Hi All, I am a relatively new collector. I have some common circulated sets of nickels, dimes and pennies but want to start building a full Washington Quarter set. I would like to buy as nice of a set as possible and am willing to spend a bit to get there. My question is: If I wanted to spend $50-100 per month and assemble a full set (32-98) what grade of coins should I set as my bottom threshold? In addition, should I keep each coin in the container it is purchased in or can I put them in matching containers? Probably a random question, but like I said, I am fairly new...
Most of the modern clad coins can be found BU for a small premium and should'nt be to hard to assemble. The earlier silver coins can be found from $5.00 up to $60.00 all depending on the grade you wish to buy. XF and AU would be a good average in the 30,s and 40,s IMO but there are a few key dates as with any series. But these are just my thoughts and i'm sure others will weigh in and give you more information on this series.
i feel like a set that you put together is completely up to you and your likings. Don't let someone else mandate how you collect your coins. I personally have no particular grade in any of my sets as most come from circulation, except most of the silver. Happy collecting!
Find a grade that YOU think looks good and stick too or close too it. You don't even need to keep that same grade, collect what is attractive to you. There has been discussion on it here before and like many others I personally think that Mercury Dimes look the best in the low to above middle grade range (so pretty much anything circulated). So a high grade doesn't mean anything if you don't like it. IMO
I am a roll searcher, so all my modern coins are from circulation. The clad Washington Set I have is nearly complete with only a few of the P mint state quarters needed. I use 20 coin holder clear pages to house the 2x2 flips in a 3 ring binder. When a really nice coin comes from a roll, I compare it to one in the set. I keep the best one of course. The set is nearly MS now. Some coins from rolls are beauts. So I have invested only face value on those. The Silver Washingtons are harder of course. A set recently sold on eBay for a couple grand. But that's risky, because the 1932 S is a very highly counterfeited coin. The genuine BU 1932 S will cost well over one thousand today. The 32 D is also expensive in higher grades. I buy a coin a month for this set and already have the keys. But my grades are AU40 and better. The fun isn't completing a set. It's working on one. Once completed, what's left to do ?
Truly the easiest and least expensive way to do it. This is how my State Quarter set is. 2x2's in binder pages and all. All of them are from pocket change, and it makes it more of a challenge and keeps things interesting because everytime I get a State Quarter in change I get excited and set it aside, usually only to find I already have that one in P or D, whatever they case may be. So it keeps me interested for the next time I get change and so on, and so on. You of course can do this with regualr Washingtons too.
I would suggest you research prices from different online sources, such as numismedia.com, eBay completed listings, if you're looking to buy raw, uncertified Washingtons for you collection. That will help guide you with what grades you can afford for your collection. Just an FYI, some of the older Washingtons can be a bit pricey, 3 figure values, even in lower grades. Example: 1932D and 32S are the two rarest of all three mints that year, with the 32S as the rarest, at 408,000 strikes, and the 32D second most rarest at 436,800 strikes. Both mint strikes can run from $110 to as much as $150 in G - F grades. I have a 1932 that was certified by NGC, MS63 I picked up for $52.50, but the other strikes are out of my monthly allotted budget for coins.
I would but the NGC slabbed silver quarter sets, they are nice and beautiful. (except Wisconsin MOOO)
I agree with everyone is to buy what is attractive to you. I personally like the proof coins and you can get proof Quarters up to the 1965 I believe for very reasonable prices. After that you may have to go to BU or just circulated as some are just expensive to buy. Good luck on your collection!
Thanks for all the responses. There were several comments about "just buying what you like". I was actually just trying to get a ballpark estimate on what it would cost to assemble a set of, say, 63's vs 65's and if a what a budget of 600-1000 could be expected to get. Thanks again for the help.
I am always check for the current value of a coin before making the purchase. Before I go shopping, I know the price range, then I look for the best possible coin for the lowest price. I have several dublicate coins in my collections. The original coin might be in "Good" condition, then when there was room in my budget I purchased a BU. Do your homework first... There are many of us who have paid too much for a coin, just because we wanted to fill that hole in the collection.
Those are nice; however, I don't care for those multicoin slabs from TPGs because if you were wanting sell only one of those in the holder, you would have to crack them all out, and what would be the point of submitting them in the first place?
This is just one of the online sources for values I mentioned in my first post to this thread: http://www.numismedia.com/fmv/prices/wshqtr/pricesgd.shtml Check some of the prices on the different grades and you can judge for yourself on what's in your budget of $600 - $1000. This is eBay completed listings, items that have sold: http://completed.shop.ebay.com/Washington-1932-98-/39461/i.html?rt=nc&LH_Complete=1&_catref=1&_dmpt=Coins_US_Individual&_fln=1&_trksid=p3286.c0.m283&_rdc=1
True enough BU. To me its just another way of displaying the coins. I was just trying to help a new collector, thats all.
I know you were helping and please don't take my reply to your post as discerning as it was not meant to be that way. For some, those are nice, and I did say they are nice. But I only mentioned the downside of them being that if you wanted to sell only 1 of those in the mulitslab, you would have to crack them all out which would not make any sense for the submission in the first place is all. Again, those are nice
Oh no, more competition! Welcome to the wacky world of washies. I started putting my set together a couple of years ago in certified gem bu however with few exceptions you can find MS64-65's at very reasonable prices. There are 1/2 doz that you will have to set your sights a bit lower grade wise to stay in your budget but start at the newer dates and work your way back. I'm just silver, business and proof strikes and all rainbow toned. I have less than 10 to go and when its complete I think I will be in the 10K range. Good luck
Another suggestion is to work at the hobby. I try to get to coin shows and check eBay for what looks like a good coin for the price. I also chat with other collectors and swap, buy, sell, whatever as I expand my collection. Trading is always a way to build. But like everyone has said, you need to do your homework.
