Help! Where do I begin?

SBA's you don't say.

 

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Same for Buffalo subways, except nobody rides them. Takes you from where you don't want to be to a place you don't want to wind up

 

That holder only lacks the three major varieties, the ‘79 and ‘81 Type II proofs, and the 1979 “near date”/“wide rim”. That makes 18, but I have saved an extra 1979-S that toned up really oddly. I wouldn’t have bothered but it also has no marks I can see with a 10x glass.

The 1981-S proof Type II is still the key to the set.

 

Since no one has recommended it, I'll go with one of my personal favorites, Jefferson Nickels.

Putting together a circulated set is pretty easy and inexpensive. You can get most from the bank, the keys are inexpensive, and the proofs aren't pricey either. There are tons of varieties to include as well.

Putting together a really quality set...high grade with eye appeal...and then Full Step strikes...now that's where it gets tough. Sometimes almost impossible (show me a 54-s you own with more than two steps, I dare you.) Plus, you have a little bit of silver in the war nickel years (only 11 coins, so you could get back into silver US coins with that short set) plus the two matte proof issues of 1994 and 1997 (both of which have really low mintages.)

The good news? You can still cherrypick super nice examples of these raw.

Since not many people have added photos so far, I'll give my Jeffs the edge by sharing a few from my set:

 

@352sdeer
A Birth Year set..
Business Strike, Proof and Silver!

 

How about the set of Presidential dollars that don’t look like the President depicted. The Donald Rumsfeld, for example.

 

stldanceartist beat me to it.

Do you realize that there has NEVER been a complete set of Jefferson Nickels assembled with full steps?

This is a numismatic milestone accomplishment, and no small one, either.

 

Under your criteria I would go with Sac dollars but not a date set. Only the special issues like the Cheerios, Goodacre presentation, special wash, and monster toned proof & business

 

May I interest you in circulated Indian Head Cents? I may even be able to let you have some of my doubles/triples for the cost of postage.

 

My only reservation with these is that there are so darned many of them. Unless the newest ones with different reverses are thought of as a new series, these nickels are just as numerous as the Lincoln cent in all of its iterations.

 

I Like Ike. Ike dollars are kinda neat. I don't have a set, but I'm considering it after finding 200 with one of my bank tellers (they are in my basement now).

I also like nickels, Jeffersons (as long as you are okay with the war time ones with silver in them), or the Indian heads are neat.

Or, if you want to keep with the cents, just start going back in time to the older series.

These would be my picks going on the assumption you don't want to do any of the classic silver coins.

 

you're letting that crook from 1969 win

 

In the old days, when a collector finished a set or "hit the wall" with it, they moved back to the next older series. In your case Indian head cents.

 

I’ve dabbled with Indian head cents a bit but the cost can be a bit much.
Reed

 

I’ve cherry picked some Jeff’s at shows over the years but nothing stuck
Reed

 

I saw an Ike and SBA album that might call to me
Reed

 

I just don’t want to collect silver but I’m okay with series that has limited silver examples.
Reed

 

To ugly for even Cheepo me.
Reed

 

I might have to do a SBA set just because their easy to put together even though she’s no beauty queen she isn’t Sacajawea!
Reed and Sparkles.

 

For some reason Sacajawea just is gross to me, the portrait is wrong some how in my eyes.
Reed