Not so fast Conder...I too started with Jefferson nickels, from pocket change. Followed shortly by wheaties.
ICK to both of you lol I could see buffalo's, shields or V nickles but jeffersons? ugh the most boring coin the us ever minted ((hides under a rock))
A co-worker inherited a hoard of world coins. I sold most on eBay. Kept the weirdest or oldest and smallest denomination from each county. I'd have one from every country if they would just stop changing. Guess it is a moving target.
'Fraid so. The bulk of my collection and budget. I have those famous Blue Coin Collector books. First one, not so much. A few of '43 steels. I always go through my pennies: pre '82 go in one pile. Anything before the '60s, I still separate. Once in a blue moon, I'll find a 'wheatie' very rarely. Have stopped entirely with 'eCove' and Roman until I can be assured what I am buying is not FAKE.
I started with a collection of wheaties in a blue Whitman folder. For a young collector, you can't beat the value of the cent. Now if we're talking pennies, I have a collection of German States pfennigs I really enjoy. I've posted it before, but here's a new old one (1860) from Bavaria with a die clash and a new older (1747) one from Regensburg that's in nice AU/UNC. Big thanks to 7-Up for sponsoring the platform for the second coin!
I can sort of see nickels as an entry point.When I started collecting, there were still a few Buffalos and War nickels around. And these pocket change finds were not as picked over as the Cents. You could even go to a bank and still get a silver dollar or two. But these were too expensive for an 8 year old working on a $2 allowance which included lunches for the week leaving me with a whole quarter to spend. The huge mint marks on the war nickels and an actual P on a Philadelphia coin that you could find searching your change would certainly be an attractive option. At the time, the biggies in cents were the 55-S and 54 plain. We really hadn't gotten into the errors like the 55 DD yet. In my area, Ds were plentiful and Plains weren't too uncommon, but an S mint was a real find.
I had a Jefferson folder too. It's amazing I still routinely find them from the 50's and 60's in circulation even now. The 40's and 30's a bit harder to find now, but I get one occasionally. Nickels sure do last a while don't they?
Cool. What I didn't realize until I got my first flying eagle was how much thicker than a modern penny they are. I knew they had gone from the large cent to a small cent, but no article I read mentioned how thick they were.
1982 and back, with a primary emphasis on 1958 and back Wheaties. So far just over thirty-five thousand. Of course, my wife says, your done or I'm moving, idol threats!
I agree with you and add this: I collect ALL from IH cents to Wheaties and beyond. Yes, there are some that are low grades yet, the hunt is fun and I have started buying sealed & graded Wheaties and some Errors. Considering the other coins and sets I collect, space is an issue but, I accommodate and adjust as this is my hobby and I love collecting.
I too collect pennies. I mainly focus on LMC, but lately, I have been collecting LSC especially 2017 P's! If they don't have "Full Steps" on the memorial, I throw them back! I like focusing on 1940's to 1982's. I'm not a big fan of Zincoln's! But I did get a 2008 D Satin Penny that had only one small mark on it...very nice.
How about a real American penny? The crown had these struck by William Wood beginning in 1722 for the American colonies where given their diminutive size they were quite unpopular. This particular penny is actually a pattern that slipped into circulation - it has more pellets in the centre of the rose than the minted for circulation examples.
You collect what you enjoy the most. I have some found silver coins but I don’t honestly collect them. Their put down and forgotten. I chase cents cuz who really finds silver these days. I can afford a case of cents.
I 'am a penny collector for life; ever scents my Great-grand-father said he was lucky (my Great-grand -father) to find a penny to start his dream. I never knew him ,but I can appreciate his struggle for finding a better tomorrow: AND THAT IS WHY I COLLECT PENNIES.
i collwct errors, i have over 600 error lincoln cents, also some flying eagle, indian, and large cents as well, and lately go into the eac ones,