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What coins are you personally aware of that are currently being hoarded?
TallahasseeCoinClub
Posts: 426 ✭✭✭✭
Inspired by another thread, I know of a few collectors/dealers who hoard specific issues. In addition to the 1926-S dime that I know is being actively hoarded (at least it was as of a couple of years ago):
- 1820/19 curl base capped-bust half-dollar
- 1905-O dime
- 1817/3 capped-bust half-dollar
These are three off the top of my head that are being hoarded regardless of grade. You?
Official PCGS account of:
www.TallahasseeCoinClub.com
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The Sacagawea/Quarter mules, one collector named Tommy Bolack owns the vast majority of them last I heard.
Gold coins, silver dollars, .900 silver coins, etc
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
I'm sure some people are hoarding copper cents and 1 oz .999 silver bullion coins such as ASEs.
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
Many are putting together set of 1926-S issues. The 1926-S Oregon 50c and 1926-S 10c are popular targets / one guy in coin club stacking them (slabbed) Good and higher grades).
One guy (coin club) buying / stacking slabbed 1950-D 5c.
Another stacking slabbed $5 Gold pieces for retail. I believe he is seller at CDN bid plus 25 - 30 pct on those. Better dates and super PQ a tad higher.
If they try haggle he just says “Thanks for looking, have a good show.”
Sometimes he has a sign “Buying at CDN bid less 10 pct.”
These are a significant %age of the '66 cents in chGem.
https://www.greatcollections.com/Coin/2171129/1966-Lincoln-Cent-PCGS-MS-66-RD-18-Coins
I know some that are doing the copper. The rifle club is like cashing in on the brass itself...
I'm hoarding a bunch of widgets
Why in the world would someone be hoarding this issue? I occasionally search eBay for this coin to see if I can cherrypick the micro-O, at least there it doesn't seem like the hoarder is making much of a dent in the supply.
Sean Reynolds
"Keep in mind that most of what passes as numismatic information is no more than tested opinion at best, and marketing blather at worst. However, I try to choose my words carefully, since I know that you guys are always watching." - Joe O'Connor
Huh. Any idea who is hoarding the 1817/3’s? I guess that’s why I’ve had such a hard time finding the right coin at the right price.
Successful transactions with: wondercoin, Tetromibi, PerryHall, PlatinumDuck, JohnMaben/Pegasus Coin & Jewelry, CoinFlip, coinlieutenant, bigjpst, and joebb21.
How large does it have to be to call it "hoarding"?
A Barber Quartet is made up of Nickels, Dimes, Quarters, and Halves.
Wheat cents
All comments reflect the opinion of the author, even when irrefutably accurate.
There are 540 MS66 and MS67 RD 1966 Lincolns graded by PCGS. Is 18 a significant percentage of 540?
You decide.
What grade are you looking for?
Collector of Capped Bust Halves, SLQ's, Commems, and random cool stuff! @davidv_numismatics on Instagram
If someone was hoarding coins, they likely wouldn’t post about it. And if I knew of hoarding, I would knock out low hanging fruit hoping to cash out on them as prices rose.
I was chatting with a dealer friend at summer FUN a few weeks ago, and I asked if he was still hoarding 1913S dimes…..yep, I have over 5,000 of them now, was the reply.
I don’t really understand the logic, but I guess everyone needs a hobby 😉
Quite frequently, the purpose of the person who hoards some seemingly random issue is not to depress supply. They merely enjoy the hunt and acquisition, for whatever reason.
Edited to add: I am also familiar with the hoarder of 1913-S dimes.
Official PCGS account of:
www.TallahasseeCoinClub.com
Nice Barbers in EF with CAC
Hard to recall for certain, but seems there was a columnist at Numismatic News (maybe 1990's or early 2000's) that was hoarding the 1913-S dime and reporting their progress. Thought they may have been trying to make a roll and possibly mentioned there was an even larger hoarder of them or maybe it was themself.
Recall someone was hoarding 1804 quarters in the 80's or 90's or longer, but that may have since been dispersed. Recall there was mention in an 80's or 90's Bowers auction catalog that he knew someone hoarding every 1824 or maybe only 24/2 large cent they could find.
Knew someone who was hoarding 1926-S Buffalos in VG or maybe only Fine. It was the grade just before it took a big jump in price. As I recall they sold it off just a handfull of years too soon because the price jumped for their grade and they could have multiplied their money even more.
"To Be Esteemed Be Useful" - 1792 Birch Cent --- "I personally think we developed language because of our deep need to complain." - Lily Tomlin
I frequently think about narrowing down my collection, but I never take action. I only have about 100 coins, but they’re all really nice (imo), annd most are very scarce, and doing so would be a VERY hard decision. That said, this will be one of the last coins in my collection that I part with, and it’s nowhere near the most valuable. I like it that much.
Other passions include golf, Moto Guzzi motorcycles, and Euro motorcycles in general.
Chris
Somebody out there is trying to build (or has built) a roll of ‘93 Lib Cap cents. Considering how few of these there are out there, I believe that constitutes a hoard.
There is also a certain known collector still holding on to about 55 1909 VDB proofs.
If either of these “rolls” came to market, I’m sure it would have a negative price effect in the near, or maybe not so near term.
Empty Nest Collection
I've been trying to upgrade this one for years. I guess that explains it lol.
My wife believes I am hoarding multiple series. This is an open discussion at this time.
Halves and quarters? Dimes are too small for my declining vision.
This is why I think hoarding a specific scarce coin would be counterproductive financially. What’s the point of watching the price go up if selling your hoard would erase the price gains. I suppose it could be sold slowly but that is a loss of liquidity.
It appears to be well known the 1913-S Barber dime is being hoarded. While it may appear unlikely the 1913-S Barber quarter is also being hoarded, given it's $25,000 value in MS64, dates on either side of it's MS64-MS66 population price guide at $2.050 and $850.
@Eldorado9 has all the mint state and proof Barbers.
In honor of the memory of Cpl. Michael E. Thompson
There is also the hoard of 1909 VDB Lincoln cent proofs that has been for sale for half a dozen years or so. There must be 50+ coins in that hoard but they wanted to sell it in one piece and I didn't see any ability to examine it first.
In honor of the memory of Cpl. Michael E. Thompson
A quality VG to VF would be ideal. If they are truly being hoarded I have no problem waiting for the hoard to be dispersed, I’m probably younger than the person doing the hoarding
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I don’t blame you, that is a beauty.
Wow, another beauty. I’d be proud to own that one. If you ever get your upgrade and sell this one, remember me!
The most major recent hoard I can think of that I’m surprised no one mentioned was that Terry Brand 1794 Half Dollar hoard. That one was impressive.
Successful transactions with: wondercoin, Tetromibi, PerryHall, PlatinumDuck, JohnMaben/Pegasus Coin & Jewelry, CoinFlip, coinlieutenant, bigjpst, and joebb21.
I got one of these as well, love it 👍
The one specific hoard of 1817/3 half-dollars that I know of personally (and no, it is not me haha) is quite sizable and probably has had a noticeable effect on the available market supply. I think I myself own four or five of them - they can be collected by die-stage besides the two "official" Overton states.
Edited to add: checked my records and I own four 1817/3 half-dollars.
Official PCGS account of:
www.TallahasseeCoinClub.com
I remember 30 years ago, there was a collector who would purchase MS 38 d Walkers, whenever he got the chance. He had about 30 or 40 of them. I’m not sure what the logic was here, either. Maybe he just liked the date and the low mintage? He may have sold or passed on, by now. That was a long time ago.
Sometimes, it’s better to be LUCKY than good. 🍀 🍺👍
My Full Walker Registry Set (1916-1947):
https://www.ngccoin.com/registry/competitive-sets/16292/
I would think if someone wanted to horde a date/grade there would be a minimal # available, something like < 20 available. I remember a dealer many years ago wanted all the Morgan 79CC MS graded PL coins in the NGC GSA holders that he could buy. I could understand that.
Not long ago acquired some PCGS Classic Commems MS64 and higher to stack.
Ike Dollars. It seems as though every time I give one in change , people say “oh, I’m keeping this”. I think “keeping” means hoarding. We sure don’t pass them around and when we do they disappear.
https://acoinshop.com/ —-> https://ebay.us/m/KxolR5
Oregon Trail Halves a real fav - slabbed MS 64 and higher. Many seeking them. Fun to collect, or stack 4 fun put together set. Bidding can be competetive.
Also CC material. Many stacking these. Investors chasing them especially low pop.
Still want a 65rb fatty and rattler from that hoard
They are not US coins but a huge percentage of the extant population of Old Man Dollars are being hoarded.
chopmarkedtradedollars.com
Depending on the exact disposition of the FED hoard of these coins and that they have actually been disposed with little or no melting of the coins there are likely about 350,000,000 of these sitting in sock drawers and change jars. Most are in abysmal condition because of storage media over the years and very light circulation. However there remain substantial numbers of nice choice XF and AU coins. Of course some specific dates are lower mintage and/ or higher wear and tear. Most Ikes have problems by the time they get below XF condition.
Many of these coins have been taken abroad.
Since so many Ikes were poorly made (like the '71-P) there can be few nice attractive survivors in any grade at all of some dates. There are some likely candidates future collectors will have difficulty finding like the Philly issues of the '71, '76 tI. and '77. Most collectors now are seeking chBU and some of these prices are rising. Even though the survival rate of Ikes is very high nice attractive specimens can still be elusive in any grade at all. Try finding even the common dates like the '73 in nice chBU not all scratched up. You might be in for a surprise because despite a mintage of 2,.000,000 they come gouged, spindled, and mutilated. Now the mint sets are drying up.
Copilot is getting so good that I have to tell it what the thread is to get a proper translation of my thinking. In this case the translation looks so much like what I already said I won't even post it. But it did suggest-
_"If someone replies with “Ikes aren’t rare, there are millions,” your next line is:
Millions isn’t a lot when most of them are damaged and the demand base is growing. Condition scarcity is still scarcity."_
I knew a guy who bought a ton of nickels a few years back. His reasoning was that the metal was worth more than five cents, and some day Treasury would "de-monify" them in the same way that silver coins were. The idea was that at that point it would no longer be illegal to melt them down, and if we had an era of hyperinflation, they would be useful. Or he could sell the metal for a profit. (yes, I know silver coins are still legally money - but AFAIK, the government won't go after you for melting a bunch of 1958 quarters down)
I told him it was an interesting academic exercise, but didn't seem practical. I said that $10,000 of nickels weighed a literal ton. So if a McDonald's meal cost $10, and in that hyperinflation future they were now $10,000, theoretically 200 nickels would still buy you a meal. I told him to walk around with hundreds or thousands of nickels on his person as an experiment. He didn't like that. Ultimately, he blocked me on Facebook because I kept arguing with him about it.
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Nobody said you have to "walk around with them". You can pile them up in your garage, maybe in 39-gallon trash cans
Kyle Bass’s Nickel Hoard:
In 2011, Dallas-based hedge fund manager Kyle Bass made headlines by purchasing $1 million worth of U.S. nickels — specifically, 20 million Jefferson nickels — at face value. The move was unusual for a high-profile investor, but it reflected Bass’s contrarian approach to investing.
Why He Bought Them:
Bass believed that the metal content of each nickel — 75% copper and 25% nickel — was worth more than its 5-cent face value. At the time, the melt value was about 6.8 cents per coin, meaning the U.S. Mint was effectively subsidizing the coins. His thesis was that if commodity prices rose further, the metal value could surge, causing the coins to disappear from circulation — much like pre-1964 silver coins when their melt value exceeded face value.
PS:
According to coinflation, the current theoretical scrap value of a copper-nickel US 5-cents coin is $0.075 .
One aspect of the "investment" here is that they will (theoretically) never be worth less than face value.
So that certainly limits the downside risk.
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2025 Pennies.
All 2025 and 2024 Lincolns, and the 2026 issues...I like the dime, the rest suc...
I do not see the logic of hoarding that many of any series, unless under 50k struck. With over 500k coins struck 5k is 1% and even if they were high grade coins worth a lot, what would happen to value if you hit the market with 5% of your hoard, much less all. And if you did it slowly so as not to immediately affect the market value, you would have to live another 100 years or more. Just sayin'.
Jim
When a man who is honestly mistaken hears the truth, he will either quit being mistaken or cease to be honest....Abraham Lincoln
Patriotism is supporting your country all the time, and your government when it deserves it.....Mark Twain