lucas buck Posted June 23, 2010 Report Share Posted June 23, 2010 I'm a newbie, so I apologize if this question is, well, dumb.. but I'm curious; is there any easy reference online guide, that would tell you what modern day (i.e. 1950-2010) coins are valuable - so you could keep an eye out for rare coins when going through change, or quickly check an old coin to see if its worth anything. I know there are books you can buy (obviously) - but it just seems like a quick online guide would be so useful when you want to quickly check your pocket change on a daily basis for rare/valuable coins. Thanks all Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finn235 Posted June 23, 2010 Report Share Posted June 23, 2010 That's actually easy enough. Not many coins from 1950-2010 are particularly valuable. I'll just go with what you're likely to find in change for starters. Pennies ---------------------------- Wheat pennies are about 1 in 250-500 in circulation. Dates 1940-1958 are the most common, and are generally worth 3-10 cents each. Pennies from the San Fransisco mint (Look for an "S" below the date) can occasionally be found. Dates range 1968-1974. They currently do not demand much, but they probably hold the most promise to be worth a little something some years from now. The 1970-S small date variety is worth several dollars, but I don't think any are left in circulation. You can find pictures if you search in google. 2009 pennies are the rarest that can be found in circulation, although most survivors are heavily circulated by this point. Keep an eye for any of the last of the four designs; they are the rarest by far. Nickels ------------------------------ Nickels are your best bet to find something unusual. With a little diligence, it is possible to find all dates since 1938 in circulation. Dates after 1967 are probably not worth keeping, although San Fransisco coins can be found from dates 1968-1970. They're not particularly rare, though. War nickels (dates 1942-1945, identified by a large mint mark on the back of the coin) are 35% silver and worth $0.60-1.00. The most common dates are 1940, 1941, 1946, and 1956-1963. Don't keep a 1964 unless it's uncirculated; those are junk. D's and S's are more rare from 1938-1952, whereas P's are more rare 1953-1963. The rarest and most valuable dates are 1938, 1950, and 1951. 1950-D is the rarest and usually demands about $2. If you get EXTREMELY lucky, about 1 in 10,000+ nickels in circulation is a buffalo nickel. Working with change daily for the past two years, I've found two. 2009 and 2010 nickels are very rare, and can demand up to $1 each on online auctions. Dimes ------------------ All dimes 1946-1964 are 90% silver and worth about $1-1.50. They aren't common in circulation. 2009 dimes are the rarest modern dimes. 2010 might be rare, but it's too early in the year to tell just yet. Quarters ----------------- All quarters 1932-1964 are 90% silver and worth about $2.50-3.00. They are extremely rare in circulation. Demand is growing for uncirculated state quarters, but they probably won't fetch much over face value anytime soon. The Wisconsin quarter has three different design varieties in circulation, although two are exceedingly rare. I don't know much about the varieties, so try a search on it. 2009 territorial quarters are very scarce. The Norther Mariana Islands quarter is the rarest. I have not found a single 2010 quarter, so I will assume they are even rarer. Dollar Coins --------------------- Most banks are required to stock these regularly, so try picking up a few rolls from your bank. Eisenhower dollars (the really big ones) have virtually disappeared from circulation and the banks, so they are worth hanging on to. Anthony dollars (small silver ones) are seldom worth much. Dates to look out for are 1979-S, all mints from 1980, 1981, and 1999. An overwhelming majority will be 1979-P or D. Sacagawea dollars (small gold ones with a woman's head) are also seldom worth much. About 75% of the total series mintage is from 2000. Don't keep those unless they are uncirculated. 2001 is slightly more rare, but still not worth much. 2002-2008 can sometimes be found in rolls from the bank and are very rare. Presidential dollars are probably not worth keeping unless you can get an uncirculated roll. Any coins without edge lettering are mint errors and worth about $40-60. Mintage figures have been dropping at a steady rate with the release of each president. Half Dollars --------------------- These are almost impossible to find. If you get lucky enough to find one, there are several dates to keep an eye out for. 1964 halves are 90% silver and worth about $5-6. 1965-1970 are 40% silver and worth about $2-3. I have found several of these, but I think most have been snatched up by silver hoarders. Dates 1971-1979 are all very common (although 1978 is relatively scarce). Production cut off sharply from 1980-2001, so all coins from this range can be considered scarce. All coins in 1987 and 2002-2010 were produced for collectors and are very rare. 1999 was a general issue, but is also very rare. Hope that helps! Good luck with your searches. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thedeadpoint Posted June 23, 2010 Report Share Posted June 23, 2010 Finn did a great job explaining lots of complicated stuff but if you're just looking for a link, check this out: http://www.numismedia.com/fmv/fmv.shtml The best that I know of for common date, modern stuff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thomas Posted January 18, 2011 Report Share Posted January 18, 2011 That's actually easy enough. Not many coins from 1950-2010 are particularly valuable. I'll just go with what you're likely to find in change for starters. Pennies ---------------------------- Wheat pennies are about 1 in 250-500 in circulation. Dates 1940-1958 are the most common, and are generally worth 3-10 cents each. Pennies from the San Fransisco mint (Look for an "S" below the date) can occasionally be found. Dates range 1968-1974. They currently do not demand much, but they probably hold the most promise to be worth a little something some years from now. The 1970-S small date variety is worth several dollars, but I don't think any are left in circulation. You can find pictures if you search in google. 2009 pennies are the rarest that can be found in circulation, although most survivors are heavily circulated by this point. Keep an eye for any of the last of the four designs; they are the rarest by far. Nickels ------------------------------ Nickels are your best bet to find something unusual. With a little diligence, it is possible to find all dates since 1938 in circulation. Dates after 1967 are probably not worth keeping, although San Fransisco coins can be found from dates 1968-1970. They're not particularly rare, though. War nickels (dates 1942-1945, identified by a large mint mark on the back of the coin) are 35% silver and worth $0.60-1.00. The most common dates are 1940, 1941, 1946, and 1956-1963. Don't keep a 1964 unless it's uncirculated; those are junk. D's and S's are more rare from 1938-1952, whereas P's are more rare 1953-1963. The rarest and most valuable dates are 1938, 1950, and 1951. 1950-D is the rarest and usually demands about $2. If you get EXTREMELY lucky, about 1 in 10,000+ nickels in circulation is a buffalo nickel. Working with change daily for the past two years, I've found two. 2009 and 2010 nickels are very rare, and can demand up to $1 each on online auctions. Dimes ------------------ All dimes 1946-1964 are 90% silver and worth about $1-1.50. They aren't common in circulation. 2009 dimes are the rarest modern dimes. 2010 might be rare, but it's too early in the year to tell just yet. Quarters ----------------- All quarters 1932-1964 are 90% silver and worth about $2.50-3.00. They are extremely rare in circulation. Demand is growing for uncirculated state quarters, but they probably won't fetch much over face value anytime soon. The Wisconsin quarter has three different design varieties in circulation, although two are exceedingly rare. I don't know much about the varieties, so try a search on it. 2009 territorial quarters are very scarce. The Norther Mariana Islands quarter is the rarest. I have not found a single 2010 quarter, so I will assume they are even rarer. Dollar Coins --------------------- Most banks are required to stock these regularly, so try picking up a few rolls from your bank. Eisenhower dollars (the really big ones) have virtually disappeared from circulation and the banks, so they are worth hanging on to. Anthony dollars (small silver ones) are seldom worth much. Dates to look out for are 1979-S, all mints from 1980, 1981, and 1999. An overwhelming majority will be 1979-P or D. Sacagawea dollars (small gold ones with a woman's head) are also seldom worth much. About 75% of the total series mintage is from 2000. Don't keep those unless they are uncirculated. 2001 is slightly more rare, but still not worth much. 2002-2008 can sometimes be found in rolls from the bank and are very rare. Presidential dollars are probably not worth keeping unless you can get an uncirculated roll. Any coins without edge lettering are mint errors and worth about $40-60. Mintage figures have been dropping at a steady rate with the release of each president. Half Dollars --------------------- These are almost impossible to find. If you get lucky enough to find one, there are several dates to keep an eye out for. 1964 halves are 90% silver and worth about $5-6. 1965-1970 are 40% silver and worth about $2-3. I have found several of these, but I think most have been snatched up by silver hoarders. Dates 1971-1979 are all very common (although 1978 is relatively scarce). Production cut off sharply from 1980-2001, so all coins from this range can be considered scarce. All coins in 1987 and 2002-2010 were produced for collectors and are very rare. 1999 was a general issue, but is also very rare. Hope that helps! Good luck with your searches. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thomas Posted January 18, 2011 Report Share Posted January 18, 2011 why do you think that ike dollars are hard to get, i have many of them.are they worth holding on to for comming years. they are such a big bold coin.have 1971-1978 with a few s minted coins. Any help with holding on to them would be appreciated. thank you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finn235 Posted January 18, 2011 Report Share Posted January 18, 2011 why do you think that ike dollars are hard to get, i have many of them.are they worth holding on to for comming years. they are such a big bold coin.have 1971-1978 with a few s minted coins. Any help with holding on to them would be appreciated. thank you Ike dollars are tricky. They almost nonexistent in circulation, and thus worth more than face value to most collectors. Your "S" coins are proof coins, so hang onto those. '73 Ikes are rare, and 40% silver proofs exist, but I wouldn't expect the majority of your collection to be worth more than $.25 over face value. As for your question, Ike dollars did not circulate for a number of reasons: 1. The coins were excessively bulky compared to paper bills, so they were unappealing to most of the population. 2. Dollar coins hadn't been produced since the Peace dollars of the '20s and '30s, so the general populace wasn't used to the denomination being available in coin form. By the '50s and '60s, dollar coins were primarily used as "stocking stuffers" for children at Christmas. 3. The coins were ugly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ikaros Posted January 20, 2011 Report Share Posted January 20, 2011 As for your question, Ike dollars did not circulate for a number of reasons: 1. The coins were excessively bulky compared to paper bills, so they were unappealing to most of the population. 2. Dollar coins hadn't been produced since the Peace dollars of the '20s and '30s, so the general populace wasn't used to the denomination being available in coin form. By the '50s and '60s, dollar coins were primarily used as "stocking stuffers" for children at Christmas. 3. The coins were ugly. I'm gonna have to take some exception to #3 here -- I'll agree that it would be charitable to refer to the obverse as 'uninspired', but the eagle on the Moon on the reverse is one of my favorite modern designs. Gad. It's a little horrifying to realize that the Apollo landings are further in the past to my nieces than World War II is to me... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saor Alba Posted January 20, 2011 Report Share Posted January 20, 2011 Some of my best circulation finds from the past few months, a 1912-D cent, a 1925 Canadian cent(only 1M minted) and just the other day I found a 1915 cent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finn235 Posted January 25, 2011 Report Share Posted January 25, 2011 Some of my best circulation finds from the past few months, a 1912-D cent, a 1925 Canadian cent(only 1M minted) and just the other day I found a 1915 cent. But how many boxes did you have to go through to find those? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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