$300-$500 And A Crystal Ball

A choice VF early Large Cent - solid Bust Type coin. That 1876 double-dime looks inviting, too!

It all depends on what you like, but soem great comments posted here already. i'd be looking at full head SLQS in lower MS grades, like Ms-60-63. Of course, I'm partial to them as they are my favorite coin

I suspect that some of us, myself included, have drifted off topic by ignoring the investment aspect of the original posting. Like some others, I chose coins that have collector appeal, and the investment potential didn't much register. Of course, it's quite likely that any choice collector coin (older type, keys and semi-keys) bought now will likely have advanced in value some ten years hence.

So, now rethinking the question and consulting my crystal ball, I'll choose 1921-P/D Mercury dimes in F-VF condition. I see many of these at shows in AG-VG, but the Fines are few and far between. Alternatives are 1921-S, '24-S or '26-S Buffalo nickels; any one, but it must be a full horn VF. Both the Mercury and Buffalo series are quite popular among collectors. Also, both series are approaching their 100th anniversary year.

Sgarten wrote that "no one can predict the furure." Let me take a stab at doing just that. I predict that 1913 Buffalo nickels will significantly advance in value in 2012, next year! Also, in 2015, 1916 dimes will likewise advance. We saw this happen with the 1909 Lincolns and Indian cents. Anyone care to make a friendly wager in opposition to my prediction? Will the old crystal ball method work in less than ten years?

Take a six year old girl to a big show. Narrow your field if you want, to type, gold, tokens, IHC, whatever.

Let her do the picking, and only override her if she's suckered in by something like a whizzed coin or colorized ASE.

Why this works:

Her head isn't filled with a bunch of crap about slobbed vs raw, ms64 vs ms63, investment potential, rarity, bid price, etc. If you ask her why she chose one coin over another, her only explanation is likely to be "it's prettier".

And when she turns 21, guess what? It'll still be prettier, and it will be easier to sell because pretty coins are easy to sell.

I don't recall his name at the moment, but years ago a collector bought all sorts of coins from around the world, always paying a little more for exceptional pieces. Keep in mind, this was when the Sheldon scale was a price guide: vf30 was half of ms60 and ms66 was 10% more.

He was by no means rich, and didn't really have that much in his coins, but they ultimately sold for a fortune.

That's certainly true, Conder101. The same scenario unfolds annually with many of the modern mint coins. I can recall the 1909-S VDB's taking an "investment" nosedive many years ago, only to rebound to unrealistic levels now. I see many of this "rare" date in dealer's cases at shows.

The telemarketers drive certain areas of the hobby, nowadays. I'm predicting that will continue to be the case with the 1916 dimes and 1913 nickels. From a strictly investment standpoint, folks possessing those dates may then simply sell and take their profits when the wave is high. Personally, I'd rather gaze at the artistic design on an old coin than into a crystal ball.

high grade collector silver coins. MS of any coins you can get. preferably silver. as long as the price of silver does not go NUTZ, the numismatic value of MS quality silver coins will hold their values and possibly more if they are of low mintage.

weather you want indians, buffalos, eagles or dead presidents, get ones in very high grades...