The Lucy/Lucretia proofs are still available and largely ignored at the moment.
But if the mintages come in around 3500 each, I think they will bring a nice premium also. Collectors like proofs far more than burnished coins. For typical commems, proofs outsell uncircs by around a 3-1 margin during the initial ordering period.
It seems like if the mintage keeps lowering for the future spouses, some people with deep pockets can just corner the market of one of the spouses easily.
Lets see how much does it cost:
Say the total mintage is 2,200 and lets say you want to buy half of those.
$966 * 1,100 = $1,062,600 + shipping.
Melt value = 550oz * $1,620/oz = $891,000.
It could be interesting. >>
They would just make more and kill the collector value.
Gold and silver are valuable but wisdom is priceless.
It seems like if the mintage keeps lowering for the future spouses, some people with deep pockets can just corner the market of one of the spouses easily.
Lets see how much does it cost:
Say the total mintage is 2,200 and lets say you want to buy half of those.
$966 * 1,100 = $1,062,600 + shipping.
Melt value = 550oz * $1,620/oz = $891,000.
It could be interesting. >>
They would just make more and kill the collector value. >>
Say if the sell out happens in mid to late Dec or later for the 2012 issues, I don't think the Mint will have enough time to make more.
It seems like if the mintage keeps lowering for the future spouses, some people with deep pockets can just corner the market of one of the spouses easily.
Lets see how much does it cost:
Say the total mintage is 2,200 and lets say you want to buy half of those.
$966 * 1,100 = $1,062,600 + shipping.
Melt value = 550oz * $1,620/oz = $891,000.
It could be interesting. >>
They would just make more and kill the collector value. >>
Say if the sell out happens in mid to late Dec or later for the 2012 issues, I don't think the Mint will have enough time to make more. >>
Possible but would be a gamble with a lot of money. I guess if you were Donald Trump but somehow doesn't seem the kind of thing he would want to do. Maybe if you wanted to put that much away in gold it might be a fun way to do it.
Gold and silver are valuable but wisdom is priceless.
Could backfire. Collectors refusing to pay for a cornered gold spouse coin. Remember the 1995 W ASE Proof? Not a smilar situation, but a lot of angry collectors caused low sales.
Boy Chester A Arthur sure got shafted by the Mint. I did not realize that the Alice Paul coin does not even mention him. Then the Mint goes and does two Frances Cleveland coins on top of that when they could have put Paul on one of those. Go figure.
Gold and silver are valuable but wisdom is priceless.
"The US Mint's First Spouse, Coins That Represent Liberty From The Time Period If A President Wasn't Married and Suffrage Leader Alice Paul series." just doesn't have a good ring to it.
"I'll split the atom! I am the fifth dimension! I am the eighth wonder of the world!" -Gef the talking mongoose.
<< <i>2011 LUCRETIA GARFIELD 1/2 OZ GOLD UNC 1 $941.00 $941.00 1 unit backordered. Expected to ship on 08/26/2012. Date keeps getting pushed back, wouldn't be surprised if it's never shipped. >>
Yeah, mine, too. But the order status is "In Process"...
FWIW - I ordered mine Thursday morning at 6:15am, just before the price rise...
<< <i>Boy Chester A Arthur sure got shafted by the Mint. I did not realize that the Alice Paul coin does not even mention him. Then the Mint goes and does two Frances Cleveland coins on top of that when they could have put Paul on one of those. Go figure. >>
Did I miss something? Are they actually making these?
<< <i>Boy Chester A Arthur sure got shafted by the Mint. I did not realize that the Alice Paul coin does not even mention him. Then the Mint goes and does two Frances Cleveland coins on top of that when they could have put Paul on one of those. Go figure. >>
Did I miss something? Are they actually making these? >>
According to the Mint News Blog yesterday,
"There is still no word on the status of the 2012 First Spouse Gold Coins. The US Mint announced the design selections for the coins way back in April, but since then there has been no indication of the release date, maximum mintages, or other ordering details."
<< <i>Boy Chester A Arthur sure got shafted by the Mint. I did not realize that the Alice Paul coin does not even mention him. Then the Mint goes and does two Frances Cleveland coins on top of that when they could have put Paul on one of those. Go figure. >>
Did I miss something? Are they actually making these? >>
According to the Mint News Blog yesterday,
"There is still no word on the status of the 2012 First Spouse Gold Coins. The US Mint announced the design selections for the coins way back in April, but since then there has been no indication of the release date, maximum mintages, or other ordering details." >>
The Mint does that to us collectors from time to time. One of those end of the year things.
Gold and silver are valuable but wisdom is priceless.
The really interesting stuff happens when the Mint's gross mismanagement has ticked off so many collectors that a bunch of them throw up their hands and throw in the towel.
Q: Are You Printing Money? Bernanke: Not Literally
<< <i>The really interesting stuff happens when the Mint's gross mismanagement has ticked off so many collectors that a bunch of them throw up their hands and throw in the towel. >>
<< <i>2011 LUCRETIA GARFIELD 1/2 OZ GOLD UNC 1 $941.00 $941.00 1 unit backordered. Expected to ship on 08/26/2012. Date keeps getting pushed back, wouldn't be surprised if it's never shipped. >>
Yeah, mine, too. But the order status is "In Process"...
FWIW - I ordered mine Thursday morning at 6:15am, just before the price rise... >>
Order Date: 08/07/2012 at 03:13 PM for me, that is the Tuesday before. Still backordered.
<< <i>2011 LUCRETIA GARFIELD 1/2 OZ GOLD UNC 1 $941.00 $941.00 1 unit backordered. Expected to ship on 08/26/2012.
Date keeps getting pushed back, wouldn't be surprised if it's never shipped. >>
That has happened in the past. If phantom "backordered" coins are included in next week's sales total, the actual final mintage may be a bit lower than next week's number.
"United States Mint officials say striking problems with two of the four 2012 First Spouse gold coins have delayed striking and release of this year's coins. Officials cite problems in striking the Alice Paul and Frances Cleveland (first term) coins. Once the problems are resolved, production and sales of all four coins will begin before the end of 2012, according to the Mint."
If you understand what is coming, then you can duck. If not, then you get sucker-punched. - Martin Armstrong
"United States Mint officials say striking problems with two of the four 2012 First Spouse gold coins have delayed striking and release of this year's coins. Officials cite problems in striking the Alice Paul and Frances Cleveland (first term) coins. Once the problems are resolved, production and sales of all four coins will begin before the end of 2012, according to the Mint." >>
Fun. Maybe some error coins in the making. It does make me wonder what could be the problem. A small soft gold coin that has been made for 5 years already. I cannot imagine.
Gold and silver are valuable but wisdom is priceless.
I wonder if unc. mintages will be comparable to the 2011 Lucy/Lucretia, in the low 2000's. It might make sense from the Mint's perspective, since it took both coins around a year to sell out, and a year is the normal amount of time each First Spouse is on sale.
It will also be interesting to see whether the 2012 issues are released all at once or one at a time.
<< <i>I wonder if unc. mintages will be comparable to the 2011 Lucy/Lucretia, in the low 2000's. It might make sense from the Mint's perspective, since it took both coins around a year to sell out, and a year is the normal amount of time each First Spouse is on sale.
It will also be interesting to see whether the 2012 issues are released all at once or one at a time. >>
Maybe 2 at a time. The news mentioned the Paul and first Cleveland coin.
Gold and silver are valuable but wisdom is priceless.
<< <i>2011 LUCRETIA GARFIELD 1/2 OZ GOLD UNC 1 $941.00 $941.00 1 unit backordered. Expected to ship on 08/26/2012.
Date keeps getting pushed back, wouldn't be surprised if it's never shipped. >>
That has happened in the past. If phantom "backordered" coins are included in next week's sales total, the actual final mintage may be a bit lower than next week's number. >>
Based on the new numbers, we still have the 2008 W Unc platinum coin as the key, lowest minted modern, though Lucy is the lowest first Spouse and lowest minted gold coin. Wow, Lucretia went bats***. Maybe this will rekindle some interest in the series?
"I'll split the atom! I am the fifth dimension! I am the eighth wonder of the world!" -Gef the talking mongoose.
<< <i>Based on the new numbers, we still have the 2008 W Unc platinum coin as the key, lowest minted modern, though Lucy is the lowest first Spouse and lowest minted gold coin. Wow, Lucretia went bats***. Maybe this will rekindle some interest in the series? >>
I think it mainly rejuvenated speculator interest in these two particular coins.
2260 is still a deep hole for the Lucy Hayes unc coin and also that this coin was not hoarded in any amount should keep online inventory very low.
That Garfield unc coin has 525 coins hoarded by comparison and a higher sales, some will probably try to flip Garfield coins after receiving them.
These two coins have put the 2012 spouse on the radar screen now, it will be interesting to see how sales go for these 2012 unc coins this year. But Lucy unc is the new king it seems, anyone buying will be comparing to this coin.
I'm betting that the Lucy and Lucretia mintages are approximately equal at 2200 and change. Lucretia was in "backorder" much longer than Lucy, and during that time any orders coming in would probably be added to the order total that we saw on Tuesday.
My guess is that the Mint's order software automatically goes to "backorder" when inventory on hand runs out. There is then a lag time while additional inventory is requested. Once it is confirmed that there is no additional inventory, the "backorder" status is changed to "sold out", and most customers who ordered during the "backorder" period have their orders canceled. However, these canceled orders remain on the sales report, and are not backed out until months later when a significantly lower and more accurate "final mintage" is reported.
Overdate you could be right as we are talking about the mint. I think the backorder issue is a tough one as I have ordered many coins on backorder and got a lot of coins that way.
It seems that the only time a coin goes from backorder to sold out is when the mint wakes up in the morning and someone checks the inventory, then decides they are all out plus the additional orders they take over that amount and then they pull the plug on it sometime that day.
Then they wait a week or two to see if anyone returns any coins after sending out the last normal orders, send out replacements for those coins, add up all the remaining ones and then start filling backorders. The longest I got a backorder filled was about two months from order to shipping, but I think three months also happened with some of the 2008 gold buffalo.
I agree the Garfield numbers might be adjusted down next week, we will have to wait and see. It could also be they stay where they are until a final audit is done, there is no way to know.
I doubt the Lucy number change as that was done on very low ordering so not much chance for major errors we would hope.
With so many Lucretia coins sold in the last week I cannot help but think that there was a large buyer or two of these. I wonder if they will be returning some or all of the coins to the Mint when they find out that their speculation on Lucretia may not pan out like they hoped. Might we we Lucretia back on sale in a few weeks?
Gold and silver are valuable but wisdom is priceless.
<< <i>With so many Lucretia coins sold in the last week I cannot help but think that there was a large buyer or two of these. I wonder if they will be returning some or all of the coins to the Mint when they find out that their speculation on Lucretia may not pan out like they hoped. Might we we Lucretia back on sale in a few weeks? >>
Only if they actually receive the coins in the first place. If I'm right, only around half of the 525 ordered were actually available for sale, and the remainder of the orders will be canceled.
I agree with all of the observations that all of you guys just made.
I wonder what's going on in the minds of the decisionmakers at the Mint these days. With so many varied programs, they can't be paying too much attention to the sales strategies of the individual programs. I am thinking that in most areas, they are on autopilot.
Q: Are You Printing Money? Bernanke: Not Literally
<< <i>With so many Lucretia coins sold in the last week I cannot help but think that there was a large buyer or two of these. I wonder if they will be returning some or all of the coins to the Mint when they find out that their speculation on Lucretia may not pan out like they hoped. Might we we Lucretia back on sale in a few weeks? >>
Only if they actually receive the coins in the first place. If I'm right, only around half of the 525 ordered were actually available for sale, and the remainder of the orders will be canceled. >>
Yeah, they may have oversold these like airlines sometimes oversell seats to have buyers ready for cancelled orders. Makes sense.
Gold and silver are valuable but wisdom is priceless.
This week there was a lot of activity for the 2011 First Spouse Gold Coins following the unexpected sell out of the Lucy Hayes uncirculated coin, followed by the Lucretia Garfield uncirculated coin. The Lucy Hayes coin moved forward by 17 coins to 2,260, while the Lucretia Garfield moved forward by a hefty 525 coins to 2,498.
Guys - watch the sales figures closely, unfortunately they are just that ------"sales" not "mintage" or "net mintage" (after destroying damaged coins)
The problem with the way these numbers are reported is that even though we are very sure one or both of these issues should be "sold out" at around 2200 pieces, the one that jumped well beyond that number is probably a bad number and thus incorrect.
This happened with the 2008-W unc plats, specifically the 1/4 oz, where numbers had jumped well over 900+ coins beyond the final net mintage in the low 2000's.
For any flipper, this situation really bites. Because you dont wind up getting the "correct" number until the final audit (that could be 6 months to a year later) and by then all the "hoopla" about the issue has died. Not to mention possibly surpassed in rarity by the next "low mintage".
Word is around the Mint that the reason they're having problems striking the Alice Paul coins is because the ghostly form of Ellen Herndon Paul, Chester's first and only wife and love of his mortal life, keeps showing up on the mint floor and shrieking at workers preparing to strike the gold blanks that would eventually become Alice Paul coins.
Cries of "Who is that woman? Chester! Chester! Were you sleeping with her?" have been ringing through the production floor, scaring off most contractors and even the most seasoned employees.
This is probably how it's going down.
"I'll split the atom! I am the fifth dimension! I am the eighth wonder of the world!" -Gef the talking mongoose.
Comments
But if the mintages come in around 3500 each, I think they will bring a nice premium also. Collectors like proofs far more than burnished coins. For typical commems, proofs outsell uncircs by around a 3-1 margin during the initial ordering period.
<< <i>100
It seems like if the mintage keeps lowering for the future spouses, some people with deep pockets can just corner the market of one of the spouses easily.
Lets see how much does it cost:
Say the total mintage is 2,200 and lets say you want to buy half of those.
$966 * 1,100 = $1,062,600 + shipping.
Melt value = 550oz * $1,620/oz = $891,000.
It could be interesting. >>
They would just make more and kill the collector value.
<< <i>
<< <i>100
It seems like if the mintage keeps lowering for the future spouses, some people with deep pockets can just corner the market of one of the spouses easily.
Lets see how much does it cost:
Say the total mintage is 2,200 and lets say you want to buy half of those.
$966 * 1,100 = $1,062,600 + shipping.
Melt value = 550oz * $1,620/oz = $891,000.
It could be interesting. >>
They would just make more and kill the collector value. >>
Say if the sell out happens in mid to late Dec or later for the 2012 issues, I don't think the Mint will have enough time to make more.
<< <i>
<< <i>
<< <i>100
It seems like if the mintage keeps lowering for the future spouses, some people with deep pockets can just corner the market of one of the spouses easily.
Lets see how much does it cost:
Say the total mintage is 2,200 and lets say you want to buy half of those.
$966 * 1,100 = $1,062,600 + shipping.
Melt value = 550oz * $1,620/oz = $891,000.
It could be interesting. >>
They would just make more and kill the collector value. >>
Say if the sell out happens in mid to late Dec or later for the 2012 issues, I don't think the Mint will have enough time to make more. >>
Possible but would be a gamble with a lot of money. I guess if you were Donald Trump but somehow doesn't seem the kind of thing he would want to do. Maybe if you wanted to put that much away in gold it might be a fun way to do it.
Box of 20
1. A second Frances Cleveland Coin
2. A Liberty coin from Arthur's time period
More of a rhetorical question don't you think?
I know, it was in the law.
Box of 20
<< <i>Even with the Garfield MS sold out, seems not much demand. There is a two coin set proof and ms first strike 69 for only $2095 on ebay. >>
The ms 69 in the "set" is not Garfield.
Date keeps getting pushed back, wouldn't be surprised if it's never shipped.
<< <i>2011 LUCRETIA GARFIELD 1/2 OZ GOLD UNC 1 $941.00 $941.00 1 unit backordered. Expected to ship on 08/26/2012. Date keeps getting pushed back, wouldn't be surprised if it's never shipped. >>
Yeah, mine, too. But the order status is "In Process"...
FWIW - I ordered mine Thursday morning at 6:15am, just before the price rise...
mbogoman
https://pcgs.com/setregistry/collectors-showcase/classic-issues-colonials-through-1964/zambezi-collection-trade-dollars/7345Asesabi Lutho
<< <i>Boy Chester A Arthur sure got shafted by the Mint. I did not realize that the Alice Paul coin does not even mention him. Then the Mint goes and does two Frances Cleveland coins on top of that when they could have put Paul on one of those. Go figure. >>
Did I miss something? Are they actually making these?
<< <i>
<< <i>Boy Chester A Arthur sure got shafted by the Mint. I did not realize that the Alice Paul coin does not even mention him. Then the Mint goes and does two Frances Cleveland coins on top of that when they could have put Paul on one of those. Go figure. >>
Did I miss something? Are they actually making these? >>
According to the Mint News Blog yesterday,
"There is still no word on the status of the 2012 First Spouse Gold Coins. The US Mint announced the design selections for the coins way back in April, but since then there has been no indication of the release date, maximum mintages, or other ordering details."
<< <i>
<< <i>
<< <i>Boy Chester A Arthur sure got shafted by the Mint. I did not realize that the Alice Paul coin does not even mention him. Then the Mint goes and does two Frances Cleveland coins on top of that when they could have put Paul on one of those. Go figure. >>
Did I miss something? Are they actually making these? >>
According to the Mint News Blog yesterday,
"There is still no word on the status of the 2012 First Spouse Gold Coins. The US Mint announced the design selections for the coins way back in April, but since then there has been no indication of the release date, maximum mintages, or other ordering details." >>
The Mint does that to us collectors from time to time. One of those end of the year things.
I knew it would happen.
<< <i>The really interesting stuff happens when the Mint's gross mismanagement has ticked off so many collectors that a bunch of them throw up their hands and throw in the towel. >>
1996 unc olympic dollars for instance?
<< <i>
<< <i>2011 LUCRETIA GARFIELD 1/2 OZ GOLD UNC 1 $941.00 $941.00 1 unit backordered. Expected to ship on 08/26/2012. Date keeps getting pushed back, wouldn't be surprised if it's never shipped. >>
Yeah, mine, too. But the order status is "In Process"...
FWIW - I ordered mine Thursday morning at 6:15am, just before the price rise... >>
Order Date: 08/07/2012 at 03:13 PM for me, that is the Tuesday before. Still backordered.
<< <i>2011 LUCRETIA GARFIELD 1/2 OZ GOLD UNC 1 $941.00 $941.00 1 unit backordered. Expected to ship on 08/26/2012.
Date keeps getting pushed back, wouldn't be surprised if it's never shipped. >>
That has happened in the past. If phantom "backordered" coins are included in next week's sales total, the actual final mintage may be a bit lower than next week's number.
Now backordered until shipping on 8/27
I would not be surprised if I never receive it.
Cancel box still there.
"United States Mint officials say striking problems with two of the four 2012 First Spouse gold coins have delayed striking and release of this year's coins. Officials cite problems in striking the Alice Paul and Frances Cleveland (first term) coins. Once the problems are resolved, production and sales of all four coins will begin before the end of 2012, according to the Mint."
If you understand what is coming, then you can duck. If not, then you get sucker-punched. - Martin Armstrong
<< <i>Coin World is reporting:
"United States Mint officials say striking problems with two of the four 2012 First Spouse gold coins have delayed striking and release of this year's coins. Officials cite problems in striking the Alice Paul and Frances Cleveland (first term) coins. Once the problems are resolved, production and sales of all four coins will begin before the end of 2012, according to the Mint." >>
Fun. Maybe some error coins in the making. It does make me wonder what could be the problem. A small soft gold coin that has been made for 5 years already. I cannot imagine.
It will also be interesting to see whether the 2012 issues are released all at once or one at a time.
<< <i>I wonder if unc. mintages will be comparable to the 2011 Lucy/Lucretia, in the low 2000's. It might make sense from the Mint's perspective, since it took both coins around a year to sell out, and a year is the normal amount of time each First Spouse is on sale.
It will also be interesting to see whether the 2012 issues are released all at once or one at a time. >>
Maybe 2 at a time. The news mentioned the Paul and first Cleveland coin.
<< <i>
<< <i>2011 LUCRETIA GARFIELD 1/2 OZ GOLD UNC 1 $941.00 $941.00 1 unit backordered. Expected to ship on 08/26/2012.
Date keeps getting pushed back, wouldn't be surprised if it's never shipped. >>
That has happened in the past. If phantom "backordered" coins are included in next week's sales total, the actual final mintage may be a bit lower than next week's number. >>
Lucy 2260, Lucretia 2498.
Lucy added 17, probably from counter sales and ANA sales.
Lucretia added 525, in my opinion likely *way* overstated because of the length of time coin was in "backorder" status (see above).
Wow, Lucretia went bats***. Maybe this will rekindle some interest in the series?
<< <i>Based on the new numbers, we still have the 2008 W Unc platinum coin as the key, lowest minted modern, though Lucy is the lowest first Spouse and lowest minted gold coin.
Wow, Lucretia went bats***. Maybe this will rekindle some interest in the series? >>
I think it mainly rejuvenated speculator interest in these two particular coins.
If these top out at around 3500 coins each, they will be the lowest mintage proofs and should enjoy a nice premium also.
That Garfield unc coin has 525 coins hoarded by comparison and a higher sales, some will probably try to flip Garfield coins after receiving them.
These two coins have put the 2012 spouse on the radar screen now, it will be interesting to see how sales go for these 2012 unc coins this year. But Lucy unc is the new king it seems, anyone buying will be comparing to this coin.
My guess is that the Mint's order software automatically goes to "backorder" when inventory on hand runs out. There is then a lag time while additional inventory is requested. Once it is confirmed that there is no additional inventory, the "backorder" status is changed to "sold out", and most customers who ordered during the "backorder" period have their orders canceled. However, these canceled orders remain on the sales report, and are not backed out until months later when a significantly lower and more accurate "final mintage" is reported.
It seems that the only time a coin goes from backorder to sold out is when the mint wakes up in the morning and someone checks the inventory, then decides they are all out plus the additional orders they take over that amount and then they pull the plug on it sometime that day.
Then they wait a week or two to see if anyone returns any coins after sending out the last normal orders, send out replacements for those coins, add up all the remaining ones and then start filling backorders. The longest I got a backorder filled was about two months from order to shipping, but I think three months also happened with some of the 2008 gold buffalo.
I agree the Garfield numbers might be adjusted down next week, we will have to wait and see. It could also be they stay where they are until a final audit is done, there is no way to know.
I doubt the Lucy number change as that was done on very low ordering so not much chance for major errors we would hope.
The series is a bust, unpopoular and nobody cares about the numbers. You might be able to flip a few at a very good profit then it's back to spot.
It's a very long drawn out series with very average designs and an unpopular theme. I'll place my money elsewhere.
<< <i>The "deep hole" is only considered "deep" until the next spouse is released and comes in at a lower number.
The series is a bust, unpopoular and nobody cares about the numbers. You might be able to flip a few at a very good profit then it's back to spot.
It's a very long drawn out series with very average designs and an unpopular theme. I'll place my money elsewhere. >>
This.
Dead Cat Waltz Exonumia
"Coin collecting for outcasts..."
<< <i>With so many Lucretia coins sold in the last week I cannot help but think that there was a large buyer or two of these. I wonder if they will be returning some or all of the coins to the Mint when they find out that their speculation on Lucretia may not pan out like they hoped. Might we we Lucretia back on sale in a few weeks? >>
Only if they actually receive the coins in the first place. If I'm right, only around half of the 525 ordered were actually available for sale, and the remainder of the orders will be canceled.
I wonder what's going on in the minds of the decisionmakers at the Mint these days. With so many varied programs, they can't be paying too much attention to the sales strategies of the individual programs. I am thinking that in most areas, they are on autopilot.
I knew it would happen.
<< <i>
<< <i>With so many Lucretia coins sold in the last week I cannot help but think that there was a large buyer or two of these. I wonder if they will be returning some or all of the coins to the Mint when they find out that their speculation on Lucretia may not pan out like they hoped. Might we we Lucretia back on sale in a few weeks? >>
Only if they actually receive the coins in the first place. If I'm right, only around half of the 525 ordered were actually available for sale, and the remainder of the orders will be canceled. >>
Yeah, they may have oversold these like airlines sometimes oversell seats to have buyers ready for cancelled orders. Makes sense.
<< <i>The Julia Grant unc is backorder so looks like that one is now done too. This can only help the series having them all sold out. >>
Do you think the Mint is baiting us to jump on the 5000 mintage Alice Paul coin?
Could they actually be that clever?
Lucretia Garfield Uncirculated = 2,498: +525
This week there was a lot of activity for the 2011 First Spouse Gold Coins following the
unexpected sell out of the Lucy Hayes uncirculated coin, followed by the Lucretia Garfield
uncirculated coin. The Lucy Hayes coin moved forward by 17 coins to 2,260, while the
Lucretia Garfield moved forward by a hefty 525 coins to 2,498.
The latest info
The problem with the way these numbers are reported is that even though we are very sure one or both of these issues should be "sold out" at around 2200 pieces, the one that jumped well beyond that number is probably a bad number and thus incorrect.
This happened with the 2008-W unc plats, specifically the 1/4 oz, where numbers had jumped well over 900+ coins beyond the final net mintage in the low 2000's.
For any flipper, this situation really bites. Because you dont wind up getting the "correct" number until the final audit (that could be 6 months to a year later) and by then all the "hoopla" about the issue has died. Not to mention possibly surpassed in rarity by the next "low mintage".
-KHayse
Any suggestions out there from others?
Another question to ask is has anybody actually received an order from last week either before or after the backorder status?
<< <i>Do you think the Mint is baiting us to jump on the 5000 mintage Alice Paul coin?
Could they actually be that clever?
>>
Can we actually be that dumb would seem to be the appropriate question.
I'm thinking most that will ever want these pieces are buying them now. And most that want them only want to flip for a profit.
I'll continue to sit out on these.
Will the JFK "spouse" include the Marilyn subset coin? That's the one I want - regardless of mintage.
Cries of "Who is that woman? Chester! Chester! Were you sleeping with her?" have been ringing through the production floor, scaring off most contractors and even the most seasoned employees.
This is probably how it's going down.