I Just Paid A Record Price For A 55(d) Quarter!
wondercoin
Posts: 16,974 ✭✭✭✭✭
My 55(d) quarter failed to upgrade. Bob Zurick's three 55(d) quarters failed to upgrade and Morris' 55(d) quarter failed to upgrade. OK, nothing new there.
My coin (which has nice light gold rim color) was formerly an NGC-MS67 that was crossed over to PCGS-MS66 years ago. It is a really cool coin. I also own a blast white coin (ex: myself, Ryan White, Registrycoin) which is my favorite 55(d). Bob's coins are neat, especially one of them. Morris' coin was neat, but also no real chance to upgrade. BUT, Morris' coin was very nice and higher end for the grade. So, I paid him $2,000 for it (although he did throw in a great dinner his treat at the next Long Beach show, which should set him back a few dollars)
So, why did I pay Morris $2,000 for a coin that routinely trades at $700-$1000. Simple - BUY THE COIN AND NOT THE HOLDER. Morris' coin was much nicer than the typical specimens that sell for $700 or so and is now the 3rd nicest piece I have ever owned (it is even possible Morris' coin is right up there with my 2nd favorite). The jump to PCGS-MS67 is probably to $10,000 (who knows - it would be pop 1 and at auction I would have to compete with several strong Wash quarter collectors).
IMHO, there is such a thing as a $2,000 1955(d) and Morris had it. Why should there only be $700 coins and $10,000 coins based upon the paper insert in the slab? That makes no sense - right? Where a coin is well above average, although not quite there for the next highest grade, IMHO, the coin deserves a price related to what it is and not a generic MS66 price of say $700. So, I happily paid Morris the $2,000 for his fully white jewel that cost him around $5 from the roll.
I believe in the years ahead coins such as wonderful high grade Wash quarters (as well as other great coins in all the other series) will trade at relatively unique prices based upon the coin's quality. Anyone who tries to "live by the price guide, may die by the price guide" and I say this in the best of spirits - do your homework and really master a particular series of coins and you will be light years ahead of the typical dealer who merely stocks them as one of many series they deal in. There are myriad little quirks in the Wash quarter series (e.g. this date in white, or that date in toned) where knowledge will go a long way in the years ahead.
Wondercoin
My coin (which has nice light gold rim color) was formerly an NGC-MS67 that was crossed over to PCGS-MS66 years ago. It is a really cool coin. I also own a blast white coin (ex: myself, Ryan White, Registrycoin) which is my favorite 55(d). Bob's coins are neat, especially one of them. Morris' coin was neat, but also no real chance to upgrade. BUT, Morris' coin was very nice and higher end for the grade. So, I paid him $2,000 for it (although he did throw in a great dinner his treat at the next Long Beach show, which should set him back a few dollars)
So, why did I pay Morris $2,000 for a coin that routinely trades at $700-$1000. Simple - BUY THE COIN AND NOT THE HOLDER. Morris' coin was much nicer than the typical specimens that sell for $700 or so and is now the 3rd nicest piece I have ever owned (it is even possible Morris' coin is right up there with my 2nd favorite). The jump to PCGS-MS67 is probably to $10,000 (who knows - it would be pop 1 and at auction I would have to compete with several strong Wash quarter collectors).
IMHO, there is such a thing as a $2,000 1955(d) and Morris had it. Why should there only be $700 coins and $10,000 coins based upon the paper insert in the slab? That makes no sense - right? Where a coin is well above average, although not quite there for the next highest grade, IMHO, the coin deserves a price related to what it is and not a generic MS66 price of say $700. So, I happily paid Morris the $2,000 for his fully white jewel that cost him around $5 from the roll.
I believe in the years ahead coins such as wonderful high grade Wash quarters (as well as other great coins in all the other series) will trade at relatively unique prices based upon the coin's quality. Anyone who tries to "live by the price guide, may die by the price guide" and I say this in the best of spirits - do your homework and really master a particular series of coins and you will be light years ahead of the typical dealer who merely stocks them as one of many series they deal in. There are myriad little quirks in the Wash quarter series (e.g. this date in white, or that date in toned) where knowledge will go a long way in the years ahead.
Wondercoin
Please visit my website at www.wondercoins.com and my ebay auctions under my user name www.wondercoin.com.
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Comments
The '55-D...what a coin it is for us Washington collectors! I agree with what you said regarding buying the coin and not the holder...we should always buy the coin first. As all of us Washington enthusiasts know, the '55-D in MS66 is a particularily tough date, but what's even tougher is to find one with good eye appeal. They are usually found to be unattractive. When some average looking pieces in 6 may sell for upwards of $700., then it's easy to understand why a PQ example in 6 might be worthy of selling for substancially more than that. Take the total pop. for the '55-D in MS66...how many of those 70+ coins have nice eye appeal? I'm willing to bet you can add them up will all of your fingers and toes! How often have some of us gone through dealer inventory looking to find a nice, raw, PQ example of this date, hoping to find that yet-to-be graded PCGS MS67 coin? We're usually disappointed. There just aren't many nice ones around, and if you do find one with decent eye appeal, I'm willing to bet it's probably not going to grade much better than MS64-65 because of some unsightly hits, usually on the cheek or in the fields. Tough, tough coin to find nice. And a very low pop. for such a late date in the series, too...nice coins are getting harder to find all the time.
You touched on another issue here with which I fully agree on...learn the series you collect, find out all there is to know (we never stop learning though!) about your series. Get reference book, talk to specialists of the series, consume and learn! Educating yourself as best you can about a particular series can give you a big advantage over the novice collectors...and when someone else thinks a coin may be overpriced, you may see it as a bargain, if you know what to look for. Good points regarding trying to learn which dates are tough to find all white, nicely toned, well-struck, weakly struck, etc., etc. A good example of a couple of coins which fall into this category in the Washington series are the 1941-D and the 1946-P. In grades of MS65 or higher, the 1941-D is an extremely tough coin to find which is white and/or attractive. Most examples that can be found for this date are usually unattractive, dull, or to put it simply, just plain ugly! Finding one which is attractive and has a good strike is a chore in itself...and even tougher to find a high-grade example with these attributes! CU price guide lists this date at $230. in MS66...a "basement bargain" price, which is, in my opinion, still way too low! Good luck getting one at this price that is attractive! Another date I mentioned is the '46-P in MS66. Here's another date that is extemely tough to find all white, but yet even tougher to find with attractive toning. I recently picked up a very nicely toned piece at full the full CU retail price of $175. To me, I considered it a bargain, as this is another piece which I feel is undervalued, considering how tough it is to find with pretty toning. The more we can learn today about the series we collect, the better off we will be when looking for a particular coin.
Happy Hunting!
Tom Schiera
Amen to the last paragraph in particular.
Dick
This seems to be a date that's just screamin' for a decimal point in the grade!
I still have that blast-white MS65.95 that I got from you about two years ago. I remember asking myself if I was nuts to pay as much as I did at the time. Thanks for helping me feel a little saner! Perhaps some day I can make it a 66!
Also, they seem to be particularly tough on white ones, as if toning erases hits and scratches.
Anyone lookin' for an MS65.5 Blast-White Beauty, there just happens to be one here.
Don
'55-D's and
Yes, I have been told that several dozen 55(d) coins in the pop report are really crack out coins, which could bring the true pop to around or under 50 coins. I can not swear to this, but, it makes sense to me.
I had lunch with a board member today and I was asked what a 55(d) quarter in PCGS-MS67 would be worth today. Of course, I told him I had no idea - somewhere above "5 figures" I suspect. If low end 55(d) quarters are worth $500 or so and low end 55(d) quarters in MS67 are worth "five figures", then what is a solid 66+ coin really worth? Why is there no such thing as a $2000 55(d) or a $3000 55(d) or a $6,000 55(d) quarter? Isn't is a bit silly to have $700 coins and $10,000+ coins and nothing in between?
With Wash. quarters, it really has been "black or white" to some extent for most of the time. I really do believe this is changing and that serious collectors will welcome the special coins being priced uniquely for the coin they are. And, heck, I got a super dinner out of it too with Morris for my $2,000 - hey Morris - I love to drink Dom
I have to agree with those who mention the difficult dates from the 1940's: the '41-D, '45-P, '46-P, and '49-P (not mint set toned), but I would add the '42-P to the list.
In the 1960's, I believe the population reports accurately reflect the scarcity of the '61-D and '62-D in MS66. However, the '62-D's that I've seen have had fewer ticks and better luster than the '61-D's, so I think a truly nice-looking '61-D is by far the hardest silver quarter from that decade.
I'd like to see PCGS use a system to differentiate high-end from low-end MS66 or better silver Washingtons. I don't think a breakdown by tenths of a point is the answer, but I'm in favor of a "+" or "-" for the extremes within a numerical grade.
Jim