My recent purchase

With the uncertainty in with the economy, I have been avoiding buying coins recently. However, my birthday came and I had to celebrate it somehow. I ended up finding another piece of a collection that I am missing. I still need the '94, '95 and '96 sets but in due time. For now, I enjoy the beauty of the coins and the thoughtful presentation by the US Mint.

What are Presidential Oath Dollars?

This article is from buzzle.com and was written by Michael Zielinski wh is an internet entrepreneur and coin collector.

"The so-called Presidential Oath Dollars made a big splash after quickly selling out of the limited quantity produced. Find out more about these special bi-metal coins that have attracted so much attention.

A few weeks ago the world was introduced to the so-called "Presidential Oath Dollars." These coins were offered in an extremely limited quantity on a well known television shopping show. The coins sold out quickly and created a lot of excitement.

The coins were initially sold at the Denver and Philadelphia Mint gift shops. An aluminum ring was placed around a regular Presidential Dollar. The ring has an inscription of the Presidential Oath, "Preserve, Protect and Defend the Constitution of the United States." By placing a silver colored metal ring around the golden colored dollar, a bi-metal effect was created.

The coins were supposedly limited to only 1,000 per President and were produced for the first six Presidential Dollars: George Washington, John Adams, Andrew Jackson, James Monroe, James Madison, and John Quincy Adams.

Although the coins were originally available at the Denver and Philadelphia Mint gift shops, they are not official mint products. The items were conceived and created by the private contractor Aramark who runs the gift shops.

The coins appeared earlier this month on the Home Shopping Network. They were encapsulated and graded by the third party grading firm ANACS as MS65 or MS66. The coins were also placed into special custom oak presentation boxes. The offering sold out in approximately 30 minutes.

While the quick sell out clearly shows some initial popularity for the coins, in the longer term the prospects are not as clear. The coins are basically regular Presidential Dollars encased with an aluminum ring. This could be compared to an encased coin, which are commonly manufactured as keepsakes using pennies. However, the fact that the Presidential Oath Dollars were produced in such a limited quantity does add an interesting aspect. Time will tell whether these coins are truly collectible or temporarily popular novelties."

My thoughts are the coins are interesting. I'm not sure what to make of them. You have a non-mint product being sold at the mint gift shops. Has the ability to make people think they are getting official when they are not (which is why the certificate of authenticity is important). The grading on the coins also leads someone to think that the coins are legitimate but as far as I know the Mint does not grade coins. I really don't know anymore than Michael Zielinski about the long term value of the coins. My best guess is that the limited number and the feel of authenticity will make it more than a novelty.

The full article is available from the following link:

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/what-are-presidential-oath-dollars.html

The Presidential $1

I have to be honest, I was excited when I first heard about the presidential dollars. The mint had so much potential to put out a coin that was beautiful but might actually be able to make the general public want the coins. Wrong. The coins are really cheap looking. I was so disappointed that I didn't really want to collect them. Until I saw the historical signature set. I totally love the design. The engraving of the Presidential intaglio print from the Bureau of Engraving and Printing is hot. It adds something that I have not ever seen before. Plus, they are very affordable. Now, that's what I consider a win win.

I am really blogging!!!

I didn't mean to not post for two months....it's amazing how time goes by. The reason I have been staying away from the blog is that the economy has been tough and being involved in this only makes me want to buy more. I've confronted my fears and will be able to write and discuss and remain fiscally responsible. And what makes me a hypocrite is that I have purchase a few coins since the posting but have been responsible (for the most part). I will post and talk about collecting in a tough economy amongst other things. Thanks for hanging in there with me.