Help With British Pennies

Usually nice coins with original red luster command a higher price. If I were buying for investment or resale, I would pass on the brown piece you show and opt for the full red second coin photo, even at a slightly higher price. On common date coins of any country, quality is the key.

Thanks, as much lustre as I can get it is then.

Beyond keeping them seperate in airtites & storing with dessicant packs to prevent moisture, what else can you do?

Although I agree that a red luster is worth more I personally would be looking for high grade natural looking coins.

This is for a couple of reasons... firstly the ones with that luster will be worth more so they will cost you more; you risk that you lose some of that value if you lose any of the luster in your storage process. The other brown coin you will pay less in purchasing it and not have that liability.

Also it is perfectly natural for a 1901 penny to have that toned appearance, there is nothing wrong with that. The one with luster must have either been kept very carefully or been cleaned up (I am not saying that someone has used brasso on that particular coin but if buying online you run a risk that may be the case)

Which-ever you decide I don't think that these are a great investment unless you buy very shrewdly, the money will be made in the purchasing of these for their value or below their value. If you pay a retail price on them maybe it will take a very long time to recoup that money, and they are so common that you will only get a premium above their value if you have particularly well preserved coins and the rarer dates/mintmarks.

I note that I have many of these coins and some are artificially dark too. It was common practice to put them in oil or some product that darkened them, personally I don't find that unattractive as long as the coin has all its details and no evidence of cleaning.

The reason to collect these coins in my view is because you like and enjoy them, not to get rich... if you want to get rich there are other coins that I believe will perform much better...with less supply and more desirability.

Slabbing is a particularly American thing... as an Englishman I don't think it will help you over here... it will cost you money and might even turn off some buyers this side of the pond.

Just my personal opinion for what it is worth.

Isn't it funny how people can have different legitimate opinions, thanks for your input everyone.

I wouldn't be getting these to 'get rich' merely as a bit of fun and the hunt of getting the coins and then having something of 'worth' at the end (whether it is worth more or less than what I pay). I totally agree on the slabbing situation, if I were American I wouldn't hesitate to slab because its the culture to do that but for the UK airtites will be enough.

The toned/lustre dilema is more of a problem though. I guess that's down to personal choice though as I see a lot of the post ww2 pennies are available all with good lustre.

I personally say go with the brown, the original luster one has been cleaned and the brown is more attractive. If you want a looker, brasso a cheap one.

I suggest you go to a carboot sale and find an old couple with a dish of them, usually £1, 50p if you find a good stall.

From the photo I could not say if it has been cleaned or not.

What I could say is that it looks to me to be circulated (meaning people have touched it) and if you touch these coins they tend to go brown even if stored in a decent album for more than about 20 years.

To me it seems surprising then that it is the colour that it is...I can't say whether that is down to some sort of foul play or just very clever storage (acetone bath, airtight storage with desicants etc may have preserved it)

I really wouldnt care which is the case but I see it as a liability that it stays looking like that in my possesion and also would prefer a natural looking coin that is showing its age and history. To me it looks like it probably should be brown by now and I have to ask why? (I am cynical by nature especially when buying!)

Don't get me wrong this is a personal preference as you can see by the mixed comments.

There is no reason to think that coin has been cleaned. It has just had an easier life than other coins. It looks fully lustrous and very nice IMO. Check out this 1911 Australian penny which was minted in the UK http://www.monetariumadelaide.com.a...ducts_id=851

That coin illustrates that if coins are stored correctly they shouldnt lose their lustre even after 100 years.

Neither of these two look cleaned to me either, it's perfectly normal for bronze pennies.

The bright new finish is what I call BU, the dark 1901 I would call UNC.

The BU is rarer (in my opinion) and much more desirable.

I bought several George V BU pennies recently - they had been sitting unpackaged open to the air in a drawer in a desk since getting them in change in 1936 according to the owner - he had forgotten they were there.