Hi All, I have been looking for an 1876 Philadelphia $0.20 piece that I thought was original and not over-priced in a circulated grade for quite a while and I finally found this guy and won the eBay auction. They are pretty hard to find. Original mintage was only 14,000 and there are a lot of problem coins. Coin is not quite perfect. But this is a hard date. And beggars can't be choosers. $377 was the approximate price out the door. PCGS VF 25. I like this grade because I have a 1875 Philadelphia (another hard date but not quite as hard) $0.20 in a PCGS VF 25 holder too. How do you think I did? Could I have done better? It was an auction that started at $5. Seller originally was asking $460 and no one bit, so he put it to auction. The underbidder was only $1.20 under my final price. (1.jpg and 2.jpg are the 2 seller photos cropped - I tried to take quick pictures myself and they look horrible but I included 2 anyways and they are the photo_.jpg. Seller's photos are pretty representative of the coin.) Cheers, Totally
Nice original. They are hard to find, but I can't tell you if that's a good price. I do like the coin, though.
One of my favorite coins! Not sure what the spots are (obverse on the left arm and reverse at 11 o'clock above the eagles wing) but congrats on having a straight graded example. I've actually been browsing the bay for double dimes lately and a good majority that I've come across are either in details holders or if they are raw have evidence of being messed with. PCGS price guide has it at $450 in VF-25 so I'd say you did pretty good! Now you just need an 1876 CC to add to it!
Nice original surfaces, but it seems a tad overgraded, though. I would expect to easily see a few letters of LIBERTY for VF-25.
So 1876 P in PCGS VF25 has a total pop of 17. Really not that many to choose from. @brokecoinguy The 2 concentric radial spots on the back at 11 o'clock above the Eagle's wing are tiny planchet defects. I am not sure what they are on Liberty's arm. I've been browsing eBay quite a bit as well and I have come to the same conclusion you have. I think in terms of price I did pretty well, I was just curious about what the people more expert than me think. I would still need the 75 s and 75 CC for a set. And PCGS pop on 76 CC is a whole 0 in Vf 25 . 75 s should be a very easy coin to find and same with the CC, but cause it's a CC, it will cost as much as this 76 P which is madness because it's so much more common. I won't cry too hard for a tad overgraded, but nice to hear the opinion. I do like the surfaces on this one and I realize it's a pretty hard coin to find. As long as I did decently/well for the price and didn't get ripped, that's all I care about. Thanks @TypeCoin971793
Mintage was 15,900. To me it's a little over graded at VF 25. But if they are grading against other known examples, and not every coin is graded on the same criteria, then I can see it. I like the coin. Value $425.
A bit overgraded, but a very nice coin nontheless, and a very hard one to find. BTW, collectors are obsessed with the magical CC mintmark, which is why the 1875-CC is so expensive.
@ksparrow none of the letters of liberty strike out obviously. It looks a bit worn on that part especially - moreso than my 75 P. why I was able to get it for what I did. That being said, based on my experience, 1876 P is a really tough date to find. Especially circulated in a straight graded holder. So I am pretty happy I was able to snag this one. 10 years from now if I want to find a nicer one, I'll try. Maybe to make up for I will be able to find a really nice 75 S in VF25 and they will average out . @Michael K 14,640 for circulation and 1,260 proof is where I got the 14k since it's a circulation strike.
The planchet flaws are unfortunate and after looking through photograde I can say it probably is a tad overgraded, or should I say market graded. Still though, it's in a VF25 holder and even if it were really a VF20, you sill did good. I'm glad to see there's another member who has some love for double dimes!
Thank for the insight everyone . That's about what I expected. I'm happy with it until the day that I find a better one. It might be a while though haha. And yeah @brokecoinguy , I am trying to make a VF25 set. The 2 remainders should be much easier. It's a under-appreciated series. Especially the 2 Philadelphia issues in my opinion.
I wouldn't say they can't be, but in this case maybe not. Can't a coin be over graded to coincide with the market? @totally This seems like a pretty decent grade to do the set in especially if you're on a budget (like me). Definitely an under-appreciated set, keep us updated as you complete it. Are you attempting any proofs? Here is my dream coin if you will, I came across this on ebay and love the color. Maybe in my next life... http://www.ebay.com/itm/1876-Proof-...PR-64-CAM-Cameo-Superior-Quality/131881966158
Thanks for the info. I like it as a nice original fine. I'm sure no expert on these. Interestingly, in Bowers' "Grading coins from photographs" he states that ANA and PCGS require a full LIBERTY to grade VF; for Fine PCGS allows 3 letters to be missing.
@brokecoinguy So right now I am just trying for a set of the 4 circulation coins in VF25. So I have the 2 hard ones out of the way now... the other 2 should be much easier and I should be able to be much choosier. It's hard to be choosy with a graded pop of 17, but the much larger pops of the 75 S and 75 CC should allow me to be choosier for the last 2. Proofs are pretty expensive. I'm a Twenty-center on a budget - so no proofs. If I get a "big" coin in the future, it will be a 1794 or 1795 Flowing Hair Half in an AG, G or VG grade that is problem free. This was as much as I wanted to spend on any Twenty cent coin. I spent a little less on the 75 P. For what I spent on the 76 P, I'm happy with it. At least the 75 S should be much cheaper And the blasted 75 CC will be as much even though is infinitely more common....
I bought this one raw and sent it to ANACS on one of their specials. As rare as they are, I'm happy to have it. I need to crack it and acetone soak then see if I should do anything else.
You acetone that one you;ll get rid of the lacquer, but the whizzing will probably become more apparent.
