New TONER Registry Set - 9 Months of Progress along with my inspiration.
keyman64
Posts: 15,521 ✭✭✭✭✭
When I was looking for a new niche to fill the collecting void, I knew a couple of things.
I needed a more economical niche, although it has not necessarily turned out that way.
I wanted to protect myself from the normal ups & downs of the coin market like I had
previously done with my Top Pop Mercury Dime Varieties...I was able to Cherrypick
many of them and Top Pops are always in demand by a select few. In this new venture
I wanted the ability to Cherrypick some coins and just plain buy them right when I could
so that I would not be too worried about it when I "NEEDED" to bury myself in others.
This creates a nice balance and I am never worried about what I might end up selling these
things for one day. For the most part, I have been successful thankfully.
I wanted a new niche and I think I have found it. Around May/June of 2015, I started to
test the waters of the toner market. I do not have the funds to go after MONSTER TONERS
of say the Morgan Dollar series, Mercury Dime series, etc. But, I can appreciate them. I
even own a nice reverse toned Morgan. I have owned a couple of nicely toned Mercury
Dimes but never a monster as they are cost prohibitive in most cases.
I found myself inspired by AuroraBorealis and thought it would be cool if I could do something
like that but for another more economical series. I learned about what WingedLiberty1957,
Robec and lasvegasteddy had accomplished with more modern coins like toned proof
Lincolns, Jeffersons, SMS etc. Some of their accomplishments are nothing short of amazing
when it comes to the collections of toners they have assembled. This was a cool direction
to explore. The Lincoln series had already been done, seemed too long, a little too popular
and expensive with earlier dates. Just doing Jefferson nickels was not going to bring the
level of satisfaction that I desired. I wanted something a little different. Something that
had a beginning and an end...so Roosevelt dimes were certainly out. Lol, the never ending
series. I could have just focused on silver Roosevelts but that too had been done.
I decided to build a 100% TONED 1950-1964 Proof Set with all denominations. I looked
through the registry and saw that no one else was doing this. Through my conversations
with dealers at shows, I kept hearing that they had not heard of anyone doing this either
and some of them even thought it was a neat idea. A few of those that inspired this set
also had positive things to say. There you have it, a new direction for my collection had
been selected. Another thing about this set was that it was NOT going to be all about
the grade on the label. It was just going to be about the color/eye appeal. This has the
bonus of me not having to go after expensive Top Pops, CAMs or DCAMs. Granted, high
grades are nice but they are not the primary focus.
At Summer FUN 2015, I picked up what would be my first real addition to
this set, a toned 1955 PR 5c. It was in an NGC holder but I later crossed it. I also decided
that I wanted to get True Views taken of everything so that the set had consistent photos,
even though I am capable of taking photos. I did not want some True Views, some shot
through a slab, some shot raw etc...Consistency in the presentation was important to me.
Well, now that approximately 9 months have passed, I have learned A LOT, made new
friends and I have lot of people to thank for my progress so far. I have been able to
acquire extras from some of the folks named above and then I have my friend Darren to
thank as well. Then there are the other forum members that have been a great help,
especially when they have reached out to me to either point me towards something or
when they had something that might fit my set. Without wanting to name everyone, I still
wish to thank you very much!
What have the last 9 months taught me? It's taught me that I have a looooong way to
go. The set is currently 46+% complete but with things I have raw or ready to cross, the
set is really just over 50%. I think that's a pretty good milestone for a 75 coin registry set.
I have some coins that do need to be upgraded in the realms of grade and or color. That
is just part of the adventure I guess. I have also learned that this set might be nearly
impossible to complete...or might take many many years to find the right examples. Why?
The darn half dollars are NOT easy and I need to find 15 different dates!!! I have seen a
few magnificent examples that are in strong hands but that seems to be about it. Not
having the bank account to wrestle some of these away from their proud owners doesn't
exactly help either.
This week, my friend WingedLiberty1957 decided he liked my humble beginnings with the
Toned 1950-1964 proof set and wanted to see how much of the set he could complete.
Since he had a lot of each of the denominations, he filled holes and then filled some more
holes in the set and you guessed it, passed me up in the completion percentage and
rankings! That's okay, it will only add to the enjoyment and he now has a target
on his back.
Even if we are able to get the set to 100% completion, due to the nature
of the set that is focused on color/eye appeal, not top pops, just cracking into the Top 30
would be a major accomplishment at this point. Getting to the Top 20 will be nearly
impossible. This gets me thinking that it would be neat if PCGS had a TONED registry set
area where the grade was actually secondary to color/eye appeal. Hmmm, maybe I will
have to type up a different thread for that.
If you saw my thread from yesterday, you saw some of my raw stuff. The 1953 quarter
might replace the quarter that is in my set. The first 1956 dime might get added to my set.
I will likely try my hand at getting the nickels graded as well. I also have a 1951 10c in
NGC PR68 CAC that is a fantastic obverse toner and it will get crossed soon. I can't wait!
Even more, I can't wait for the True View! One additional observation is that although I
have 35 slots of the registry filled so far, no one year is yet complete. A couple are
getting close but just not yet.
Clearly, there are too many words in this post and not enough of the pretty pictures. I
apologize for that and will try to fix that now...
1950-1964 PROOF SET: KEYMAN64'S TONED PROOFS W/TRUE VIEWS
I needed a more economical niche, although it has not necessarily turned out that way.
I wanted to protect myself from the normal ups & downs of the coin market like I had
previously done with my Top Pop Mercury Dime Varieties...I was able to Cherrypick
many of them and Top Pops are always in demand by a select few. In this new venture
I wanted the ability to Cherrypick some coins and just plain buy them right when I could
so that I would not be too worried about it when I "NEEDED" to bury myself in others.
This creates a nice balance and I am never worried about what I might end up selling these
things for one day. For the most part, I have been successful thankfully.
I wanted a new niche and I think I have found it. Around May/June of 2015, I started to
test the waters of the toner market. I do not have the funds to go after MONSTER TONERS
of say the Morgan Dollar series, Mercury Dime series, etc. But, I can appreciate them. I
even own a nice reverse toned Morgan. I have owned a couple of nicely toned Mercury
Dimes but never a monster as they are cost prohibitive in most cases.
I found myself inspired by AuroraBorealis and thought it would be cool if I could do something
like that but for another more economical series. I learned about what WingedLiberty1957,
Robec and lasvegasteddy had accomplished with more modern coins like toned proof
Lincolns, Jeffersons, SMS etc. Some of their accomplishments are nothing short of amazing
when it comes to the collections of toners they have assembled. This was a cool direction
to explore. The Lincoln series had already been done, seemed too long, a little too popular
and expensive with earlier dates. Just doing Jefferson nickels was not going to bring the
level of satisfaction that I desired. I wanted something a little different. Something that
had a beginning and an end...so Roosevelt dimes were certainly out. Lol, the never ending
series. I could have just focused on silver Roosevelts but that too had been done.
I decided to build a 100% TONED 1950-1964 Proof Set with all denominations. I looked
through the registry and saw that no one else was doing this. Through my conversations
with dealers at shows, I kept hearing that they had not heard of anyone doing this either
and some of them even thought it was a neat idea. A few of those that inspired this set
also had positive things to say. There you have it, a new direction for my collection had
been selected. Another thing about this set was that it was NOT going to be all about
the grade on the label. It was just going to be about the color/eye appeal. This has the
bonus of me not having to go after expensive Top Pops, CAMs or DCAMs. Granted, high
grades are nice but they are not the primary focus.
At Summer FUN 2015, I picked up what would be my first real addition to
this set, a toned 1955 PR 5c. It was in an NGC holder but I later crossed it. I also decided
that I wanted to get True Views taken of everything so that the set had consistent photos,
even though I am capable of taking photos. I did not want some True Views, some shot
through a slab, some shot raw etc...Consistency in the presentation was important to me.
Well, now that approximately 9 months have passed, I have learned A LOT, made new
friends and I have lot of people to thank for my progress so far. I have been able to
acquire extras from some of the folks named above and then I have my friend Darren to
thank as well. Then there are the other forum members that have been a great help,
especially when they have reached out to me to either point me towards something or
when they had something that might fit my set. Without wanting to name everyone, I still
wish to thank you very much!
What have the last 9 months taught me? It's taught me that I have a looooong way to
go. The set is currently 46+% complete but with things I have raw or ready to cross, the
set is really just over 50%. I think that's a pretty good milestone for a 75 coin registry set.
I have some coins that do need to be upgraded in the realms of grade and or color. That
is just part of the adventure I guess. I have also learned that this set might be nearly
impossible to complete...or might take many many years to find the right examples. Why?
The darn half dollars are NOT easy and I need to find 15 different dates!!! I have seen a
few magnificent examples that are in strong hands but that seems to be about it. Not
having the bank account to wrestle some of these away from their proud owners doesn't
exactly help either.
This week, my friend WingedLiberty1957 decided he liked my humble beginnings with the
Toned 1950-1964 proof set and wanted to see how much of the set he could complete.
Since he had a lot of each of the denominations, he filled holes and then filled some more
holes in the set and you guessed it, passed me up in the completion percentage and
rankings!
That's okay, it will only add to the enjoyment and he now has a targeton his back.
Even if we are able to get the set to 100% completion, due to the natureof the set that is focused on color/eye appeal, not top pops, just cracking into the Top 30
would be a major accomplishment at this point. Getting to the Top 20 will be nearly
impossible. This gets me thinking that it would be neat if PCGS had a TONED registry set
area where the grade was actually secondary to color/eye appeal. Hmmm, maybe I will
have to type up a different thread for that.
If you saw my thread from yesterday, you saw some of my raw stuff. The 1953 quarter
might replace the quarter that is in my set. The first 1956 dime might get added to my set.
I will likely try my hand at getting the nickels graded as well. I also have a 1951 10c in
NGC PR68 CAC that is a fantastic obverse toner and it will get crossed soon. I can't wait!
Even more, I can't wait for the True View! One additional observation is that although I
have 35 slots of the registry filled so far, no one year is yet complete. A couple are
getting close but just not yet.
Clearly, there are too many words in this post and not enough of the pretty pictures. I
apologize for that and will try to fix that now...
1950-1964 PROOF SET: KEYMAN64'S TONED PROOFS W/TRUE VIEWS
"If it's not fun, it's not worth it." - KeyMan64
Looking for Top Pop Mercury Dime Varieties & High Grade Mercury Dime Toners.
Looking for Top Pop Mercury Dime Varieties & High Grade Mercury Dime Toners.
0
Comments
mark
Fellas, leave the tight pants to the ladies. If I can count the coins in your pockets you better use them to call a tailor. Stay thirsty my friends......
RMR: 'Wer, wenn ich schriee, hörte mich denn aus der Engel Ordnungen?'
CJ: 'No one!' [Ain't no angels in the coin biz]
It definitely won't be an easy set to complete. It will be and is, a beautiful thing to look at.
Finding a beautifully toned Franklin from those early years will be a real slowdown, which you already know. Budget and availability of eye appealing examples will make this a long term process.
The friendly competition between you and WL will keep you both going. I can see coins going back and forth between you. We've done the same thing with Lincoln's. I'll keep an eye out for both of you.
- Bob -
MPL's - Lincolns of Color
Central Valley Roosevelts
AB
ksuscott: I just googled free html counters and found one that would work. When you edit the top of your
registry set text, just put in the html img source code for the counter and that's it.
ricko: Thanks, you always seem to find a way to be positive, even when the direction of the collection is not your favorite.
robec: It sure is interesting how some coins make it around through so many hands. It can be a small world. It adds to the fun.
Looking for Top Pop Mercury Dime Varieties & High Grade Mercury Dime Toners.
then i saw you posted a link to your set
sweet set there and it's nice how the forum software strolls through like a like coin show
one tasty goal to set out upon too good luck in the travels there as you find those
tough to fill slots...start dropping off one by one
toners are an interesting path as certain ones can appeal to me that don't to others
then others that appeal to others...don't to me
i think that really plays into the uniqueness of toning sets
great read and sweet set thus far
Yours
Mine
My image looks a bit washed out though.
Check out my iPhone app SlabReader!
Looking for Top Pop Mercury Dime Varieties & High Grade Mercury Dime Toners.
U.S. Type Set
area where the grade was actually secondary to color."
keyman, WL and others use the Registry Showcase section to do just this. It's a wonderful venue only limited by your imagination. See links in my sig line. Shag
Good for you. Collecting coins should be a pleasant way to spend leisure time, not a hobby filled with grade-angst.
+1
Some great looking toners in there.
Good luck with The Hunt.
I like the idea that was offered above that pcgs add some new registry categories for toned only. I know they have a Toned for Showcase ... and "Colorless" for a few Lincoln and Indian Cent Registries, but many collectors that don't collect toned coins "horn in" on those "Colorless" registries to get high rankings. Most of the "Colorless" Registry sets (which in theory were designed for collectors or BN or RB copper) are actually "Colorless" (non Toned) RD coins ... LOL. I would like to see a Registry Category for JUST TONED coins and not allow non-toner collectors to sneak in on that to get higher rankings.
How about another change where pcgs adds points to your registry total for every coin you have listed that is TrueView photographed. Without photos a lot of of top sets are pointless to look at, with just some text on how high the grade was. Adding points for photos would encourage people to get their coins photographed. More money for pcgs and more eye candy available for those interested in numismatics. Displaying a Registry Set without photos just seems like a pointless endeavor to me. (JMHO)
My Coin Blog
My Toned Lincoln Registry Set
I'm jealous!
peacockcoins
Best of luck with it.
Mike
I love that 1959 25c.
Whatever your plan is - keep it up.
Excellent collection.
I think my next submission wil be a couple of crossovers
so hopefully I will have something worthy to share in a
couple of months...assuming they get blessed by PCGS.
Looking for Top Pop Mercury Dime Varieties & High Grade Mercury Dime Toners.
Fantastic group of coins with great eye appeal.
Keep up the good work.
I collect the cameo proofs, and have a few that have nice toning.
Kevin
Jeff
My Coin Blog
My Toned Lincoln Registry Set
The 59, 61, and 62 Quarters are also my favorites. They just explode off the page!
Great set Keyman64. I swear you've got to stay sharp when Wingedliberty gets in the game. After 20 years picking off colorful lincolns and amassing a collection of 136/140 pieces in the wheat cent series WL passed me and completed his set in about four days (or maybe a year
If you like pedigree, I picked your 59' quarter off raw about a year ago and was struck by how unusual it was, even was surprised it straight graded first time.
Thanks for sharing
I like the 1952, 1957 and 1963 nickels, the 1959 and 1961 cents, and the 1959 and 1962 quarters. The 1962 quarter has very vibrant color and is wonderful!
Thanks for posting your experiences and your set!
An authorized PCGS dealer, and a contributor to the Red Book.
I'm LOVING those Washies!!