Rare coins and cleaning
bkelly13
Posts: 2 ✭
Some ads have been popping up about a Kennedy half dollar and worth some $44k. I am a bit doubtful about the price but checked some coins that have lingered in the safe for some years. Yep, several of them and more.
Do these have significant value? If so, better to sell now or hold. There are another dozen or more that might be of value.
Which leads to another question. They have sat around without protection. What might be used to clean them? I presume a soft cotton cloth and some type of chemical. Or maybe an ultra-fine cloth such as used for my monitors.
Your thoughts please.
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you can spend those. They are worth face value.
In general, NEVER CLEAN COINS, it will only decrease their value. Since yours are only worth 50 cents, you can't really hurt them. But if you did have something valuable, it will only go down in value if you clean them unless you know exactly what you are doing.
Spend them.
Understood. I find adds such as these a bit puzzling. Those that place them must know that no one will buy. Are there sufficient people out there that might?
And what is the exactly way to clean a coin? Not the best clean job, just to be more presentable.
Don't clean them.
Dip in acetone, if you must.
You are more likely to do harm then good. Just leave them.
Short answer is those ads are basically scams preying upon suckers who don’t do any research first.
TurtleCat Gold Dollars
asking for $48,000 is not the same as getting $48,000
The coin you show is worth 50 cents. Forget about cleaning.
And asking $48,000 doesn’t mean that the coin is actually worth more than 50 cents, either.
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
Just to reiterate, don't clean any coins.
Yours are worth face value. Inflation has reduced their buying power over the years, and will continue to do so. Best to spend or deposit them now.
Not sure if anyone has told you this but DO NOT CLEAN YOUR COINS!
I had an aunt who had a georgous VF30 1820s Bust quarter with rich two-tone cherrywood toning that she decided to sell to the new dealer in town. But first, she broke out the Comet and a scrubbing pad and shined it up "like new". An $800 coin became $50 in two minutes. I still get angry thinking about what she did to that beautiful coin.
Clean your coins with sandpaper and yes your coin is worth a half million dollars.
🤪
Cleaning the coin - even with a Qtip - can cause small thin hairlines that interrupt the near microscopic metal steaming lines that make up a coins surface (and are what cause the “luster” or cartwheel effects)... and these lines technically leave a scratch on the surface that forever ruins the coin. That’s how you can tell circulated (used) from uncirculated or mint state (never used, no wear).
No for your coins - they are not S mints so they are not the collector type that are made of 40% silver. Now If those coins were uncirculated and in “perfect” or near perfect condition - then YES - they could be worth a lot of money. Check the price on greysheet for a MS67 1976 D Kennedy clad and you’ll see it is worth 1000 dollars. Yours, however, look circulated so in that case not worth more than the face value.
Keep collecting and asking questions - I can tell you are on the verge of catching the bug ....
Actually the bicentennial might be an S mint - thought that was a D. It might be 40% silver - and it might be higher grade that what we are all thinking, and just has heavy toning. If it’s UNC silver than it could be worth ~50 to 100 bucks. If it’s worn and not silver then worth 50 cents
BU 20 piece rolls are selling on eBay for around $120.
Just sayin'.
The silver ones??
To be worth a lot it would have to grade very high! Just to be clear ....
40%
From San Francisco? Are there any other kind?
https://www.ebay.com/itm/1976-S-Kennedy-40-SILVER-Half-Dollar-50c-BU-Roll-of-20-Coins-/284510307868?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&_trksid=p2349624.m46890.l49286&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0
It'll cost you $50-$60 to get that $50-$100 coin in a high grade holder. Just think twice before listing it for sale in an auction...
Sold Oct 7, 2021
1976-S SILVER KENNEDY HALF DOLLAR PCGS MS-68
$0.01+$2.99 shipping
.
don't forget to tell people they also have to fund the membership cost which more than doubles the amount you quoted. many times, it is not mentioned.
Yes, the silver ones. They are only 40% silver.
Kennedys are complicated. There are five compositions. Not all s-mints are silver. Not all silvers are s-mints. Fortunately they are well documented as to which is which.
If you have a coin that you think might benefit from cleaning, and there are a few, don't attempt to do it yourself, but send it to PCGS for "conservation". They'll do it right. Not one coin in a million would benefit, so ask here first if you think one might benefit. I'm not sure what is going on with the eye of the bicentennial coin, but while that might be improved by conservation, there would be no increase in value. The 1983 would not be improved by conservation.
@bkelly13.... Welcome aboard....Your coins appear to be regular Kennedy halves and worth face value. Never, never clean the coins... You will destroy the collector value - if there is any. Cheers, RickO
Never clean the coins... never even TOUCH the coins. Only hold them by the edges.
Buy a Red Book; https://www.ebay.com/itm/384067232712?epid=11038417382&hash=item596c30e3c8:g:ya4AAOSwq7VgYiiS&LH_BIN=1
Welcome to the forum!
As mentioned your coins are worth 50 cents.
Here's a small sample of ones I use in my antique slot machine.
...
Mills slot machine? Isn't that supposed to take nickels?
@moursund
Mills slots were set up to take nickels, dimes, quarters & halves.
The half dollar machines are very rare because 50 cents was a lot of money back then and they were not played often.
A bar or casino could make more money off a nickel or dime machine.
Many of the 50 cent machines that were made for the US market were shipped to European countries and converted to take the large British style pennies.
I also have a Mills 5 cent filled with no date Buffalo nickels.
Man that slot machine looks like a blast!
Last time I was in Vegas, many years ago, I went all over the place looking for a slot that played real money and I couldn’t find a single one.
Nothing like the sound of real coins, especially silver, dropping- in volume- into that trough.
Those $44,000.00 common coins?
Just further evidence that the internet is overflowing with garbage, there’s a sucker born every minute, and no shortage of those looking to exploit those sad realities.
Happy, humble, honored and proud recipient of the “You Suck” award 10/22/2014