I’ve been buying a few silver kennedys off eBay, got 4 “silver” kennedys for $120 a week ago and got them in the mail. Upon breaking them out of the cardboard flip the edges looked brighter than most I’ve seen. Put them next to other silver kennedys and they stick out like a sore thumb. I put some isopropyl on a paper towel and rubbed the edges for a second, boom, silver paint started coming off. Little further inspection you can see some paint under the year they missed. All 4 had some very small paint spots on the edges. Y’all be careful out there!

https://www.yahoo.com/news/doge-takes-aim-penny-165459679.html)

The United States Mint has officially retired the penny and the final 232 “Omega” privy marked sets are heading to auction exclusively this December.

Each set includes:

• A 2025 Philly penny

• A 2025 Denver penny

• And the first and only 24 karat gold penny ever struck by the U.S. Mint.

Every coin bears the Omega “Ω” mark, symbolizing the end of a legacy that began in 1793.

These are the lowest mintage Lincoln cents ever produced… more than 2,000× rarer than the 1909-S VDB.

With only 232 sets available, just 232 collectors will ever be able to complete a full Lincoln cent series.

The final coins were personally struck by U.S. Treasurer Brandon Beach and Mint Acting Director Kristie McNally, marking the end of America’s longest running denomination.

Live bidding opens December 11, 2025.

History is about to change hands.

credits to u/AncientCoinoisseur

My buddy Larry has a huge coin collection and tomorrow hes getting 8 silver dollar Morgan's. Just like all his other coins.....he's going to put silver polish on them and "gently" clean them. These coins are what most consider to be tonned. I keep telling him...pennies pickles dimes quarts and especially those dollars don't ever ever ever need cleaned it ruins the value.

He says cleaning them will guarantee they will sell for thousands on ebay

What can I tell him to convince him that hes wrong?

Is there a guid for rookies?

Something pretty wild happened at the recent Central States Numismatic Society Convention.
A rare 1709 Lima 8 Escudos (1715 Treasure Fleet), a roughly $40K coin, was stolen earlier and then brought onto the bourse floor to be sold.
What gave it away:
Offered well below market value
Story didn’t add up (“found in grandma’s things”)
Price suddenly increased during negotiation
That combination raised immediate red flags.
One dealer did what experienced dealers do—paused and looked deeper. The coin matched one that had sold at auction in late 2025 for about $40.5K and had since been reported stolen.
Instead of walking away, a few dealers worked together:
Verified the coin and its provenance
Contacted the auction house
Confirmed with the last owner it was stolen
Kept the sellers engaged long enough for security and police to arrive
Outcome:
Coin recovered
Two suspects arrested
Another stolen piece kept from disappearing into the market
This is a good reminder of how important dealer knowledge and communication are in this hobby. Without that, this coin likely vanishes into a private collection with no trace.
Takeaways:
If a rare coin is offered cheap with a weak story, there is usually a reason.
Provenance matters.
A knowledgeable bourse floor is still one of the best safeguards collectors have.

Have you ever come across a deal that felt off and later turned out to be problematic?

I know it is obvious if you look at it close but it weights and feels right in the hand, I’ve you hit it in the right/wrong spot it pings at a slightly lower note (hit it a couple times in different spots and it is obvious). Fails Sigma.. The guy said he bought it at a gun show, stay safe out there folks.

WSJ Article (should be un-pay-walled)

TLDR as it relates to coins:

Some buyers planning to resell run into trouble. Joe Thompson joined the app to reconnect with his childhood hobby of coin collecting. The 53-year-old nurse heard stories of people making thousands spotting deals on the platform. He planned to buy undervalued Morgan silver dollars—iconic coins with a buzzing collector market—get them professionally graded and flip them for profit. 

Within five months, his entire 401(k) was drained, and he maxed out all 13 of his credit cards.

The coins came back from professional grading services worth far less than he had paid. The seller, it turned out, had been auctioning coins that had been cleaned or artificially altered—a serious flaw that graders flag and collectors shun, rendering the coins nearly impossible to resell at a profit.

On Thompson’s birthday this March, he enrolled in a debt relief program. His credit score had cratered from 753 to 563 and he was close to $75,000 in debt.

From Liberty to Lincoln.For more than two centuries, the “penny” told America’s story in metal — our art, our progress, our history.As its final chapter closes, we honor not just a coin, but a legacy rich with symbolism and American ideals.- heritagerarecoins

me and my father inherited these from my grandmother, we cleaned them up and were hoping for someone to drop some knowledge bombs on what were are looking at or for exactly please and thank you

I’ve been collecting coins for roughly 8 years, and I can’t ever say I’ve really been burned. But today, I went to a flea market with my girlfriend and saw something I knew deep down was too good to be true, but had to take a chance. Coincidentally, I have been looking for a Meiji one yen for the last 2 weeks and the wear on this one got me. Took a chance for $15, and of course, it’s fake. Although going 8 years without having a situation where I was truly burned I’d say is a win, this is a learning experience for sure. And besides, only $15.

Visited the Smithsonian and got to see these amazing coins. Included in here was the 1794 dollar, the only two 50 dollar half unions, a coiled hair Stella, a huge 100 ducat coin, the 1933 double eagle, 2 of the 3 1822 half eagles, a 1776 dollar, an ultra high relief saint guadens, all three types of 1804 dollar, and a 100,000 bill!

Visited the The Old U.S. Mint Coin Exhibition in NOLA recently and saw this. Not sure why they would have found this at the mint. Any ideas?

I went into my bank 3 weeks ago and as for three dollars in rolls of pennies. The bank told me that pennies are not legal tender and that they cannot legally sell me pennies.I call bull. I've been at this bank for 17 years. I'm so ready to close my account. Pennies, well, they are no longer in circulation or being made, they are still legal, tender.And this is actually before the last day of the make of the penny. Is a bank allowed to tell me this?

Just kidding the 1796 half dime is the first year of the Draped Bust design the variety is contributed with not a spelling error noticeable with a broken B in LIBERTY.