I have sevaral sets i want to put together in circulated condition because I don't have the budget to them in any other fashion. I just want to know how much differance between the best graded coin and the lowest graded coin in the set is acceptable. I have some high grade coins that are very nice and probably very common, but I could never afford a set in the MS69 up like some I have seen. I want to do Flying Eagles, Indian Head cents,Lincoln cents (probably 5 of these neices and nephews) Two Cent Pieces, V Nickels, Capped Bust Dimes. I also Have the Kennedy Halves 1964 - 1970. I was also wondering about small sets within a set like the Half Dime 1853-1855 variety 3, or the silver Roosevelts, are these worth trying to get? Oh one more how hard would it be to put together a set of Franklins all graded 62 or 63? Hope I wasn't too long winded but you folks have realy renewed my passion for this hobby along with my 6 year old nephew who loves to get boxes of pennies and going through them with me. He has AD/HD and this is the only thing that has realy got his attention. Thanks for all of your help these forums are so good and informative as well as patient with new or renewed collectors like myself. Kent
Collect what you like. Your set is your choice, so so anything you decide is okay. Some collectors, especially the old school, prefers evenly matched sets such as VF to XF, or maybe AU50 to MS63 if doing higher grade. A few collectors enjoy the challenge of trying to get the exact same grade. A lot of sets are put together with a mix of grades, because of budget and availability. Sets put together from circulation sometimes have the best example of each coin that can be found. That can mean higher grade for the common coins, and very low grade for the tough coins. How deep are your pockets? A full Lincoln date/mintmark set in low MS is going to get to five figures ($10k+) pretty quick. A Franklin set won't be that much money in MS62/63/64, unless you have to have Full Bell Lines. A set of Capped Bust dimes might get to six figures for low MS grades. Check one of the many price guides (RedBook, Numismedia), and some of prices for actual coins from the auction sites, to get some ballpark figures and go from there. Again, there is no right or wrong answer. Just because some old school collectors prefer evenly matched grades across the entire set, that doesn't mean your set has to fit their ideas. It just has to fit your ideas and your budget. There is also the availability factor. For some sets, all a person needs is a big enough check book and they can pretty much buy every coin in a short period of time at a major show, or from the major auction sites. For some other sets, availability can be elusive and person may have to wait many years for a chance at one or more of the tougher coins in the desired grade(s). As for sets for the kids, I discourage those putting away coins for young relatives. If the kids have no interest in coins, the odds are that they will dump them for cash as soon as you turn around (or pass away) for a few cents on the dollar. That is the reality, unless they also become collectors. The odds of that tend to be slim. A few sentimental coins with low cash value are much more likely to be saved for future generations than nice sets of collector coins with a high cash value.
Thanks for your advice. I understand exactly about putting them up for the next generation, that is why I am spending time with my 6 year old nephew getting him interested, I don't give him anything he will lose or spend. As far as my own kids none of them are into collecting and i doubt they will ever be. Kent
Decide how much variation YOU are willing to accept and what the price is on the keys are in the lowest grade you a willing to accept and that will tll you what grades you will be looking for. If you don't want more than a tree grade variation andyou can only afford the Key in VG then you will be collecting from VG to F-15. In most cases the Key date coin will be the lowest graded coin in your set. Then it is up to you how evenly matched you want the set to be.
Well, personally the grade range in my set is F15 to MS60. The all have eye appeal for the grade and look great together. I think it is all up to the owner of the set for what is acceptable.
