Is this interesting or not? It is a S-197 (not playing attribution today) with problems. It appears to me to be primarily Planchet related rather than the usual corrosion. Thoughts?
I'd say it was both, a combination of corrosion and planchet issues. Regardless, I hope you didn't forgo anything to obtain it.
No problem. Not everyone is as enthused about interesting low grade or low value coins as I am. I've got 7 1800s and 6 1801s before I get to my complete Sheldon set (less NCs of 1802 with many duplicates. It's been nice to rediscover the coins I've had stored away for years as I looked for new ones. There are many, many ways to enjoy this hobby.
I can relate to the enthusiasm (or lack thereof). Most folks seem not to get much enthusiasm over Colonials and Pre-Federal State Issues, which are my favorites. Decent grades are tough to get due to their rarity and pricing, so a bunch I have don't necessarily appear as nicely minted as the U.S. Classics. I managed to find and buy 6 decent specimens last weekend. The best out of the lot was a VF-20 - and one of my local coin club buddies (a VAM collector) made fun of it today when he saw it because of its crude appearance. His head spun like the Exorcist girl when I told him I negotiated $250 for it. So you're right, there are many, many ways to enjoy this hobby.
I would probably share your enthusiasm if there were a few more around. There has been an increase in dealers stocking a few colonials since I first began this hobby in the 60s and 70s. Unfortunately, I didn't have the means to get the good stuff back then. You can't imagine how much $15 could get you when you were filling holes with the cheapest priced fillers available from Virg Marshall back then. Now I don't think about Lincolns much and if I'd purchased 1 good coin with that $15, It would probably be the apple of my eye in my collection. Anyway, I regressed from Lincolns to Indians to Flying Eagles to Large Cents. Perhaps Colonials are my next step.
