Stopped by my favorite half-searching bank this afternoon, only to find that the halves that had been sitting in an absent teller's box the last few times I visited had gone out to someone else earlier in the week. But the friendliest teller said, "I did get two good ones, but I bought them for myself -- but I can show them to you." I was thinking that she'd spotted a couple of Franklins or something. But instead, she brought out: One 1936. One 1836. (Take that, roll-searchers -- it's not even going to fit in a roll, because of the bigger diameter!) She said a convenience-store operator she knew brought them in, and was going to give them to her; she explained that she couldn't take them as gifts, but she could buy them from him, and that's just what she did. The Walker was in VG-F, a nice specimen to find in circulation. I have no experience grading Capped Bust coins, but based on my memory and PhotoGrade, I'm going to guess VG-F details, harshly cleaned. Nothing that I'd turn down at face value, or even at melt value, let me tell you. I chatted her up a little bit about whether she'd be interested in selling any of her finds to me (outside the place of business, presumably). I know she'd gotten a Morgan from an old lady some time ago, and I suspect she may be intercepting other interesting coins as well.
After I found out my teller was a collector, I just stopped buying coins from his tray because I knew they'd be picked clean.
Well, I don't think she knows or cares about 40% coins, and apparently the tellers don't go through each others' stuff. This is the same place where I got three rolls of halves and found something like 7 90%, 4 clad, and all the rest 40%; another time I got $6 or $7 loose, and found several proofs. Unfortunately the guy who was dumping those apparently stopped coming around.
If I was her I would take the 1836 to a dealer just to verify it was real. I could see someone being told it was fake and just dumping it on the first person to take. If it was real that would be cool.
