Year In Review 2013

The annual summary of my year in coin collecting with some highlights.

Change Finds:

The graph is for world coins found with only 8 different countries found. Of course Canada leads the pack with only Great Britain above 1. Tourists to New York are using less cash and visitors returning from other countries are also going plastic. I do not see any trends with foreign money except more credit/debit cards are being used by foreigners.

This graph is for American money I pulled from my change and predictably the cents / pennies are leading the pack. I have found any large bills in my change although I have seen then in the wild. Those blue $100 have been circulating well but I cannot afford to keep one for my collection. No surprise that half dollars are not circulating well but dimes were a surprise. I should have found some interesting dimes but that was not the case this year.

Oldest United States Find
1936 Cent

Oldest Foreign Find
1967 Canadian Cent

Most Valuable Find (above face value)
1997 Colombia 50 Pesos, Off-Center Error about $3.00

Most Valuable Foreign Find
1997 Colombia 50 Pesos, Off-Center Error about $3.00

Most Surprising Find
Fake Liberty Dime

Books: 2013 and 2014 Red Books, late buy but I have yet to fully go through them.

Websites: The web is getting better for coin values and information. My site seems a bit outdated.

Equipment: Phones apps are getting much better.

Summary:
I found 108 coins and notes this year which is the most ever. The majority came in December but nearly all of them were boring and low value. Highlights this year included a 2011 Russian 10 kopek which I found two days before the year ended. I forced my self to use cash for my daily lunch which boosted my American coin finds. Most of my new Denver coins have been found from lunch money.

Wishing everyone a Happy New Year and change for all

1940 Nickel

Although most nickel from 1938 to 2003 have nearly identical designs I can still spot an older nickel in my change. The nickels from 1938 to 1959 are not that special but I like to keep them. To spot them just look for a darker color with worn rims.

 
Since these nickels tend to circulate longer they get a noticeable wear pattern. The front usually has the rim blending into the date and all the lettering. On the reverse Monticello is almost flat, it look like an outline more than a detailed design. Since those two signs of age are easy to spot you can see an older nickel even among a bag of nickels. Unfortunately that means an old higher grade nickels may get overlooked. You will be picking up only the low grade nickels.

Here's the stats...
Type/Country: 5 Cents / United States of America
Year: 1940
Mintage: 176,485,000
Metal: 75% copper 25% nickel
Value: $0.07 because pillars are gone and slashed

Do you have an older nickel and want to find out its value? Leave a comment and I will do my best to find out the price and history for you.

1942 Wheat Cent

Merry Christmas y'all! Just a quick post before I get back to eating and enjoying a day off. The 1942 cent is 70+ years old and is still common. Sorry but this wheat cent will not help you retire early.

 
A penny here or there does add up I found almost $5.00 on the ground this year. That is enough for a tiny gift, lunch, or even a charitable donation. I just hope people see pennies a bit different. Even if you do not and still drop them like trash I will be there to pick up the change.

Here's the stats...
Type/Country: 1 Cent / United States
Year: 1942
Metal: 95% Copper 5% Tin and Zinc
Mintage: 657,796,000
Value: G-4 $0.15

Do you have an older cent and want to know its value? Leave a comment/question and I will do my best to find out the price and history for you.

2012-D Nickel

More common than its Philadelphia counterpart but it has been almost a full year since I found that original Philly. I have had better luck with U.S. finds this year than any other year and better luck than world money.

Pretty decent shape despite some bag marks. It looks full steps but I was never great in identifying that kind of detail. I hope to find modern coins as soon as they come out because circulation does some serious damage. Now I am thinking that 2014 is just around the corner and a whole new list of coins are going to minted that I will eagerly search for everyday. A coin collectors search never ends?

Here's the stats... 
Type/Country: 5 Cents / United States of America
Year: 2012 D
Mintage: 558,960,000
Metal: 75% copper 25% nickel
Value: $0.10 in MS-60, $6.00 in MS-66 and 6 Full Steps (this one is neither)

Do you have a U.S.  nickel and want to know its value? Leave a comment/question and I will do my best to find out the price and history for you.

1973 Canada Cent

The Canadian coins are coming in faster now than rest of the year. Most are repeats but at least they are still out there. Oh yes they are mostly cents but that is still better than nothing.

For a forty year old Canadian cent that was found in circulation it is in great shape. Canada has stopped circulating these cents which would mean most will survive in great shape. People not wanting to use these cents will hold them at home until they become annoying or needed. I expect to find less of them but it would slow down in a few years from now not immediately.

Here's the stats...
Type/Country: 1 Cent / Canada
Year: 1973
Mintage: 457,059,852
Metal: 98% Copper, 0.5% Tin, 1.5% Zinc
Value: $0.03 in Very-Fine

Do you have a cent from Canada and want to know its value? Leave a comment/question and I will do my best to find out the price and history for you

1945-D Wheat Cent

Christmas shopping is bringing in a bunch of nice repeats. This wheat cent is common but still nice to find.

As I say every holiday season this is the best time to look through your change because so many shoppers are using a getting money. I found more odd change in December than most other months.

Type/Country: 1 Cent / United States
Year: 1945 D
Mintage: 266,268,000
Metal: 95% Copper, 5% Zinc
Value: $0.10 in VF-20

Do you have an older cent and want to know its value? Leave a comment/question and I will do my best to find out the price and history for you.

1957-D Wheat Cent

Featured this coin before but the last time it had die breaks and other odd issues. This one seems very normal and more common.

A decent wheat cent but being post World War II it has little value above metal composition. It is that metal content and age that I notice first when sifting through my change. There is a certain brown that screams this is a wheat cent.

Here's the stats...
Type/Country: 1 Cent / United States
Year: 1957 D
Mintage: 1,051,342,000
Metal: 95% Copper, 5% Tin and Zinc
Value: $0.05 in F-12

Also found a 2007 Straight Leg 7 Canadian Dime and a 1953 Wheat Cent but both were common repeats so I skipped taking pictures.

Do you have an older cent and want to know its value? Leave a comment/question and I will do my best to find out the price and history for you.

2009 $1 Star Note, D-*

Got a star note in my change yesterday although I saw two more but could not get them because the cashier was not that friendly. I do understand that not every time I see "funny" money that I can get it. For some cashiers changing notes and coins may get them in trouble so I never push them.

This star note is common and although it is only two years old it is in rough shape. I will be pressing it in a book until it is flat. It will not raise the value but at least it will look better.

Here's the stats for this bill...
Type/Federal Bank: $1 Star Note - Washington D.C. / Cleveland
Year: 2009
Printings: 3,200,000
Printed: April 2011
Run: 1st and only from D00000001* - D03200000*
Value: $2.50 VF(this one is less)

Do you have currency and want to know its value? Leave a comment/question and I will do my best to find out the price and history for you.

2006-D South Dakota Quarter

Still looking to get all 50 Denver state quarters today I am one step closer after finding this one. This South Dakota quarter from Denver came in my change after buying lunch. Still I am missing 13 Denver state quarters even though I found all 50 Philadelphia state quarters years ago.
 

Yes I have all the state quarters from uncirculated and mint sets but my collecting passion is change finds. Finding Denver version of coins has always been difficult in the East Coast. The most glaring one I am missing is the Denver minted 1999 New Jersey quarter. I have found hundreds of New Jersey quarters but that Denver mint has eluded me for almost 15 years.

South Dakota quarters features Mount Rushmore, a ring-necked pheasant, and wheat stalks. These are all official symbols of South Dakota and show off the most common things we know about this state. There are some very beautiful parts of South Dakota like the Badlands and Black Hills but are rarely promoted as tourist attractions.

Here's the stats...
Type/Country: 25 Cents - South Dakota / United States
Year: 2006 D
Metal: 91.67% Copper 8.33% Nickel
Mintage: 265,800,000
Value: $0.25 in F-12

Also found a 1971 Canadian cent but that has been featured here in the past.

Do you have a state quarter and want to know its value? Leave a comment/question and I will do my best to find out the price and history for you.

1982 British 20 Pence with Doubling

The first and most common 20 Pence from Great Britain is this one. 1982 was the first year of issue because of a growing need for a coin smaller than a 50 Pence but larger than a 10 Pence. The more common 25 or quarter coin was suggested but the British thought 20 was an easier round number to use.

The coin has seven sides and is about the size of a U.S. nickel. It also has a higher copper composition than most Copper-Nickel coins. This was done for both the visually impaired and vending machine industry. The reverse has the crown, date, denomination, and a double rose.

The entire right side of the reverse is doubled. While I cannot be a hundred percent certain I think this is machine doubling. Machine doubling is the less valuable version of double that occurs when the die slips or bounces when striking the coin. Since almost one billion were made it is not a surprise that doubling does exist although I could not find more online.

Here's the stats...
Type/Country: 20 Pence / Great Britain
Year: 1982
Mintage: 740,815,000
Metal: 84% Copper, 16% Nickel
Value: $0.40 in VF

Do you have a coin from Great Britain and want to know its value? Leave a comment/question and I will do my best to find out the price and history for you.

2013-P Great Basin Quarter

Great Basin National Park is in Nevada and the coin debuted back in June. The park is known for being an oasis in the desert and contains several large peaks. It also has some very old trees that grew on rocks.

The reverse features a Bristlecone Pine tree and the rocky glacial moraine on which it grows. These trees can grow to be 4,000 years old because of the short growing season and lack of competition for resources.

You also may also notice some radial streaks on both sides. This was done during minting and has several causes like overpressure or grease or slight misalignment. Either way it does not add extra value. It also causes some doubling visible on the front especially around IN GOD WE TRUST. On the reverse it leaves some odd marks on the inner ring. Again none of these are true errors and will likely not bring any extra interest or value.

Here's the stats...
Type/Country: 25 Cents - Great Basin / United States
Year: 2013-P
Mintage: 122,400,000
Metal: 91.67% Copper 8.33% Nickel
Value: $0.25 in F-12

Do you have a quarter from America and want to know its value? Leave a comment/question and I will do my best to find out the price and history for you.