The Buffalo Nickel series remains popular with collectors as a date-and-mintmark pursuit even as the series is actively aging past the century mark and many issues are becoming tougher and more expensive. However, there’s a way for collectors to enjoy building a comprehensive survey of this nostalgic series without having to break the bank: build a short set.
When it comes to the Buffalo Nickel, there’s a commonly pursued short set consisting of all the business strikes ranging from 1934 through 1938. This avoids the most expensive dates, including the rare 1937 Three-Legged Buffalo Nickel, which falls into that five-year (inclusive) date range but as a variety isn’t technically necessary in the basic circulation-strike short set. The basic short set also excludes other varieties and all the proofs.
The 1934-1938 Buffalo Nickel short set consists of only 12 coins and includes the following:
None of these issues is considered rare or even scarce in circulated grades, and most are relatively affordable in the lower Mint State grades. Any financial hurdles or challenges in locating pieces for this set would come with buying examples in the top-graded one to two grade points for each respective issue. Of course, you could add an even further dimension of challenge by pursuing, for example, only toned specimens or the like.
Making this collecting goal even more savory for many collectors is that the 1934-1938 Buffalo Nickel short set is listed on the PCGS Set Registry, which offers the Buffalo Nickels Basic Short Set, Circulation Strikes (1934-1938).
How easy or difficult you want the 1934-1938 Buffalo Nickel short set to be is entirely up to you. Take a gander at the PCGS Price Guide or PCGS CoinFacts for more insight on pricing and other information on the Buffalo Nickel.