Howdy all. Real quick question: How much more does Ch/Unc status add to the value of a 66 fiddy? Anything? If you were into that sort of thing, how much more would you pay, over circulated ones? I've seen some nice Unc ones lately, is all...
I will. I just got 5 of them from a top rated coin seller, but will get them checked and if they're not uncirculated, I'll just ask for a refund. No one wants negative feedback. I also got a blue card set of all the 1966 new decimals. I like the look of them.
Cleaned ones look like this: [imgz=http://forums.silverstackers.com/uploads/5_shinysilver.jpg][/imgz]
Really hard to tell if they have been cleaned! They never saw much in the way of circulation so they never really got dirty and they never really got worn. Any cleaning would be minimal. If you see a bright sparkly coin that is well worn then it is a dead giveaway (or a weak strike!) If it is a coin that has likely seen a lot of circulation then you can check in the reeded edge of the coin as they are harder to clean than the faces and often get missed but in a 1966 50 you are just going to have to take a real close look at the fields on the coin. it is doubtful that anyone would take a wire brush to them as that would be obvious, the most likely cleaning will be a low/no abrasion chemical technique to remove grease. I was paying $12 for choice unc back in the day when the normal ones were about $6, mine had the Double Bar variety which is pretty much on all of them anyway. If it came from a reputable company then they probably haven't cleaned them but maybe the person who sold them to the company did. You will need a 10x magnifying glass and just take a really good look at them for detracting marks, scratches etc. Choice Unc is quite a claim so make sure they aren't just Unc! Still great coins though. Edit: I know that quite a few coins from 1966 are incredibly shiney but I also have a ton of them that are very dull. Even more modern coins in Airtites seem to have discoloured so finding really shiney coins from around 50 years ago is a bit of a feat in itself, I would like to know how they stored them to protect them so thoroughly, a 2x2 from the old days might not cut it!
In Gem Unc maybe add $1.. ultra common in Very high grade.. most were never circulated hence there being virtually no premium 1for1
Ultra common now but when silver goes to the moon they will be melted down by the bucket load. It will be well worth the extra dollar for the Gems once the dust settles!
the 66's have been melted a bunch already... lots got melted in the initial recall and many since then.. i have heard recently they are no longer getting melted so on not so sure your correct.. if NONE of the coin shops send them to be melted then it may not happen. Id give you a 50/50 chance of being correct but given that they a perfect in virtually every way for a barter Road Warrior Scenerio id wager they wont go extinct even in an end of days event. 1for1
They minted 36 million of them so if even half of them have already gone into the pot there are still plenty left to go around! An article on the 2008 melting of silver http://coins.about.com/b/2008/03/12/coin-dealer-ethics-melting-coins-for-profit.htm there was also a large silver meltdown in 1980 but this article thinks it may have been exagerated a bit http://www.coinbooks.org/esylum_v09n18a15.html This website is more positive about the effects of the melt down http://silver-dollars.us/where.htm but they are collectors and may have a vested interest in making the coins out to be rare. Either way it is interesting, even if the quality coins don't get melted the junk ones will and that will basically wipe out the bottom tier of collectors.
Hehe, the bottom tier of collectors! That's pretty much me right now. I've collected and sold a heck of a lot for someone still at uni though. Just wait till I get a proper job!
I am also in the bottom tier of collectors, most of my coins wouldn't be looked at twice by a serious collector. Some people like to upgrade their collection and swap out the cheaper "place savers" when they get more money in, I just prefer to buy more junk.
