1944 S War Nickel OBW Roll - Open or keep intact?

Discussion in 'Coin Chat' started by turnerj1, Dec 7, 2013.

  1. turnerj1

    turnerj1 Member

    Hey guys I have this very rare 1944 s war nickel obw roll. The two coins on the ends are absolute BLAZING toners in very high grade(nicest I’ve ever seen on a war nickel). The paper roll is original and NEVER Opened. The roll is in very good condition and tightly wrapped.

    So it has been very tempting… Should I open the roll and see what goodies are awaiting inside. Full steps, more toners, super high grades?? What do you guys think could be inside? I have never seen another obw war nickel roll, it bids at $450 in the greysheet. Should I leave it, or open it??

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    Rassi and heuvy31 like this.
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  3. Travlntiques

    Travlntiques Well-Known Member

    Oh my! I have no intelligent argument as to whether or not to crack it, but I can say that those are some of the finest end-of-roll toners I've seen. Stunning!
     
  4. heuvy31

    heuvy31 Active Member

    I know I would love to see what is inside, but I would imagine you could make some good money on ebay if you wanted to sell them as is. Good luck either way and definitely let us know what you do.
     
  5. bkozak33

    bkozak33 Collector

  6. jallengomez

    jallengomez Cessna 152 Jockey

    Keep in mind that Greysheet value is for an average BU roll, and not necessarily an OBW roll. OBW often command more.

    And that's a hell of a roll!
     
  7. Kirkuleez

    Kirkuleez 80 proof

    I would expect that all of the other coins will be basically white, but I would have to open it.
     
  8. desertgem

    desertgem Senior Errer Collecktor

    Where did you get it? Looks like a setup. The ends can be opened, better coins kept in exchange for lesser ( with toners on end) and rewrapped . The buyer may opt not to open and never know, or open and can't return as it isn't original anymore. Know your seller.
     
    BUncirculated likes this.
  9. Searcher64

    Searcher64 Member

    I would open it, and see that all are the same. You can then look and see any FS ones are in the roll, which could bring more. If all, are MS60 and above. If one is better than a 66. smile. It doesn't look as if it is a regular bank roll to me. Did the roll have a bank stamp on it? At lest one of the end ones, should be scored, and not of much value.
     
    Last edited: Dec 7, 2013
  10. jallengomez

    jallengomez Cessna 152 Jockey

    Now that I look and think about this a little more, I'm not so sure that rolling paper is circa 1944. As a matter of fact, I think it's much more contemporary than that. I may be wrong though, so I'll defer to someone who knows more about vintage rolls.
     
    green18 likes this.
  11. jensenbay

    jensenbay Well-Known Member

    Were original rolls from the mint ever stamped with year and mint mark? Seems strange to me. I know you can get "specially wrapped" rolls from the mint now but they are obvious. I don't know about this one.
     
  12. desertgem

    desertgem Senior Errer Collecktor

    I believe the mint used bags then, and the banks could roll them for their customers if they wished. But my local banks never used a stamp for the year and mint. OBW rolls would always have the bank's name on it.
     
    BUncirculated likes this.
  13. jallengomez

    jallengomez Cessna 152 Jockey

    There really are no original rolls from the mint because the mint doesn't roll coins. They were rolled by the banks, and in more recent times companies like NF String. I have seen banks stamp rolls, but most of the time this is done by someone else.
     
  14. KoinJester

    KoinJester Well-Known Member

    Not OBW and AT
     
  15. heuvy31

    heuvy31 Active Member

    After reading the comments I def say open it up.
     
  16. fretboard

    fretboard Defender of Old Coinage!

    Great item to have but I would really have to mull this over. Do you normally send coins in to be graded? Do you sell on ebay? Did you buy it on ebay? I simply don't see an MS reverse on that coin and I won't be able to give you my honest opinion until I know a little bit more about the subject roll. Not trying to be a snoot or anything but you could have a roll of nothing impressive and you could have a grand slam.
     
  17. BooksB4Coins

    BooksB4Coins Newbieus Sempiterna

    To the best of my knowledge, individual banks rolled their own wraps, and almost always stamped their name on them. I've never seen a roll from that time that could not easily be opened (as this one surely and clearly can) and resealed. Given, I've not seen every type of every kind, but 6-8 years ago I was very fortunate to have been given access to a large collection of genuine original rolls, mostly from the 40's and 50's, including a number of war nickel rolls, and not one looked like this or had coins with that kind of toning (which I find HIGHLY questionable on its own) on the ends. Not one of the rolls in the entire collection, or the few I've had before or since, had the date/mint stamped on them either; on every one it was hand written.

    I cannot say for sure what it is you have, but going only by my experience, I do not believe it to be an original roll, bank wrapped or otherwise. For your sake I do hope I am wrong, but from what I can see, there is no way that I would even consider touching without a peek inside.
     
    green18 likes this.
  18. Vegas Vic

    Vegas Vic Undermedicated psychiatric patient

    I agree the coins look at
     
  19. turnerj1

    turnerj1 Member

    Hey guys thanks for all the helpful and intelligent replies.

    An older man actually brought the roll into my local Coin shop, and I ended up buying it from the coin shop owner the same day. The coin shop owner was positive the roll was original, and he said he has never seen anything quick as nice. So that is where it came about.

    The roll does not say a bank name. It just says the wrapping company, which was from Wisconsin. The two ends are very tightly wrapped. And the two end toners appear to be in ~ms66 and with original toning.
     
  20. TypicalCreepahx

    TypicalCreepahx Hello There! ( ͡⚆ ͜ʖ ͡⚆)

    looks a lot like artificial toning... Open it up.
     
  21. BUncirculated

    BUncirculated Well-Known Member

    I think Jensenbay is talking about the collectible rolls from the Mint's website, P & D rolls, in U.S. Mint wrappers.
     
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