Rick’s US Coins - call now!

Dave99B

PCGS MS 63 1899 $5 gold pieces. Two easy payments of just $550. Supplies are very limited!

Dave

lkeigwin

Typo? I think you mean one payment of $550. Still a bit high.
Lance.

ShaunBC5

Are those payments ever really “easy?”

ricko

Let me be very clear.... I am NOT the Rick of Rick's U.S. Coins.... Cheers, RickO

pcgscacgold

Looks like Rick is making pretty good money here. Recent sales of MS63 1899 half eagles have been in the $500-700 range. I suppose he will get a few people to buy.

bearcave

Rick's ad on tv says 2 payments of 547.50!:😂

JeffMTampa

Don't forget the additional Shipping and Handling charge!

Perhaps Rick thinks $99.99 for that is fair?

Smudge

Avoid future regret and disappointment.

ike126

One of Rick's famous lines is this is a "once in a lifetime opportunity" call now supplies are limited!! Yeah sure he has to be one of the more annoying ones on TV lol

WAYNEAS

I love Rick's deep cameo Franklins but his prices are ridiculous

Eldorado9

Generic gold at extra high, double retail pricing is not a once in a lifetime opportunity. You will have that opportunity many times if you want it!

davids5104

i will say, he recently overpaid on one of my coins via the bay

pcgscacgold

Selling these coins at $1100 may be a once in a lifetime opportunity. Then again, if gold goes to $5000, who knows.

Hydrant

I've never watched any of those coin shows but the Lovely Mrs. Hydrant tuned in on at least one occasion that I know of. Result? She purchased two American Gold Eagles. The BIG ones. One ouncers. GOLD! And she only paid $19.99 each plus S&H. What a deal! She fancies herself as quite the bargain hunter and that time she really did SCORE! It does bother her that I use such valuable treasures as paper weights but................

Up On Cripple Creek She Sends Me
If I Spring A Leak She Mends Me
I Don't Have To Speak She Defends Me
A Drunkard's Dream If I Ever Did See One

fathom

Maybe his source is overcharging.

I need to get his #.

AuldFartte

metalmeister

I met Rick by chance at a local restaurant years back. Really nice guy and is extremely knowledgeable. Really big in high grade Franklin's and proof coinage.

airplanenut

@ShaunBC5 said:
Are those payments ever really “easy?”

Language warning, but a gem

https://youtu.be/JHInK-FRD9I

MsMorrisine

this is Rick Tomaska btw

I'm surprised the infomercials haven't been endlessly talked about by now.

since it is RT, I'm just going to leave my opinion of these infomercials out

golden

Let the buyer beware!

No Headlights

It's not cheap going to Europe and digging through old bank vaults.
I always wonder how many possible new coin collectors are turned off by this type of offering after finding out they paid too much!

Walkerfan

@airplanenut Mitch Hedberg was the BEST!!

LMAO....He was a trip!!! Loved him!!!

Crypto

I am going to take the contrarian point of view.

First off TV spots are not cheap and it isn’t like he can get PCGS choice UNC gold much cheaper than the Vest pockets with no overhead types.

Second the people he is talking to isn’t the specialist forum types. They are cranky old uncle types who are as likely to buy bogus coins and collectibles plated in .5 mincrons of pure 24k gold tribute Buffalos crap. Rick knows what he is doing and his Buyers end up with legitimate if not slightly generic collectibles which are by their nature luxuries which by their nature have a spectrum of values that vary by venue. A bottle of Dom costs different at a store vs a restaurant vs a club.

dbldie55

I love watching these shows. Last night, was going between 3 of them.

I am sure many here have access to produce these shows at no cost. I hope you let us in on your secrets.

PhillyJoe

I’ll admit I watched the 5 oz of shipwreck gold dust in a pcgs slab last night until I saw the $19,995 price tag.

cameonut2011

@davids5104 said:
i will say, he recently overpaid on one of my coins via the bay

Until you see it upgrade to a top pop slab or near top pop slab...

cameonut2011

@lkeigwin said:
Typo? I think you mean one payment of $550. Still a bit high.
Lance.

But did it sticker?

cameonut2011

@ricko said:
Let me be very clear.... I am NOT the Rick of Rick's U.S. Coins.... Cheers, RickO

Of course not. Rick (Tomaska) is a toner guy.

Believe me there is this garnish MS68 FBL Franklin with a finger print on it that even made me want to vomit (and I like toned coins generally).

davids5104

Here is what he got from me... 66+ CAC

ambro51

He’s promoting coin collecting.

Crypto

@PhillyJoe said:
I’ll admit I watched the 5 oz of shipwreck gold dust in a pcgs slab last night until I saw the $19,995 price tag.

But it was 5 ounces of sunken treasure gold dust from the California gold rush. I am not saying it is x2 premium but what a hunk of gold IMHO

SeattleSlammer

@Crypto said:
his Buyers end up with legitimate if not slightly generic collectibles which are by their nature luxuries which by their nature have a spectrum of values that vary by venue.

That’s a lot of acrobatics to justify exorbitant overcharging. Surely anyone that buys this particular $5 coin will feel badly manipulated should he/she go to sell and learns the truth.

Zoins

@MsMorrisine said:
this is Rick Tomaska btw

I'm surprised the infomercials haven't been endlessly talked about by now.

since it is RT, I'm just going to leave my opinion of these infomercials out

I've seen a number of his commercials.

He has a lot of PCGS coins.

ShaunBC5

Thanks, @airplanenut. Love me some Mitch (RIP), and frankly, I love the Franklin Half book I have by Rick.
I think my wife got it for one easy payment that was pretty reasonable

airplanenut

@ambro51 said:
He’s promoting coin collecting.

No better way to get someone involved in a hobby than to take their money early on and when they get educated, find out the first thing they got was screwed.

Zoins

There are numerous threads on Rick on the forums, including the following:

• https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/702026/rick-tomaska/p1
• https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/702169/tell-me-about-rick-tomaska

Here's a post from the first thread that mentions Rick's prices are "full retail". From the posts above, are the prices full retail, or 2x retail? What's the definition of retail? In the example in the OP, is retail closer to the price in the ad, half the price, or are both prices retail?

Crypto

@SeattleSlammer said:

@Crypto said:
his Buyers end up with legitimate if not slightly generic collectibles which are by their nature luxuries which by their nature have a spectrum of values that vary by venue.

That’s a lot of acrobatics to justify exorbitant overcharging. Surely anyone that buys this particular $5 coin will feel badly manipulated should he/she go to sell and learns the truth.

logic does not equal acrobatics and retail is over charging for a coin with a 5$ face value. I am not saying a seasoned collector can't go to a wholesale auction and get it cheaper, I am just saying you shouldn't expect wholesale on TV. I doubt he could offer them much cheaper and pay his producer and make it worth his time. You ever order a 10$ drink at a bar? I know where you can get it cheaper

Zoins

@Dave99B said:
PCGS MS 63 1899 $5 gold pieces. Two easy payments of just $550. Supplies are very limited!

Dave

Wait a minute! Is that coin the rare 1899 "P" mintmark coin? I just looked it up on the PCGS Price Guide and there is no "1899-P" coin!

According to the guides, the 1899 is $765 in PCGS MS63 and $625 in NGC MS63.

Oldhoopster

@Crypto said:

logic does not equal acrobatics and retail is over charging for a coin with a 5$ face value. I am not saying a seasoned collector can't go to a wholesale auction and get it cheaper, I am just saying you shouldn't expect wholesale on TV. I doubt he could offer them much cheaper and pay his producer and make it worth his time. You ever order a 10$ drink at a bar? I know where you can get it cheaper

True, but Most people going into high overhead establishments understand they will be paying a premium. Are you saying that people who buy coins from TV are also are making a conscience choice to pay a high premium for the convenience?

I don't know about you, but I never heard anybody say the $12 beer at a football game was a once in a lifetime buy, or were comparing the value to a $15 beer at another stadium.

You could use the same argument to justify the methods used by some Telemarketers and Used car salesman. Just people trying to sell a product, cover their overhead, and make a profit, right? There's a reason why those professions have entrenched stereotypes in our society.

You can keep sharing your logic to justify these business models, but I don't think you're going to convince many people that this is just some guy trying to earn out a living in a high overhead market.

SanctionII

Looking at the screen shot of the television shows that an NGC coin graded MS 63 is being offered for sale, while the picture shows a coin in a PCGS slab

Zoins

@SanctionII said:
Looking at the screen shot of the television shows that an NGC coin graded MS 63 is being offered for sale, while the picture shows a coin in a PCGS slab

It says "NGC/PCGS MS63" which indicates to me that they are interchangeable and you can get either one.

silverpop

I'll pass

the old saying, if it looks too good to be true it is comes to mind

SanctionII

Zoins.

You are correct. I only saw NGC and co.pletely missed the PCGS right next to the NGC.

SeattleSlammer

@Crypto said:

@SeattleSlammer said:

@Crypto said:
his Buyers end up with legitimate if not slightly generic collectibles which are by their nature luxuries which by their nature have a spectrum of values that vary by venue.

That’s a lot of acrobatics to justify exorbitant overcharging. Surely anyone that buys this particular $5 coin will feel badly manipulated should he/she go to sell and learns the truth.

logic does not equal acrobatics and retail is over charging for a coin with a 5$ face value. I am not saying a seasoned collector can't go to a wholesale auction and get it cheaper, I am just saying you shouldn't expect wholesale on TV. I doubt he could offer them much cheaper and pay his producer and make it worth his time. You ever order a 10$ drink at a bar? I know where you can get it cheaper

The difference is he’s presenting the coin’s horrendously inflated price as a real deal for his viewers. Indeed he goes to great lengths to present it as a super buy. I see it as especially egregious given his real bonafides within numismatics. There really isn’t any defending it .... but I still appreciate your efforts to play devil’s advocate, because I like doing the same in many cases. 🤓

Crypto

@Oldhoopster said:

@Crypto said:

logic does not equal acrobatics and retail is over charging for a coin with a 5$ face value. I am not saying a seasoned collector can't go to a wholesale auction and get it cheaper, I am just saying you shouldn't expect wholesale on TV. I doubt he could offer them much cheaper and pay his producer and make it worth his time. You ever order a 10$ drink at a bar? I know where you can get it cheaper

True, but Most people going into high overhead establishments understand they will be paying a premium. Are you saying that people who buy coins from TV are also are making a conscience choice to pay a high premium for the convenience?

I don't know about you, but I never heard anybody say the $12 beer at a football game was a once in a lifetime buy, or were comparing the value to a $15 beer at another stadium.

You could use the same argument to justify the methods used by some Telemarketers and Used car salesman. Just people trying to sell a product, cover their overhead, and make a profit, right? There's a reason why those professions have entrenched stereotypes in our society.

You can keep sharing your logic to justify these business models, but I don't think you're going to convince many people that this is just some guy trying to earn out a living in a high overhead market.

Your examples prove my point. To use your thread I have never seen someone demand to be able to sell their 12$ beer back to a different vendor (for as much if not more then they paid for it) as a condition to judge the morality of the guy walking the seating sections selling beer. Tell you what, arguing with the guy that you could get it cheaper else where wont get you far either. Our thoughts on his prices are not relevant

And yes if you buy something off of TV, you are paying for the convenience. If i had a family member buying coins off of the TV I would hope they would buy from Ricks specials. Better than the "platinum" plated state quarter set my Aunt got me one year.

Crypto

@SeattleSlammer said:

@Crypto said:

@SeattleSlammer said:

@Crypto said:
his Buyers end up with legitimate if not slightly generic collectibles which are by their nature luxuries which by their nature have a spectrum of values that vary by venue.

That’s a lot of acrobatics to justify exorbitant overcharging. Surely anyone that buys this particular $5 coin will feel badly manipulated should he/she go to sell and learns the truth.

logic does not equal acrobatics and retail is over charging for a coin with a 5$ face value. I am not saying a seasoned collector can't go to a wholesale auction and get it cheaper, I am just saying you shouldn't expect wholesale on TV. I doubt he could offer them much cheaper and pay his producer and make it worth his time. You ever order a 10$ drink at a bar? I know where you can get it cheaper

The difference is he’s presenting the coin’s horrendously inflated price as a real deal for his viewers. Indeed he goes to great lengths to present it as a super buy. I see it as especially egregious given his real bonafides within numismatics. There really isn’t any defending it .... but I still appreciate your efforts to play devil’s advocate, because I like doing the same in many cases. 🤓

You mean sales people are full of poop??? Crazy talk. At least he is selling grade B-A stuff.

asheland

Sheet is 600, he's a bit high

asheland

Heck, mine was under 800, like $750-60 ish?

Oldhoopster

@Crypto said:

@Oldhoopster said:

@Crypto said:

logic does not equal acrobatics and retail is over charging for a coin with a 5$ face value. I am not saying a seasoned collector can't go to a wholesale auction and get it cheaper, I am just saying you shouldn't expect wholesale on TV. I doubt he could offer them much cheaper and pay his producer and make it worth his time. You ever order a 10$ drink at a bar? I know where you can get it cheaper

True, but Most people going into high overhead establishments understand they will be paying a premium. Are you saying that people who buy coins from TV are also are making a conscience choice to pay a high premium for the convenience?

I don't know about you, but I never heard anybody say the $12 beer at a football game was a once in a lifetime buy, or were comparing the value to a $15 beer at another stadium.

You could use the same argument to justify the methods used by some Telemarketers and Used car salesman. Just people trying to sell a product, cover their overhead, and make a profit, right? There's a reason why those professions have entrenched stereotypes in our society.

You can keep sharing your logic to justify these business models, but I don't think you're going to convince many people that this is just some guy trying to earn out a living in a high overhead market.

Your examples prove my point. To use your thread I have never seen someone demand to be able to sell their 12$ beer back to a different vendor (for as much if not more then they paid for it) as a condition to judge the morality of the guy walking the seating sections selling beer. Tell you what, arguing with the guy that you could get it cheaper else where wont get you far either. Our thoughts on his prices are not relevant

And yes if you buy something off of TV, you are paying for the convenience. If i had a family member buying coins off of the TV I would hope they would buy from Ricks specials. Better than the "platinum" plated state quarter set my Aunt got me one year.

You missed (or chose to ignore) the point I made regarding the purchase decision. The majority of people buying expensive drinks (or meals, or fashion) know they are paying a high mark up for the convenience and luxury. Are you trying to say that the majority of people buying numismatic items on TV know they can purchase elsewhere for significantly less? Sorry to repeat the same question, but you seemed to have missed it in the previous post

Technically you were correct in pointing out that Mr Tomaska needs to recover the high cost associated with his business model and I don't think many here disagree with that point. My concern is his selling methods (great buy, opportunity of a lifetime, don't miss out) is geared towards neophyte collectors, who may not know they are paying a significant premium for "convenience". Do you feel that the selling methods he uses are justified?

Elcontador

If it's advertised on television, you shouldn't buy it. Period.

Dave99B

There is a good reason I pay $11.25 for a can of semi-warm Budweiser at Seahawk games.

I have a choice of one (1) seller, and he sets the price. I'm well aware I'm being hosed, yet I partake anyway.

It's not clear to me that TV viewers understand they are suffering the same fate.

Dave