Hi Guys.

I stopped in the other day and didn't have time to respond.
Thanks AU90o. The 1899 is not an O. All of mine originate out of Philadelphia. Like I said I had forgotten that someone had scratched on the 1928. I can just see a kid fooling around and deciding to scratch on the coin he had. Oh well, just my luck.

joet, you have some nice looking coins.

I wish all mine were in that good of shape. You mentioned getting them appraised. Don't do like I did and go to a local shop. I'd stick with these guys. They've helped me a lot.

The locals I tried and I knew what was going to happen, I just wanted to prove I was right, were ready, willing, and able to take advantage of my ignorance. They just didn't know I had done a little preliminary research before going to them.

One also dabbled in rings and watches and they low balled me so bad I wanted to tell them I might have been born at night, but it wasn't last night.
I had a never used pocket watch, in the original box, a guy online offered me $600 just on the pitiful photos, I was able to send him and that was naturally wholesale. That was also after I had visited the shops. I saw one in a jewelry shop with a watch repair shop almost identical and worn. I think they call it patina or something like that. They were retailing it for $750.

The shop I showed it at told me 3 or 4 hundred. The case is 18k gold plated, I guess and made by one of the top old pocket watch makers. In my fooling around with the picture taking it fell out of the box when I opened it and bam on a hard surface.

It popped the crystal and back off, but I was able to tell the guy online more about the movement when I got to peak in the back.

It was pretty soft too, so I'm curious and will ask the shop about that 18k gold. It's currently in the shop being repaired. It needed to go there any way for service, but repair got thrown in the equation too.

They can make it like new. You'd have to see pictures of some of their work. It's incredible.
Beware of the shysters out there. Their goal is to get you every time.
We have casinos here and with the current economy, the coin shops are just pawn shops for coins, I think. I witnessed one guy sell a coin at one shop. I know he didn't want to and the guy probably got him big time. He kind of hung his head and took what the jerk was willing to pay. He knew he was being taken advantage of and apparently had no choice other that to take it and either go gamble or buy necessities of life.

I guess those crooks sleep well at night.

That's all I just wanted to relay my experiences here locally and I'm sure it's probably that way everywhere.
Good luck.