2010 Lincoln Cent Two Roll Set Sales at 45,483

The initial sales figures for the US Mint's 2010 Lincoln Cent Two Roll Set have come in far below sales levels for last year's 2009 Lincoln Cent Two Roll Sets. From the start of sales on April 8, 2010 through April 11, 2010, the US Mint has recorded sales of 45,483 sets.

I've gathered the debut sales figures for each of the 2009 Lincoln Cent Two Roll Sets for comparison. Total sales as of the latest weekly sales report are also included, with sold out sets followed by an asterisk (*). Here's how the numbers stack up:

2009 & 2010 Lincoln Cent Two Roll Set Sales

	debut sales	total sales
Birthplace	63,772	100,000*
Formative years	200,055	300,000*
Professional Life	152,146	282,296
Presidency	153,427	246,896
Union Shield	45,483	45,483

As I mentioned in my initial post on the product, the timing of the release could have been better planned. Back in mid-January, when the first 2010 Lincoln Cents started appearing, secondary market prices were $10 or more per roll. Even by mid-February, when the US Mint officially launched the new design, roll prices were still elevated. Now, three months into the game, availability has been increasing and sealed boxes of 50 rolls can be found for $55 to $60 by careful bidders. The segment of the coin collecting population willing to pay premiums to get new coins early have already purchased their rolls.

The other aspect working against this offering is the fact that the Union Shield design will be minted for the entire year. Last year, the four different designs divided already diminished coin production, resulting the 2009 Lincoln Cents with the lowest mintages in decades. Recent US Mint coin production figures suggest that the 2010 Lincoln Cent will have a combined mintage above 2 billion. Paying a premium for last year's sets was partially justifiable by the low mintages, but this year the situation will be different.

These factors aside, some collectors will still pursue the set as a US Mint packaged Lincoln-related collectible, or as the final component in a complete group of Lincoln Two Roll Sets (LP1 - LP5 product codes). Also, there's the off-chance US Mint could do something unexpected like cut off sales at 100,000 (like they did for the Birthplace Set) and create a packaged rarity. However, realistically I don't think this will happen. I think this offering will be available for the rest of the year.

View the complete US Mint Sales report over at Coin Update News.

PCGS Secure Plus and NGC Plus Grading

Separately, I have just published an article related to recently announced "plus grading" by third party coin grading services. I haven't covered this here, but coin grading company PCGS recently announced a new service known as PCGS Secure Plus. This includes plus grading for coins which verge on the next technical grade level and added security features through laser scanning.

On the same date, NGC announced that they would be implementing plus grading and asked collectors and dealers for recommendations. Where PCGS is limiting the application of plus grading, I think NGC has the opportunity to broaden and define the designation.

Read the full article Recommendations for NGC Plus Grading