When will the general population start pulling EagleBacks™ from circulation?
Robb
Posts: 2,034 ✭
I broke a box of quarters yesterday. To my surprise, about half were EagleBacks™ with a handful of Bicentennials thrown in. When will the general population start pulling EagleBacks™ from circulation? It's been 10+ years since they've been minted with no return in sight- at least not for another 10 years. I would imagine that the economy in general would have to come back first as there are many who are cashing in piggy banks and the like.
RIP 0
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edges everyone would wake up and discover there weren't any nice specimens surviving
and everyone would be scrambling to gather up what's left. The introduction of minmt sets
changed this equation only very slightly since most of them are as far gone as EagleBacks
with shiny edges.
We're just reaching the point now where the very last of the 1998 quarters are loosing
their shiny edges. Every day now more collectors will pull out the shiny edged coins fully
expecting to see a states, territorial, or parks coin and be flabbergasted to see an old
EagleBack instead. So every day now it's likely more people will start pulling these out
and the mint will have to make more parks quarters to replace them. Of course the old-
er quarters won't stay out of circulation in most cases as collectors and hoarders contin-
ually prune the lower grade and more common issues from their collections and hoards.
<< <i>I have gotten a couple of 1965's just in the past couple of days from change. And I will turn around and put them back into commerce where they belong. >>
Other than varieties I doubt many people would save this date in less than a very nice XF.
That being said....it would be wise to purchase a few OBW rolls of 1998 quarters (if you can find them...)
<< <i>They will never be pulled from circulation. >>
Never say never, eventually the metal in them will be worth more than the face value - as the dollar continues it's slide into worthlessness. If they do in fact institute a composition change in the cent and nickel, they might just as well make the dime and quarter out of stainless steel.
<< <i>They will never be pulled from circulation. The collector base for quarters is too small, the preception of value (other than twenty five cents) is not there.....and a jar of quarters is a LOT of money for most people.
That being said....it would be wise to purchase a few OBW rolls of 1998 quarters (if you can find them...) >>
I agree that they'll last until the government removes them to be replaced
with some other coin but don't forget they are disappearing at the rate of
nearly 3% annually. Just since 1999 we've lost more than a quarter of what
were circulating at that time. This doesn't include the effect of collectors who
have probably removed another 1% of what is circulating now. These coins
are being replaced by later dates.
This process will continue and even increase somewhat. The rate of loss to
attrition will increase only marginally as they become more worn and easier
to lose and as they lose value and are less valuable to chase down.
As an aside I saw an old "Naked City" episode the other night about big city
"fishermen". These guys weren't angling for swimming things but for the
coins that people lost in the grates and sewers. You sure can't make a liv-
ing fishing quarters out of grates now days so they simply get swept away.
In addition to the continuing loss there will be increased drawdown by col-
lectors and the general public. It's not obvious at the current time because
of the recession but there are actually more new quarters than old EagleBacks
in circulation now. It's about 53/ 47 but a disproportionate number of new
coins are in storage. When the economy recovers not only will all these
come pouring out but new miontages will be new quarters will be of new
designs as well. Figure in 3% more attrition and ten million more new coins
and it will be about 62/ 38 without collectors pulling out any more EagleBacks.
Even a little public hoarding would make it 65/ 35.
I think what we're headed for is a similar situation as the Barber coins except
the culls and heavily worn coins will be removed and melted by the government.
This will mean a substantial number of EagleBacks surviving with the vast ma-
jority being in VG/ F for the early dates and VF/ XF for the later ones. This will
be somewhere on the order of a billion coins but there will continue to be high
attrition on the lower grades since they will not have a premium.
If inflation doesn't wipe them out first I'd expect about 15% EagleBacks in 20
years with the bulk of them being culls and badly worn. Anything decent will
stand out and someone will grab it. Of course the worst coins will continue to
find their way back into pocket change as new collectors upgrade.
In short (yeah right) I do believe the generalm public will start hoarding these
at some point. But just like wheat cents they will have a tendency to filter back
and forth, in and out of circulation.
1995 quarters are probably going to prove to be the last tough EagleBack in
Uncirculated condition. Almost any date might be a winner in nice condition or
even nice circulated condition.
Cent's are easier to save, they're barely worth spending.
<< <i>I've put a few nicer ones aside then needed change and spent them.
Cent's are easier to save, they're barely worth spending.
This is exactly what we're seeing right now and started back in '99.
People are not hoarding EagleBacks now but wait four or five years when they are only one third of the coins in circulation.