Rare coin collecting....

The only thing I know about old coins is that they have to be in pretty good condition to be worth much. I have some old coins but they are significantly worn which makes them fun to own, but not very valuable.

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The only thing I know about old coins is that they have to be in pretty good condition to be worth much.

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True. Not just in good shape by not being worn, but in good shape by being clean. Experienced collectors/dealers can spot a coin that has been cleaned or shined usually at first glance, and they dramatically lowers the price.

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I've got a lot of old silver coins that might be worth their weight in silver. (the part of them that is silver)

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According to the Whitman Blue Book, the amount of silver in older coins is as follows:
Wartime nickle - .05626 oz
Dime - 0.7234 oz
Quarter - .18084 oz
Half Dollar - .36169 oz
Silver clad half dollar - .14792 oz
Silver dollar - .77344 oz

Silver closed today at about $13/oz. You have only about $10 in a true silver dollar at bullion value.

Gold you do a little better:
$5.00 gold piece (1839-1929) - .24187 oz
$10.00 gold piece (1838-1907) - .48375 oz
$20.00 gold piece (1849-1933) - .96750 oz

Gold is right at $937/oz so a $5.00 gold piece would be worth roughly $225 in bullion value.

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Right, but coins always sell for higher than the relative bullion value (for gold and silver).

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It depends on the age and condition of the coin. I have a stack of Standing Liberty quarters (1916-1930 minatage) that are so worn you cannot get a date off of some of them, so you cannot value them fairly because they cannot be identified.

However, using a 2008 blue book, I can get an estimated value of a quarter minted in the years 1925-1930 at $2.25 if it grades in good condition (G-4). With silver at $13/oz, the bullion value of said quarter is $2.35.

I got a 1953 Ben Franklin Half Dollar, any guess to what it might be worth?

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I got a 1953 Ben Franklin Half Dollar, any guess to what it might be worth?

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It depends on the mint where it was produced and the condition. My 2008 blue book (representative prices paid by dealers) give a 1953 half dollar as ranging from $4 up to $100.

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He has a couple Roman coins that I was amazed by. Of course they are in pretty rough condition....but they are literally thousands of years old--I thought it was pretty cool stuff.

No clue how much they would be worth.

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I recently had the opportunity to obtain some Roman coins through an estate dissolution. The coin I really wanted was an Emperor Hadrian coin (of Hadrian's Wall fame in Great Britain). I did some research and learned that particular coin is THE most often counterfeited Roman coin.

Counterfeiters take another old coin from the same era, file it down to smooth and them stamp it with the Hadrian mold. Only an experienced numismatist, which I'm not, can determine if it is genuine or not. So I passed on it. As it was, the seller was asking less than $25 for it.

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although IMHO it's still kinda neat.

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:kige:

It was neat looking at a coin that was almost 2,000 years old, counterfeit or not. (The metal was from the same era, it just may have originally been a more common, less valuable coin.)

1950 Franklin halves still bottom at $4 for a coin graded VF-20 (moderate wear on high points of design, all major details are clear) and top around $15 or $16. The '50 coins were minted either in Philadelphia or Denver, the SF mint didn't strike them that year. The Philadelphia struck coins don't have mint marks; Denver struck coins have a small D on the reverse right below the E in "States".

Now a MS-65 (exceptional looking uncirculated) Devenver minted '50 Franklin can go for over $200, but that is rare.

I have been collecting 'semi' rare coins for years such as Silver Peace dollars, and the Morgan Silver Dollars. Real rare coins are too rich for my blood.

Anyway, just as anything else, you can overpay very easily on coins so you better do your homework. I used to deal with an independant broker located in NY that gave me some good deals on coins. He would go to estate sales and buy coins in lots. I lost track of him and I don't know if he is still in the business.

7-8 years ago, I had an opportunity to buy a 1909-S VDB Lincoln wheat penny for about $300 which was graded around an AU-50. Here is link on grades of coins LINK Well I didn't buy it but now that same coin is worth about $700-800. Hows that for ROI?

Presently, I purchase silver coins such as the American Silver Eagle Dollar. They are great looking coins. They make great Christmas gifts and kids love them.

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As amazing as it is, apparently Roman coins of low value (the equivalent of US pennies) are fairly common and not considered worth very much. Plus, there's the counterfeiting problem.

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Every once in awhile you will hear about some farmer in Europe finding some stash of coins buried in the ground.