Shrewd Collector; Smart Purchase

The last post described Bob B.’s exquisite set of Buffalo Nickels.  Here we explore one of America’s most esoteric and difficult sets of coins.

Our friend Bob was a pretty quiet guy, a bit cagey even, for you never knew what he was thinking . . . or what he would bring in to show and discuss.

In the late 1980s, the coin market was moving up in price.  Bob was paying attention. About 1988 he came to my office, saying, “It’s time to sell some coins” unveiling a spectacular and complete set of 3c Silver coins.

Rare 1872 issue
www.ha.com

This was, without a doubt, the finest set of 3c Silvers I had ever seen, perhaps the finest set in existence at the time.  The set was stored in a Wayte Raymond album and displayed perfect peripheral target tone.

A Businessman and His Buffalos

Let’s stay with the theme of Buffalo Nickels for the moment . . . .

One of the greatest individuals I’ve had the opportunity to work with was Bob B. 

I met Bob in my Portland coin shop in the early 1980s.  He was a true gentleman, extremely pleasant to do business with.  Bob had a sharply honed mind and we enjoyed many deep conversations about economics, business and the coin market.  He loved coins!

Bob was born in Oakland, California, in the 1920s.  His father was an engineer for Standard Oil of California.  Bob and his brother both had paper routes and began developing their business acumen when they were 8 to 10 years old.