So i have been away from Ikes for awhile but I was thinking about updating by business strike coins to higher grades. I now see that you can get slabbed coins with CAC stickers, MAC, PQ even RNBO no idea what any of this means but I'm sure its all good. I have also noticed prices have gone way done and its hard to find Ikes for sell other than ebay. I have never collected the proofs but am thinking about picking them up. So the reason I write this is to begin my education on the proof series. Which is the key, what am I looking for other than eye appeal etc. Thanks
You can pick up the proof Ikes in their original proof sets for quite cheap and have lovely examples, plus the other coins. Or you could buy more competitive, holdered coins and spend as much as one can imagine. Up to you. I started with the proof sets and honed my tastes from there. I still have boxes of sets that are pretty much perfect. Easy to find lots with specific years, i/e Susan B years, Ike years, 64-70 Silver Half years etc... You'd think that uncirculated proof coins in original holders would be worth quite a premium, but they're not unless they're quite special in some other way. There are other reputable sellers other than Ebay for graded coins, David Williams, Great Collections, Heritage auctions, etc... Maybe even an LCS could show you all of the above? Happy hunting! *Edit: Looks like you're looking at a more particular level than the beginner's post above. Many apologies. Reading comprehension, man...
Ike’s are easy to find and quite affordable as @Collecting Nut said above. They are fun because they are big and beefy. I like that they lit my numismatic fires as a youngster. I have assembled two Ike sets. One set I assembled long ago and just recently put together a much better set with the proofs. You can afford to be fussy looking for the better coins with an Ike set. I think I put around $220.00 or so assembling the whole set and a big chunk of that was for the Dansco.
Unless you are into the registry game, I can’t see spending the extra money for very high grade (PR-70) certified Proof coins. For me the 69s and 68s work just as well. The silver Proofs are dirt cheep now, even the 1973-S, which used cost over $200, can now be found for under $20. The trouble is, a lot of the pieces in the original mint packaging have toned, and it’s often not pretty. The one advantage to slabbed coins is that the holder seems to do a good job at preserving the coin. The clad Proofs are also dirt cheap as part of the Proof sets. If I were collecting these coins, preservation is key. They seem to spot and tone rather easily. Slabbing or high quality albums are the solution.
