Second generation collector

[Morgantm]

I've known for a while that my dad had start collecting pennies a long time ago. Never really thought anything about it until I was cleaning out the garage tonight and found them all. Looks to be about 30 - $10 boxes. I grabbed a box, opened a roll and it was all wheat pennies. Now I haven't gotten farther than that yet but figured I could go ahead and post up. What do you guys recommend I do with the wheat pennies? Is there a good site to check prices on certain years that I can keep an eye out for or what?

Complete newbie so any help would be great! I haven't decided if I want to start another hobby (I have many, most are expensive haha). But after reading a lot of threads on here I'm kind of getting excited.

Thanks!

[Market Harmony]

Here's a few tips that will start you off on the right foot. However, this is not all of it. As you go on, there will be more for you to learn. Since you have no idea what is in there, you're going to have to look at each and every one of those coins... that's only about 30,000 coins, which sounds big, but you'll be able to do it within a month or two.

- When searching, you are looking for KEY DATES: 09-S, 09-S VDB, 10-S, 11-D, 11-S, 12-D, 12-S, 13-S, 14-D, 14-S, 15-S, 22, 22-D, 24-D, & 31-S (the super keys are in bold)
- Any coin that looks to have seen very little to no circulation should be kept off to the side
- You might want to sort all of the coins by year or decade
- Do not sell anything without running it past people who know about it, first. In fact, you might even want to consider selling to members here at the forum.

In bulk, the common date and worn wheat cents should sell for about 4 to 5 cents each, or about $6 per pound. To get an idea of what some of the collectible coins are potentially worth, take a look at this website: http://numismedia.com/fmv/prices/lnccnt/pricesgd.shtml These prices rely on an assessment of condition. Learn how to post pictures here and ask us lots of questions. A scanner works well to capture coin images. Everyone here is very helpful. There is so much knowledge at this forum, and you're sure to get the best information.

But the biggest thing is to enjoy what your father left you. I have had the pleasure of going through my father's old collection with him, and I could tell that it brought back many fond memories. They weren't all about the coins either. There's a history within those rolls of yours.

[PreservingThePast]

Welcome.

Market Harmony gave wonderful advice. I'd like to expand it by saying be sure you don't touch the obverse (front) or reverse (back) of any of the coins. Handle them just on their edges.

Enjoy your coin searches, everyone.

[misteroman]

Wow that is a cool thing to find. Welcome aboard and another thing to grab is a redbook and your local coin or hobby shop or a larger flea market should have it.

[Morgantm]

Great advice, thanks everyone.

I found the old site and have been reading a ton off of it and learning a lot.

First roll was a lucky pull I guess, the rest have been 95% pre-1982 though so its not a let down. Guess I know what I'll be doing this weekend!