Options
$5 Liberty Head Gold. Any Tips?
AusLincolns
Posts: 41 ✭✭
Looking to branch into Liberty Head $5 Half Eagles. I was wondering if the more experienced collectors out there have any tips for the beginner?
0
Comments
here are some tips:
look at lots of them before you buy any.
read some books or coinfacts about them to get ideas on population sizes, dates, mint marks, mintages etc.
learn how to grade them.
figure out a collecting goal for them. maybe you want key dates or a mint mark set.
have fun.
Thanks
Well...my first and still primary interest in numismatics is No Motto Half Eagles. I would say that you have a few things to consider....
Where do you want to focus: a particular mint, a particular decade, under-valued dates, coins with a certain look
Get to understand what the issues SHOULD look like, not what 95% of then DO look like. Not to start off another CAC thread but I would strongly advise you to stick with CAC certified coins especially when you are first starting out.
As I started out I focused on under-valued issues, the 1841, 1842, 1850, 1858-1860 Philly Issues, many of the New Orleans coins 1842-O, 1847-O, 1855-O-1857-O, SF 1858-S - 1860-S, Dahlonega 1842-D Large Date Large Letters, 1855-D.
Coins with completely original surfaces are very hard to find and I would suggest getting to know the look of those issues as a primary focus. It wasn't until I saw what coins could look like (rather than what the majority of coins currently on the market look like), that I refined my collecting focus.
Latin American Collection
Thanks for the great advice! I think aiming for CAC certified coins would be a great way to go.
How often do they come up in the under-valued dates that you mention? Thanks for the great head start very much appreciated.
I contributed to an article with Greg Reynolds and wrote an article with Doug winter which you can probably Google "Undervalued Half Eagles". Here is a link to the Greg Reynolds article: coinweek.com/expert-columns/greg-reynolds-classic-rarities/rare-gold-coins-5000-part-9-no-motto-liberty-head-5-gold-half-eagles/
Latin American Collection
@AusLincolns.... Welcome aboard and best of luck in your quest... great advice above. Let us know how you progress.... Cheers, RickO
One build to what I previously said.... many collectors focus on learning how to grade. That is important but I frankly think it is secondary to learning the right look. The grading services and CAC do a pretty good job on grading all complaining aside. Where the real opportunity comes is in finding original high quality pieces for any grade with the right look and color for the issue across all grades, which can vary widely year to year and mint to mint. This is where I would focus first and foremost and it will support you in building a high quality collection.
Latin American Collection
$5 Libs are a very long series. Start by biting off a piece that is manageable, maybe something that is less expensive but still interesting, like Philadelphia No Motto issues of the 1840's. Once you get your feet wet, considering branch(mint)ing into other subseries, if you are not sufficiently challenged and the interest is still there.
Starting any long series of coins can be a challenge, particularly because of the potential for burnout. One option, aside from RYK's suggestion, is to collect one coin struck at Philadelphia and at each branch mint (Denver, S, CC, O, C, Dahlonega). Then pick up a few distinctive Redbook varieties (e.g., 1840 Broad Mill, an overdate), a Civil War-era coin, etc. This would leave you with a short set in case you don't have the appetite for going further.
RMR: 'Wer, wenn ich schriee, hörte mich denn aus der Engel Ordnungen?'
CJ: 'No one!' [Ain't no angels in the coin biz]
if you jump right in buying...then yes. but, i still suggest looking at many of them (cac and not) until you get a good feel for which ones have the "right" look...BEFORE buying anything.
also...another suggestion for set building...decide on a grade range. perhaps xf or au gives you the eye appeal you like. or, maybe you want only ms pieces. either way, your collecting strategy will be different.
I like the 7 different mint set which is only possible with the gold Liberty $5 series. No other US type coin was made in all 7 US mints.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
Listen to RYK and Boosibri when it comes to these coins. They not only have knowledge in this field; they have lived it, as well. I'd also echo PerryHall in that this series offers a short type set, if you will, of one coin from each mint and it will provide a foot in the door for the series as well as a challenge. Good luck.
In honor of the memory of Cpl. Michael E. Thompson
Smart people chiming in on this thread. It's a nice series and you can find within it virtually any subset or grade range you can think of.
Personally, I have a hard time getting excited about a series if I delay my first purchase until I've read all the books. If you're a bit impatient, make sure that you at least understand pricing and quality enough to avoid stupid blunders. There's no harm in buying right and upgrading later, provided you understand the usual buy/sell spread. You can learn an awful lot about buying from paying attention to what happens when you sell coins.
here are some books:
any book by doug winter on branch mint gold (like charlotte, or dahlonega, etc.)
coin collectors survival manual by scott travers
united states gold coins volume IV half eagles 1795-1929 by david akers
grading coins by photographs by david q bowers.
" You can learn an awful lot about buying from paying attention to what happens when you sell coins."
Absolutely. The above comment is worthy of a thread all by itself.
RMR: 'Wer, wenn ich schriee, hörte mich denn aus der Engel Ordnungen?'
CJ: 'No one!' [Ain't no angels in the coin biz]
The $5 Liberty with the Motto is one of the most common gold type coins. You can get a really nice piece with the original surfaces that looks the same as the day it left the mint (+ perhaps a few minor marks) for $750 to $800 retail in MS-64. There are some nice MS-63 coins around as well. The best advice is shop carefully because the quality varies within the grades. Here is what I would call a high end MS-64.
No Motto $5 Liberty coins are nice, but really pricey in the higher Mint State grades. This 1852 currently resides in an NGC MS-61 holder.
Wow overwhelming responses! Thank you to everyone I can't wait to get started.
Start with a nice affordable common date AU58 graded by PCGS
Here are some coins in a variety of grades, all with the "right" look.
.jpg)
Latin American Collection
Great photos! I especially like the 1842!
Coin Club Benefit auctions ..... View the Lots
Thanks, it came from the great Ed Milas collection of No Motto $5's and previous to that was in Jimmy Hayes type set
Latin American Collection
Great pictures and teaching tool @Boosibri..... Cheers, RickO
The cool thing about this series is that each of those posted coins have between only 50-100 examples likely extant.
Latin American Collection
I'm still a newbie and haven't yet acquired the skill of the greats like RYK and Boosibri at determining that "look" from photos...I'm guessing I need to go to a few big shows and see a lot more coins in hand...determining grades and originality from photos is still hard for me...
In the short term I'd stick to PCGS/CAC graded coins and keep Boosibri's email address handy LOL...
Some great knowledge on these forums...thanks to everyone for sharing!!!
I totally agree!