What are your favorite proofs, or what do you feel looks beautiful in proof. I'm not a proof person but they tug at me every now and then. I just wouldn't know what to get lol. I'd hate to have a random single proof like a sac, but at the same time i'm not sure I'd like to do all my presidential dollars in proof. So again, what are the communities thoughts on what coins are "proof worthy" and "even more beautiful in proof form". Thoughts?
in the bargin range I like the state quarter proofs too. my fav is a 39 walker proof66 I picked up a couple years ago as prices were falling. for a collectoin I like my franklin proofs. good investment and not real expensive except for the early ones.
I prefer the proofs as far as the aesthetics go, but I'm not into making my collection only of all the proof sets. I have a ton of proof and UNC mint sets all the way through early 2000's, but I'm more interested in picking the best coins out of each and building some nice collections that way, then selling off the rest to be able to fill the holes. I'm cheating here since there's very few shots of the actual coins... But, this will be my winter project to go through all of my sets in detail with my daughter and see what all is in here. The nicest / most valuable ones will go off to grading, the rest will see their way into plastic 2x2's for the general collection. I've been hitting a lot of good auctions for the below proof sets, to add to the ones from the late 70's up I already had. So far I've been able to find a couple nice '56 Type 1 Franklins, a good looking '57 set, 4 accented hair kennedy's, and 7 small date 1970 lincolns.
I have been collecting proofs for nearly thirty years. The strike quality and overall superior craftsmanship is what draws me to them. Over the years, I have assembled complete sets of Indian head cents, two-cent pieces, three-cent pieces, Seated half dimes, Shield nickels, Barber dimes and a few other modern sets. I am currently working on Liberty nickels and Seated halves. This one is my favorite Liberty nickel so far, it almost looks gold plated with deep golden toning.
I agree with idhair on older proof coins. The older proof coins make excellent examples, especially the Seated Liberty types and the Barber Liberty types. Don't get me wrong, I adore proof coins and love the old and the new ones. But the older proof coins are exceptional. The art of proofing coins hit its height in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and finding a superior proofed coin from that time can be challenging. I think I like the older ones due to their rarity also. Many older proofs have a bonus of toning. This is the clincher for me, an older proof coin with toning. Their eye appeal is off the charts as far as I'm concerned.
I really like the Deep Cameo Kennedy Proofs from 1964 - 1970. There's just something about those snow white devices set against a clear dark field!