December 2008 - What lies ahead?
What’s hot and what’s not in the coin world this December, as well as suggestions and helpful hints to improve your collection and collecting enjoyment.

Welcome to Cointown’s first edition of “News You Can Use”.  Our goal is to provide some real-time insight into the world of coin collecting and hopefully provide some information that can be used to benefit both the novice and experienced coin collector.  If you’re reading this you’ve already found our web site.  Please feel free to visit our store in Marietta, Georgia to see our full line of supplies, as well as our large selection of coins and currency offerings.  Make sure to ask for our current Internet special when placing your order on line.

Have you heard that the US Mint has discontinued making fractional bullion coins?  This includes all gold and platinum issues of the American Eagles and American Buffalo series coins, in one-tenth, one-quarter, and one-half ounce sizes.  If you’ve already purchased them this year, you made a wise decision.  If not, I suggest that you purchase them soon before they disappear from the market.  Prices will probably increase, especially on the fractional Buffalo coins, which appear headed for a one-year type designation.

The American Silver Eagle Proof dollar makes a great Christmas gift this year.  The Mint discontinued production at the end of August, possibly making this the lowest mintage regular issue proof Silver Eagle in the series.  Prices have already increased to $79 a coin and may continue to increase for some time.  Other 2008 dated items that are popular for Christmas giving are clad or silver U.S. Proof Sets, Uncirculated Coin sets, Presidential Dollar Proof Sets, and Uncirculated American Silver Eagle bullion coins.  The 2008 Commemorative Coins issues are also available, with the American Bald Eagle commemorative being one of the more popular in recent years.
 
There are a number of useful ideas that are heard and repeated time after time within coin collecting circles.  One of the most important things to be aware of is do not clean your coins, medals, or currency.  Don’t wash, polish, rub, scrape, wipe, or erase anything off of a coin or piece of currency.  Almost everything you can think of to try and improve the appearance will damage the surfaces of the item.  If the piece was rare or expensive, you can destroy most of its’ value by mishandling it.  As a rule of thumb, a dirty and tarnished coin in original condition is better and more valuable than a cleaned and shiny one.  There are exceptions to this rule, but you need to understand what they are before considering them.  Another good piece of advice is to “buy the book before you buy the coin”.  Every U.S. series of coin has at least one reference book about it.  You can make better buying decisions if you thoroughly know about a series before you begin collecting it.  The knowledge will save you money and often increase the quality of the final collection.  There is also a useful saying which is “buy the best you can afford”.  Remember that the more worn coins are usually the more common ones.  Your collection will ultimately benefit if you buy the best condition coins that fit within your budget.  It is suggested that if you are assembling a coin or currency collection in circulated grades, try to match the coins so that they all look about the same.  Eye appeal is a big part of the overall desirability of a finished collection.  When handling coins, you should make it a habit to hold all coins and medals on their edge to avoid unsightly fingerprints that may rise up in the future.  This is not so important on heavily circulated cents and nickels, but if you treat every coin as special, you’ll find that it more difficult to make a valuable mistake.  Also, if removing coins from stapled 2X2 cardboard holders, remove the staples before sliding the coin out, or punch thru the cellophane around the coin and pop the coin out.  Unfortunately, it is easy to scratch a good coin when in a hurry to remove it from the package, and a scratch will lower its value. 

For 2009, look for the final six quarter designs to be issued.  The Congress voted to add the District of Columbia and the five U.S. Territories.  While not truly states, they will have their own quarter design.  There will also be 4 commemorative Lincoln Cents to celebrate Lincoln’s 200th birthday.  The Presidential dollar series will have ”In God We Trust” placed back on the front of the coin from the edge, and the same should apply for the 2009 Sacagawea dollar coin.  The Mint is also releasing a new $20 Double Eagle gold coin in January of 2009, which is stunning to behold.  We will have all of these items available in the store and on the web site as soon as they arrive. 
 
I’ll close out this first news issue with two coin/currency related trivia questions to test your knowledge.  When were 1935 $1 silver certificates last printed? 
What was the most common type of silver dollar used in the United States up until the Civil War?   I’ll give you the answers to these questions in the next issue.

-- Chip Cutcliff