Hi - I'm a new member, buying coins for my 1 year old daughter, Sophia. I've fallen in love with the $20 St. Gaudens. I've done enough reading to know not to buy uncertified examples, and most of what is available seems to be from NGC and PCGS. Scouring the web, the best price I've found on MS 63 common date PCGSs is about $630. I've found a few 63 NGCs for about $600. Can anyone tell me: - is there a good source for these coins in MS 63 and better than I have found? - is it likely that the extra $30 is worth spending to get PCGS 63s instead of NGC 63s? - It is likely worth spending the extra $100-$150 to get MS 64s? Any advice is most appreciated! I bought quite a few coins in ebay that turned out to be cleaned (though many are not obvious to me at all) and have concluded (as many forum comments seem to stress) that certified coins are the way to go. Thankfully it hasn't been too expensive a lesson. But with these beauties at $600+, I really want to do that right thing. Thanks, Baby Sophia's daddy
I like to look at www.heritagecoin.com for comparison purposes They have a lot of MS63's for $625.00 They'll probably be posting pics soon.
Howdy Sophia's Daddy - Welcome to the Forum !! First of all I'd like to ask you a couple questions - in your post you say you are buying the coins for your young daughter. Truly an admirable thing to do. But then you say YOU have fallen in love in with the St. Gaudens. I'm not being flippant here - but which is it ? I ask because I take your question seriously. You see, I'm a parent too and I buy coins for my young son aged 13 who is a collector in his own right. So I assume based on your comments that you wish to buy your daughter coins that have some "potential" for the future shall we say ? Which is why I asked my question - for my answer is dependant upon yours.
She's not quite 1 year old, so someone has to pick them! At this point they just look like candy to her. I'm interested not just in appreciation but in longevity - something that will be consistenly popular, ideally with intrinsic value, and which if it doesn't appreciate will at least hold its collector value.
Works for me Based on your reply I would strongly suggest that you go with coins graded higher than MS63. My suggestion would be MS65 and up. Now based on what you have said it appears you already know where to buy them. The prices you listed for the grade were accurate and about average. It isn't likely you will find a better price. But given what you will be spending for the coins I suggested - you need a dealer you can trust. Heriatge has already been recommended - I would agree completely. And since I don't know specifically who you have already picked - I cannot offer an opinion on them. But if you would like to send me a PM with the names I would be happy to offer an opinion. I would also be willing to provide you with some of the most trusted names in the business and you could choose for yourself. Lemme know.
Well if I could afford it I would go with a higher grade then that....but what I might do it buy a 63 here and a 64 there and that way you have some of both. To me PCGS and NGC and ANACS and ICG and PCI or any grading Co. should not add anything to the coin...it's the coin we buy, not the slab!! I'm sure that your Sophia will be glad you did this someday and you'll be glad you did this too! Speedy P.S I would also try to read anything I could about $20 St. Gaudens and any other coins. P.S.S Franklin Halves make a nice and cheap set...you might want to make a set of them too!
Baby_Sophia, I'd guess that our paths to this site were fairly similar. I got interested in bullion as an investment vehicle. At first I was just interested in American Silver Eagles but then I got hooked on numismatics. Since my budget is pretty small I've been focusing on rolls of uncirculated 60's silver coins which allows me to satisfy both, at least to some small degree. Overall, I think common, lower end (MS63) Saint Gaudens represent a good value. They're beautiful in their own right and they track so closely to their bullion price that they are likely solid investments into the future. When you buy higher graded coins you are definitely getting into the realm of the collector- I'm sure you can find a lot of advice on coins as an investment here and elsewhere. In addition to Heritage I would also suggest Teletrade.com as well as eBay if you can find a seller you trust. Good luck and have fun!
