I know this forum is mostly for coins people already have, but it seemed like the best place for my question. I am looking to buy my first Morgan dollar, and I do not want to buy a very expensive one first. I wanted to get one of the more common versions so I could study it and know what I want to look for when I get to the more valuable dates. I have decided to get Morgans in as high a grade as I can reasonably afford, meaning nothing less than MS-63 for the more common dates. So, two questions. I have the opportunity to buy a dealer graded MS-63 1881 O Morgan for $89. Assuming I agree with his grading, is this a reasonable price for the coin? It seems a little high to me, but as I am new to Morgans, I thought I'd ask. Second, regardless of what you think on the first coin, which Morgans do you think are reasonable first coins that can be acquired in MS-63 or greater? Remember this first coin, while part of the overall collection, will serve as a "study guide" to future Morgans. And because of this, and if I remember correctly, New Orleans coins have a tendency to be weakly struck, so the 1881 would not be a good starter. So many options, please share your opinions. Thanks.
That is to high for a self graded 63. You should get a PCGS coin for a few bucks cheaper. There are years where O mints are weak, there are years they are struck well. There are many great looking 1881-O in DMPL and PL. Not a tough date to find nice.
I wouldn't rely too heavily on a "dealer's grade", and $89 would be high. You might want to get yourself a copy of the ANA Grading Standards for US Coins to help you. If you want to get a "starter coin", I would suggest that you look for an 80-S, 81-S or 82-S. These are common dates, but the early SF Mint coins are known for having a very good strike. If you're going to use the coin to compare against others, then you would want to get one with the best possible strike so you can familiarize yourself with all of the details. You should be able to find any of these SF coins for less than what that dealer is asking for the 81-O. Chris
I would look at Photograde at the PCGS website if you want to study grades. It may not be as good as holding a coin in hand but it does help.
Thanks everyone. I felt that was high. And from what I understood the S and CC mints generally had the best strikes. I'll keep looking for a better price, and will keep an eye out for the 80-82 S. Thanks again. Brandon
Any mint from any year can have poor or weak strikes of coins. After all there have to be coins that are struck toward the end of the die's life and thus a worse strike. In fact more so because in those days die's weren't retired as often as today. Look how many were over dated, over mint marked, used to the point of competely breaking to save money and time. In my opinion however the reason why the CC and S mints seemed to consistantly have better strikes was that they were newer and thus the equipment was also newer. Second is the fact that both mints were primarily gold (s) and silver (CC) dollar mints due to the gold (sutter mill in california) and silver (comstock lode in nevada) rushes respectively. So these mints could take their time with production in comparison to new orleans who made many other denominations and especially to Philladelphia which made every demonination at that time. Philly mint inception-1792, N.O.-1838 (along with C charlotte,NC and D Dahlonega,GA), SanFran mint-1852, Denver mint-1862 (used only as an essay office) CC mint-1863
If you're going to buy graded Morgans, or any coin for that matter, do not ever buy a self graded coin from anyone as everyone's opinion varies. PCGS and NGC are more accurate, and reliable.
I found an MS-63 '81 s pcgs certified for $75. Haven't bought yet. Looking at this coin and using photograde, which is absolutely great btw, I actually feel like this coin looks better than The photograde shows, and what the ANA guide I picked up says it should be graded. It more closely matches the MS-64 description. Even if I am wrong, $75 is only $1 over what the pcgs site says its value is. I seen them on eBay for $55 to $85. Seems like a pretty good deal for the limited options in my area.
