Posted 04/18/2011 11:54 pm
Out of curiosity, what do you mean by a "giant bag?" Like a ziploc bag with a couple of hundred dimes or a HUGE bag full? I'm just curious...I'd love to run across something like this. Mercury dimes are my favorites!
You've already been given some good notes...1921 & 1921d are worth more than most and the 1916d is the rarest and highest value Mercury dime. Here's one of my dimes for an example:
You can see on the reverse side of the dime, just after the E in "ONE" there is a smaller "S". Each Mercury will have an S or a D or nothing in that space...S = San Francisco Mint, D = Denver Mint, Nothing = Philadelphia Mint.
What are you planning to do with this giant bag of dimes? If you are keeping them, I'd buy either coin tubes (if there really are too many to do otherwise) or 2x2 coin flip holders. The 2x2s will look like this:
Little cardboard holders with a clear area where the coin will show through. These will protect the coins and you should definitely consider doing this if you find any really nice looking ones or the 1916d, 21, or 21d. If I received a bag like this, I'd start by separating them out by date and mintmark (S, D, none) and then see if there are any high quality examples.
If you're planning to sell them, take nice photos (look in the coin photography section of this message board for tips). No matter what, as has been said, don't attempt to clean them. Even if they look old and worn and you think they'd look "better" cleaned...coin collectors want them to have their original look. They can be sold individually or in lots to dealers or on ebay or other places.
Silver value has been rising like crazy in recent months...any plain old Mercury dime contains somewhere around $3 worth of silver (this changes constantly). Better examples and the key dates will obviously be worth more. If you have any other question, please ask. This forum has been very helpful to me and hopefully we can help you!
We also love to see photos...if you have a digital camera, show off your new truck load of Mercury dimes! Good luck!
You've already been given some good notes...1921 & 1921d are worth more than most and the 1916d is the rarest and highest value Mercury dime. Here's one of my dimes for an example:
You can see on the reverse side of the dime, just after the E in "ONE" there is a smaller "S". Each Mercury will have an S or a D or nothing in that space...S = San Francisco Mint, D = Denver Mint, Nothing = Philadelphia Mint.
What are you planning to do with this giant bag of dimes? If you are keeping them, I'd buy either coin tubes (if there really are too many to do otherwise) or 2x2 coin flip holders. The 2x2s will look like this:
Little cardboard holders with a clear area where the coin will show through. These will protect the coins and you should definitely consider doing this if you find any really nice looking ones or the 1916d, 21, or 21d. If I received a bag like this, I'd start by separating them out by date and mintmark (S, D, none) and then see if there are any high quality examples.
If you're planning to sell them, take nice photos (look in the coin photography section of this message board for tips). No matter what, as has been said, don't attempt to clean them. Even if they look old and worn and you think they'd look "better" cleaned...coin collectors want them to have their original look. They can be sold individually or in lots to dealers or on ebay or other places.
Silver value has been rising like crazy in recent months...any plain old Mercury dime contains somewhere around $3 worth of silver (this changes constantly). Better examples and the key dates will obviously be worth more. If you have any other question, please ask. This forum has been very helpful to me and hopefully we can help you!
We also love to see photos...if you have a digital camera, show off your new truck load of Mercury dimes! Good luck!
Edited by bwbollom
04/18/2011 11:58 pm
04/18/2011 11:58 pm
