One more thing, Silver State Coin and Bullion on eBay have a number of those GSA 1885 CC boxes with the cert for sale. I would definitely have that coin strapped and not slabbed.

Back to the game.

Cheers Bud

That’s a beauty Rick. Nice rainbow. Might do better than a 5. I’ve owned two in the past. That is a nice 1885 CC.

Cheers

Thanks for the Primer E1, very well said. The “out of the woodwork” population conundrum sure makes sense, thanks for insight. Same with gradeflation, I’ve experienced the good & bad with that recent phenomenon, mostly bad.
If I wasn’t so caught up with the ‘Modern’ stuff lately, I’d already have that Beautiful Kennedy Gold, and the Accented Hair in PR69-CAM! I’m still kicking myself for not buying a Kennedy Gold in a 70 for $2k when I had my chance just 2 years ago, let alone when they first came out = Dummy…
My ’76-S above does have a few spot’s embedded, but the restoration greatly improved its luster while simultaneously reducing the spots.
Funny thing about that one after getting it back. I said to myself “it looks like they simply swabbed some mineral oil on it”, haha. I love the coin, and still look for nice examples in a 68 to add to the pile, or for a potential upgrade.

Guru, thanks. I think I did send it back for a Plus(+) Attribution/Reconsideration and it was promptly sent back ‘as is’. However, it may have been a 2014-D clad restoration seeking a Plus, can’t recall?.. If they did Plus the Bicentennial coin that would be an amazing pop to the price guide, and to my ego lol…

E1, the 1885-CC $1 GSA is one of my favorite coins to ‘tinker’ with, despite the re-release you mention. Solid value in Gem/near Gem…
“Mint closed: The Carson City Mint was closed to coinage in November 1885, by which time 228,000 1885-CC dollars had been struck.”
Q. David Bowers

Here’s my latest, picked it up just last week ungraded in its original GSA Case w/no box or COA. It looks much more lustrous in hand vs the photo.
I’ll be sending it in – in hopes of a 65, or at least a 64+ grade…We’ll see…

Rick,

Yes, I remember that coin. I have one in MS-68.

That is a problem with this hobby. Coins can come out of the woodwork and Top-Pops can get bumped. Just look what happened to the 1885-CC when the GSA coins came out. Also, the 1995 Double Die Lincoln Cent, when all of those Brinks MS-69s showed up much later in the game. That is the risk associated with collecting Top-Pops. Buying PR/MS-70s can be equally risky as more 70’s can be added to the population. That is why it is best to only spend big on the low mintage rarities and then plan on holding the coin for at least 10 years. Also, once a coin turns 60 years old, that is when it begins its true numismatic value ascent.

In closing, the 1976-S Silver BU Kennedy is an exceptionally attractive coin in high grade. The coin is now 50 years old and has a mintage of 11 M. If an MS-70 were to show up, that would be disruptive. But, statistically, based upon the grading distribution, I would say the probability of a MS-70 is highly unlikely and yet possible. So, there are less riskier lower mintage Kennedy coins (i.e. 1998-S Silver Matte, 2014-W Gold, 2018-S RP Silver, and the 1964 Proof Accented Hair).

So, for me, I will hold my spotless 1976-S Silver Kennedy in PCGS MS-68 until my last breath (a coin I carefully purchased as a top-pop for $400 ten years ago). Only because I like the aesthetic appearance of the coin, I am sentimental about what it represents, and I believe it will go up in value in the next 10 years. I also believe, these dual date centennial coins are gaining a cult following.

Just an old man’s humble opinion.

Cheers

Nice coin you have Rick. Based on the picture, I think the new 69 looks over graded. Still a nice coin, but yours should get a plus or something next to the 69.

I just wanted to get back to you over here to avoid clustering things up over there.

“On the Red Packs, I have four of them. If there is a hidden variety in there, let me know.”…

No, no new varieties that I’m aware of, and those old sets are pretty cool.
It’s fascinating to see some of the stuff come back out of the woodwork with the run-up of silver, like those Red Packs and everything else. Their Red White & Blue Bicentennial cousins, the Proof sets are pretty neat too. I’m too young to remember all of that, just a kid back then. You and all the other ‘old timers’ here sure have some great stories & momentos of years gone by…

Anyway, the Red Packs’ you mentioned piqued my interest because I follow the Unc ’76-S Kennedy auctions occasionally. I’ve read that they only came in the Packs.
I also have a side-eye on the ’76-S Proof Half, and believe it or not, I’m also interested in acquiring the $1 Eisenhower Bicentennial Proof, and in a 70, they can get expensive!

Back to the Unc Kennedy Half. A couple of years ago I picked one up in an older PCGS-69 Plain-Jane holder, but a top pop. I had it restored, photographed, and reholdered (I posted the restoration story before). At the time there were just 5 in the top grade with an overly hefty valuation of 20k, and my coin enjoyed being the showcase “Plate” coin on the website for the last 1.5 years. Not anymore. My coin has been bumped down the list on the home page. Boo-Hoo haha…

There are now two brand new top dog MS-69’s that’ve come onto the scene, totalling 7 coins at the top grade, essentially diluting the population and downgrading the value to 17k.
I’m not complaining, as this is the way things go when stuff “comes out of the woodwork”…

Both of those newly crowned top dogs are are now on the auction block, hmm.
I’ll put my 69 up against those two newbies any day lol….
https://www.greatcollections.com/search.php?q=1976-S+Kennedy+Half+Dollar+Silver+PCGS+MS-69+&mode=product&sort=01