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 Replies: 46 / Views: 3,223 |
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
20753 Posts |
Just thought I'd see what some may say about this situation. I presently have 10 sets of Mercury dimes in Whitman Classic Albums. Set #1 is in almost all MS with FB's. Recently a dealer at a coin show gave me 2 more Whitman and 1 Dansco album for Mercury dimes. At first I started with one set and as I acquired a better graded coin, it would go into that set and the one in that set would go into a 2x2. Eventually with 10 completed sets I still have that practice. However, due to so many duplicates I now place all the Mercury dimes in the 40 to 45 range in plastic tubes and all earlier ones in 2x2's. There are several thousand duplicates now. So here is the problem. 1.Should I do as in the past and start opening up all the duplicates and put them in the albums? 2.Maybe only start set #11? 3.Should I just continue doing what I've been doing and not use the albums? 4.Give the empty albums away so not be tempted to start sets 11 and 12 or more? 5.Go to a coin show and sell all the duplicates? I'm sure that there is enough duplicates to fill or almost fill a few more albums including all the rarish ones. I've been hesitant with the more album idea due to if I get a fantastic new Mercury dime and it goes into set #1, then the one in set #1 goes to set #2 and from set #2 to #3, from #3 to #4, etc. The addition of one coin could take hours. Same problem with Lincoln Cents, Jefferson nickels, Roosevelt dimes except no free albums to put them in so no big pressure. |
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Moderator
 United States
188213 Posts |
You forgot option 6, which is the option you often give everyone else, and that is send those duplicates to me!  Seriously, I think option 1 would be more "you" while option 5 would be my choice, or at least use them for "trade" material (I have never sold a coin, only traded). |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1000 Posts |
Boy I wish I had your problems  I'm with Jbuck - You could wait until the secret Santa/winter solstice and pick my name.  |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
580 Posts |
I'm gonna start calling you "Just Mercury"!
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Pillar of the Community
Poland
3201 Posts |
7th option - put them back in circulation. 8th option - let some of them be a prize in a contest. 9th option - trade (pick me!) |
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Valued Member
United States
135 Posts |
10. give them out at Halloween.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2602 Posts |
I suppose it depends on the long-term plan for the collection. If you need the money, you'd be better off having near complete sets or partial sets than just selling them as junk silver for buillion. My vote would be to start sets 11-15 and keep going beyond that. Why stop at 10? Why is that a magic number?
BTW, do you realize that if you have 10 complete sets, that means you presently own 0.00379% of all 16Ds that were minted? That sounds small, but even the best hoarders of a date will have a hard time approaching that percentage for a business strike. That is remarkable! And if you accept that of the 264,000 minted, probably a fraction of these survive, the real % you have of what is left is probably 10-fold higher, or 0.0379%! Maybe you should be renamed "just 16D"!
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Pillar of the Community
United States
6326 Posts |
I think Carl.......or "Just Mercury"....( )........could probably fill 12 warehouses with his entire collection !!..... He's been at this since the late '40's I believe. He's "given away" more coins than some of us have in our whole collection probably too !!....  And YES !....I too wish I had his problem !!....   |
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Bedrock of the Community
 United States
20753 Posts |
Quote:
I think Carl.......or "Just Mercury"....()........could probably fill 12 warehouses with his entire collection !.....
He's been at this since the late '40's I believe.
He's "given away" more coins than some of us have in our whole collection probably too !....
Actually started in 1943 when my Dad started giving me those brand new Silvery pennies that just came out. And yes I have given away virtually piles of coins not long ago. Heard that word Stage 4 Cancer and thought it was all over so started giving away piles of everything. Lots of operations made that all go away but still glad I got rid of so much stuff. WOW, was I a pack rat. Started with the Mercury dimes not long after the 43 pennies. There was a coin store not far from me when I was a kid. At about 10 years old I looked in the window and there was a dish with 10 Mercury dimes all dated 1916D for $1.50 each. Can't remember where I got the money but I bought them all and that is why I think I'm kind of stuck on the number 10 for all my collections. Still not certain of what to do but may well go with 1. What scares me is if I find a Dime in better grade than what is in set #1 I will be spending the rest of the day moving just one coin from set to set to set to............... |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4541 Posts |
Quote:
Heard that word Stage 4 Cancer and thought it was all over so started giving away piles of everything. Lots of operations made that all go away but still glad I got rid of so much stuff. Glad to hear everything is better now!  Quote:At about 10 years old I looked in the window and there was a dish with 10 Mercury dimes all dated 1916D for $1.50 each Man thats a great deal |
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Rest in Peace
United States
9104 Posts |
My own philosophy is that a collector keeps the best of each and trades the rest for stuff he doesn't have. Having ten 16d dimes is nice in terms of value, or if you're putting together sets to give grandchildren or some similar goal, but otherwise you're preventing 9 other collectors from completing their sets.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
533 Posts |
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Lots of operations made that all go away but still glad I got rid of so much stuff Of all the things that I have read on this site, that is honestly my favorite. Both my mom's parents went that way, and it really makes me happy to know that good things do happen...  (or as my grandad would say, "the sun shines on a dog's 'butt' somedays"  Quote:At about 10 years old I looked in the window and there was a dish with 10 Mercury dimes all dated 1916D for $1.50 each. Seriously... that might be the second best. Although, I am typing this to the same guy that has 10 FULL sets of Buffs. Man, I am 27, and I can only imagine having a collection to be that proud of. (especially because you 'picked' almost every coin, IMHO thats what makes it special.) I remember once (a couple years ago) I was helping my grandma go through some stuff in her basement, and in an old jewelry box she found a '21d Morgan and a '23 Peace dollar. She was born in '22, but she said that the bank didn't have any silver dollars from 1922 when she asked, so she took those. Well, long story short, she gave them to me, and I wrapped them up in a tissue because that was all that was around. Numerous times since then, I have seen that tissue in my coin box, and opened it to look at those coins, and thought to myself that I should put them in a 2x2 or something, but each time I just wrap them back up in the tissue, and put them back in the box because I like remembering where they came from... I guess that the moral to my story is, I wouldn't trade you those 2 coins for one of your '16d mercs, or all 10 for that matter. All the rest of my coins... maybe, but nope, not those two. I like things like that to remind me why I collect coins, and to make me smile. And I like like stories like yours to make me wish I was born 100 years ago. (man, what am I going to wish for when I am 100, to get shot by a jealous husband?) |
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Rest in Peace
United States
9104 Posts |
If grandma's still around, you might give her a 22 peace for her birthday next year. She'll treasure it as much as you do those.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
580 Posts |
Morganoob  That was the best post I've read on this site thus far. Coins are something that connects everyone, whether they accumulate in a personal collection or are simply used as a means of a transaction for goods or services. They are a common thread that binds us all in some way and can create thoughts and stories throughout our lives, both good and bad. Just "Mercury" Carl, your story made my day! Mike |
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Moderator
United States
188213 Posts |
Quote:
She was born in '22, but she said that the bank didn't have any silver dollars from 1922 when she asked, so she took those. My grandfather was born in 1922. Just before he passed away, he gave me the 1922 Peace dollar his mother had given him. Quote:
I just wrap them back up in the tissue, and put them back in the box because I like remembering where they came from... I wouldn't trade you those 2 coins for one of your '16d mercs, or all 10 for that matter... I like things like that to remind me why I collect coins, and to make me smile. Everyone probably knows I am a sucker for sentimental value, and this is an excellent example of that! Yeah, my eyes welled up; anyone gotta problem with that?  |
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
20753 Posts |
Quote:
I guess that the moral to my story is, I wouldn't trade you those 2 coins for one of your '16d mercs, or all 10 for that matter. All the rest of my coins... maybe, but nope, not those two. I like things like that to remind me why I collect coins, and to make me smile. And I like like stories like yours to make me wish I was born 100 years ago.
Of course not. Same way I feel about all my 1943 Steel Cents. Way, way back my Dad started me out on collecting coins by giving me all of those he could find. I still have about 30 or 40 rolls of them from back then in plastic rolls. They are not and never will be sold, given away or traded. When I look at them I think of my Dad going through all his change or where ever he found them just for me. Sort of still my Dad's coins I guess. And as to a great deal on those 1916D's. Remember that this was about in the late 1940's or early 50's. At my age, not sure. The $1.50 each was a set price and that was a real lot of money back then. For example a brand new Chevy would have been about $800 or so. I remember my parents sending me to a store with a few dollars and had a hell of time trying to carry everything. Of course I had my favorite red wagon. I frequented that coin shop a lot when I was a kid. Sure wish I knew what else I bought there. Made money by going through the alleys collecting bottles. There used to be a .02 or ever .05 cent deposit on them and most people put them out for us kids. And that Cancer stuff. I'll always wonder if the 4 operations and 2 bouts of chemotherapy are what really fixed me or was it all those Martini's. I can smile about it now but back then, wow. Meanwhile, back to the Mercury dimes. Just came back from the flea market with 13 more Mercury dimes and all in the teens and twenties and all either D or S and for $17. Mostly G-4 to VG though. |
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Replies: 46 / Views: 3,223 |
Posted 08/28/2008 4:20 pm
