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The Box of 20 Progress Thread

CladiatorCladiator Posts: 18,041 ✭✭✭✭✭
in U.S. Coin Forum

I've heard about people building Box of 20 collections since I first started in this hobby. This idea always resonated with me. I liked how the terms of the collection are completely determined by the collector, those 20 coins can be anything you want and for any reason. So I started working on a Box of 20 collection a couple years ago. Using this thread to keep track of it as it grows and morphs could be useful. I regret not doing this when it first started but better late than never. I won't post all of what's in the box today so as not to annoy folks with all the posts it'll take that'll basically pin it to the top. I'll try to add another coin every day or so until the thread is caught up and then update as additions or changes are made.

God willing and the creek don't rise, I've always intended for my permanent collections to be sold posthumously by my family. That being said several of my collections are somewhat esoteric and I have concern of my non-numismatic family being able to realize the maximum value from them. The first goal of the Box is to accumulate value in coins that should hopefully retain that value over time and should have a high degree of liquidity. Goal two is simply to acquire coins that either fascinate me or are in some way special to me.

Let's start off with the 1¢ coins.

The Indian Cent design has always been my favorite of the one cent coins. It was an easy decision to include one in the Box. I chose the 1909-S as it falls well within the 1st goal of the Box with it's rarity and semi-key status. I'm a bit obsessed with the San Francisco mint so that steered me to this coin over the 1877. I also like the fact that it was the last year of the type.

PCGS/CAC VF20

Comments

  • Cougar1978Cougar1978 Posts: 8,197 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited April 22, 2023 2:21PM

    I use x boxes of 20 for plan slabbed inventory. Slabs are organized by TPG then country, demonization, date / MM, and grade. I use PCGS boxes (for PCGS & ICG) and NGC storage boxes NGC, Anacs slabs. The old Teletrade boxes which I still have can store all 4 types.

    If I were a collector limited to one box I might have slots designated for different types: US, Bullion, World.

    Coins & Currency
  • ashelandasheland Posts: 23,183 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Nice IHC!

    My YouTube Channel

  • braddickbraddick Posts: 23,963 ✭✭✭✭✭

    That's a nice one.

    peacockcoins

  • CatbertCatbert Posts: 7,119 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I like the look. Very attractive and a good choice!

    Seated Half Society member #38
    "Got a flaming heart, can't get my fill"
  • OAKSTAROAKSTAR Posts: 7,121 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Bookmarked.

    Disclaimer: I'm not a dealer, trader, grader, investor or professional numismatist. I'm just a hobbyist. (To protect me but mostly you! 🤣 )

  • rickoricko Posts: 98,724 ✭✭✭✭✭

    That is a nice IHC.... I have not pursued the box of 20 route of collecting. Though I could easily put 20 of my favorites together if I choose to do that. I like coins, and I have a lot of coins.. Will be watching this thread to see more nice coins. Cheers, RickO

  • YorkshiremanYorkshireman Posts: 4,556 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Love this thread.
    Thank you for taking us on your journey.

    Yorkshireman,Obsessed collector of round, metallic pieces of history.Hunting for Latin American colonial portraits plus cool US & British coins.
  • OmegaraptorOmegaraptor Posts: 540 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @Cladiator said:
    The other one cent coin in the Box is this Wheatie. I know, never say never, but I don't foresee any other one cent coins being added at this point.

    While I like the overall design of the Indian much better than the Lincoln I do find the reverse design of the Wheatie to be very attractive. Enough so that it won a spot in the Box. Being a sucker for S mint coins the obvious choice would be the 09-S VDB but something about that one just doesn't do it for me for some reason. I noticed that at coin shows, in online inventories and even on eBay the amount of 09-S VDB's often far outnumbered the amount of nice 14-D's. Many more 14-D's were minted than were the 09-S VDB's so perhaps they just weren't saved in the quantity that the 09-S VDB's were? While the 09-S VDB may be more recognizable as valuable to the non-numismatist I think the 14-D is known as a valuable semi-key enough to qualify it for the 1st goal of the Box (being 2nd fiddle to the venerable 09-S VDB in notoriety is still pretty good after all). I was hoping to shop through Charmy's table at the ANA earlier this year to find one but that wasn't meant to be. A month or so before the show I happened across this one at DLRC. Once I confirmed that the brightness under the chin was just glare and in hand that area was as beautifully brown as the rest of the coin, I couldn't resist.

    PCGS/CAC VF35

    It is correct that the 1914-D cents were not saved in quantity. The 1914-D is just one of three Lincoln dates I do not have, the other two being 1909-S No VDB and 1924-D. Nice coin!

    "You can't get just one gun." "You can't get just one tattoo." "You can't get just one 1796 Draped Bust Large Cent."

  • BikergeekBikergeek Posts: 408 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @Cladiator I seem to detect a missing capped bust half dime in the box. You must be looking for something special there! (That said, the 1846 XF45 is a groovy coin!) I will also note that I have a little whiteness under the chin, but it's not "glare," it's just "being a graybeard." But I'll shave when the weather warms up; I'm told that takes ten years off. heheh

    New website: Groovycoins.com Capped Bust Half Dime registry set: Bikergeek CBHD LM Set

  • marcmoishmarcmoish Posts: 6,274 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Nice effort here, and the history you posted here with these picks so far are really nice to read.

    Keep it up!

  • CladiatorCladiator Posts: 18,041 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @Bikergeek said:
    @Cladiator I seem to detect a missing capped bust half dime in the box.

    I played with that idea for a while but decided against it. Since there are no significant rarities in the series without diving into die marriages or die states it wouldn't fit into goal 1 of the collection. A rare marriage or state would only hold value to a specialist and they seem to be few and far between now a days. Who knows how many might be around when the Box is liquidated by the family one day in the, hopefully distant, future. So assuming rarity is out of the equation the only way to get a CBH10¢ to stand out would be in condition. As odd as it might sound coming from a half dime nut, when I think of spending this much for a coin there are other options that I'd rather go with than a CBH10¢. Perhaps I'd look at it differently if I didn't have my core collection of AU CBH10¢'s to scratch the itch.

  • BikergeekBikergeek Posts: 408 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited May 5, 2023 9:17AM

    @Cladiator said:

    @Bikergeek said:
    @Cladiator I seem to detect a missing capped bust half dime in the box.

    A rare marriage or state would only hold value to a specialist and they seem to be few and far between now a days. Who knows how many might be around

    I read this yesterday but it kinda rattled around in my brain a bit and I wanted to pull that thread a bit with you. I know that the population of capped bust half dime specialists is low - but is it really lower than it was? I know the respondents to the 2023 census were lower than in 2019. But there is still a core of serious collectors, and a pretty good bunch of folks with smaller sets. I'm interested in your perspective because you've been around waaaay longer than I have in this series.

    It's an amazing series for so many reasons (granted, one of which is exactly why you don't have them in your Box of 20, namely that there are no extremely tough ones in the base year/major variety sets that people can assemble.) Your concern is that the supply/demand ratio will skew further to supply, reducing the ROI for you or your heirs. But another way to look at it is, these coins will have their bicentennial birthday this decade - and as "200th birthday" articles get written and registry sets garner attention, it may be that MORE collectors are drawn to them, skewing toward demand. Food for thought...

    New website: Groovycoins.com Capped Bust Half Dime registry set: Bikergeek CBHD LM Set

  • CladiatorCladiator Posts: 18,041 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @Bikergeek said:

    @Cladiator said:

    @Bikergeek said:
    @Cladiator I seem to detect a missing capped bust half dime in the box.

    A rare marriage or state would only hold value to a specialist and they seem to be few and far between now a days. Who knows how many might be around

    I read this yesterday but it kinda rattled around in my brain a bit and I wanted to pull that thread a bit with you. I know that the population of capped bust half dime specialists is low - but is it really lower than it was? I know the respondents to the 2023 census were lower than in 2019. But there is still a core of serious collectors, and a pretty good bunch of folks with smaller sets. I'm interested in your perspective because you've been around waaaay longer than I have in this series.

    It's an amazing series for so many reasons (granted, one of which is exactly why you don't have them in your Box of 20, namely that there are no extremely tough ones in the base year/major variety sets that people can assemble.) Your concern is that the supply/demand ratio will skew further to supply, reducing the ROI for you or your heirs. But another way to look at it is, these coins will have their bicentennial birthday this decade - and as "200th birthday" articles get written and registry sets garner attention, it may be that MORE collectors are drawn to them, skewing toward demand. Food for thought...

    I really don't have a good feeling for whether or not the number of specialists is lower, higher or the same as in the recent past. I know of some that have left but also some that have joined. It does sometimes feel like there is not as much enthusiasm as there was previously but I attribute that to the loss of our leader in 2019. I think it's reasonable to assume the core of half dime folks is stable and not significantly changed over the past few decades.

    My concern is more that, even with a healthy half dime nut core, it could be difficult for numismaticly blind heirs to realize maximum value of an esoteric half dime rarity. When I talk to dealers at shows it seems a very small percentage are more than passingly aware of half dime marriage/re-marriage/die state rarity/value. Of those, even fewer seem to be interested in depth. At full strength, the number of half dime specialists and half dime specialty catering dealers must pale in comparison to those of more widely collected coins like Bust Half dollars, Lincoln Cents, Morgans, etc, etc... I'd like the coins in the Box that fit into goal 1 to be ones that any dealer and most any collector will instantly recognize as having value. Admittedly there are coins in the Box that do not fit goal 1 and are included solely because they belong to goal 2 but they are the minority and hold little monetary value. I suppose a PQ high grade Bust fip could be inserted under goal 2, something to think about...

    I do hope the upcoming 200 year mark for the coins will boost collector interest and help the series burst out of it's perennial "type coin" status. Although I guess cherry picking would get more difficult with more competition lol. It's still pretty doable at this point, I've managed to pick 3 small cherries just in the past couple weeks.

    Thank you for the thought out reply. I do enjoy talking (typing) about these little beauties. :)

  • CladiatorCladiator Posts: 18,041 ✭✭✭✭✭

    The Box has only one 25¢ coin in it to date. Ultimately I think it'll have two. Of the three Barber denominations the quarter has always been the one that has drawn my eye. Something about the design and layout and how they play on a coin of it's size just seems to work. I think if I were to be a 25¢ nut I'd be focusing on these Barber beauties.

    I was pleased to see the three top keys in the series were all S mint coins. It was a pretty easy call to go with the 1896 as I wanted the example to be a 19th century coin. If/when I add another 25¢ coin to the Box it'll be a 20th century coin (can you guess which it'll be?). The 1890's have captured my interest for a long time (as you'll see later in the Box). The transitional period between the old time technology and the virgining new fangled contraptions is incredible. The first ever Ford gas powered horseless carriage was introduced in 1896 and the New York Telephone Company was formed which ultimately has evolved into Verizon New York Inc. It must have been quite a time to live. I kind of feel like we can identify with those that lived then as we are experiencing a similar transitional period between the apex of non-digital 20th century technology and the nearly magical wonders that the digital age has and is continuing to bring us. At least for those of us that were alive in the 70's and 80's and got to experience the apex pre-digital era. I know there are quite a few YN's on the board that have probably grown up with digitization as the norm.

    The 1896 25¢ has a permanent place in the Box but I do hope to upgrade my current example when the right coin presents itself. That's not to say I don't like the current example because I do. That being said, it's not the perfect Barber quarter for the Box. I think the reverse is a solid 8 but the obverse makes a good argument for 6 in my opinion. Perhaps I'm off on that assessment as CAC blessed it with their bean but my gut says if I cracked it out and submitted it raw it'd be a 50/50 chance on getting a 6. Maybe I should call it a 7. One day I'd like to replace it with a coin of consistent grade on each side and a tad bit less circulated. Maybe something in the high Fine to low Very Fine rage.

    PCGS/CAC VG08

  • CatbertCatbert Posts: 7,119 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I like the type selection, but the scuff on the cheek makes this coin unworthy in my opinion. As you say, it's a placeholder. Enjoying watching your journey! :)

    Seated Half Society member #38
    "Got a flaming heart, can't get my fill"
  • GrantuGrantu Posts: 188 ✭✭✭

    This is quickly becoming one of my favorite threads. It’s like a history lesson and cool coins all in one story. Please keep it coming!

  • CatbertCatbert Posts: 7,119 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I like how many of the selections are well worn coins yet very eye appealing. Am very much enjoying your journey.

    Seated Half Society member #38
    "Got a flaming heart, can't get my fill"
  • semikeycollectorsemikeycollector Posts: 1,026 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @Cladiator said:
    Years ago I had an 1845 H10¢ that had the 5 altered to make the coin appear to be an 1846. The craftsmanship of the culprit was horrible at best, borderline laughable. I thought it would fill the void to have that fake but, to no surprise, it did not. I think I ultimately sold it here on the forum as a counterfeit.

    The 1846 H10¢ is the first coin in the Box that is truly a bucket list coin for me. I've fancied this issue since I first fell in love with all things half dime. It captured my fascination when I learned of it and it never let go. Could this coin have been in the pocket of the guy who rang the Liberty bell in '46 and broke it? I'd like to send this one to CAC one day as I do believe it is accurately graded. PCGS lists a mere 7 coin population in the grade with only 13 finer. NGC population is 7 in the grade with 15 finer. Assuming none of those are duplicates from cross overs and/or crack outs the numbers are still incredibly small. I feel privileged to have the opportunity to be the caretaker of this coin for a period in its life.

    PCGS XF45

    I love the originality and rarity of this coin! This one has me smiling from ear to ear! Super tough to find another one like this! I once had a VG of this date.

  • semikeycollectorsemikeycollector Posts: 1,026 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @Cladiator said:
    Along with the half dime posted earlier, the 1822 Dime is a bucket list coin for me. It worked it's way into my mind early on in my collecting adventure. I recall reading posts on this forum about it back in the early 2000's and being completely enamored by it. I dreamed of how neat it would be to have a roll of them lol. While I still think that would be an accomplishment I'm more than happy to just have this one piece. When this coin was made the country was just adding the 24th star on the flag to welcome Missouri as a state. The Florida Territory was also created this year by merging East Florida and West Florida, that sounds so crazy now lol.

    The goal with this coin was to get a wholesome, problem free, well circulated example that could tell a thousand stories if it could talk. It's got a couple attributes in the 15 range but many in the 12 range so I think it's solid for the grade. I hope to send this 201 year old work horse off to CAC at some point before they stop issuing stickers. PCGS lists 11 in the grade and NGC says 2 in "Fine" which puts it at a max F12 population of a whopping 13.

    PCGS F12

    Wholesome mid-grade 1822 dime! I love it for the same reasons as the 1846 Half Dime. You can go to a huge show and not find a coin like this.

  • rickoricko Posts: 98,724 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Continued, and outstanding progress. Very nice additions. Cheers, RickO

  • jayPemjayPem Posts: 4,077 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Love the 1815/2!
    Had that one in my sights last year also, it's a keeper!

  • semikeycollectorsemikeycollector Posts: 1,026 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Gorgeous! I thought it was in the Choice BU range! Love the mix of colors. The rust/red on the obverse is stunning!

  • Fugio1787Fugio1787 Posts: 55 ✭✭✭

    The wait is difficult with one gorgeous coin after another

  • CladiatorCladiator Posts: 18,041 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @Cladiator said:
    ...One day I'd like to replace it with a coin of consistent grade on each side and a tad bit less circulated. Maybe something in the high Fine to low Very Fine rage.

    Well this upgrade happened a bit sooner than I expected. Let me introduce you to the new 1896 S Barber 25¢ in the Box. I feel this coin is a solid upgrade in terms of amount of wear, overall condition and eye appeal from the old VG example detailed earlier in the thread.

    PCGS/CAC F15

  • Project NumismaticsProject Numismatics Posts: 1,470 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited May 30, 2023 1:42PM

    @Cladiator said:

    @Cladiator said:
    ...One day I'd like to replace it with a coin of consistent grade on each side and a tad bit less circulated. Maybe something in the high Fine to low Very Fine rage.

    Well this upgrade happened a bit sooner than I expected. Let me introduce you to the new 1896 S Barber 25¢ in the Box. I feel this coin is a solid upgrade in terms of amount of wear, overall condition and eye appeal from the old VG example detailed earlier in the thread.

    PCGS/CAC F15

    Love an original barber in F15. Great coin - congrats!

  • johnny010johnny010 Posts: 1,535 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Enjoying the history you’re adding for each acquisition. Looking forward to the continued ride here.

  • 124Spider124Spider Posts: 935 ✭✭✭✭✭

    You're making great progress!

  • jayPemjayPem Posts: 4,077 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Fantastique.

  • MeltdownMeltdown Posts: 8,789 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I'm loving the coins & descriptions... keep it up.

    Click on this link to see my ebay listings.

  • PeakRaritiesPeakRarities Posts: 3,700 ✭✭✭✭✭

    That’s one of those Morgans that can even be appreciated by Morgan haters, lol. Gorgeous coin!

    Founder- Peak Rarities
    Website
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  • matt_dacmatt_dac Posts: 961 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Box of 20 concept is how I decided to collect as well. I rather have fewer nicer examples than tons of ‘stuff’’.

    I found myself spilling over and sold a few to return to it. Ha

    Good luck and enjoy.

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