Mercury or Barber Dimes?

Hello,
Which set is easier to complete?
Thanks

 

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The easiest way to determine this is take a look at the Redbook.

Barbers are typically harder to find.

 

Probably Mercuries, especially if you include the 1894-S in the list of Barbers.

 

Mecuries. You want to collect everything!

 

Which one would you like to complete?

The better question may be which one would you like to complete & in which grade of preservation would you like to collect the series. I personally really enjoyed collecting the Mercury dime set. If you take your time, you can find really nice examples of the "Winged Liberty" that have not been harshly cleaned. Of course, the tough dates are the 1916-D and the 1921 P & D. Beware of fakes of these key & semi key dates.

Let us know what you decide to collect & please post photos when you can.

 

Thanks, I decided to complete the Mercury Dime set, Im planning on getting a folder first and then a Dansco. I got 3 dimes at the moment a 1942,43,44.

 

While the cheap ones for mercuries will be cheaper, I woudl think for a kid the barbers would be easier to obtain every date. There are no "stoppers" like the 16d for barbers.

My opinion.

Chris

 

This. Better have a deep pocket if you wanna do a set of Barbers.

 

I consider the 1894-S a bit of a barrier.

The 1895-O, while somewhat less than half the price of the 1916-D, is still pretty high for a low-budget collector. There are several other dates in the Barber series that run higher than the 1921 and 1921-D.

 

Hello again collectingkid,

Before you buy your first 1921, you should first learn how to tell the difference between a good coin and some of the known fakes. Do this homework first, before one is offered to you.

 

Alright thanks

 

A 64FB-66FB set of Mercs will start to get expensive in the late 20's and early 30's, if you're working your way backwards, excepting the '45.In contrast, a MS set of Barbers is pricey right off the bat.

 

Pish posh! Get em nice and circulated and it won't be nearly as pricey...well, except for that key and semi keys.

 

I agree, I think Barbers are much harder to complete, especially when you consider that there are 13 coins in the series with a mintage of fewer than 1 million.

 

According to Numismedia, a set of Barber dimes in MS64, exempting the '94-S, will run you $98,690.

Likewise, a full-run set of Merc dimes in MS64FB, including major varieties and key dates, will cost you $109,989.

If we subtract ones that I don't really consider to be part of the set (both 42/1's, '45-S micro S), you're down to $86,037. And that's with a $26,560 1916-D in there.

 

I'll going and add to this. Mercury dimes are way cheaper, the only thing that will set you back is gonna be the '16-d, and the 1921s. Barber dimes on the other hand, have multiple key dates and semi-key dates.

 

This CT thread describes how to detect the common 1921 alterred dates.

http://www.cointalk.com/t114928/

 

In gem FB condition, the '19-D and '19-S will set you back more than the '21 or '21-D.

 

Good point.

 

The barber's are definitely not for the faint of heart, especially in VF - AU condition.