A long time ago I went to a coin show and bought a 1973-S Brown Ike. It is a proof Eisenhower in the brown slide case. Could the going price for this one have been over $100? Needless to say my Eisenhower collection didn't progress much after that.
Yep, at one time they were going for more than $100. I can't remember when, but I suspect in the late 70's when the whole market blew through the roof. The crash about 1980 was bloody. I believe there was another smaller market spike around 1990. Find someone with older Red Books and you will see the coin's pricing history. I got lucky. I bought mine through the Mint.
Well, if it's any solace, this has happened to other coins too. In modern coins, there is the 1999P SBA proof and the 2001-S Sacagawea proof. Both started out high and are slowly coming down. There are probably others, but those are two I follow vaguely. Demand isn't what the speculators thought. I also think there are a lot of "semi-keys" from the pre-1940's that people have stocked up on and haven't really realized much either. At the end of the day, it's a crap shoot - just buy nice and shiny stuff - trophy coins, if you will!
Andy don't feel bad. I think all of us at one time or another have overpaid for an item. Case in point; I bought a 1950D Jefferson nickle for $24.00 back in 1964. You can pickup the same coin today in ms condition for less than I paid then.....and $24.00 back then was worth a lot more than $24.00 today.
I know I have made my share of mistakes jumping in on something that's really hot on the market. I was upset with myself for paying $33 for a 73 Brown Ike. back in 1990. If I'm thinking right they went down after that. A quick look on Ebay has them selling for $30 to $40 today. I guess I'm lucky to be about even. What a crazy hobby.:smile
I spent $106. I remember the price because it was at my first coin show. It was the most I spent on a single coin.
