Lincolncentman

关于此套币: It has been a long journey for me. I began this set when I was less than half my current age. It was before PCGS had a set registry. Having selected education as a career choice, I knew that building a top red set of Lincolns was out of the question. However, brown Lincolns were universally hated. I knew that I could build a really attractive set on a budget if I stuck with browns. "I'm sure glad someone collects these." "You need to quit wasting your money on browns and go to reds." "No. I stay away from brown wheats. You can't move them. They just don't sell." These were a few quotes from dealers during those early days.

My initial goal was to build the set with a minimum grade of 64BN from 1909 - 1933. From 1934-1958 I had elected to stick with reds, as high of a grade as I could afford. At the time, it was financial suicide to pay grading fees on the later date wheats. In 2007 I had a truck wreck and couldn't afford the payments on a new vehicle. I made the hard decision and sold about 90% of the set to replace my truck. The next few years, I slowly worked on rebuilding the set. I knew I had to build it back stronger than before, or I would regret for the rest of my life the decision I made to sell the bulk of my set. I adjusted my goal to 65BN as a minimum grade from 1909-1933. At the time, the population for the 23-S and 27-S were both 2/0. I knew those two coins would be the biggest hurdles for me to overcome. After 13 years of searching, the 23-S went pop 3 and the newly made example hit eBay. I calculated my bills for the month and added a grand for safety. I subtracted that from the amount I had in my checking and savings accounts. That was my bid on the coin. I won the coin for 2x the then price guide and half of my bid. It was a happy day for me. It was the first time I felt that my unrealistic goal was becoming realistic.

When PCGS introduced the "Lincoln Cents Toned Basic Set, Circulation Strikes (1909-1958)" set, I knew it was a game changer. I knew it was just a matter of time before people with "real money" came into my niche. I worked hard to secure as many hard early coins as I could. Shortly thereafter, I discovered there were a few others, like myself, that were attracted to and were building brown Lincoln sets. There were enough of us that it was creating a market for brown Lincolns from 1934-1958. They were going for so much money, though. Even so, I adjusted my goal to be at 100% brown at a minimum grade of 65 from 1909-1958. Some of those coins didn't even exist in PCGS 65BN at the time.

On 1/30/2023 my lifetime goal was realized when PCGS graded a 1950-D wheat in my submission as MS65BN. Though I will still work on upgrading coins in my set, I now consider it done.

I never intended to build a number one registry set. To me, that goal can be taken away from you by anyone with a similar goal who has more money. But setting a goal with a minimum grade... that's a goal that, once achieved can never be taken away by anyone. It has been a wonderful journey. I am most thankful for all of the friends I have made along the way. Even though it is nice to have reached the destination, it is the journey that I will always remember and the friends I have made that I value the most.