, even if you were lucky enough to find a buyer?
Talking to a dealer at a show one day, I asked how the show was going for him. He halfheartedly complained about the number of variety collectors he had at his table (he called them cherrypickers), saying "They'll sit here for half an hour going through boxes looking for a variety that, if I had it carded up in the case, they wouldn't even consider buying because they don't want to pay retail for them."
@jmlanzaf said:
Especially if you are a high end collector who mostly goes to shows or high end auctions, you don't realize how the average Main Street dealer spends 90% of their time wading through crap and scrap.
Or a variety collector who closely examines every coin he gets his hands on. How can a business possibly justify the hours it takes to look for minor varieties that aren't worth more than a couple of bucks, even if you were lucky enough to find a buyer?
Talking to a dealer at a show one day, I asked how the show was going for him. He halfheartedly complained about the number of variety collectors he had at his table (he called them cherrypickers), saying "They'll sit here for half an hour going through boxes looking for a variety that, if I had it carded up in the case, they wouldn't even consider buying because they don't want to pay retail for them."
Yes, that's a very common feeling among dealers.
Cherry pickers think the dealers resent getting picked. And, to some extent, they do, especially if they get picked for something very pricey. But mostly the dealers resent having their table tied up for hours by people who don't spend any money.
Same with people who come into a store and stay for 2 hours going through the silver bucket and the wheat cent/Indian cent boxes. They take up time chatting and wanting attention which keeps the dealer from doing things that really create value-added for his inventory.
We had a guy in the local club who spent his entire retirement CRH. He once did 1 million coins between January 1st and Easter. He was absolutely obsessive about it. He had a good eye and was responsible for a lot of discovery coins of minor varieties. He traded a few coins with other CPs, but I'm not sure he ever bought a minor variety. I always wondered what his hoard would bring if his widow sold it. He had thousands of minor varieties, but other than the occasional major variety, I wouldn't have paid face value for it.
@jmlanzaf said:
He traded a few coins with other CPs, but I'm not sure he ever bought a minor variety.
My brother collects Morgans and at one time, got into VAMs. I asked him about it and he said it's because they're worth more. He'd spend hours scouring eBay, trying to decipher blurry pictures in case it might be something good. As far as I know, he never bought an attributed coin and when he went to sell the ones he had, he found there weren't a lot of other buyers who wanted to pay "retail" for them, either. Eventually, he decided to give it up, having concluded that "Every Morgan is a VAM" and that he'd rather spend his time on something else.
@jmlanzaf said:
He traded a few coins with other CPs, but I'm not sure he ever bought a minor variety.
My brother collects Morgans and at one time, got into VAMs. I asked him about it and he said it's because they're worth more. He'd spend hours scouring eBay, trying to decipher blurry pictures in case it might be something good. As far as I know, he never bought an attributed coin and when he went to sell the ones he had, he found there weren't a lot of other buyers who wanted to pay "retail" for them, either. Eventually, he decided to give it up, having concluded that "Every Morgan is a VAM" and that he'd rather spend his time on something else.
LOL. Technically, every Morgan is a VAM. There are a few that bring huge premiums. But, you're right, that's another one of those things that's more of a calling.
@jmlanzaf said:
There are a few that bring huge premiums.
Just like varieties in any other series. Tell a dealer you've got a 55DD to sell, and he'll be interested. Extra fingers on the reverse that you need a good magnifier to see? Not so much.
@jmlanzaf said:
There are a few that bring huge premiums.
Just like varieties in any other series. Tell a dealer you've got a 55DD to sell, and he'll be interested. Extra fingers on the reverse that you need a good magnifier to see? Not so much.
Extra fingers is a BIG error compared to some of these "extra wide letters". LOL. My eyes are too old for minor varieties.
@jmlanzaf said:
Extra fingers is a BIG error compared to some of these "extra wide letters". LOL. My eyes are too old for minor varieties.
Something I don't remember anybody commenting on yet in this thread- even though the OP's grandfather's collection isn't high end, he still was a collector. Is it at all likely he wasn't aware of stuff like 55DD or 22 Plain Lincolns and there might be one in one of the rolled batches of cents? I don't think so- if such a coin existed in this collection, it would have been holdered and labelled as such.
@jmlanzaf said:
Extra fingers is a BIG error compared to some of these "extra wide letters". LOL. My eyes are too old for minor varieties.
Something I don't remember anybody commenting on yet in this thread- even though the OP's grandfather's collection isn't high end, he still was a collector. Is it at all likely he wasn't aware of stuff like 55DD or 22 Plain Lincolns and there might be one in one of the rolled batches of cents? I don't think so- if such a coin existed in this collection, it would have been holdered and labelled as such.
We don't know whether he was truly a "collector" in the way we think of it. Even though he was 95, that still puts his date of birth at 1925. If his life followed the typical trajectory of the average American of the period, he didn't accumulate anything until after the war.
The "collection" looks mostly like stuff pulled from circulation in the 1960s onward with a few collector pieces purchased in his retirement. There might be other pieces in the hands of other heirs, but that is not the childhood accumulation of a child of the 1930s. If he had an earlier collection, he may have sold it when he was raising a family.
@jmlanzaf said:
Especially if you are a high end collector who mostly goes to shows or high end auctions, you don't realize how the average Main Street dealer spends 90% of their time wading through crap and scrap.
Or a variety collector who closely examines every coin he gets his hands on. How can a business possibly justify the hours it takes to look for minor varieties that aren't worth more than a couple of bucks, even if you were lucky enough to find a buyer?
Talking to a dealer at a show one day, I asked how the show was going for him. He halfheartedly complained about the number of variety collectors he had at his table (he called them cherrypickers), saying "They'll sit here for half an hour going through boxes looking for a variety that, if I had it carded up in the case, they wouldn't even consider buying because they don't want to pay retail for them."
Yes, that's a very common feeling among dealers.
Cherry pickers think the dealers resent getting picked. And, to some extent, they do, especially if they get picked for something very pricey. But mostly the dealers resent having their table tied up for hours by people who don't spend any money.
Same with people who come into a store and stay for 2 hours going through the silver bucket and the wheat cent/Indian cent boxes. They take up time chatting and wanting attention which keeps the dealer from doing things that really create value-added for his inventory.
We had a guy in the local club who spent his entire retirement CRH. He once did 1 million coins between January 1st and Easter. He was absolutely obsessive about it. He had a good eye and was responsible for a lot of discovery coins of minor varieties. He traded a few coins with other CPs, but I'm not sure he ever bought a minor variety. I always wondered what his hoard would bring if his widow sold it. He had thousands of minor varieties, but other than the occasional major variety, I wouldn't have paid face value for it.
@jmlanzaf said:
The "collection" looks mostly like stuff pulled from circulation in the 1960s onward with a few collector pieces purchased in his retirement.
Sounds reasonable. Even so, I do think he would likely have recognized something like a 55DD as more than just another wheat cent.
@jmlanzaf said:
Extra fingers is a BIG error compared to some of these "extra wide letters". LOL. My eyes are too old for minor varieties.
Something I don't remember anybody commenting on yet in this thread- even though the OP's grandfather's collection isn't high end, he still was a collector. Is it at all likely he wasn't aware of stuff like 55DD or 22 Plain Lincolns and there might be one in one of the rolled batches of cents? I don't think so- if such a coin existed in this collection, it would have been holdered and labelled as such.
I should also add the story of my grandfather - born in 1910.
He owned a corner store in the 1940s. He was a "collector", but he never purchased a coin from a dealer. He pulled things from circulation.
In the 1940s, there was a lot of Barber coins still in circulation. My grandfather kept a year set of those from his till, missing only the 2 or 3 biggest keys. He pulled all the 1921 Mercs and Walkers, I've got dozens of those. He did find one 1916-D Merc. And no 1955 DD, even though he smoked! LOL
He had a handful of Morgan $s, but most of those didn't come from his till. They came from his in-laws 50th wedding anniversary. Gold was still illegal in 1962 and so they gave them 50 silver $s they got from the bank.
All-in-all, my grandfather's collection is a somewhat better version of what you see there. But it's only better because he started 20 years earlier and could still find Barbers and the 21s in circulation.
@coinpalice said:
wow. this guy sure didn't go out of his way collecting high end stuff, this is just coins he pulled out of circulation mainly
This was his grandpa! How many venues do you think might have existed for most people 50-70 years ago?
I know we're old, but 70 years ago was 1950 not 1850. LOL. I think there were more venues in the 1950s than now, at least of the B&M variety.
Well I was leaning towards the evolvement of the internet. I wasn't doing any collecting until the early 80's and it was only circulation stuff then. I was in my 20's. I wouldn't have even known if a B&M was in my town. Lol
@jmlanzaf said:
The "collection" looks mostly like stuff pulled from circulation in the 1960s onward with a few collector pieces purchased in his retirement.
Sounds reasonable. Even so, I do think he would likely have recognized something like a 55DD as more than just another wheat cent.
I agree. Which is why I don't think there's any likelihood that searching the rolls will yield better dates. He would have set them aside in one of his labeled envelopes or maybe a 2x2.
@coinpalice said:
wow. this guy sure didn't go out of his way collecting high end stuff, this is just coins he pulled out of circulation mainly
This was his grandpa! How many venues do you think might have existed for most people 50-70 years ago?
I know we're old, but 70 years ago was 1950 not 1850. LOL. I think there were more venues in the 1950s than now, at least of the B&M variety.
Well I was leaning towards the evolvement of the internet. I wasn't doing any collecting until the early 80's and it was only circulation stuff then. I was in my 20's. I wouldn't have even known if a B&M was in my town. Lol
Back in the 50s, 60s and even into the 70s, virtually every "five and dime" - there's a term you don't hear anymore - now they are "dollar stores" - every five and dime had a coin and stamp section in the store. When I was a kid, I remember browsing at the local "Woolworth's".
They had packets of exotic world stamps and some collector coins in a spinning locked glass case along with the usual books and supplies.
@jmlanzaf said:
The "collection" looks mostly like stuff pulled from circulation in the 1960s onward with a few collector pieces purchased in his retirement.
Sounds reasonable. Even so, I do think he would likely have recognized something like a 55DD as more than just another wheat cent.
I agree. Which is why I don't think there's any likelihood that searching the rolls will yield better dates. He would have set them aside in one of his labeled envelopes or maybe a 2x2.
there are some 2x2 cardbard holders in there but there is also seated liberty half dollar that is just loose.
then there is that roll of wheat where the first date is "1909"
the description of the collection was "thousands" ... blanket statements are being made. the complete collection hasn't been shown ... by someone who doesn't know better material from not ... so there could be even better material than what was shown.
then there is the blanket statement that better stuff would be set aside and noted. we would do that but he is not we. furthermore, the granddaughter would have to seek out said "better material" ... does she know to post a picture of a 1909-S VDB or a 1909-O barber quarter? In short, does she even know what the better material looks like? There was that roll of wheats from 1909... but did you notice the roll wasn't opened to image the 1909 coins? So, who knows what is in that roll. The date even went past 1922.
"seen lots of collections like this" .... blanket statements ... when you haven't even inspected the entire collection nor considered just what wasn't shown in what was shown. assumptions are being made.
I am having a good time helping point out better stuff. if there is more to show, bring it on.
Comments
All good advice in the various posts above, but after seeing the pictures I am not inclined to go the "buy a Red Book" route.
For someone getting into coin collecting, that is good advice, but for someone trying to got out of a hoard of common coins, that will only cause frustration and confusion over grades/value, etc.
A trusted person (whether the dealer or other) to scan for more valuable coins would be advisable, but otherwise it appears to be an easy sorting process for an experienced person.
The good thing about threads like this is that there’s enough good advice and information for an intelligent person to get a feel for the best course of action.
Cool collection. Your story is one that happens daily somewhere in the US. I’m glad your grandfather had fun with coins. That’s the point, after all. I agree with the sentiment to dispose of it slowly, keep a few important pieces for a family legacy, and absorb some of his character that still resides in the collection.
The history behind the coins is tremendous. Learn about it if you like, but be careful - it’s addictive and FUN. Find a trusted collector or dealer, don’t begrudge them a fair profit for their time, get more than one offer, and make sure you’re comfortable with it before selling.
those are ngc 67.
i'm looking at a CF 2019 auction listing for the pcgs MS68 that it is.
I know they're 67s- that's my point. There are only a handful graded higher, and yes- they are expensive. So what is the owner (who is not a collector and cannot be expected to be able to distinguish between a 67 and a 68- can you?) supposed to do with the knowledge that one is worth substantially more than another and what are the chances there is even a 66 in that group? As has been pointed out, to get the big bucks, the coins need to be in plastic and it'll get expensive real fast sending coins in for grading if you aren't sure what you're doing.
Again, I'm not trying to give you a hard time here but I believe it's better to be realistic about potential value and it's a disservice to non-collectors to build up their hopes based on a best-case scenario. Of course, it's always possible that lightning might strike and there's a Brasher doubloon hidden in the bottom of one of those boxes but from the pictures shown, it's highly unlikely- the lottery offers odds than that.
who is building hopes? MFeld pointed out it was misleading, I made an addendum and now there is an open hard time case on it.
I'm leaving what I wrote without further explanation
I didn't see Mark's post until just now. He posted while I was typing out my response to you. I read your reply to my comment without going back to re-read the previous posts in the thread. Had I seen his comment, I would not have made mine.
This will help you calculate the 'melt value' of less desirable silver coins, those with no 'collector value'.
And, Sorry For Your Loss.
coinflation.com/coins/silver_coin_calculator.html
I would suggest that the original poster (OP) buy or borrow a "Red Book" and read it through before doing anything.
The "Red Book" is A Guide Book of United States Coins which is published yearly by the Whitman Publishing Company and has a red cover, hence the name.
I suspect that the OP knew he had no rare coins as his grandfather would have mentioned them at some time.
My family knew since I was a kid that my grandmother had a 1909-SVDB cent, a 1916-D dime, and a three-legged buffalo nickel, all of which she had pulled out of circulation in the 1940's or 1950's.
Or the OP can leave the collection to his kids.
The Mysterious Egyptian Magic Coin
Coins in Movies
Coins on Television
Like a collection like that would have anything in rarified grades...
From the pics the only value is in the silver.
This link will tell which coins contain silver and how much the silver, per coin, is worth. Data is always up to date.
The PCGS price guide will tell you which coins are worth looking closer at. The "grade" numbers in the chart simply set a price for each level of coin quality. Use the chrart to establish which individual coins need a closer, or professional look.
Yes, it is time consuming. First you gotta weed out the silver, then the possibly valuable coins.
Rampant currency debasement will be the most important investment trend of this decade, and it will devastate most people.
- Nick Giambruno Buy dollar insurance now, because the policy will cost more as the dollar becomes worth less.
This is so blindingly obvious that it is sad that you have to keep repeating it in this thread. I’m hopeful the seller ignores some of the specialist advice advocated in this thread.
Another John Haywood fan!
Question for the OP: Do you, or your kids, have any interest in collecting coins?
disagree strongly
there is middle ground on time spent vs. unlocking value
wow. this guy sure didn't go out of his way collecting high end stuff, this is just coins he pulled out of circulation mainly
That’s how a lot of people collect.
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
I've just seen hundreds of collections like that. I've bought dozens of collections like that. They are just never worth the time you put into them...especially if you are going to start hunting for minor varieties.
I know everyone means well, but I think they forget what it's like to be a complete novice. Every polished coin is going to look like a proof. Every bit of strike doubling is going to appear to be a rare DDO. Every damaged coin is an error.
It takes a lot of time to get competent at such things.
We don't value our time because it is a hobby. But if you value your time...you are better off working at the 7-11 than coin roll hunting.> @MFeld said:
Yes, it is very common to see "collections" like this. I've seen so many hundreds of them, I've lost track.
Not much. The middle ground is to pull out the clad and throw it in a Coinstar and pull out the silver and sell it for scrap. Then you've got a few dozen collectible coins you can play with if you want.
The middle ground is not to go variety hunting or trying to find an XF wheat cent in a pile of commons. You've got $1000 collection. If you spend 40 hours to get an extra $200, is that really a good use of time?
Maybe not the only value, but 90% of it. Maybe more than 90% if you include the silver dollars in the "silver" category.
For variety hunters who enjoy the search, it certainly could be. For someone looking to sell a collection, probably not.
Agree. And the variety hunters need to show a little empathy. Look how many hundreds of hours someone like Joey has put into CRH and he still isn't batting 100% on identifying varieties and hasn't found anything that would justify the investment of time. If it is not your hobby, you need to think of it more as a business and not a passion. Spending hundreds of hours to unlock a couple hundred dollars in value is a waste of money not just time.
Not to mention the time and money you need to spend to get educated before you can even go treasure hunting. REdbook, CPG, loupe, etc.
Every coin shop in the country has buckets of stuff like this that wasn't searched when it was purchased. If there's really any significant value to be had from similar collections, people suggesting it's so would be buying the stuff up as fast as it came into the shop. That they're not tells you something.
I think a lot of them assume that the dealers searched it all.
I think a lot of people have an incomplete understanding of how the hobby operates from the dealer side.
LOL. That's definitely true.
Especially if you are a high end collector who mostly goes to shows or high end auctions, you don't realize how the average Main Street dealer spends 90% of their time wading through crap and scrap.
I don’t think a local coin club will offer much value beyond what is already in this thread.
Plus with COVID, not sure how excited strangers will be to go through your change.
If you can find a willing volunteer, someone experienced could sort the clad from the silver pretty quickly. It won't really add much value, but it'll be easier to get dealer offers if he only has to count the silver face and not sort through the clad first.
Or a variety collector who closely examines every coin he gets his hands on. How can a business possibly justify the hours it takes to look for minor varieties that aren't worth more than a couple of bucks, even if you were lucky enough to find a buyer?
Talking to a dealer at a show one day, I asked how the show was going for him. He halfheartedly complained about the number of variety collectors he had at his table (he called them cherrypickers), saying "They'll sit here for half an hour going through boxes looking for a variety that, if I had it carded up in the case, they wouldn't even consider buying because they don't want to pay retail for them."
She might be able to sort out the silver faster than finding a volunteer and making arrangements.
Yes, that's a very common feeling among dealers.
Cherry pickers think the dealers resent getting picked. And, to some extent, they do, especially if they get picked for something very pricey. But mostly the dealers resent having their table tied up for hours by people who don't spend any money.
Same with people who come into a store and stay for 2 hours going through the silver bucket and the wheat cent/Indian cent boxes. They take up time chatting and wanting attention which keeps the dealer from doing things that really create value-added for his inventory.
We had a guy in the local club who spent his entire retirement CRH. He once did 1 million coins between January 1st and Easter. He was absolutely obsessive about it. He had a good eye and was responsible for a lot of discovery coins of minor varieties. He traded a few coins with other CPs, but I'm not sure he ever bought a minor variety. I always wondered what his hoard would bring if his widow sold it. He had thousands of minor varieties, but other than the occasional major variety, I wouldn't have paid face value for it.
She could, but it can take as long to train someone to do it as it takes an experienced coin guy to actually just do it.
My brother collects Morgans and at one time, got into VAMs. I asked him about it and he said it's because they're worth more. He'd spend hours scouring eBay, trying to decipher blurry pictures in case it might be something good. As far as I know, he never bought an attributed coin and when he went to sell the ones he had, he found there weren't a lot of other buyers who wanted to pay "retail" for them, either. Eventually, he decided to give it up, having concluded that "Every Morgan is a VAM" and that he'd rather spend his time on something else.
This was his grandpa! How many venues do you think might have existed for most people 50-70 years ago?
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I know we're old, but 70 years ago was 1950 not 1850. LOL. I think there were more venues in the 1950s than now, at least of the B&M variety.
LOL. Technically, every Morgan is a VAM. There are a few that bring huge premiums. But, you're right, that's another one of those things that's more of a calling.
Just like varieties in any other series. Tell a dealer you've got a 55DD to sell, and he'll be interested. Extra fingers on the reverse that you need a good magnifier to see? Not so much.
Extra fingers is a BIG error compared to some of these "extra wide letters". LOL. My eyes are too old for minor varieties.
Something I don't remember anybody commenting on yet in this thread- even though the OP's grandfather's collection isn't high end, he still was a collector. Is it at all likely he wasn't aware of stuff like 55DD or 22 Plain Lincolns and there might be one in one of the rolled batches of cents? I don't think so- if such a coin existed in this collection, it would have been holdered and labelled as such.
We don't know whether he was truly a "collector" in the way we think of it. Even though he was 95, that still puts his date of birth at 1925. If his life followed the typical trajectory of the average American of the period, he didn't accumulate anything until after the war.
The "collection" looks mostly like stuff pulled from circulation in the 1960s onward with a few collector pieces purchased in his retirement. There might be other pieces in the hands of other heirs, but that is not the childhood accumulation of a child of the 1930s. If he had an earlier collection, he may have sold it when he was raising a family.
pretty off topic here
if you haven't quit on us, original poster, post another batch of pics when you have time.
Sounds reasonable. Even so, I do think he would likely have recognized something like a 55DD as more than just another wheat cent.
I should also add the story of my grandfather - born in 1910.
He owned a corner store in the 1940s. He was a "collector", but he never purchased a coin from a dealer. He pulled things from circulation.
In the 1940s, there was a lot of Barber coins still in circulation. My grandfather kept a year set of those from his till, missing only the 2 or 3 biggest keys. He pulled all the 1921 Mercs and Walkers, I've got dozens of those. He did find one 1916-D Merc. And no 1955 DD, even though he smoked! LOL
He had a handful of Morgan $s, but most of those didn't come from his till. They came from his in-laws 50th wedding anniversary. Gold was still illegal in 1962 and so they gave them 50 silver $s they got from the bank.
All-in-all, my grandfather's collection is a somewhat better version of what you see there. But it's only better because he started 20 years earlier and could still find Barbers and the 21s in circulation.
Well I was leaning towards the evolvement of the internet. I wasn't doing any collecting until the early 80's and it was only circulation stuff then. I was in my 20's. I wouldn't have even known if a B&M was in my town. Lol
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I agree. Which is why I don't think there's any likelihood that searching the rolls will yield better dates. He would have set them aside in one of his labeled envelopes or maybe a 2x2.
Back in the 50s, 60s and even into the 70s, virtually every "five and dime" - there's a term you don't hear anymore - now they are "dollar stores" - every five and dime had a coin and stamp section in the store. When I was a kid, I remember browsing at the local "Woolworth's".
They had packets of exotic world stamps and some collector coins in a spinning locked glass case along with the usual books and supplies.
There were stamps and coins at Newberrys and Sears where I grew up. Sprouse Reitz and Grants had stamps only, no coins.
there are some 2x2 cardbard holders in there but there is also seated liberty half dollar that is just loose.
then there is that roll of wheat where the first date is "1909"
the description of the collection was "thousands" ... blanket statements are being made. the complete collection hasn't been shown ... by someone who doesn't know better material from not ... so there could be even better material than what was shown.
then there is the blanket statement that better stuff would be set aside and noted. we would do that but he is not we. furthermore, the granddaughter would have to seek out said "better material" ... does she know to post a picture of a 1909-S VDB or a 1909-O barber quarter? In short, does she even know what the better material looks like? There was that roll of wheats from 1909... but did you notice the roll wasn't opened to image the 1909 coins? So, who knows what is in that roll. The date even went past 1922.
"seen lots of collections like this" .... blanket statements ... when you haven't even inspected the entire collection nor considered just what wasn't shown in what was shown. assumptions are being made.
I am having a good time helping point out better stuff. if there is more to show, bring it on.