$5 Liberty Gold - who are the experienced collectors?

ARCO

I have come to really appreciate the $5 Liberty Head series. There doesn't seem to be much information out there concerning the series. Who on these boards Seriously collects the series, or who are the most experienced / experts on this series here on the boards?

Thanks y'all.

Tyler

RYK

I have purchased a coin or two over the years.

mvs7

As have I.

Looking for information when you are starting out is hard, but if you are persistent, you can piece things together from David Akers' United States Gold Coins Half Eagles 1795-1929 (Volume IV), Q. David Bowers' United States Gold Coins: An Illustrated History, Garrett & Guth's Encyclopedia of U.S Gold Coins 1795 - 1933, and Doug Winter's books on C, D, O, and CC gold; as well as online sources such as PCGS CoinFacts. Talking to some of the dealers that focus on gold is definitely recommended, too.

Good luck! Half eagles were my first foray into gold coins before I moved to specialize in gold from San Francisco.

darktone

I collect them too. Or I should say I used to. I still have a few nice ones. What areas are you collecting?

s4ny

Douglas Winter Numismatics (often has a banner ad on this site) has archived
articles, many of which discuss $5 Libs.

RYK

There are many great subsets of Liberty $5's. In addition to the obvious, like the individual branch mint sets and No Motto or Motto subsets, a good starter challenge is to collect one coin from each of the seven mints (see my sig line below). I also like the No Motto Philly subset, the 1840's, Civil War years, and 1900-1908 subsets, depending on your taste and budget.

Boosibri

Fair amount of experience here and happy to help.

s4ny

The premiums have really deflated on the common dates. There are at least 30 different year/mints that
you can buy in PCGS MS62 for a net cost of around $450 or less.

RYK

I have not shown this set much, but it was fun to assemble, and some of the dates are tougher than you might think to acquire.

1900-1908 set

TwoSides2aCoin

I like collecting, buying, studying, grading, submitting, listing, trading… and if I say another word, someone may accuse me of spamming.

I like to think I know a thing or two about getting screwed.

mvs7

There is also the Date Set, which is a manageable-sized collection that allows you to explore some of the fun subsets mentioned above for different eras, while also avoiding some really rare date/MM combinations. Some dates, such as the Civil War-era ones, are still going to be a challenge regardless of mint.

RYK

<< <i>There is also the Date Set, which is a manageable-sized collection that allows you to explore some of the fun subsets mentioned above for different eras, while also avoiding some really rare date/MM combinations. Some dates, such as the Civil War-era ones, are still going to be a challenge regardless of mint. >>


Very cool set and outstanding presentation and images. Well done.

Here's my latest $5 purchase. It ain't gonna win no beauty contest but...

Yorkshireman

<< <i>There are many great subsets of Liberty $5's. In addition to the obvious, like the individual branch mint sets and No Motto or Motto subsets, a good starter challenge is to collect one coin from each of the seven mints (see my sig line below). I also like the No Motto Philly subset, the 1840's, Civil War years, and 1900-1908 subsets, depending on your taste and budget. >>





I have been long thinking about starting a Civil War date type set. I admire your "dirty gold"!
Suggestions?

steveben

i collect them. you can take a look at my showcase here:

five bucks

i am still shaping this set into what i want it to be...so it's a work in progress. i plan to add some more mints, some territorials, and some more types beyond liberty.

i agree with RYK that a $5 liberty mint mark set is a great set to complete. i like it because all the major US mints are represented.

RYK

<< <i>i collect them. you can take a look at my showcase here:

five bucks

i am still shaping this set into what i want it to be...so it's a work in progress. i plan to add some more mints, some territorials, and some more types beyond liberty.

i agree with RYK that a $5 liberty mint mark set is a great set to complete. i like it because all the major US mints are represented. >>


Did someone say territorials?

RYK

<< <i>

<< <i>There are many great subsets of Liberty $5's. In addition to the obvious, like the individual branch mint sets and No Motto or Motto subsets, a good starter challenge is to collect one coin from each of the seven mints (see my sig line below). I also like the No Motto Philly subset, the 1840's, Civil War years, and 1900-1908 subsets, depending on your taste and budget. >>





I have been long thinking about starting a Civil War date type set. I admire your "dirty gold"!
Suggestions? >>


I am assuming that you are talking about gold coins, and there are a lot of great possibilities.

One relatively achievable set would be an 1861 type set ($1, $2.50, $3, $5, $10, and $20). Moving away from the 1861 Philly issues, things get more challenging to find and more expensive. I also like the S-mint $20's (1861-1865) as a starter set.

Yorkshireman

Thanks for the PM tips.
I would rather have the P mints anyway as those coins were minted closer to where "the action" was.

steveben

ryk said:



<< <i>
Did someone say territorials?

>>



yes!



hasn't arrived yet, but it's going in the set. yours could tell some stories i think!

mvs7 said:


<< <i>There is also the Date Set, which is a manageable-sized collection that allows you to explore some of the fun subsets mentioned above for different eras, while also avoiding some really rare date/MM combinations. Some dates, such as the Civil War-era ones, are still going to be a challenge regardless of mint. >>



your S mint sets are amazing, first off. and your 20th century $5 lib set...that's a great set for any $5 lib collector to attempt. nice work!

mvs7

<< <i>Here's my latest $5 purchase. It ain't gonna win no beauty contest but...

>>



Hey, cleaned or otherwise, it's still a 63-S! Nice find. I've found the 76-S and the Civil War S-Mint $5's to be pretty elusive. Unlike some who champion waiting (most of the time*) to find a nice XF40 or better coin, I'm willing to settle for lower grade examples of key dates given my budget. Those low grade ones, to me, best evoke the history behind the coin anyway... the coolness factor that these actually were heavily circulated in the old West was one of the main reasons I got into coin collecting. (My first coin was a heavily circulated 1954-S Franklin half pulled from my fourth-grade lunch money in 1978. I still have it.)

mvs7

<< <i>your S mint sets are amazing, first off. and your 20th century $5 lib set...that's a great set for any $5 lib collector to attempt. nice work! >>



Thanks! The S-Mint eagles and double eagles are going to kill me. I needed gold to stay at $600/oz for another decade or so... ;-)

SethChandler

I think the Five Libs are the set to go for in all of US Numismatics. All the diff mints. Its a great lifetime goal! There are so many great rare coins that could be had at very reasonable levels.

dagman100

All beautiful coins shared here - thank you.

A question - As I view (and drool) over some of the nice specimens, would it be improper to PM folks to see if they would have interest in selling? I am hesitant about "cold calling" a person. When viewing registry sets, is there a way to tell it an item might be up for sale (given the right price)?

Thanks

dagman100

I especially like the ability of going after a mint mark set for the Half Eagles. Great diversity.

Broadstruck

There is no single publication that I know of that's exclusive to $5 liberty Gold Half Eagles.

David Akers in 1975 published a series of volumes on United States Gold Coins and Volume IV covers Half Eagles from 1795-1929.
It is an analysis by date and mint, along with pricing info reflecting sales in 192 major auctions from 1921-1975.

Doug Winter has written volumes on all the Southern Gold which will cover each mints Half Eagles.

Your best bet for a lot of info on a budget would be to pick up a copy of the Encyclopedia of U.S. Gold Coins 1795-1933, Circulating, Proof, Commemorative, and Pattern Issues by Jeff Garrett and Ron Guth. I think this is in it's 3rd Edition printing, but you can save some dough and grab a 1st Edition.

There are a few specialized past auction catalogs that I would recommend the Bowers and Merena Harry Bass sale and the two Stack's Miles, Milas sales.

ARCO

Thanks all for responding. I have always loved the larger gold series; $5, $10 & $20. I have never ventured beyond common dates in lower MS / Higher AU grades - type coins so that I could hold a big chunk of gold in my hand.

Recently, I have decided that I really love the $5.00 gold. Also, with a little research, I have discovered that the $5.00 gold has some of the scarcest dates in all numismatics at prices that are selling at fractions of what similar coins sell for in other series, or what CC dates sell within the same series. Researching Heritage, in fact, there are actually dates with less than 100 known examples that have basically sold for a few multiples over common dates (coins are in lower F-XF grades). I think I counted on the PCGS population reports 37 or so such dates (less than a 100 known). Take out the higher priced CC dates and there are still over 30 dates to choose from. Of those 3 or 4 are real rarities and cannot be bought without a serious premium. That leaves 20-25 dates that can be had in the lower to AU grades at prices unseen in other series.

If those who responded do not mind, I would love to drop a line to certain posters for opinions as time permits.

Thanks again all.

Tyler

Boosibri

The No Motto $5's have been my series of expertise for the last 3 years or so. You can really go so many different ways with the series...
Here is my current collection of No Motto $5's