Boldly going where no collector has gone before

Baltimore collector Chuck Link has accomplished what no other collector of Capped Bust half dollars has done — assemble a complete collection by Overton die variety and have all of the coins graded and encapsulated by Professional Coin Grading Service. And it only took him three decades to do it.

Full video transcript:

Good morning. This is the Monday Morning Brief for June 6, 2016. I’m Coin World Senior Editor Paul Gilkes.

Baltimore collector Chuck Link has accomplished what no other collector of Capped Bust half dollars has done — assemble a complete collection by Overton die variety and have all of the coins subsequently graded and encapsulated by Professional Coin Grading Service.

And it only took him three decades to do it.

The final coin of his massive 453-coin Overton set recently reached the PCGS grading room in California. Link submitted an 1829, Overton 120, completing his Capped Bust Half Dollars Prime Die Variety set by Overton, Circulation Strikes (1807-1836) on the PCGS Set Registry. Link’s set includes three Crushed Lettered Edge Proofs added to the 450 circulation strikes.

These Capped Bust half dollars, detailed in the 1967 book, Early Half Dollar Die Varieties 1794-1836 by Al C. Overton, are highly sought after by collectors, especially variety collectors.

Link’s set contains every Overton variety and is the first complete set graded by PCGS.

Link’s goal of completing the coveted Overton set started in 1986, the year PCGS was founded, and finally concluded by way of an unlikely online discovery.

Link was put in contact with a seller who cherrypicked the rare 1829 Overton 120 at a fraction of its value and bought the coin from him.

“It was discovered on eBay as a new variety. My understanding is that it cost less than $100 on eBay as a cherrypick. One of the greatest cherries ever,” said Link.

Link, eager to complete his set and aware that there are only three of these coins known, quickly bought the coin, which was graded Very Fine 25 by PCGS.

Link’s Overton set was complete, and after 30 years of painstaking search, it contains many of the finest known examples of specific dates and varieties of the coin, with an average coin grade of Mint State 63.

Aside from his ground-breaking Overton set, Link is the proud owner of multiple Number 1-ranked sets across the PCGS Set Registry. But that does not mean Link will slow down after this achievement.

“There’s still more collecting to do,” said Link. “But my first love has always been the Capped Bust halves.”

Thanks for listening. For
Coin World, I’m Paul Gilkes.

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