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Franklin Half Instructional Series #17: 1954P Half Dollar.
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Franklin Half Instructional Series #17: 1954P Half Dollar.
Continuing on this roll of Franklin frenzy here is the seventeenth installment of my instructional series on Franklin Halves. Hopefully those of you who are interested in Franklins will add your own observations and pictures. By the end of the series we should wind up with a pretty comprehensive study of the Franklin series, along with some nice pictures as well. And who knows, maybe some other folks will do the same for other series!
Sources for this series generally include “An Analysis of Gem Franklins” by Jack Ehrmantraut and “The Complete Guide for Franklin Halves” by Rick Tomaska – two books which I feel every serious Franklin collector should read
1954P
The year 1954 marks something of a last hoorah for Franklin collectors. After the previous poor quality year, it appears that the mint cleaned up it’s act for 1954 and offered one final year of P,D, and S minted coins. The 1954 Philadelphia issue, while not comparable to the late 40’s issues, is probably the best minted issue coming from the mother mint. With a mintage of 13,188,203, Philadelphia issued 1954 halves show fairly full details and handling marks are minimal. You’ll note my use of the word “fairly” in the description. This is because by 1954, the master die had worn significantly and even the best struck issues of this date, did not match the quality of 1948 or 49 coins. Luster on these coins tends to run average to above average with a few blazers known to exist. Toning tends to be of the rather brown/gray variety with very few vibrantly colored pieces known. Handling marks tend to be few, and a typical original roll may yield a couple MS64 or MS65 jewels and maybe even a couple of FBL coins. Brilliant coins can be found occasionally as well, though water spots can be a problem with some of the issue. Coins of this issue may also show significant die polish marks which can add an interesting look to the coins.
Current population numbers from PCGS read as follows:
MS63 and lower 182 in non FBL and 55 in FBL
MS64 - 741 in non FBL and 1685 in FBL
MS65 - 285 in non FBL and 624 in FBL
MS66 - 12 in non FBL and 38 in FBL
MS67 – 1 in non FBL
As the numbers reveal, coins in MS64FBL and below are rather common and can be had for $50 and below. MS65FBL coins are also fairly plentiful and I would opt for one of these at around $115-$125 as opposed to a non FBL coin. While MS65 coins would run between $40 and $50, they will not be as fully struck as other dates. About 20-30% of the mintage will have full bell lines, which given the mintage of over 13 million, makes the coin available without too much searching. MS66 coins are another matter. Because of the fact that the date is not as well defined as others, there haven’t been many coins graded at this level. A combination of a strike leaning to the weak side, luster that is less than spectacular, and equally lack luster color likely contribute to the low population. The price of MS66FBL’s generally runs between $1,500 and $1,900.
For more information on this date you can look the coin up in the Coinfacts page, which also sites significant sales appearances over the past few years. This information can be found HERE. I will continue to post the COINFACTS site for reference, but I am in no way promoting their products or services.
The 1954P half is a solid citizen of the FBL family. Collectors will be able to find gems of this date relatively readily, though you should hold out for a nice MS65FBL coin. This is one of the few coins that I would recommend in this grade rather than in lesser grades by virtue of the quality of the strike and color. Have fun collecting Frankies!
MS65FBL From The Birmingham Collection:
Continuing on this roll of Franklin frenzy here is the seventeenth installment of my instructional series on Franklin Halves. Hopefully those of you who are interested in Franklins will add your own observations and pictures. By the end of the series we should wind up with a pretty comprehensive study of the Franklin series, along with some nice pictures as well. And who knows, maybe some other folks will do the same for other series!
Sources for this series generally include “An Analysis of Gem Franklins” by Jack Ehrmantraut and “The Complete Guide for Franklin Halves” by Rick Tomaska – two books which I feel every serious Franklin collector should read
1954P
The year 1954 marks something of a last hoorah for Franklin collectors. After the previous poor quality year, it appears that the mint cleaned up it’s act for 1954 and offered one final year of P,D, and S minted coins. The 1954 Philadelphia issue, while not comparable to the late 40’s issues, is probably the best minted issue coming from the mother mint. With a mintage of 13,188,203, Philadelphia issued 1954 halves show fairly full details and handling marks are minimal. You’ll note my use of the word “fairly” in the description. This is because by 1954, the master die had worn significantly and even the best struck issues of this date, did not match the quality of 1948 or 49 coins. Luster on these coins tends to run average to above average with a few blazers known to exist. Toning tends to be of the rather brown/gray variety with very few vibrantly colored pieces known. Handling marks tend to be few, and a typical original roll may yield a couple MS64 or MS65 jewels and maybe even a couple of FBL coins. Brilliant coins can be found occasionally as well, though water spots can be a problem with some of the issue. Coins of this issue may also show significant die polish marks which can add an interesting look to the coins.
Current population numbers from PCGS read as follows:
MS63 and lower 182 in non FBL and 55 in FBL
MS64 - 741 in non FBL and 1685 in FBL
MS65 - 285 in non FBL and 624 in FBL
MS66 - 12 in non FBL and 38 in FBL
MS67 – 1 in non FBL
As the numbers reveal, coins in MS64FBL and below are rather common and can be had for $50 and below. MS65FBL coins are also fairly plentiful and I would opt for one of these at around $115-$125 as opposed to a non FBL coin. While MS65 coins would run between $40 and $50, they will not be as fully struck as other dates. About 20-30% of the mintage will have full bell lines, which given the mintage of over 13 million, makes the coin available without too much searching. MS66 coins are another matter. Because of the fact that the date is not as well defined as others, there haven’t been many coins graded at this level. A combination of a strike leaning to the weak side, luster that is less than spectacular, and equally lack luster color likely contribute to the low population. The price of MS66FBL’s generally runs between $1,500 and $1,900.
For more information on this date you can look the coin up in the Coinfacts page, which also sites significant sales appearances over the past few years. This information can be found HERE. I will continue to post the COINFACTS site for reference, but I am in no way promoting their products or services.
The 1954P half is a solid citizen of the FBL family. Collectors will be able to find gems of this date relatively readily, though you should hold out for a nice MS65FBL coin. This is one of the few coins that I would recommend in this grade rather than in lesser grades by virtue of the quality of the strike and color. Have fun collecting Frankies!
MS65FBL From The Birmingham Collection:
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