I like decimal coinage and I am starting to collect proof year sets. I think it's great when you buy a set with a coin in that was never issued for circulation; they look nice in the presentation box and in my local shop I can buy them for around £15 to £30. Now the thing is how come individual proof coins can add up to a value greater than a proof set for example; in the Coin Yearbook 2010 the 1986 set is priced at £30 but the total of coins priced individually total £49. I would have thought that one price would reflect the other and that the price of a set would equal that of the individual coins, or maybe be slightly higher in price for a set as it would have the box and certificate. Does anyone have any thoughts on this subject? The 1986 set I bought yesterday was £15 so I think I got a real bargain either way.
Because some people only want one type, I know that like the 1972 set I only want the penny but when one was on eBay the other day I couldn't bring myself to pay £8.25 for 0.01p
I think it could be very interesting some time in the future sets which have quite a low issue number could become hard to get and they are always going to have the better coin because once out of the case there is the potential for scratches, fingerprints, and toning. I like to keep all my coins in original packaging even if it's those plastic cases that the banks used to put the crown coins in.
I have a New Zealand set in UNC condition for decimalisation they aren't proof though, I was thinking of just putting them in flips as they are only in a plastic bag as issued, but it looks like they may have had air in at some point with the packaging but the coins are fine !
In the US where collectors have an unhealthy obsession with Sheldon Points, sets are frequently broken up so that one or two cherry picked coins can be sent of to PCGS and hopefully return in a PF70 slab which can be sold for a healthy profit.
The remaining coins are sold off as quickly as possible. Loose, ungraded proofs can quite easily be found far cheaper than their business strike counterparts. I think you are right about the long term prospects of modern proofs (currency version, not junk commemoratives). As more and more sets are broken up those which remain will inevitably increase in value.
Non illegitimis carborundum est. Excellent advice for all coins.
Make Numismatics Great Again!
I got my set from a local shop for £13 it includes the silver wedding crown. a place of interest for you might be http://www.predecimal.com/coins-sale-british-decimal-coins-c-51_93.html It does not have a 1972 penny but as you can see from the prices it could be a place where you could keep checking for the coin.
Hope that helps.
Congratulations, does that mean you have completed your collection? If so what are you going to do now?
Are you going to break up the set to put your 1p with the others?
Did you know there were only 150,000 1972 proof sets issued and in that year the only coin issued to the public for circulation/hoarding was the 25p.
Yeah that's all my decimal pennies now will just keep an eye on my change to upgrade some !
I won't be breaking up the set though - it will be kept as whole. I didn't know there was only 150k !
I did know that the crown was the only circulating coin that year though !
I got most of my proof sets on ebay from 1970 to 1989 prices ranging from under £5 up to around £15, on one occasion I got 4 sets for less than £20. If you would like the book prices let me know.
it's a very nice shiny cupro-nickel 
