searching for high grade moderns-mint sets?
nalamolly5
Posts: 671 ✭✭
if you are searching for high grade modern stuff, would you stick to mint sets, or do you have an equal chance with bags directly from the mint, or rolls? i understand there should be some marking from the bags, but are they worth the shot as compared to buying mint sets? looking for your opinions..........thanks, jose
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Overall, all the 68s and 69s I've ever found have been in mint sets.
generally mint sets are the way to go for most regular issue coins. MS-65's will
show up in the sets at least about three or four percent of the time. There are
many coins which were never put into a mint set so on these there will be no
choice but to seek rolls. Many of the dime and quarter rolls were not saved in any
meaningful quantity so the rolls you see are almost always from mint sets. The '69
quarter for example is almost impossible to find in an original roll. With the higher
grade coins it's also hit and miss which is the better source, but generally the higher
the grade the more difficult it is to find in rolls. There are at least a few coins which
don't appear as very high grade in mint sets or are very rare.
Mint set and roll quality vary greatly from year to year and they don't always follow
the same pattern. But there is one thing which has always been consistent during
the modern era and that is that the mint set coins are almost invariably well struck
and from new dies. With many issues you'll need dozens of rolls just to find a few
coins that are well struck so looking in the mint sets can narrow your search a lot.
I always look at rolls when they are available but for many of these issues it's really
not worth the time for gems. However, there are few varieties which appear in mint
sets and if you ignore the rolls you'll miss them. It should also be remembered that
the varieties which do appear in mint sets are fairly common simply because they are
available from this source.
Look for cents in mint sets except watch rolls for the ones from the late 70's and early
80's, especially D mint. Nickels; watch for late '80's rolls. Dimes; watch rolls only for
varieties and maybe a few of the D mint coins from '79 to '84. Same with quarters, but
add the late 80's and early '90s, both mints. Gem half dollars are pretty tough to find
in rolls or sets. I've never seen one in a roll so have no idea which are easier. Ikes are
even tougher in sets but I'm told they show up in some rolls. SBA's aren't too bad except
for the S mints and the near date. The near date and the '79-S don't appear in regular
issue sets and the '81-S doesn't appear in rolls. (except for a handful that the mint cut out
of unsold '81 mint sets).
No matter which moderns you collect it is important to pay attention to both the sets and
the rolls because of the way these coins have been distributed.