How hard would a Barber Quarter set be?

wheatguy

I'm contemplating soon starting a set of Barber Quarters, in the F/VF/EF range. Has anyone completed this set, or have any knowledge on it?

DIMEMAN

In those grades most of the coins would be very cheap.......except for the big three.....which will still be very expensive.

Sunnywood

Well it's a little harder in MS66 with original color

But I actually really like the look of Barber coinage in the mid-range circulated grades. Sounds like a nice project. You'll have to pay up for the three keys if you want to complete the set, but the rest should be fun to track down, and very reasonable.

Best,
Sunnywood

DennisH

Good luck on the '01-S. Those are actually more available in Mint State than in VF-XF.

illini420

sure the big three will be expensive in those grades, but don't let that fool you into thinking the rest will be cheap in those grades, especially if you're more on the higher end of your range in EF/XF or so. many coins in those grades will be significantly higher than the prices guides such as the greysheet or even the PCGS Price Guide will lead you to believe.

Griv

All I can say is that the melting range is 1435ºF (779ºC.) (melting begins) to 1635ºF (891ºC.) (melting is complete).

My guess is that it's still pretty hard.

Bear

I would say,easier then the half dollar set.

Labelman87

Wheatguy: If you're thinking about an xf set, I believe you will find a challenge beyond the big three. Original pieces in BU are found more readily than xf's. (ie. 94-o, 98-o,99-s, 05-o&s, 07-s) It is a great set; good luck!

TomB

I have to disagree with Bear and state that a Barber quarter set in F-EF would be far tougher than a Barber half set in the same grade range. It took me five or six years, but I managed to complete a more or less original VF (some F, a few EF) Barber half set and the total expenditure on my 70+ coin set was less than it will cost to find and buy a problem-free, original 1901-S Barber quarter in F12. Don't kid yourself and think the quarters are easy. Beyond the obvious big three (1896-S, 1901-S and 1913-S) there are quite a few very tough coins that will take significant time, patience and resources to obtain. If you are willing to buy many horrible coins then you can do this set in a relatively short time with enough funds that you could put down a decent deposit on a nice house, but if you want terrific coins for the grade then this is a long term, expensive set.

shorecoll

I had a friend who built the set in 63 except for 01-s...he kept waiting and waiting and waiting and now he'd have to sell his house to buy one.

BillJones

I have to disagree with the bear also. Years ago I could have bought the Barber half set in Good (and the coins were all really nice Good grade coins with no problems) for $850. Today the Gray Sheet bid is $1,925 for the set. I've seen dealers ASKING over $5,000 for the 1901-S quarter in scudzy, raw Fair to Poor. The coin looked like a railroad train had run over it.

The Barber quarter set is a BEAR ... no pun intended.

ModCrewman

<< <i>All I can say is that the melting range is 1435ºF (779ºC.) (melting begins) to 1635ºF (891ºC.) (melting is complete).

My guess is that it's still pretty hard. >>


I just have to add...I think that's a very funny reply.

DIMEMAN

Sorry Bear, but I have to agree with the others. The Quarters are much harder than the halves and the dimes are the easyest(sp) of the three. That's good for me.

wheatguy

Thanks everyone. The Big Three definitely would be difficult but in the long run I think I'll be able to afford them, and because of the other coins you guys mentioned that are very hard to find in the F/Vf range, maybe I'll stick to a VG set, even hough that'll still be extremely difficult. I've always liked he look of original Barber Halves and Quarters, that's what prompted me into considering the set.

doh

<< <i>I have to disagree with Bear and state that a Barber quarter set in F-EF would be far tougher than a Barber half set in the same grade range. It took me five or six years, but I managed to complete a more or less original VF (some F, a few EF) Barber half set and the total expenditure on my 70+ coin set was less than it will cost to find and buy a problem-free, original 1901-S Barber quarter in F12. Don't kid yourself and think the quarters are easy. Beyond the obvious big three (1896-S, 1901-S and 1913-S) there are quite a few very tough coins that will take significant time, patience and resources to obtain. If you are willing to buy many horrible coins then you can do this set in a relatively short time with enough funds that you could put down a decent deposit on a nice house, but if you want terrific coins for the grade then this is a long term, expensive set. >>



What he said.

MFH

<< <i>I had a friend who built the set in 63 except for 01-s...he kept waiting and waiting and waiting and now he'd have to sell his house to buy one. >>



Tell yor friend that HLRC has one in PCGS 63 for just shy of $50K.
He could take out a second mortgage - or borrow on his 401K.

Assembling a set of Barber Quarters in VF-XF is far more difficult
than assembling a Half set. My good friend Dave Batterberry [ Dave99B ]
has been working on his set for years and there are more sleepers in
that set than most people realize.

I think having a minimum grade of VG 10 would give you a very accecptable
looking collection and cap it off at XF 40 for the common dates.

Good luck - and let us know if you have any stumbling blocks that we can
help you locate. ie: 1909-O in VF...really - really tough coin !!

Dave99B

Wheatguy, I know it's been six years or so, but if you are still interested, I say go for it! It's a challenge, but a heck of a lot of fun.

I'm down to two dates (yes, the 01-s is one of them). My set is all PCGS VF20-35; all original, dirty examples, just the way I like them. Started in 1987, after reading an article in COINage about how easy the set was (other than the keys). It's been almost 30 years, but I'm very picky.

Many dates/mm examples are crazy difficult, if you demand strict undipped originality. It's not really about money. It's about the search. But they are out there, if you dig hard!

Enjoy,
Dave

roadrunner

I'd be very happy to complete this set in VF-XF and not include the big 3. The most potential and fun of the chase is in all those other dates. A lot of those "non-key" O and S mints in VF-AU will run close to $500-$1,500 a pop. And there's more than a few of them. If this set was hard in 2010, it's mega-hard today. Easiest way to do it is to be able to buy a set intact (and let them keep the three S-mint keys).



A Barber half dollar set in VF-XF is no slouch either, especially if you demand fully original, eye-appealing coins that are problem free.

JeffMTampa

I started my Barber Half Set in fear of the Big 3 Quarters. The Half set is far from easy in VF to XF, but there are no show stoppers. Still, a nice half set will take many years and a lot of hunting to complete.



Once you cath the bug for AU 58 Barber Halves, however, there are quite a few show stoppers. People need to die to obtain the missing coins. That's where my journey has taken me......

oih82w8

Focus on one really nice for a Type Set!



I have really never understood the reasoning behind a whole set of anything, unless the design, other than the date & mm, changes.



Whatever makes YOU happy!

MFH

Originally posted by: JeffMTampa
I started my Barber Half Set in fear of the Big 3 Quarters. The Half set is far from easy in VF to XF, but there are no show stoppers. Still, a nice half set will take many years and a lot of hunting to complete.

Once you cath the bug for AU 58 Barber Halves, however, there are quite a few show stoppers. People need to die to obtain the missing coins. That's where my journey has taken me......

One of the reasons I have a pair of these now:




...and baby makes three....

grip

Gorgeous dogs. You wont find more loyal and loving dog. Had four of them
over a 40 yr. period.

JeffMTampa

Originally posted by: MFH

Originally posted by: JeffMTampa

I started my Barber Half Set in fear of the Big 3 Quarters. The Half set is far from easy in VF to XF, but there are no show stoppers. Still, a nice half set will take many years and a lot of hunting to complete.



Once you cath the bug for AU 58 Barber Halves, however, there are quite a few show stoppers. People need to die to obtain the missing coins. That's where my journey has taken me......

One of the reasons I have a pair of these now:









...and baby makes three....

Mike-



Are you bringing them to Nebraska or Georgia any time soon? There's a few 58's I need.......

TPRC

Hard--I'm doing it. Like a lot of things, I came to it by happenstance. I had an opportunity to purchase a complete low grade set, raw, a couple of years ago, so I did. There were a few higher graded coins in the group, but also lots of AGs and goods. The 01-s graded AG-3, the 96-s G-4 and the 13-s VG-8, with our hosts, as expected and as purchased. The rest of the coins are raw and I am trying to upgrade them to original XF-AU+, with some VFs, over time.

Most of the coins are out there, and can be found with very diligent searching, if you are willing to spend the money to purchase PCGS graded coins. But you will have to pay up. Nice raw coins are becoming harder and harder to find. I have been tying to buy original raw coins (at least for the common ones) at reasonable prices. It is a challenge and I've a long way to go. I have purchased fewer than 10 since I began and I still need to upgrade more than 40 coins in the set. I fear I will need to adjust my objectives soon. Obviously, I would like to upgrade the big 3, but those are substantial purchases.

I have often wondered whether I should simply step away and concentrate on a few individual pieces for type, as type is my interest anyway, but so far, I'm sticking with it.

jedm

It is 13 years and a day since I bought a 26 coin partial set of Barber Quarters for $75. I still have two of the original coins in my set and only need the 1901 S to complete. My set is very modest, not high grade. Most are VG- VG 10, with the common later dates into Fine and VF. The 96S is G4 and 13S is G6. I have had a great time looking for and finding well matched original looking examples. If they are interesting to you, go for it!

jcping

If you can't take holes in your collection(s), then buy the big three first and then decide whether you want to complete the collection later. If you don't mind a few holes in your collection, try to buy original surface ones when you see them.

It is nice to collection information first and learn what are sleepers and what are semi-keys. 09-O in VE-XF is always in demand. I found that 11-D is also hard to find with original EF surface. When these sleepers show in market, go after them right away. They might not show up every Blue Moon