Client Reviews

“I’ve brought coins from an inherited collection to Elton Coin Shoppe for both appraisal and sale. Tom is very experienced, friendly and knowledgeable on all the items I brought for his evaluation. He offered both an honest appraisal and fair buying price for my collection. I am happy to continue working with Tom, in both learning about coins and finding the best price for items I want to sell.”

M.F., Green Valley, AZ

“Elton Coin Shoppe was recommended to me by another coin dealer. It was the most honest and pleasant transaction. I would highly recommend Elton Coin Shoppe for all your coin needs.”

R.A., Green Valley, AZ

“I so appreciate the friendly, honest service and convenience locally to me. I am still interested in any coin finds he may have in the future.”

D.R., Green Valley, AZ

EXPERT BLOG #1:

Morgan Silver Dollars: To many collectors, Morgan dollars are what coin collecting is all about. Years ago, back in the 1960’s, coin collectors in the US loved Lincoln cents. The highly popular Lincoln cents in those days were the 1909-S, 1909-SVDB, 1914-D, 1922 no D, 1931-S, and the 1955 double die cent.

Today, these wonderful coins have taken a back seat to the highly popular collecting of Morgan silver dollars. There are many popular dates in this large coin series. The 1893-S is the most popular and is the most expensive in higher circulated grades, except for the terribly expensive 1895 proof dollar, which costs upwards of $50,000, which only the wealthy can afford. And of course, all Carson City mint dollars (with CC mintmark) are highly popular with collectors of this series.

Morgan silver dollars were minted from 1878-1904 and then again in 1921. Many of these dates are readily available and can be purchased for about $50 or less at the current silver spot price of around $64 per ounce. All Morgan dollars are over 100 years old and many of them represent bargains because they are so old and contain 3/4 ounce of silver each. Since the price of silver has more than doubled in the past year, silver dollars have done well as an investment. Whether this will continue in the future is unknown.

The 1878 dollar is a rather complex issue. The eagle on the reverse sometimes has 8 tail feathers, sometimes 7, and sometimes 7 over 8 tail feathers. Since this was the first year of the newly designed Morgan dollar, it should not be surprising that some modification and experimentation took place with the 1878 issue. The 7 over 8 dollar is called a variety. There are scores of different varieties in the Morgan dollar series. Some are dramatic and readily noticeable, while others are more obscure and seen only with magnification. Some collectors attempt to assemble the more noticeable varieties, while others attempt to collect all varieties, even those that require significant magnification. In any case, in the year 1878, Morgan dollars were produced at Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Carson City. None of these issues is rare, and for that reason, they are very collectible. However, it should be noted that all CC mint dollars are scarcer than most of the dollars minted elsewhere.

The coins of 1879 are also quite collectible. Dollars were minted at Philadelphia, Carson City, New Orleans and San Francisco. Only the CC dollar could be considered even moderately scarce, but it is a nice, collectible coin. The other coins are common. There are some collectible varieties of the 1879 dollar. For example, the San Francisco coin has two different reverses, the reverse of 1879 and the reverse of 1878. Both coins are very affordable. By the way, Thomas Edison in 1879 made an electric light bulb filament with cotton thread and lampblack. It provided light for over 40 hours before it burnt out. The filament was enclosed in a vacuum.

1880 saw the minting of silver dollars with a CC mintmark, an O, an S, and no mintmark. The CC dollar is the scarcest. It has a net mintage of just under one-half million dollars, since many thousands of dollars were melted. The strike of this coin has a wide variation among the CC dollars minted. When collecting Morgan silver dollars, it is important to pay attention to strike quality. Look for a strong strike, since weak strikes also exist. Look at the hair above Liberty’s ear and the breast feathers on the eagle. If there is a lot of detail, that is an indication of a strong strike.

Here are some things that were happening in America in 1880. Some people actually had a telephone in 1880, about 50,000 people. The book “Ben Hur” was written. A young George Eastman was busy developing and improving the photographic process; he invented photographic dry plates this year.

Once again, the year 1881 saw the minting of morgan silver dollars at four mints: Philadelphia, Carson City, New Orleans and San Francisco. The CC coin is by far the scarcest and the most valuable coin in circulated condition, with a mintage of just 296,000. However, in MS-65 (a nice uncirculated grade), the O-mint coin rivals the CC coin in terms of value and probably also in scarcity.

In 1881, a famous outlaw was shot and killed. Who was it, you ask. If you know your Old West history, you would know that it was Billy the Kid. He now lies buried, or so most people think, in Old Fort Sumner Cemetary in Fort Sumner, New Mexico. There has been considerable debate about whether the body in the casket is actually Billy the Kid or someone else. Who knows for sure?

In 1882, once again the four mints produced silver dollars. The Carson City mintage was above one million, and it is not rare, but still a highly sought-after date for inclusion in a set of Morgan silver dollars. The other three mints produced silver dollars that were not scarce, except possibly in very high mint-state grades. Just as in 1881, another famous outlaw was shot and killed–Jesse James. This event made national headlines. People in the civilized Eastern states were absolutely fascinated by the stories coming from the Wild West, where law and order were often lacking.

So what happened in 1883? ‘Treasure Island’ was written by Robert Louis Stevenson. ‘The Adventures of Pinocchio’ was written by Carlo Collodi. ‘Life on the Mississippi’ was written by Mark Twain. ‘The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood’ was written by Howard Pyle. What was life on the Mississippi like in 1883? For one, silver was likely transported down this large river, perhaps from silver mines in the midwest.

EXPERT BLOG #2:

Let’s talk about Mercury dimes.  As usual, I would encourage you to obtain copies of some of the books about these beautiful coins, such as David Lange’s “Complete Guide to Mercury Dimes.”  A person can never have too many reference books on any particular coin series.  “Knowledge is King,” as said by a prominent numismatist in the past.

In worn condition such as AG to G, Mercury dimes (with the exception of 7 different date/mintmarks; see below) are common.  Such common dimes are basically worth what their silver content will bring.  With silver at around $57 per ounce, a 90% silver dime, which includes all Mercury dimes, is worth $4.10 as silver.  Most worn Mercury dimes have a silver value in excess of their numismatic value. Here are the exceptions:  1916-D Genuinely scarce in F and better; 1921 Scarce in F and up; 1921-D  Scarce in F and up; 1926-S Scarce in VF and up; 1931-D Scarce in all circulated grades; 1942 42/41 Scarce in XF and up; 1942-D 42/41 Very scarce in circulated grades (Source: Lange, “Complete Guide to Mercury Dimes”).