Hey everyone…just had a **** of a good coin week, figured I’d share it with you. Arrived home from completion of my first year of graduate school on Sunday. 22 hour drive = long, long nap. Monday – went to local coin shop where I got the following deals: 1970 D Kennedy Half - $5 (saw it in the junk 40% half box, sorted the rest and pulled a second 1970D out for the store. As a reward, he sold me one for bullion price.) 1965 Kennedy Half SMS - $5 (second find from sorting the junk box.) Having decided to work on a set of modern commemoratives, I looked through a box marked “Commemorative Halves - $3.50 each.” Pulled out any that I didn’t have and got them for $3 each. When I got home to look them up, I was surprised to find that I’d gotten (book value in parenthesis): 1986 Statue of Liberty MS ($5.25) 1991 Mount Rushmore PR ($18.50) 1992 Olympics PR ($9.00) 1992 Columbus MS ($11.50) 1996 Atlanta Olympics – Soccer PR ($100.00) 1996 Atlanta Olympics – Swimming PR ($34.50) 2001 US Capitol Visitor Center MS ($13.50) That’s $192.50 in book value for $21. After looking up all the values (because I don’t yet have them all memorized – so I had no idea the deal I was getting) I called the coin shop to ask if they wanted me to bring them back – since I’d gotten SUCH a great deal. One of the owners told me, “Hey, don’t worry about it. Consider it a welcome home present and come back and see us.” Talk about gaining a customer for life! Tuesday, I went to the local antique mall to scour for silver that was underpriced. I’d walked through the entire mall 3 times, and was waiting for my girlfriend to look through some old movie posters when I decided to look at the glass cases ONE LAST TIME…and found, nestled in a case of pocket knives, belt buckles, and other American flag/wolf emblazoned items, a silver ounce round with the image of a wolf on it. Asked the gorgeous girl working the front desk to open the case (“What I want to look at is going to be embarrassing, but I’d like to look at an item in a case, please…”) and sure enough, got it for $21.75 with tax. Wednesday, picked up 2 boxes of halves from Bank of America (they were kind enough to order them for me) and got 1 40%, 1 proof, 7 NIFC, and 15 high AU-UNC halves. Not a great haul, but for face value…always a great deal. Thursday, went to the bank to pull out money to buy my second half dollar order and, as a whim, got $100 face of one-dollar bills. Found my first ever repeater note (a BEAT up 2006 F08020802A.) Still cool, though – never found a RADAR or repeater, and as a teller for 3 months you’d better believe I searched EVERY bill that came near me. Stopped back into the coin shop and sorted through their box of Canadian Silver. Found the following: Quarters, $8 each (this price was from the manager himself, so don’t think I was trying to take advantage of them): 1900 (mintage 1.3m, VG-F, BV $15-20) 1903 (mintage 846k, VG, BV $15) 1908 (mintage 495k, VG-F, BV $15-30) 1909 (mintage 1.3m, VG-F, BV $12-20) Dimes ($3 each): 1891 (21 leaves, mintage 800k, G, BV $10) 1900 (mintage 1.1m, VG, BV $9) 1901 (mintage 1.2m, G, BV $5) 1903H x 2 (mintage 1.3m, G, VG, BV $4, $8) 1909 (mintage 1.6m, G, BV $4) 1913 (both small leaves, took a chance - mintage 3.6m, F, VF, BV $3, $8) Friday, picked up my 4 boxes of halves from another local bank that had just opened a new branch. They were from the Federal Reserve, so I was pretty excited to finally find some decent silver….and this is the day my luck ran out. 4,000 coins and not a single silver half. No proofs, no commemoratives. I did find 6 NIFC and kept 5 high-grade coins…but in all it was a huge letdown. Not only was it extremely picked through, at least 33% of the coins had marker on them – including 3 that I would have kept. Personal complaint – I know it helps you to sort coins faster – but you do realize that you’re messing these coins up for someone else who may be trying to build a collection from roll-searching. I wish these people would knock that off and save their scraps for the rest of us… So I’d say it was a pretty fine week…hoping next week (another two boxes of halves, hopefully hit some more antique malls) will give good results as well! Also, just got my macro lens – so once I get back home I will start taking some better photos of my coins (for my records, and for practice.) It’s going to be a great summer! ~benjamin
Oh, I forgot to add, on my first trip to the coin shop I got a 1937 S Washington in F/VF for silver price (out of the junk silver quarters can...) I always buy low mintages for silver price when I can...
No, no...never ever get deals like this in Salt Lake City. Have found better coins roll-searching halves (recently) but never get deals from the coin shops there. There's one shop owned by a prior ANA president that I won't even walk into because their coins are so overpriced and overgraded...not to mention that the staff is quite rude. No flea markets, not good yard sales...the only great thing I can say is that the US Bank that gets all my half dollar dumps has never complained, not even once. Which is worth its weight in silver half dollars, lol...
FWIW, I'll bet most markers would come right off with an otherwise-harmless dip in acetone or 91% isopropyl alcohol. I've used alcohol to remove permanent marker from clothing; coins would be much easier.
