I was WRONG! Once in a lifetime score, becomes 2nd, then 3rd!

[smokeythecat]

So a few years ago I ask the local teller (have an account there) for halves. She didn't have any but asked if I wanted any of the "big dollars". Thinking they were all Ikes (ugh) I said ok, Got 6 Ikes, 5 Peace and 5 Morgans. Score 1. It's a post here. In there was the key 1928.

About three weeks now, it's posted here also, go to a different branch of the same bank and asked for a couple "big dollars" to give to a buddy at my main bank. Story is here also but got $80 in halves, 11 were 1971 Kennedys and the rest, 149 were silver including 7 Barbers.

So today, on the way back from the beach on the bay, I stopped in to make a credit card payment (been real bad). Buying stuff we all like and whatever.
While she is processing the payment I ask for $10 in cents. So she had to go get them, no biggie. The teller next to her asks me if I want some OLD pennies? Old, methinks?
So I get 27 steel cents......

The first teller comes back and is getting the rolls out (several wheats, 1 clip and a 1998 wide am in those rolls). She asks if I want any halves. Do they read my freaking mind? Do they know me THAT well? I said sure, whatcha got? Only 15. To wit: 1 1964 Kennedy, 1 1893 Columbia Exposition, 1 1912S Barber, Six Walkers, two are 1945, four are 1943's and two of those have S mintmarks, 6 Franklins, 1952, 1952D, 1953 D x 2, 1958D, 1961, I'm going to have to figure out how to orient the cell phone to make these look right side up. Sorry.

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Cry Of The Eagle: History And Legends Of The Cherokee Indians And Their Buried Treasure - Grab it through Amazon!

[kcm]

Well, no need to "clean up" there on the night shift when you can do it during the day, and WITH their help!!

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Cry Of The Eagle: History And Legends Of The Cherokee Indians And Their Buried Treasure - Grab it through Amazon!

[enamel7]

My dad started sorting out older coins from change just before he passed away. Guess he was looking for any way to make the money stretch as far as possible. Unfortunately, all we found that was actually silver was 2 quarters (but 1965), 3 nickels and 2 dimes. Is strange how he figured to make money that way when he wasted so much money in other ways.

Are you saying both quarters are 1965? If so they aren't silver.

 

[kcm]

Are you saying both quarters are 1965? If so they aren't silver.

Yep, that's what I said. And I know they aren't. Apparently he was setting aside anything older than 1980!!

....I should also mention that this is the same person that left thousands of dollars at their old Texas home when they moved, simply because "they didn't want to mess with it". I'm not meaning to talk negative about my dad - he was an amazing man!! However, his ideas of financial investments over the years has been anything but stellar! ...Guess that's where I got it from. Is truly a hard habit to break, thinking that the only things of value in this world are "new" things, or old things that other people call "antiques", which we may have, but are just considered "old stuff" since they are ours!

 

[smokeythecat]

I went to work today, and the place was closed. Water main break, a big one. Anyway, no flush, no work.

So I stopped at bank #1, and got $10 in cents. Bank #2, had 1 rolls of halves and they were really happy to get rid of them. Bank #3, same "denomination", different area, no halves,
Bank #4, third town, (now these aren't exactly 50 miles apart, folks), well I got $5 in cents. The teller didn't have any halves or "big dollars". She said she had to go to the vault to get $5 in cents.
Go figure. I said if they have any halves in the back, I'd like them. So she comes back with one whole entire roll of halves (brown wrapper), and 10 Ikes. I bought them and left. There were 12 Ikes in the envelope. So I went back in, cut if front of someone and gave two back to the teller. Should have seen the look on her face, and on the other tellers' face.

From the cents I got about 10 wheaties from all $15 in face that I got. No errors or double dies.

The first roll of halves was garbage.

The Ikes got spent.

The last roll, with the brown wrapper had 5 40% Kennedy's in them. Go figure.

 

[smokeythecat]

Got 5 more 40% Kennedys this week. Went through some nickels, got a 38D, and another 2015-P strike through. Send the 2015 to get it slabbed. You can Jeff's eyes on the BACK under the memorial.

Tried quarters. Zip. Dimes. Zip

In the nickel machine wrapped rolls got 10 dimes. Machines I guess can't count right.

 

[kcm]

You're having better luck than I am! .>.But then I'm still working on my 10-roll samples from each box - cents through quarters.

 

[smokeythecat]

Last $200 in nickels were skunks, if that helps. I've been doing a lot lately.

 

[kcm]

Are you looking only for silver or for errors as well?

I've been taking 10 rolls at a time, sorting them by decade, then taking each decade and sorting by year, then grouping a few at a time to view on the USB microscope. Anything that looks interesting at lowest magnification gets set aside. When done, I re-wrap the rolls, replacing the outtakes with other loose coins. Has been going pretty good, especially for my bad eyes! Got a 32" TV for my monitor. I'm sure I'll find more ways of streamlining the operation as time goes by, but it's keeping me out of trouble for the time being.

As there's so many things to look for, I've been doing a type of comparison-testing approach. I have 3 or more coins on my card (up to 8 dimes!) and if anything looks unusual on one, I compare to the others. If necessary I throw on another coin or two out of previously inspected, trying to get the coins in best shape to compare with. Has been a lot easier than having to keep putting up images on the screen, then scanning back and forth.

Have another idea in mind for faster inspection but it'll have to wait a little while first. Gotta see if there's even going to be enough "finds" to make it worthwhile.

 

[smokeythecat]

I look for errors first, and silver second. I've done more cents than anything. Have found about five 1998 wide am's, one 1999 wide am, one 1995 ddo, had it graded and it came in at MS-66. Got 2 clips, several defective planchet errors, a few offsets, but not severe ones, etc.

A few weeks ago I got about 500 wheats in customer wrapped rolls. I keep Canadians and other foreign cents found in rolls.

Bought a bag of 1980-P cents. No errors. Bought a bag of 1995-P cents - no errors. Bought a bag of 1979-P cents and got a few offsets.

I bought four bags, now when I refer to "bags", I'm referring to mint sealed bags of 1972-P's and got 375 double dies, type 3's, 6's and 8's. Had a lot slabbed and sold most of them.

The bags were expensive but the coins were all uncirculated. I like uncirculated. I also buy individual rolls but haven't done as well.

I do a first go over using a head mounted Optivisor. That gives you decent magnification and then use a better grade hastings triplet hand lens for really up close work.

I have a USB microscope, but if the flaws are THAT tiny, I'm not sure keeping the coin is really worth it. I'm looking at Ebay and people are asking a dollar to three for some of the minor errors, but I don't think those coins are selling. I just bought a roll of seriously messed up wheaties for $1.00. Clips, defective planchets, etc. A dealer had them and just didn't want them.

I like the double dies best. I just found my first 2014-P and 2015-P DDO's and sent them to be graded. I also found several 2015-P Jeffersons with a big strike through errors and had 1 graded. Got a 2014-P "design creep" reverse error and sent it for grading also. I figure I won't lose them as badly if I have them slabbed.

I went through about $40 in nickels tonight. Found 9 keepers (just old coins), in about 1 hour. The Optivisor that fits on my head with the magnification makes it go FAST.

 

[kcm]

How do you go about buying the bags? Through your bank? Directly from the mint? Is difficult to believe the mint would still have uncirculated coin stock from way back in the early 70's. Blows my mind a little. That would DEFINITELY be the way to go! So many of the coins I'm unwrapping have circular damage from, I suppose, wrapping machines - maybe from some sorters as well. But it seems these pre-formed rolls are getting damaged from the machines closing up the open end. That royally sucks! Bad engineering!!

No coin shops around here. Have a pawn shop about 70 miles away, but is VERY tiny! Also is difficult to find parking for his little shop. But will have to try and stop in some time and see if he even handles anything doing with coins or baseball cards or the like.

Have thought about something like the Optivisor, but have neck injuries. I think that would be a little difficult on my neck. Anyway, not like I'm in a race for time. We only get to town once or twice a month!

 

[smokeythecat]

I have bought them off Ebay. And yes, they are way more than face value, that and uncirculated rolls is the only way to get uncirculated older coins to purchase. The optivisor only weights about 6 ounces, hardly more than big sunglasses, all plastic. Not much more weight than a good quality hat. There is a dealer in Philly who has them. I'll send you his name and phone # by PM when I find it. It's buried on the dining room table.

 

[kcm]

It's buried on the dining room table.

Thought I was the only one who lived like that.

 

[smokeythecat]

No, you're not. And I JUST CLEANED IT OFF 3 DAYS AGO. AAAARRRGGGGHHH!

 

[enamel7]

How do you go about buying the bags? Through your bank? Directly from the mint? Is difficult to believe the mint would still have uncirculated coin stock from way back in the early 70's. Blows my mind a little. That would DEFINITELY be the way to go! So many of the coins I'm unwrapping have circular damage from, I suppose, wrapping machines - maybe from some sorters as well. But it seems these pre-formed rolls are getting damaged from the machines closing up the open end. That royally sucks! Bad engineering!!

No coin shops around here. Have a pawn shop about 70 miles away, but is VERY tiny! Also is difficult to find parking for his little shop. But will have to try and stop in some time and see if he even handles anything doing with coins or baseball cards or the like.

Have thought about something like the Optivisor, but have neck injuries. I think that would be a little difficult on my neck. Anyway, not like I'm in a race for time. We only get to town once or twice a month!

He's buying mint bags from dealers, not banks and the mint.

 

[kcm]

The wife finally gave up on trying to clean "MY AREA"! The PC is in the Living Room, along with everything else. Once the coins were added to it all, she finally gave up.

 

[smokeythecat]

Yes, I get the bags from dealers directly or from dealers on the net. They cost more.

 

[smokeythecat]

HOLD THE PRESSES! Went to make a big payment on the credit card and don't normally go to this bank, as I everything electronically.

So as the teller is gasping at the amount on the check, I asked if she had any of the "big dollars"....no. Got any half's

Well, yes, somebody brought in some yesterday. I have $60 worth. I took them.

I knew, just knew, it was good before I even got away from the counter.

Opened them up later and had FIFTY NINE 40% Kennedys.

 

[kcm]

 

[smokeythecat]

That's over 250 silver halves in 2016 so far....with not a single one from a box! Go figure!