Less Rare Higher Grade Or More Rare Lower Grade?

I'm new to coin collecting but collect cars, guns, and of all things; pinball machines.
When I first started collecting them quantity was more important than quality. Now as my collections fill out the balance has shifted just the opposite;
Quality trumps quantity.


As I'm just getting started my plan is to go for coins on the cusp of being between extreme high quality and the more common grades. That way I can have more and still have great quality.

We'll see.

Well Taylor what coins do you have for sale ;o)

I don't have any coins for sale. :) I'm just buyer right now. Pinball machines on the other hand, I sold a bunch of those, down from a high of 12 to 6. It's a little hard to explain what happened to pinball in the past couple years, basically for 6 years things were pretty normal...then all of sudden a crapload of new people starting showing up, paying ridiculous prices for everything without any common sense, and basically changed the hobby from a 'repair/restore/preservation' type of deal into a 'speculate/investment/bling it up", basically just killing the hobby for me personally (and forming a massive bubble I think...prices on pinball machines went up 50 to 100% in a year on a large number of games).

I have a '79 Mercedes 450 SEL, with a 6.9 engine. It's not nearly as valuable as some American classics.

When it comes to coins, and especially with American classic coins in pristine condition, expect to pay $thousands.

Same applies to ancient coins. I have a Greek diobol of Kallisto, in fine condition, struck at about 440 BC. I paid $250 for it. Only SIX specimens are known off the obverse die.

If you are after a relatively common Athenian tetradrachm, also of about the same time, in pristine condition, you can also expect to pay many $thousands for it.

This is a great question, but the short (sorta) answer is I would probably mull until steam came out of my brain and both were sold.

It would have to do completely with the exact coins in question, how I grade them (regardless of a TPG grade if there was one) and which coin specifically spoke to me more. In this case, my gut says I'd get the L, but were it a 64 versus 50, I might get the no-L ('specially if it was a Christmas present!! - da-dump ching.)

OK I'm jumping in.....I'll take rarity, but, I want them real and problem free if possible.............Had a '57 bel-air hardtop.....Dumb Kid!! Next one will be a 1970 corvette

I choose a third option, not appearing in this poll.

Given a fixed budget, and forced to choose between the two, I'd pick a high grade non-rare example.

But.. I'd prefer buying many low grade common examples.

I guess this is why I have thousands of coins, but only few of them are worth over the 100$ mark.

I'm with you upstate. my first car was a 67 fastback mustang GL with a 289 hi-performance engine. then I upgraded to a 68 corvette big block 427 side pipes, fuel injected, holly 750. that was one bad car. wish I had both of them back...stupid kids, had no idea what I had.