Just ordered this on eBay. I’ve been interested in seated halves for a couple of years now and that interest has slowly been growing, but somehow have only purchased one seated half ever. I don’t plan on spending too much on any of the coins for the album. I figured this would be a fun little side project to fill the lulls in my main collection.
Nice buy! I don't have a lot of seated Halves myself, just six. I've fallen in love with Bust Halves.
Should be a fun adventure... make sure to keep us posted! Out of curiosity, does it have a hole for 1853-O No Arrows? I remember that there is an album with a hole for it but I can’t remember if it was the Dansco.
I have a friend that filled one of these. Some were details coins, but he did it, then sold it at auction. He had most but a few like the 1838-O and 1853-O No Arrows. Still impressive and not an easy feat for someone that isn't wealthy.
Quite a "fun little side project!". I go through periods of buying seated coinage, but never put any in an album. There are common dates, and even some scarcer ones can be found for surprisingly reasonable prices considering the scarcity. Some though.....
That's gonna be a big challenge! I bought an 1870-CC half for fifty bucks when I was a 15-year-old kid, around 1981. It was an ugly duckling- a FR02-ish coin with a permanent yellow stripe from an old cellophane tape stain across the reverse (the tape itself was long gone). But it was real, and the rarest coin I owned in my young numismatist days. Hmm. Checking CoinFacts, I see the 1870-CC half had a mintage of 54,617. By contrast, my 1842-D half eagle had a mintage of 59,608. Maybe that old 1870-CC half still ranks as the rarest US coin I have owned. (Edit- nope- I had 1879 and 1880 dimes in my first love token collection. Those had mintages of 14,000 and 36,000, respectively. So I guess that 1879 dime was the rarest US coin I've had.) Numismedia lists the 1870-CC half dollar for $1,650 in G4 today. Wish I had that ugly old coin now! Fifty bucks was a lot of money to me when I was a kid in 1981. Sounds like a real bargain now. Good luck! I'd say you've got your work cut out for you! That 1878-S is sure gonna be a killer... Of course that hole will forever remain empty if you "don't plan on spending much".
I figured it wouldn’t be an easy set to finish and if I never do fill the album 100% I won’t be disappointed. I have many more years of collecting ahead of me, though, so only time will tell on that. At the very least it will be fun to fill the holes and it will also give me a reason to actually buy the coins instead of just looking at them on eBay a few times a week.
As of right now my plan is to fill as many holes as I can in the $20-50 range. I’m not so much concerned with grade as I am with attractive, problem free coins.
I will try to update this thread with my progress as often as I update the album. I have bids on several coins right now so I hopefully will have the first coin or two to post within the next week and a half!
That's the attiude. Kinda the philosophy I had when I did Roman emperors. It's a set that nobody- even the British Museum- can complete, but I decided to give it a go and see how far I could get on a fairly modest budget. Managed to get over 100 different personalities before I got laid off in the 2008 recession and was forced to sell 'em all. It was a fun year or so of collecting, though. Great while it lasted. I still thing about doing that again. Who says you have to "finish", right? It's all sbout the hunt, after all.
You definitely should give it another go! And yes, collecting, as with almost anything in life, is all about the journey rather than the finish.
The single hole for 1853-O says “all kinds” below it. So I guess you can stick whichever type you want in there. It looks like there are also several other varieties in there. 1846 med and tall date, 46-O med and tall, 1847/6, 1846/horizontal 6...
Did something similar 20 years ago in the early ebay days. Half dimes-Halves. Gave up after a while, but did end up with a decent 1888 half in Good. At least the albums look nice when I open the safe. Good luck with the 1879-1890 examples
Given some time, that will be a spectacular set. With me and my mindset I would go broke in a month trying to plug each hole. Hope you keep us posted on your progress.
I can remember back in 2000-2001 when my late coin dealer told me to buy a seated dollar or half. I looked at him and said yes I love the design but I can not afford it. In hind sight I should have bought 1 because the prices have gone threw the roof now. at least the grades I wanted/dreamed about. lol I look forward to seeing your coins as you buy them regardless of the grade purchased.
The first one. A nice, heavily circulated example. Mostly even wear and appears totally original. I think the only blemish is that dark spot under the cap. In hand it isn’t really noticeable, it’s kind of hidden away in the little nook between the cap, pole and wrist.