A Collection that Surpasses 2,900 Pounds...

philographer

My coin collection consists of about 30 coins--about 20 in a PCGS box and 10 in an NGC box. I also have--at most--two shoeboxes of bullion and "interesting" odds and ends, much of which I have been slowly selling off. I have 4-5 good coin books on specialized topics.

I like keeping things organized. However, collecting is in my blood (e.g. autographs and manuscripts, art glass, pottery, etc.) so I know how a passion can slowly grow over time until it's larger than you ever expected it to be. It's grows like compound interest has been applied to collecting.

This old advertisement from Richard Nachbar continues to tug at the back of my mind. How does one accumulate this much "stuff"?

What do you do, if anything, to keep your collection "in focus" and under control?

Jzyskowski1

Why yes I do 🤪Here’s my address and schedule for the next week. Dog is not much of a guard and the alarm broke last year and I am old and feeble. Thanks. Why do you ask?😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

philographer

@Jzyskowski1 said:
Why yes I do 🤪Here’s my address and schedule for the next week. Dog is not much of a guard and the alarm broke last year and I am old and feeble. Thanks. Why do you ask?😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

Yes, said another way, how many friends should bring? Also, what size truck?

Edited: If it's already packed in suitcases, all the better.

ShaunBC5

I have a few coins embedded in the ash trays of my vehicles, they’re very important to me, so yes, I’m over 2,900lbs!
Aside from that, no way. Books and all, maybe 50lbs? That might be high, depending on how many wheat pennies the kids have stolen.

Jzyskowski1

I did mention old and feeble so please don’t insult my oldness it’s in the mattresses. 😂😂😂

wev

Last time I checked about 45 pounds of spoons and ladles. It's almost all coin silver, so that counts, right?

1946Hamm

My collection of 8 jukeboxes with records probably weigh around 3800 lbs.

ricko

I have no idea how much my collection weighs. It would be a fair amount, but certainly no where near 2900 lbs.. Probably around a hundred pounds if I count my jars of cents, nickels, dimes, and quarters. Lots of mint sets and slabs and coins in coin cabinets. I would not count my books... that would add a lot. Anyway, a meaningless measure IMO. Cheers, RickO

Cougar1978

None of your business.

privatecoin

Too much but not enough.

ifthevamzarockin

I collect bowling balls, there is 8,000 pounds of them.
I will give you my address so you can come steal as many as you want.

moursund

I'm trying a rough calculation as to how little a 3000 pounds "coin collection" might cost.
For the sake of discussion, we say that clad coins aren't really collectable.
If we choose wheaties as good 'bang for the buck' with respect to weight for the price,
it seems we would need $4400 face value in pennies to obtain our 1.5 ton collection.
That's probably what, $10-15k? Not entirely out of reach for the serious collector. What a good idea!

am

vulcanize

38k pennies ready to roll. Come and collect it.

Jokes aside, the news article: https://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/family-covers-car-38-000-pennies-article-1.1903237

philographer

I intended this thread as a discussion on how you keep your collection in focus vs. amassing an accumulation of 2,900 pounds. (Unless that’s a goal!)

I have edited the original post…I was not really asking, literally, how much your collection weighs!

Jzyskowski1

@moursund said:
I'm trying a rough calculation as to how little a 3000 pounds "coin collection" might cost.
For the sake of discussion, we say that clad coins aren't really collectable.
If we choose wheaties as good 'bang for the buck' with respect to weight for the price,
it seems we would need $4400 face value in pennies to obtain our 1.5 ton collection.
That's probably what, $10-15k? Not entirely out of reach for the serious collector. What a good idea!

am

Here’s your pennies 🤓
I certainly do count clad. Here’s a beauty

jmlanzaf

@moursund said:
I'm trying a rough calculation as to how little a 3000 pounds "coin collection" might cost.
For the sake of discussion, we say that clad coins aren't really collectable.
If we choose wheaties as good 'bang for the buck' with respect to weight for the price,
it seems we would need $4400 face value in pennies to obtain our 1.5 ton collection.
That's probably what, $10-15k? Not entirely out of reach for the serious collector. What a good idea!

am

You can also do world mix. It sells for $7 or $8 per pound.

People also do collect memorial cents. So you can get to 3000 pounds for $5000 if you have enough 1959 to 1982 coins.

It's not hard for most hoarders to get to 3000 pounds. Now, if you only collect gold coins...

LukeMarshall

@Jzyskowski1

Literally the image I was thinking of… the rubbermaid 50 gallon trash cans full of wheat cents

moursund

@jmlanzaf said:

@moursund said:
I'm trying a rough calculation as to how little a 3000 pounds "coin collection" might cost.
For the sake of discussion, we say that clad coins aren't really collectable.
If we choose wheaties as good 'bang for the buck' with respect to weight for the price,
it seems we would need $4400 face value in pennies to obtain our 1.5 ton collection.
That's probably what, $10-15k? Not entirely out of reach for the serious collector. What a good idea!

am

You can also do world mix. It sells for $7 or $8 per pound.

People also do collect memorial cents. So you can get to 3000 pounds for $5000 if you have enough 1959 to 1982 coins.

It's not hard for most hoarders to get to 3000 pounds. Now, if you only collect gold coins...

@jmlanzaf said:

@moursund said:
I'm trying a rough calculation as to how little a 3000 pounds "coin collection" might cost.
For the sake of discussion, we say that clad coins aren't really collectable.
If we choose wheaties as good 'bang for the buck' with respect to weight for the price,
it seems we would need $4400 face value in pennies to obtain our 1.5 ton collection.
That's probably what, $10-15k? Not entirely out of reach for the serious collector. What a good idea!

am

You can also do world mix. It sells for $7 or $8 per pound.

People also do collect memorial cents. So you can get to 3000 pounds for $5000 if you have enough 1959 to 1982 coins.

It's not hard for most hoarders to get to 3000 pounds. Now, if you only collect gold coins...

It's hard to get that much gold, because it's worth its weight in gold

moursund

@vulcanize said:
38k pennies ready to roll. Come and collect it.

Jokes aside, the news article: https://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/family-covers-car-38-000-pennies-article-1.1903237

Not a rolls-royce?

pmh1nic

@vulcanize said:
38k pennies ready to roll. Come and collect it.

Jokes aside, the news article: https://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/family-covers-car-38-000-pennies-article-1.1903237

Is that toning or original surfaces?

savitale

Many people feel that "more is more". I disagree, but I'm not judging anyone. If 20 briefcases full of Nebraska Transportation Tokens brings you joy, have at it.

gumby1234

What about the 21,297 pound collection the SECRET hoard mentioned in the article? Almost nine times as heavy. Also would not want to have to move the trash bins full of cents. My back hurts thinking about it.

vulcanize

@moursund said:

@vulcanize said:

Jokes aside, the news article: https://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/family-covers-car-38-000-pennies-article-1.1903237

Not a rolls-royce?

1949 Cadillac

moursund

@gumby1234 said:
What about the 21,297 pound collection the SECRET hoard mentioned in the article? Almost nine times as heavy. Also would not want to have to move the trash bins full of cents. My back hurts thinking about it.

If you could buy them cheap, how long do you think it would take to "flip" all of those pennies?
(resell at a profit, spin them in the air calling heads or tails, or put them in flips... take your choice)...

vulcanize

@pmh1nic said:

@vulcanize said:

Jokes aside, the news article: https://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/family-covers-car-38-000-pennies-article-1.1903237

Is that toning or original surfaces?

As per news article "Once we had brushed the snow off and discovered she was already the color of an old penny, we decided it was fate". So assume original because they ordered pennies from the mint after dipping into their coin jar, asking friends etc.

moursund

@vulcanize said:

@moursund said:

@vulcanize said:

Jokes aside, the news article: https://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/family-covers-car-38-000-pennies-article-1.1903237

Not a rolls-royce?

1949 Cadillac

Should have been a Lincoln. What a missed opportunity.

pmh1nic

@vulcanize said:

@pmh1nic said:

@vulcanize said:

Jokes aside, the news article: https://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/family-covers-car-38-000-pennies-article-1.1903237

Is that toning or original surfaces?

As per news article "Once we had brushed the snow off and discovered she was already the color of an old penny, we decided it was fate". So assume original because they ordered pennies from the mint after dipping into their coin jar, asking friends etc.

Maybe. The article said the color of an "old" penny. That's doesn't necessarily mean "original". .

Modwriter

@Jzyskowski1 said:

@moursund said:
I'm trying a rough calculation as to how little a 3000 pounds "coin collection" might cost.
For the sake of discussion, we say that clad coins aren't really collectable.
If we choose wheaties as good 'bang for the buck' with respect to weight for the price,
it seems we would need $4400 face value in pennies to obtain our 1.5 ton collection.
That's probably what, $10-15k? Not entirely out of reach for the serious collector. What a good idea!

I often think of that post with those barrels of wheat cents in the garage next to a Ferrari. He was buying bags from APMEX and saving them for his son. Imagine what would happen to cent values if they went back into circulation!

daltex

Related question: when does a collection become a hoard?

gumby1234

@daltex When your collection weighs more than 2000 pounds for sure. Or if its stored in trash barrels in the garage.

Jzyskowski1

@daltex said:
Related question: when does a collection become a hoard?

Never

coinkat

I would have guessed 1950 or 51 Caddy... This goes back to when a Caddy wad a Caddy

Jzyskowski1

Wonder how much this is going to add,weight wise, when I get the sucker unbolted and loaded 🤓🙀