New to Collecting!! Looking for Coins
TeacherCollector
Posts: 174 ✭✭✭
Looking to buy old coin collections But not sure where to look?!?!
Help me please and it is much appreciated 
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Can you be a little more specific? An old coin collection is pretty vague.
Wisdom has been chasing you but, you've always been faster
Buying old collections as a non-dealer is very difficult. Your best bet is to pursue as many estate auctions as you can. It all depends on what you’re trying to accomplish.
I am looking to pick up the collections form people that don't want them and just start my own collection. Very new to this so not sure how to go about it
My best recommendation is to buy a Guidebook of US Coins (Red Book) and start learning there. That will get you very far at very little cost. Then spend time on this forum and learn from those who know here. The last step will be going to coin shows and online market places.
If you do it in that order you’ll minimize some of the heartbreak you will experience if you go out of that order… I get the desire to just acquire (hey, we are all Ferengis) but it is best to slow down some and learn first.
Unless you know a lot about what you are buying you are just asking for trouble. Coin collecting is a very mature hobby. A new participant is likely to attract interest from sellers with questionable ethical standards. Buyer beware!
going to estate sales and little auctions can be dangerous without knowing the value of something and what a counterfeit is like.
build relationships with local coin stores and coin clubs. perhaps you can get their cast offs
what type of coins do you like?
You can be in a hurry, as you appear to be, and flame out or you can learn and take it slower and enjoy the hobby. It's up to you.
In honor of the memory of Cpl. Michael E. Thompson
Why?, and coin collections covers a lot of territory.
Do a lot of reading. Look at a lot of coins. Buy some books. Learn how to grade. If you want to buy slabbed coins, get a reasonably good idea of PCGS and NGC current grading standards. If you want to buy coin not in such slab, learn how to spot problem coins. Ask lots of questions to people (like those on this form) who are willing to answer them.
This is an unforgiving hobby for the uninitiated.
"Seu cabra da peste,
"Sou Mangueira......."
Go to a local dealer. You can learn a lot there. And get a price on a coin.
First, what will your focus be? What kind of coins, what grade? Will you focus on one series, or one time frame? Generally collectors start their collections one coin at a time. Everyone's interests are different, it would be highly unlikely to buy an entire collection from someone else that would fit you.
and besides knowing what counterfeits look like, know what cleaned, damaged and corroded ones look like
you can always ask more questions here.
That's not a collection. That's an accumulation.
Most people > @TeacherCollector said:
Do not go after large lots.
Learn what a 7070 US Coin Type set is. Go after the coins one at a time and post each coin as you buy them and learn from the coin and our responses.
Start with the very inexpensive coins first as you need to learn. Some of the coins in the set are only few dollars. Others are in the thousands. A very informative set that will give you direction as to where you want to go.
Welcome and good luck
Welcome @TeacherCollector.
I responded with a post only the late great @Russ would have done.
I agree with this. Start out slow. Go to a coin store in your area, and look around to see what coins you like, and what you can afford. Start out slow. Buy one coin at a time. Do not make big purchases until you gain more knowledge, and feel comfortable with your decisions. Research the coins that you are interested in, and what a fair price would be. You will be much more satisfied accumulating your coins slowly and carefully, as opposed to buying a large collection all at once. In the end, you will have a much more pleasing collection. But the first thing you must know is "Never, ever, ever clean your coins".
Before you do anything, buy a Red Book!! Search on Amazon. Do it now before buying or even looking at any coins!!!
PM sent cause I didn't have to read all the above comments. Welcome to our clubhouse. Peace Roy
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PCGS has several grading videos on YouTube that will give you perspective. Utilize CoinFacts for lots of great info and pictures of coins at various grade levels.
"Got a flaming heart, can't get my fill"
What sparked your interest?
No offense, but if I knew of any coin collections for sale, you would be the last person that I would inform of it. If you are new, buying entire collections guarantees that either you will overpay or you will underpay. Being able to properly value a collection requires experience and knowledge.
@TeacherCollector ... Welcome aboard. There is a lot of good advice above. Coin collecting is an interesting hobby. It covers history, art (designs), precious and non-precious metals, series, mints and condition of coins. There is much to learn, but go slowly and have fun. Cheers, RickO
that sounds good to me!
If you’re new to collecting, buying collections is one of the last things you should be doing.
Among the essential to-do list items prior to that are: Learn about different types of coins, including their history, degree of scarcity and availability, market conditions, values and grading; which types and quality of coins you’re drawn to and buy one coin at a time; PATIENCE; trustworthy sources for coins; counterfeits; consider your coin buying budget; understand that there’s a good chance you’ll overpay and/or lose money when it comes time to sell and (again) PATIENCE.
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
A lot of good advice here. Buy some reference books including "Coin Collecting for Dummies" which is actually a pretty good book that cover coins and how to collect them. It's an easy read and has a lot of pictures and charts. Also, if there is a local coin club, I suggest that you join.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
When I was getting started as a collector, circa 1963, I bought coins from my mother's cleaning lady. She had a family hoard. I didn't know anything about grading, and the only reference I had was the Red Book, which is a retail guide. I over paid and sometimes under paid. It all kind of averaged out.
When I was in high school, I bought 1911 quarter eagle and a 1913 half eagle from one of my class mates for $60. Word of that got around, and it started a "collector boom" in my school. By then I had had some additional experience.
If you are just staring out, it's almost impossible to buy coins at the true market prices. You just don't know enough about grading, counterfeits (a much bigger problem now than when I was young), and coins have been damaged, cleaned or altered.
You really need to get a scope of what you want to collect or buy or sell. Even experienced dealers involve themselves in defined areas. Most of them don't buy and sell everything. No one can be an expert in everything, at least I can't do that.
Your model of buying coins from private people is a hard road. A lot of those accumulations have been bought up now. It's just not that easy to find those types of accumulations any more. When I was a dealer, over a 13 year period, I ran into maybe six or sever of those deals. It's just not that common.
Research, research and then research some more.
Knowledge is power.
Raw coins have many counterfeits, altered and cleaned items. Learn to recognize them.
I recommend that you might try to start your collection by going after slabbed coins by the top grading services like Pcgs or NGC.
Best of luck and also "welcome aboard".
Wayne
Kennedys are my quest...
My first impression of the OP was to the effect of 'tell me where I can find people who don't want their coin collections, so I can buy them cheap'. The responses have (as usual) been practical and professional.
Unless you’re the seller
11.5$ Southern Dollars, The little “Big Easy” set
Yes, I got the same feeling. But that doesn't mean he wouldn't end up overpaying. Until you are old and jaded, things sometimes seem scarcer than they are just because you haven't seen them. Easy example is an SVDB cent. Walk even a small coin show and you'll probably see a dozen or more. But some people think that's a rare coin. Now, you can't excite me about an SVDB in anything under 66red.