If You Are Filling An Album, What Condition Do You Not All Collect?

I doubt you'll find a consensus here, other than I'm sure most collectors will look for clear 4-digit dates. Most dates from the 1930s are very inexpensive in higher grades, while branch mint issues from the teens and twenties can be very pricey in top condition. I'd bet most collectors have a mix of grades.



to the CCF!

Later dates are inexpensive even in MS65+, but teens and twenties with mint mark can be pricey even in XF.

I collect what I can afford. Barber coins are the perfect example. Best of luck.

I found the thread you were looking for, that sounds really fun I might even try that route too

This is exactly how someone on these forums did a "64 Buffalo nickels for $64" challenge. He ended up doing it for $63.31. I wonder if anyone can do a cheaper set of Buffalo nickels.

http://goccf.com/t/200852

Patrick , you would have to pick Buffalo nickels of all other coins to start an album . WOW ,these are tuff my friend ,but if you insist , I don't know your financial state so I'm just going to assume your an average Joe like most of us .
You want to try to have all 4 digits of the date as clear as possible ,MM's should be clear . The word Liberty on obverse should be clear not mushy . The horn on the buffalo should be AT LEAST 3/4 full . All lettering on reverse fairly sharp . The Buffalo itself should have plenty of detail . So this is a nice set of Buff's if you can afford all the keys ! Good luck .

I would just do readable dates, XF for the common ones. No acid dates.

When I was a young collector in the 1960s working on a collection of Indian cents, my minimum condition was Fine. I looked for better coins for the common dates, but tried to keep the expensive coins at the Fine level. That met that each coin had a full "LIBERTY" on the Indians headband. The letters were not strong, but they were there.

A couple of things have changed. First grading for the circulated grades got more lax when slabbing became common. That may should odd, but it's true. While grading for Mint State and Proof coins became more strict with slabbing, it got less strict for grades like Fine, Very Fine and Extremely Fine. The grading services single handedly lowered the standards. Second, while there was a fair amount of over grading by dealers "in the good old days," there were a number of dealers who had strict standards. Therefore "Fine" described a better coin that what you get today for the most part.

My advice with Buffalo nickels is to buy pieces that have fully readable dates. Stay away from partial dates if you can afford it. And definitely stay away from pieces with "acid dates" that have had the date restored with nitric acid. Those are "temporary coins" with little real value.

Stay away from coins with big scratches, rim nicks and corrosion spots which are usually black, but sometimes green on copper-nickel coins.

Buy the best grades you can afford. It is best to buy the "right" coin first and not have to upgrade later.

Finally just have fun. Don't worry about competing with someone else. Build the collection that makes you happy.

Today I'm old collector that some people might view as "well to do." Generally I don't buy coins, tokens or medals that grade less than AU, but there can be exceptions. Most of the time I buy Mint State and Proof coins, but I have a bigger budget than most.