Penny Collecting

If I could give you one word of advice. I too, am a "penny" collector and I jumped in to collecting with both feet and thought I was going to rule the cent world. I found myself very quickly getting overwhelmed with what I was trying to do and I had no direction in my cent collection.
My advice is to take your big goal and break it down into smaller subsets so it doesnt look so massive at the beginning. It also is very rewarding when you finish one of your subsets. You feel like you have accomplished part of your goal and you have. Then you move on to the next.
collecting is all about what you want to do. It doesnt matter what anyone else says. you collect what makes you happy. Just dont "bite off more than you can chew". As the old saying goes, "You can eat an elephant as long as you take one bite at a time and not try to swallow the whole thing".
Just my two "cents"

 

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OMG, does the penny/cent thing have to be argued again every time someone calls it a penny?? Geese! It does such a disservice to the OP to derail his question due to something so inane and mundane! Believe me, I know.

So, as to the question at hand, there are a lot of variables that will determine whether it's feasible to collect every U.S. penny. It will depend on how far back you want to go, whether you want to include the errors/varieties, what grade you're willing to settle for, how much money you want to spend, etc. So without more guidelines, I think it's too difficult to offer concrete advice as to the feasibility of your choice - and that would apply to any U.S. coin series.

 

So where on the 5 cent piece does it say nickel?

 

The CENT Lady, Nah...

 

Depending on how old you are, it's entirely possible to put together the set in a lower grade and then upgrade a long the way. I'm shooting for VF in the keys/semi-keys and AU or better on the commons. Then upgrade when I'm more financially well off. Collecting coins is a hobby that can last a lifetime

 

The 1856 flying eagle was not 'regular issue', so i rationalize not being able to have that in my collection.

If you're talking about 'all cents', then you have to do the large cents too, and those go back to the early 1800's. If you limit yourself to 'small cents', then you JUST have to collect 1857 to modern day. I have 1857 through 1909, and i'm sure the wheat people have 1909 to 1958, and i'm sure the lincoln memorial people have 1959 through the current day. Possible - yes. will it take a heck of a long time and a lot of money - yes. would it be an amazing collection? YEAH!

 

Thanks for all of the replies guys. I was actually planning on doing it in sub-sets. Right now I'm going with easy (relatively) mode and I'm collecting Lincoln cents by year, mint-mark and variations, starting with the 1959-98 memorial cents. I already found some beautiful 80s and 90s in my pocket change. I realized just how ambitious this is and decided instead to settle on Lincoln cents and the awesomely designed Indian Head cents.

 

Sorry for the double post, but my 1913 is a reproduction. I was just joking. I know that sadly that's another coin I'll never have.

 

The first set I started, when I was about 8, was the Lincolns from 1941 to 197something. I got them mostly from circulation, never did find a 1941-D. Then I moved on to the 1909 to 1940 set, I've not completed that set yet.

 

I woudlnt even get involved in the aluminum penny, the SS will be after you.

 

I would love to work on a full set of cents someday... would be awesome to have them all... half cents too! Until then, I have my fun just staring in awe at Pete Miller's nearly complete set of Half Cents and Cents (including major varieties and proofs). Definitely one you MUST check out if you haven't seen it before:

http://www.pcgs.com/setregistry/alltimeset.aspx?s=18974


Enjoy

 

I too have been working on the US cent or (penny collection) starting with the flying eagle cents, indian head, and moving on to the lincoln/wheat backs. You really can complete a majority of your collection excluding the ones listed above without dealing out some serious cash. When it comes to the ones listed in previous post, just take your time and make sure you are buying real coins. Be careful of great deals, and work on one section at a time and you will be surprized at how fast your collection will come down to those more expesive but very rewarding hard to get coins.