Collecting Conundrum

For the early type coins your best bet is probably going with slabbed coins and removing them to put them in your album. Save the label for each so that if ever you decide to sell the album the scarcer type coins are already graded and you won't have to worry about getting cheated on the grade.

Ed
ANA LM-3175

I'd go with option 1 but I'd take 2 if I could get an extremely good deal.

I've been working on what I call the "bargain bin 7070" meaning no coin in there is over the price listed on the highest bargain bin at my local coin shop (so, nothing over $40 bucks). As such, I'm quickly approaching your conundrum myself. What to do about those Trade dollars, etc.?

I can tell you one thing I learned: hunting for coins out in the wild has made me learn a thing or two really quick and has actually increased my love of collecting more than simply bagging and tagging slabbed coins. And this site has been uber-helpful in my education.

But the key here, I think, is cherrypicking. Know the ballpark price and know the coin (I study the photograde to give myself a burned in mental image of what I'm after at the moment and average a couple of price guides for the ballparks) and cherrypick like blazes.

Also, I'd say, is look everywhere for coins. ebay, online coin shops, brick and mortar coin shops, etc. etc. etc. As has been my experience there's always an odd coin out there somewhere that is just waiting for someone to buy it really cheaply.

Well, I'd watch it and put a bid in on it at the last second. If you can get it for closer to $52 or so total, it's not bad. No reason to spend more than you need to. If somebody else decides they need it, there will ALWAYS be another one, and I wouldn't feel too crushed if this one gets away.

I like the advice of buying your coins certified so you're sure you know what you're getting. That is, if you plan to try to have any kind of "investment" (that is non-bullion) value. If you don't care too much and you just want to fill holes, pieces like this fit the bill nicely.

Did you make it to a show yet?

Actually the whole reason for the change was to raise the eagle and a few minor changes to the obverse. The matter of the exposed breast was never mentioned or discussed and when the changes to the coin were approved the changes were enumerated and it was ordered that no other changes were to be made other than the ones mentioned. The exposed bust and the chain mail was not mentioned. That change was wholly undertaken by the designer on his own initiative and was actually an illegal change.