I've narrowed down my collecting prospects to, along with Lincoln Wheats, collecting the following (either in part or in whole): Braided-Hair Half Cent (1840-1857) Braided-Hair Large Cent (1843-1857) Indian Head Small Cent (1859-1909) Two-Cent Pieces (1864-1873) Three-Cent Pieces (both silver and nickel) Liberty Head (V) Nickels Half Dimes (1837-1873) Mercury Dimes Standing Liberty Quarter Walking Liberty Half Now after looking at this list, I have also further narrowed down what I just want one or two of because the design doesnt jump out at me that much or it just does all over. However, my main question is out of these sets, which are the easiest to acquire without breaking the bank? Thanks in advance
Deffinately 2 cent pieces. I have never paid more than 10 dollars for one. And they are a nice odd denom coin
I'm pretty much just collecting dates and not varieties. For instance, I want to own a half dime because its an odd denomination that we dont use by that name anymore, but I have no desire to collect the whole set at all lol. Things like the Mercury dimes and Liberty Nickels, I will (try to) collect the whole dateset, but things like small and large date stuff doesnt matter to me at this point
If you are just doing a type set for some of the series, then cciesielski01 was correct. You can pick up examples of the 2C, 3CS and 3CN for around $10 each. Depending on your budget, I would try to get uniform grades for all of your type coins, i.e all VF or EF. They look much better that way.
Thank you. I just wanted to see what advice people had as far as collecting anything from the listed sets on a budget as things like the half cents can be pricey sometimes. I just was curious.... Sorry if I wasted anyone's time...
No apology necessary. Your initial posts were confusing (at least to me) and for that I apologize. If - other than the two mentioned - you are only looking for type examples, then yes... you can easily do so on a budget, but keep in mind that its usually best to pay up for quality regardless of grade. Basically, a budget does not need to go hand-oin-hand with the deal mentality.
I agree with BooksB4Coins, in the long run you will be much happier with eye appealing coins that you maybe had to pay an extra $5-10 for; then the bargain coins. Nice coins aren't cheap and cheap coins aren't nice. The worn down or problem coins will always be around for "low prices" but a nice problem free coin can be elusive. Be patient and buy good coins.
of course it doesnt include the rare ones but you can get all the others for reasonable prices if you look long enough...
There is some things you would have to consider prior to making that decision. For example how you purchase your coins. If on line, could hardly make a difference since almost all of what you mentioned are there. However, people that buy on line seldom include postage, shipping, insurance, lost in mail, fake coins sent, etc. If you purchase from local coin stores, you would be very limited to any and all of those. And the prices would be usually high. IF you frequent coin shows, eventually you could find almost anything for decent price. Another consideration is how many coins make a set. For example there are very few 2 and 3 cent coins needed to make a set. Many more to make a Mercury Dime set. But then back to availability, so much depends on what you can find.
Because of my age I prefer short sets. I want something that there's a good chance I'll be around to finish. Hence that eliminates all the Seated Liberty sets. And I prefer 19th century issues. And I don't collect proofs. So the 2-cent series was one of my interests (11 coins; complete) Classic Head Half Cents (15 coins; missing one variety) Braided Hair Half Cents (8 coins; complete) You get the idea.
To the OP, Affordability means many different things, so more information is needed. 1. Will you have a budgeted amount per month or will you just wing it with disposable income? 2. Do you want to complete the sets quickly, Months, Years, Decades. Lifetime? 3. Are you willing to defer purchases and SAVE for a better example, grade, condition or is filling the slot sufficient? 4. Do you care if it is a good investment? 5. Would you rather add several coins a month or would you enjoy the purchase of a single coin? There are no right or wrong answers to these questions. They are unique to you as a collector. I prefer detail and rarity and collect by variety (and even die states). I have many misfit coins which are affordable because of condition problems or damage which I love, but others avoid. This makes them affordable to ME. But these are not good for those seeking to maximize their investment. When i started with Wheats back in the mid 60s, I was happy to get filler examples of as many dates as I could. I saved up money from mowing lawns to place an order from Virg Marshall (I think) who always had an add in Coin World. This was the way I began. And I wouldn't have done it differently, even if it didn't maximize my investment. My collecting desires changed, but you must determine what you enjoy NOW in order to receive the best advice.
Easiest and cheapest would be the half cents and large cents. The two cent is easy and fast except for the 64 Sm and the 1872. Those will set you back a pretty penny. The three cent silver is a short challenging set at a modest cost as long as you stop at 1862. After that the business strikes weren't really released for circulation, though some did get out to collectors back then, and there are the proofs but all of them are costly. The three cent nickel is also a cheap set until you get past 1876. Assuming you ignore the proof only years, the only cheap coin after 1876 is the 1881. 88 and 89 are moderate, 79,80, and 82 are tough, 83 is tougher 84, and 87 are very tough and expensive, 1885 is darn near impossible. Frankly for those last seven proofs will be easier and in most cases cheaper. V nickels aren't bad depending on condition but the 1885 can be quite salty. If you are looking at better grade the proof would probably be cheaper. 84 and 12-S are costly but possibly doable depending on your budget.. The half dimes are the easiest of the seated liberty sets to complete and it still has 28 coins with mintages that make the 09 SVDB look common. 10 of then are less than 100K, 6 less than 50K Standing quarters, have you priced the 1916? But with the half cents and large cents even though there are some low mintages the coins are all readily available, in XF, at prices that most pocket books can afford. The 57's are the most expensive but not overly so. Everything else is type coin money. Although you will find it tough to locate a nice 43 and 44. Oh but push the cents back to 40, and move the half cents up to starting in 49. That covers all of the late date cents and it avoids all the proof only half cents.
Thank you all. I'm just looking for coins in the F to AU grade range so that price isn't too extreme so
