Advice For Collecting Franklin Halves

to CCF!

Are you comfortable telling the difference between an AU-55 and an MS-63 Franklin? To me Franklins are one of the hardest coins to grade. If you MUST have 63 I recommend going the slab route. If you are just looking for some nice examples then you could buy raw.

The good thing about Franklin set is there isn't a key date that will be impossible to get. This is definitely a doable set. Good luck!

I agree that Franklins are tough to grade,like the Kennedys..Sounds like slabs are the way to go for you,mostly becase differences between 63-65 is hard to tell...also coins with FBL are more in demand. Often it depends on the buyers pool..Look into Heritage auctions

I'd highly recommend going on ebay or the like and buying a range of budget slabbed Franklin halves in various grades around the grade you are interested in. Do it for proof and regular. Challenge yourself. See if you can get a slabbed Franklin in MS state for less than the melt cost and $20 - $25 slabbing fee. It can be done.

I found it useful in evaluating other raw coins in my collection and the differences between graded coins, even with the same grade on the label.


As for raw vs slabbed, collect what you like. Lots of us have sets both ways. Me, I only have raw sets and then some 'grading sets' in slabs for a physical reference when grading coins. I will do an Ike slabbed set someday I am sure. You will too. We all will. Ike fever is spreading and the only cure is more Ikes. . . .


As for pricing. I have never paid full RedBook for a coin. I'd be weary of paying that. List prices are basically prices that nobody in the world has decided to purchase that item at before. Why would you want to be that guy?

For slabbed coin pricing, I'd look into Heritage or ebay completed auctions. Those are actual sales. You can also look at the PCGS / NGC websites as they have price guides for their coins, but they are again typically a bit high.

I suggest going for the FBL distinction as well if you can. There are a few that will likely be too expensive with FBL though so you may have to just go with a regular MS on those few.

Your new to collecting coins. starting with Franklins might be a little too hard for you right now. So keep eye appeal foremost when your ready to buy. as most others have said go with the graded slabbed coins. but don't just go by what is printed on the slab label. some members quote ; Buy The Coin Not The Slab. I don't know what your budget is ,but MS-63 Franklins is not the way I would go. you don't have to go with FBL ,but at least keep them all at MS-64-65 . Good luck.

Sticking with slabbed coins is a good way to learn how to grade Franklins and you will avoid big mistakes that way. The down side is that bargains will be hard to come by.

One problem with online coin dealers is that everyone seems to want top dollar for their coins. Dealers seem to put their coin out there at 30-50% above retail and then they just sit. The same thing seems to be true on ebay for Buy It Now as well. I would stick to looking at ending competitive bid auction prices on sites such as ebay, Heritage or Great Collections to get an idea of real world prices and then look to buy at coin shows, dealers or online in the neighborhood of those prices.

For every coin I am looking for, I have a target price range and try to be patient. If I was willing to pay the 30-50% above retail that dealers seem to want, I could finish my list today. But I am not willing to do that, so I wait.

Wow, thank you all so much for your advice. This is REALLY helping me out. Keep it coming!

I am going to keep an eye out for a 1948-P Franklin in MS-65 condition. Not a big fan of the toning (although I can appreciate its appeal). I am really drawn to the blast-white coins.



@muddler: Thanks for showing part of your collection. That 1954 is beautiful!