can someone tell me why 1983 quarters are worth so much more than other clad washingtons? i checked and the arent low mintage, but the redbook value in the 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2013 editions is way higher than any other year of quarter with similar mintage figures. i've been going broke saving every 1983 quarter i get in change anywhere!
They didn't release mint sets that year, just "souvenir sets" which you got by doing a tour of the mint. Because of that, high-grade specimens are relatively rare.
Up until the last few years the '83-P was the easiest 1977 to 1987 quarter to find in nice condition in circulation because so many XF's and AU's had been pulled out back in the late-80's when its scarcity became apparent. These coins wee simply filtering back into circulation in large enough numbers to actually be seen. You can still find XF's and a very few AU's of this date but they are obviously getting picked over and nicely made specimens are getting pretty tough above VF. Now that the absolute number of higher grades has gotten so low I expect them to disappear as well. In five years the nicest in circulation will be attractive F+ or unattractive VF with a very unusual XF-.
I could be wrong but I think that back in the 80's Washingtons were sold by the bag and getting a bag of solid dates was a hit or miss operation. I know that Kennedy's came in bags and I believe that the Box concept evolved when buying bags of coins disappeared and distribution companies needed a method of disbursing "rolled" coins.
They came from the mint in $1000 bags but after that it was anyone's guess what would happen. Solid date bags was the only way they were issued but if they were rolled or otherwise repackaged they could get mixed because hopper wasn't always cleared. I don't remember hearing of "boxes" until well into the '90's. People in those days rarely requested bags of anything except cents. The vault manager I dealt with told me he had called around and no one had ever heard of setting aside clad dimes or quarters.
I recall asking a bank in Austin TX about bags of Kennedy's to which they replied they'd order them for me for an additional $100 a bag. In other words, they really didn't want to.
