1936d three and a half leg Buffalo

It has some scratches on it so I don't think it can go to be slabbed, but on pretty good authority its authentic.

 

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anyone have any opinons?

 

It does appear so in the photo when compared with the CP Guide. Even though the scratches would probably give a "details" grade slab with NCG , I would consider it worth authenticating and slabbing by them. I have never had one in hand.

Jim

 

Hi Jim,
Thank you for the response. It is very exciting to have, I just sit sometimes and look at it over and over and wonder if I am imagining it. Any ideas as to what it might be worth, in that condition...ballpark figure. I just wish it was more perfect, but it is a thing of beauty to me. lol

 

Oh I forgot, I have never had a coin graded, so I don't even know really what to do. I am sure I can find info on their site, but what about insurance, I have no idea as what I would insure it for when sending it. thank you so much

 

If it didn't have the scratches, an estimate in CPG would be in the $extreme range ( $5000+/-). I think the damage would reduce it quite a bit. It is difficult to verify with certainty from photos, so that is why I recommended the slabbing for authentication. Any variety such as this or the 3-L is quite susceptible to someone with good engraving skills to manufacture. Be sure to check if that TPG does have this variety on the list they will certify.

If you don't intend to slab much, the best is to find a dealer who will send it in for you. It should be about $40 or so. The alternative is to join one of the "collectors clubs" the TPGs have which include a certain number of free gradings, although they charge extra for varieties like this. Great catch, even with the scratches! There have only been a small number verified, so your chances of a counterfeit is maybe greater than a real one.

Jim

 

Let me ask you this Jim. Does anyone know how long people have been counterfitting this type of coin or really any coins for that matter. I guess I would wonder when did the 3.5 leg become so valuable. This buffalo was not found in a roll. This came from my Dad's. Before he passed away he gave us kids what he liked to call his treasure from his metal detecting days. I know that this nickel had to have been with his stuff for 40 years or so. So I feel that the chances of this being a fake are slim wouldn't you? But I don't know when the counterfitting of this type of coin would have begun.
I will definitely find out about slabbing it.

 

I am not sure of the date the first was discovered. And as I remember it wasn't immediately accepted. Probably as soon as a significant price was established,many tried to remove the exact amount of material, but it isn't as easy as some might think to duplicate. That is where other markers on the coin also becomes important to establish that it is real.

Here is a photo from Heritage Auction Archive. You can carefully compare your coin to these photos.

You may have to register to see them. It is free, and this resource is probably the best for closeup of coins.
http://coins.ha.com/common/view_item.php?Sale_No=1128&Lot_No=328&src=pr

Jim

 

thank you for your response. I was looking into ANACS to have it authenticated. NGC doesn't recognize this coin anymore and ANACS is one of the top 3 so I thought they would be the best choice for this coin. Any thoughts?
Thank you

 

It could go for more than $1K just because they are so darned scarce.

 

That was my feeling as well. There are only 40 of them known in existence at this time. Not sure if I want to sell it on E-Bay though, I would rather sell it privately I think, just to avoid so much chaos. Its all very exciting for em

 

Hi,

This one is definitely genuine. The scratches do hurt. A $5000.00 price tag is way to high even on a better version of the piece.

These are not as heavily counterfeited as the 1937 D 3-legged nickel so there is usually little to worry about with this particular coin.

Keep in mind that we are talking about a die state here. The die was heavily abraded removing some of the details that would form the leg on the struck coin. So technically, the coin is neither an error or a die variety. Believe it or not, that is the same with the 1937 D 3-legged Buffalo coin. These are examples of die states.

One last thing to mention is that population reports don't tell you anything. It only tells you how many are known. It doesn't tell you how many there are. I see books with populations of a low number on coins that I have 50 of sitting here. Keep in mind that no one knows (except in a few instances) how many of any coin can be out there

That being said, the 1936 D coin seen here is highly sought after by specialists in the Buffalo nickel (Indian Head nickel) series and it should bring a good amount if sold.

Have Fun,
Bill

 

Thanks BIll.
Well we will know soon, as I sent it out today to ANACS. Now I just sit and wait.

 

Well the coin came back and as most of us believed, it is authentic, and they graded it
F15 Details. Details we know are the scratches. So now all I have to figure out is where to sell it, and for what. It looks very pretty all protected in its new holder. I read in coin prices magazine that F12 was $2000, but that is without "details" red book says F12 is $1500 without "details", so now I guess I have to figure out its value with "details. Any insight on how I do this?

 

Sorry, Doug, but the cheapest problem free sold for $2472 (VF-20)(Scratched--ANACS. VF Details. Net Fine 12. The $1200 ($1265 to be exact) one was "Scratched--ANACS. VF Details. Net Fine 12" and it was a full 2 years ago.

 

I wonder where this leaves me....

 

Yours is in slightly worse condition than the ANACS at Heritage and your scratches are worse. I am not a Buffalo guy, but by interpolation, maybe $900ish.

 

thank you for the response. I guess we will have to wait and see