Two US Mint Products No Longer Available
There are two US Mint products that recently became no longer available for sale. These are the 2008 Martin Van Buren Dollar Philadelphia Roll and 2009 American Samoa Quarter 1000-coin Philadelphia Bag.
The 2008-P Martin Van Buren Rolls originally went on sale way back on November 13, 2008. The last reported sales figures for the rolls was 40,510.Although sales levels were higher for Presidential Dollar Rolls issued during 2007 and 2008, they didn't generate the amount of collector focus and speculation that this year's rolls have generated.
Bags and rolls for the earlier Presidents were offered in seemingly limitless quantities with sales periods that have now extended to years for some issues. A full line of bags and rolls still available for sale at the US Mint from Thomas Jefferson to Martin Van Buren (less the one sold out Van Buren roll). The situation changed in 2009 when the US Mint cut off sales of the William Henry Harrison rolls at 30,000. The following John Tyler rolls were also cut off at the same number.
On a related note, the US Mint has now sold above 30,000 rolls for each of the 2009 James K. Polk Presidential Dollar rolls. So it might be the case that the US Mint has once again bumped up their production following the quick sell outs of this year's first two issues.
The American Samoa Quarter 1000-Coin Philadelphia Bags originally went on sale July 27, 2009. The last reported sales figure for the bags was 1,481. The Denver 1000-coin bags, 100-coin bags from either Mint, and the two roll sets still remain available for sale.The American Samoa Quarter might be the lowest quarter mintage in decades if coin production figures continue to rebound. In my post covering the August 2009 Coin Production, I mentioned that quarter production seemed to be on the rise and the mintage for the latest Presidential Dollar exceeded the level of the previous release.
The 2009-D American Samoa Quarter with 39,600,000 coins produced actually has a lower mintage than the Philadelphia issue which came in at 42,600,000. I wouldn't be surprised if the Denver 1000-coin bags sold out soon, since they were only slightly trailing the Philadelphia bags in Mint sales.
posted by Mint News Blog @ 12:34 PM
9 Comments:
Regarding the U.S. Mint Polk rolls, I guess I might as well have taken $114.45 and flushed it down the toilet! I bought 5 rolls of each Mint for $35.95 each, plus $4.95 s/h. I will have exactly $250 for my efforts (unless I try to sell them on eBay, in which case I could very well have less than that, by the time I factor in the eBay/Paypal fees and postage! It would be more cost effective to just spend them at face instead of taking an even BIGGER loss like that!
I guess my problem is, I never want to be left out of the "next big thing", but by buying this stuff I usually end up with some real LOSERS! Even the Tyler rolls can't make money, and THEY were limited to 30,000 for each Mint, the same as the seemingly GOLDEN W.H. Harrison rolls!
I sense you buy Pres. rolls in the hopes of scoring a tidy profit at the onset of your purchases. I used to do that at times over the years, but in 46 years, I have merely bought, stored, and accumulated coins, sets, bags as available, and most series from the Mint. (It's hard to imagine hundreds of sealed cardboard boxes some of which are 40 years and have never been openned... but they are neatly stacked and inventoried in a small unused bedroom. ) I'm not one to sit in a bar and spend extra cash on drinks and banial conversation with strangers. That's fine for those who have that need. My joy will be to leave all this to my son & daughter one day. They will be the "winners" and hopefully benefit from my life's hobby. It was very easy and painless to amass such a quantity along the way by buying in small sized purchase amounts that didn't break the bank. As to the kids, I imagine they can either retain or sell the entire collection to a reputable dealer after I'm gone. Most items are in multiples of 5 or 6, a few by the dozen, some single. All are in original boxes (blue - tan - brown) and mailing cartons with a label or content description on the outside. I think I probably have more "stock" than many full time dealers -LOL, but that's not the point.
Don't fret about which of your decisions are worth more than others. Each decision you've made is correct as you were the one who made them. - Grandpa.
Grandpa, you rock! A true numismatist! I definitely like your perspective.
I got into this because I liked collecting coins and Mint products as well. I really like coin covers and get slightly frustrated by this "don't open the white envelope" mentality. I want to see it, touch it, read it, and put it in a nice see-through page in a folder (still working on that).
My wife was never really into the hobby until recently when she saw that you could turn around a profit on some of this stuff. Oh, and she loves the Walking Liberty quarter. In any case, the deal we've made is that we can collect/buy coins as long as we make up most of the purchase from profits from selling other coins.
In so doing, and not being an dealer with a shop or coin show, we've tried to make money off dollar rolls, but have a similar experience. The Mint box rolls only sell high within a week or so AFTER the sell-out. The WHH being the only ones (I think) still selling high. The Tylers might sell high again in the future, but for now its back to normal. Normal rolled dollar coins... you can only get an ok profit if you sell more than one roll. You can probably sell two $25 rolls for $75 (includes S&H) and maybe get $10 profit.
If you can get your hands on boxes of the new pennies at cost, you can make a decent profit that way. Usually a $25 box will go for about $75, probably more. That might end up being more than $35 in profit. However, if you sell the rolls individually... you could make at least $75 in profit (selling a little under $6 a roll), but it's a lot slower. But of course, in that scenario, if S&H is included in your price, you make more money the more rolls one buys.
I AM ALSO A GRANDPA-ALTHOUGH I THINK A YOUNG ONE- AND I HEARTILY CONCUR WITH 'GRANDPA' THAT THIS IS ABOUT LEAVING A LEGACY FOR MY 7 CHILDREN AND YET TO BE DETERMINED GRANDCHILDREN. MY WIFE AND I STARTED BUYING PROOF MINT SETS YEARS AGO FOR ALL THE NIECES AND NEPHEWS FOR CHRISTMAS AS THE LAST THING THEY NEEDED WAS ANOTHER TOY. TO A PERSON THEY HAVE ALL BECOME COLLECTORS OF SOME SORT OR ANOTHER AND EVEN TODAY STILL GET EXCITED WHEN THEY 'OPEN' THEIR PRESENTS FROM THEIR AUNT AND UNCLE. WE THEN STARTED BUYING MINT SETS FOR GIFTS FOR ALL THE KIDS' FRIEND'S BIRTHDAY GIFTS FOR THE SAME REASON. KIDS GET ENOUGH 'STUFF' THAT SOMETHING OF LASTING VALUE IS A GREAT GIFT AND IS PURCHASED FOR LESS THAN A 'GOOD GIFT' WILL COST. WE ARE FROM OKLAHOMA, SO A ROLL OF OKLAHOMA QUARTERS FOR THAT YEAR WAS THE PRESENT. THIS YEAR IT IS A NATIVE AMERICAN ROLL-PURCHASED AT COST THRU THE MINT I MIGHT ADD- AND THEY WERE WELL RECIEVED.
I GUESS THIS IS ABOUT ENJOYING THE RIDE AND MAKING MONEY AT WORK OR IN THE STOCK MARKET OR REAL ESTATE. COIN COLLECTING IS JUST THAT, COLLECTING. ANYTHING ELSE IS PERCIEVED BY ME AS JUST GRAVY. SOMETIMES LUMPY, SOMETIMES SMOOTH BUT ALWAYS GOOD ON POTATOES!
I used to buy commemoratives regularly and never thought to buy vanilla mint/proof sets; of course I now regret this. I am now a regular with these and some of the rolls.
Hey, everyone! The Martin Van Buren rolls have been added to the Mint's "Direct Ship" program! There is the usual limit of $500 per president enforced, but go ahead and pick up your two boxes. After all, they are sold at face value, and the Martin Van Burens are the last coins to have the motto "In God We Trust" on the edges. Check them out for edge errors!
I think their is both sides to coin collecting, investment and hobby but lately I have noticed that it has become completely about making a quick buck on Ebay. I do buy gold and silver for investment purposes and to protect and grow my kids future but I also do buy coins from around the world that teaches me and them great things about history. I have just in the past 3 years bought gold and silver due to what is becoming to our dollar but I got into coins 8 years ago because of the history and beauty of them and I think that should never be disregarded. Just as my wife sees diamonds and her eyes pop out I have the same emotions towards coins. I love this hobby!
I'd have to agree with the previous post. I also do tend to buy some international (not the gaudy ones though). One has to appreciate the art, culture, engineering, history, economics, and politics all wrapped up in each coin. I know, I do, and since I am in science and technology (nanotech at that) I also get a kick out of the detail and processes which go into coin making - SFS
I, too, buy for my kids (not a Grandpa yet). I have tried to kill two birds with one stone by buying gold and silver that would be meaningful to them (e.g., AE Gold Sets for the year of their birth, etc.). In the process of doing this, I have found some of the coins really spectacular. For example, I really love the gold buffaloes as they are both beautiful and have much history to them. The AE silvers are also very nice. Of course the Mint's proof sets are a given.
My daughter has started collecting 1943 steel pennies (white pennies) just because they are neat to her (and thankfully affordable). All in all, this really is a very educational and personally rewarding hobby.
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