How are the markets for Large Cents and Colonials doing?

jmski52

I should have been a bit more specific in my previous thread, although the general market tone is important too.

I haven't bought (or sold) a Large Cent for a couple of years........................

So, who has a feel for how the Large Cent and Colonials markets doing lately? I know that we have some experts here that can comment. Your inputs would be much appreciated.

Omegaraptor

I posted about a 1796 Draped Bust large cent I acquired a few weeks back and heard from @Walkerguy21D who collects early cents that the market for scarce and rare Sheldons has seen better days. He had a couple early R-5 varieties (nice ones too) he wanted to trade with EAC dealers and didn't have the easiest time doing it at a show.

I love early copper but I am a college student with a matching budget so my examples aren't super high end.

logger7

It's a niche, high end collectibles and metals market in my opinion.

2windy2fish

The last few shows i have sold several Washington pieces, NJ coppers, etc and quite a few low end Large cents and they are usually a tough sell…

Walkerguy21D

Date and major (red book) varieties appear to be staying fairly strong. I was blown out of the water on a low grade 1799 recently ( straight grade, no CAC).
Agree with @2windy2fish, there seems to be a better market for the lower end “album collector” grade large cents, if priced right. Little demand for scarce Sheldon varieties. Still fun to cherry pick, just don’t expect a windfall. Better grade stuff doing well, but I think the high end of market is soft.

2windy2fish

A bit off topic but, my experience at shows is that collector/type/album coin sales of coins in the 30 to 200 dollar range are extremely strong..

ricko

I like old copper, though outside of a few pieces, I am not a collector. I enjoy the cheaper side of the copper market, not the varieties, details segment. Cheers, RickO

jedm

I have an ongoing collection of red book varieties, and am getting down to the tougher ones before 1807 or so. They seem to be bringing very good money . I've had to stretch a bit to get the last couple of slabbed ones that I got at auction. My last raw buy was sort of right in line with the price guides, so I think it was a very fair transaction for both of us. There are, as always plenty of details, corroded, and just plain scudzy ones for every nice looking example with good surfaces.

lkenefic

"Nice looking examples with good surfaces" are easier to find among the Middle and Late dates at reasonable prices, but XF-AU pieces are still seeing fairly strong money.

WilliamF

Early copper is almost exclusively what I've focused on for the last few years, and the market has usually been steady and fairly predictable, the last few months or so it has not been great to be either a buyer or a seller IMO, not good for buyers because more and more sellers are listing at or above price guides and not willing to negotiate prices much, on ebay specifically I have seen less auctions than normal and more BIN/OBO lately, I do still get some fair prices when bidding in auctions but cannot seem to find quality coppers at a fixed price that is substantially more than market value...

Not good for selling (if your trying to get any kind of return) because listing them at estimated/priceguide value will not get you many interested buyers and listing them lower or as an auction you will probably lose money...

I like to watch for specific coins that show up on the market again and again and there are several that have surfaced multiple times in the last few months, a little higher each time and seem to have hit a ceiling at about 10% above market value, I think some of the higher prices are form collectors/dealers that might have bought when the market was pretty hot and now that it has cooled significantly they are stuck with the pieces at high prices and find it impossible to move them without losing money, hence the higher prices all around.

Just my 2 large and a half cents

jesbroken

I've had no problems selling the Liberty cap cents or half cents from AG to VFdetails(3 days or less after listing), but the lower end selling market for Draped Bust Large Cents and Half Cents seem down to me.
Jim

Cougar1978

It’s a highly specialized area - YMMV.

DelawareDoons

I can tell you early copper in old holders is just hot hot hot. Rest of the market, no clue.

NeophyteNumismatist

Not large cents or colonials, but the half cent market has been very hot. I was blown out of the water at the McGuigan auction in August. I was (I thought) "stretching" beyond the market, and got left in the dust. It was a spectacle and I quickly became a spectator.

lermish

I had a few bids in this morning at the Stacks Bowers auctions and got BLOWN OUT. Even the lots I wasn't looking at seemed to have a ton of activity. It's not my area (was just looking for nice type coins) so I don't have a lot of history with the trends, etc but I agree that it seemed hot, hot, hot.

JWP

I picked up quite a few raw large cents and a few half cents in the last 6 months. A couple are really really nice but most are in the lower end of circulated coinage. However I've recently purchased if a couple orhalf ce ts and large cents that are PCGS graded and look really great. Maybe I'll show photos of them after they're delivered. I love the older coins especially the copper, just because of the history behind them and they're also sometimes hard to find.

TimNH

@lermish said:
I had a few bids in this morning at the Stacks Bowers auctions and got BLOWN OUT.

Me too, especially on the 1793 copper (any of the four), which I came in with 'old values' in mind, and quickly got educated on the new normal. Crazy.

JimW

Building on @jedm comments, is the current market for straight graded coins (say in PCGS/NGC holders) different than for details coins? In the sense that early problem-free copper is considerably rarer.

jmski52

I found out about 40 years ago that I loved Large Cents, and I've spent time & probably too much money finding and upgrading the nicest ones I could afford at the time. I'd classify myself as an upper medium-end collector of Large Cents.

Occasionally I get the notion that maybe I should sell my collection, but I enjoy the coins very much every time I look them over. Then I get the urge to go on the hunt for another nice one. Sell? I just can't do it, lol. I've spent too much time refining the whole lot, but overall it's been a great pursuit with plenty of psychic rewards. Maybe there will be financial rewards, but that's never a guarantee.

I've learned quite a bit since I started collecting and the history of coins is always fun to follow. Without a doubt, this site has so much collective knowledge (no pun intended) that I'm in awe when one of the true experts chimes in.

In this thread, it's already apparent from many of the comments that Large Cents comprise a fairly diverse market, which makes it somewhat elusive to characterize as it includes collectors in both the extremely high-end and also the basic beginning collectors who are just discovering Large Cents.

The reason I started this thread is for the great comments & insights. Thanks, guys!

JimW

@jmski52 said:

Occasionally I get the notion that maybe I should sell my collection, but I enjoy the coins very much every time I look them over.

I have that problem with all the coins I own - LOL