Which Walking Liberty Proof Should I Keep?

A few years ago I assembled the 7-coin set of Walking Liberty Half Dollar proof coins. The average grade of the set is 65.13.

Now, I am going to sell off six of these coins to amass funds for other collecting interests. My quandary is which one of two do I keep for my type set.

The first candidate is a nice 1935 PR-64 CAC. I've posted my photos and a True View is not available. There are a small number of very faint hairlines on this coin. This year is the most expensive of the set by a big margin. One argument for selling this coin is that it will garner more cash than the other coin.

The second candidate is a 1939 PR-67 CAC. My photo and a True View are shown. This is a super nice PQ coin but is a little weak in the strike through the U of TRUST. One argument for selling this coin is that the 1936 is by far the better date.

Which one would you keep and why?

 

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I'd keep the '36. The weaker strike, that you mentioned in the '39, would bother me.

 

C - All of the above.... In all seriousness that 1936 is a lesson all by itself in luster. Beautiful coin.

 

They're all great, but like Randy, I do like that '36!

 

I have a well defined, well struck 1936 PR-66 half dollar, which is my favorite among the 1936 to 42 Proof sets in my collection. Going by your photos, I am not a fan of the 1939 dated piece. I don’t think that a PR-67 CAC graded piece should have any strike weakness. I also see a scratch on Ms. Liberty’s hip, which I don’t think should be there.

Here are my two pieces for these dates.

1936 PCGS PR-66



1939 PCGS PR-67

 

If it was me, it would depend on the other coins in the type set and what the goal is for that, and whether there's a chance I'd ever want to do the Walking Liberty set again. Is the type set all super high grades, or is the goal key or semi-key dates? Going off NGC price guide you'd get about $1000 more out of the 1936, but of course it would be that much more to replace it if you ever wanted to. So your need for cash is a factor too. Personally I would keep the 1936, but I've never needed or wanted to sell anything.

 

I’d keep the 1936 and sell the other one. It may have graded higher but that weak strike would bother me. The MS-64 coin may grade a bit higher or CAC as is but I’d keep it.

 

A factor, but not THE factor, is which coin is most likely to appreciate in value the most in the future. Just taking past as prologue, which is not always reliable, here's the values and annual average percentage increase between the time I bought these coins and now, five years for the 1936 and six years for the 1939. All values are CDN/CPG CAC Retail.

1936
Purchased 10/2019
2019 CDN value = $2,000 (Note that CDN CAC Retail Price Guide did not exist then)
2019 actual price paid = $1,756
Nov, 2024 value = $2400
Annual Average appreciation from price guide = 4%
Annual Average appreciation from actual price = 7.3%

1939
Purchased 12/2018
2018 value = $900 (Note that CDN CAC Retail Price Guide did not exist then)
2018 actual price paid = $960
Nov, 2024 value = $1,250
Annual Average appreciation from price guide = 6.5%
Annual Average appreciation from actual price = 5%

This surprised me. Not as conclusive as I would have thought. Could be an artifact of having gotten a good price on the 1936 and overpaid a bit on the 1939. I would have thought the 1936 would appreciate more.

 

Actually, neither. My goal is simply coins I like although I tend to favor gem or better in the 20th century issues.

 

Generally, I agree about strike weakness but as you know the 1936 issues were the first the mint made for about 3 decades or so. And these half dollars are notorious for overly lapped dies.

I agree about the scratch/gouge on the hip and it's a vote against keeping this coin.

 

If you don't have to have the money difference, I would keep the '36. It's the better coin, to me (grade wise, even though it's not graded that way), but certainly is the more "collectable" coin. Just my 2 cents. Blessings

 

I'd keep the 36, beautiful coin!

 

It seems like relatively speaking they would appreciate about the same. It doesn't strike me that there are more collectors of a Walking Liberty proof set than there were 5 years ago, so the relative premium was already baked in.

 

The mintages are 3,901 for the 1936 and 8,808 for the 1939. Sometimes it's neat to have the lower mintage. The mintage for the 1936 Proof Quarter, which is the limiting factor for the number Proof sets is 3,837. The difference is only 64 coins.

 

Keep the 1936 and get it regraded. I can’t believe this is only a PF64. While I like the cameo effect on the 1939, I dislike the weak TRUST.

 

I'd keep the 36 also.

 

I would keep the '36 for the lower mintage and better eye-appeal (to me) in spite of the grade. You can't go wrong with either, two very nice coins.

 

Thank you all for your insightful comments. I have decided to keep the 1936 in accordance with the majority of your thoughts.

 

If you ever have seller’s remorse, feel free to blame all of us!

 

As my late sainted mother used to tell me ad infinitum: "You have no one to blame but yourself."