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Posted 03/14/2026 1:39 pm
Yes, I just bought a slabbed War Nickel. The most common MS grades for a given year/mint tend to be MS66. MS 67s are pretty common. 67+ and 68 are where the most value is. I do not think there is anything available more than MS68. MS 66 Full stairs (FS) compete with say MS 67 non-FS. I bought an MS 67+ 1944-S (a good date/mint combination, but not FS) for a somewhat reasonable price- less than an MS 66 FS. I see MS-67 FS for 3-4 x the price. Even MS 66 FS is 1.25-1.5x. San Francisco had the fewest FS, Denver the most.
What are your thoughts on what is better- an MS 67+ non-FS (1944-S) vs. say an MS 65 or 66 with FS? It is not an easy question. I think the MS67+ non-FS is actually rarer than the lower grade FS, but many collectors want the FS (though the typical condition for 1944-S is actually non-FS). I am not second guessing my decision (I actually learned about a lot of this after I bought- I bought based on relative rarity of the condition independent of FS or not).
What are your thoughts on what is better- an MS 67+ non-FS (1944-S) vs. say an MS 65 or 66 with FS? It is not an easy question. I think the MS67+ non-FS is actually rarer than the lower grade FS, but many collectors want the FS (though the typical condition for 1944-S is actually non-FS). I am not second guessing my decision (I actually learned about a lot of this after I bought- I bought based on relative rarity of the condition independent of FS or not).
Edited by JohnQPublic
03/14/2026 3:38 pm
03/14/2026 3:38 pm
