proofbarber's complete set
Private
Updated:
11/4/2024
Views: 4,335
A continuous work of passion in progress. I have been collecting Washington Quarters since 1998. I had been thinking of building an uncirculated set of quarters for some time, and the announcement of the state quarter program fired my interest. I knew that Washington quarters were due to take a giant leap in value, as soon as those collecting the new quarters decided they needed the older ones, too. I first built a complete set of raw quarters, which didn't pose that big a challenge in the spring of 1998. Coin shops had ample supplies of really gem, original quarters. In fact, this series was a real sleeper for years. I built a complete set in about 6 months, and then I needed another goal.
I bought my 1932-D and 1932-S coins last, and not sure of my grading and authentication skills, I decided to get them slabbed. I purchased the 1932-D and 1932-S, both in PCGS MS-64 holders, for $950 and $725 at a big show in Des Moines, Iowa, in November of 1998. Around this same time, I took a part-time job in a coin shop and learned how to advertise on Ebay as part of my numismatic duties. I soon discovered that encapsulated coins sold for much more than their raw bethren, and made up my mind to build a certified set of coins.
Family circumstances forced the sale of my '32-D and 32-S in the summer of 1999, and I made a tidy profit on both, but I sure wish I still had them. My first slabbed coin from NGC was a 1934-P Quarter in MS66. I found an article in Coin World and learned that I had a rare Light Motto variety, and my goal became fermented: I would build a complete set of Washington Quarters in at least MS66, and include all the varieties I could find.
I purchased several excellent books on coins in general and quarters specifically, including the Walter Breen Complete Encyclopedia of U.S. Coins, the Wexler/Flynn book "The Best of the Washington Quarter Doubled Dies", and the "Complete Guide to Washington Quarters" by John Feigenbaum. Knowledge is power, especially in the realm of collecting rare die varieties and doubled dies. Most of the varieties in this collection were either purchased raw by hunting coin shops and shows and Ebay, and some I bought in holders of the 3rd most respected coin grading service, which will remain nameless, as long as they were recognized by NGC as a known variety. I have converted, or am in the process of converting, all of them to NGC holdered coins.
I have written several articles about Washington Quarter varieties, including an extensive study of the many variations of the quarters of 1934, which will be published in the Omaha Coin Club newsletter, the Nebraska Numismatic Association's magazine,
"Coinhusker", and perhaps some other publications shortly. I give classes to the Young Numismatists at my local club, as well as to the adult membership, and have helped many other collectors get started with a Washington set, and with identification of their doubled dies and varieties.
I elected to buy the toughest dates in the collection first, as these were the most likely to increase in price, and many of those earlier coins I purchased have more than doubled or even tripled in value. I set a minimum level of MS-66 for all but the most expensive coins in the thirties, and once I got them out of the way, I treated myself with some MS-67's. I was amazed to discover just how difficult it is to obtain some of these later dates, especially those from the late fifties and sixties. About six months ago, I began adding the clad coins to the collection.
The supply of ultra gem quality coins from the late 1950's through the end of the "regular obverse" coins of 1998 is small indeed. I see plenty of banners on the internet advertising "RARE" 1932-S quarters in MS-64, but I can always find 10 or 15 in PCGS or NGC slabs available on any given day by checking only 3 different websites. The population of this coin is in the hundreds, so I would hardly declare it "RARE", but rather merely expensive. If you want to buy a coin that is truly rare, try finding a 1990-D Washington Quarter in NGC MS-67....Population 2; Now that's a rare coin!
There are alot of factors why these coins are not available. 1) The great silver melt of 1980 saw hundreds of thousands of late fifties and early sixties silver quarters in mint rolls tossed in the melting pots. 2) Worn hubs that had been in service for 30 years producing poor quality working dies. 3) The price of submission to a grading service does not justify the cost for many collectors on a tight budget if the coins come back at less than MS-67 for most of these dates. For clad quarters, I find that I just about break even if they make MS-66, so it is a bit of a gamble. 4) Clad coins are made of copper-nickel, which is much harder than silver and doesn't strike up as well. 5) A general impression of the clad coins as the poor relations of the silver coins. Base metals just aren't as sexy as nonferrous metal (silver and gold). In fact, there are some dates in the 1965 to 1998 coins that have yet to garner an MS-67 grade by NGC, such as the 1969-P, 1978-D, and the 1994-P, along with a dozen other dates.
I've taken up buying original, bankwrapped shotgun rolls of clad quarters, and while I am paying semi-attention to the TV, I inspect each roll thoroughly and pull the very finest coins out for my mini-hoard. If you can't find MS-67's, then you need to make MS-67's, including the aforementioned NGC 1990-D. I don't know who the lucky collector is who owns that other one, but the second one is mine :-).
I belong to the American Numismatic Association, the Central States Numismatic Society, and the Barber Coin Collectors' Society, as well as my state and local organizations, as I believe that sharing information among your fellow collectors can only improve our hobby.
I am a 22 year veteran of the United States Air Force, and hope to pursue a career in numismatics with one of the major auction or grading firms upon my retirement in 2005. I will continue upgrading this particular collection, and my goal is to own one of every variety of Washington quarter known to mankind, and also compile a very comprehensive guide which includes all of the doubled dies, overmintmarks, motto types, and reverse varieties.
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Prologue: I retire from the US Air Force in April of 2005. I truly believe this award is what got my resume through the screening process to get me the interview. I am now a numismatist with a MAJOR coin gallery which happens to have season tickets to all Dallas Cowboys home games. Life is great!
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proofbarber's complete set
By David Lewis
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