What is a complete collection of Flying Eagle and Indian Head cents?

A complete collection of Flying Eagle and Indian Head Cents technically includes more than filling coin album holes, and I don't mean trying to collect mint errors, which are called varieties. I'm suggesting it only includes deliberate changes made by the mint. The links in the attached pdf provide background information. http://members.iphouse.com/frech001/Al's Flying Eagle and Indian Head Cent Complete Design Set.pdf

I've been collecting for over 60 years. I researched and read everything I could find. I joined the FLYING EAGLE AND INDIAN CENT COLLECTORS SOCIETY www.fly-inclub.org. I purchased all 30 years of their club journal, “Longacre's Ledger”. I scanned them all to pdf so I could search them and gave the digital files to the club for posting on their website. I bought all the books I could find on these coins Including Richard Snow's “Attribution Guide”, to identify all the deliberate changes by the mint. I wasn't interested in collecting mistakes, which most varieties are, but rather changes the mint intended and released into circulation. Thus I wasn't interested in the 1856, Flying Eagle, which was essentially a pattern. And, I wanted circulated coins that were actually in people's pockets, part of our history, partly because they are more affordable and because my father started the collection with circulated coins. My research corresponds with Richard Snow's suggested deliberate mint design changes (cited in the file I linked to). I'd like to hear other's thoughts.

The photos are of an 1857 FE with the obverse of an 1856, an example of a mint design not in albums.

 

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Great post. I think I joined the club about the time it started. Still have most of the Ledgers from over the years. The meeting at the Fun Show each January is something I look forward to.
For me the complete set was the Dansco album less the 1856. From there I went into some of the really cool varieties. The 1857 clash die coins and some of the doubled die coins are my favorites. Next came the proofs but that didn't last too long. The price of nice proofs made me stop that set.

 

I would think a complete set would be what you want it to be. I also started looking at varieties, particularly in the Flying Eagle Cents, and discovered the high leaf/ low leaf and open/ closed E. Then there are die pairings, etc... Also do not forget the 1858/7 overdate. I decided that I would limit myself to the design changes (leaf varieties and E varieties) and obverse/ reverse pairings.

 

A "complete" set is however you choose to define it. You clearly have spent a lot of time and effort to thoroughly research your set, and I admire that.

For many people, the most basic "complete" set is defined by the Dansco or Whitman album they choose. A little bit more advanced "complete" set might be defined by Redbook varieties. The most advanced go for as many varieties as they can.