this 'box of 20' idea is for the birds

tcollects

maybe 20 boxes of 20, but even then... discuss

coinbuf

I'm sure it is a concept that works well for some, it is not a concept that works for me.

Jzyskowski1

They make boxes of different quantities and some nice aluminum cases that hold 40+

neildrobertson

A Franklin half set is over 20 coins. A 20th century type set. Some of the smaller sets attempted by collectors are still over 20 coins.

Box of 20 seems like more of an ideal than a reality,

lermish

When opening this discussion, I really expected to see 20 bird themed coins.

Walkerfan

The Box of 20 concept worked well for me, in the beginning, but as I progressed, I had to branch out.

Now, I have many boxes of 20 but I have them categorized.

-Early Walkers
-Middle Date Walkers
-Walker short set
-Morgans
-SLQs

Etc. etc...

Jzyskowski1

I thought a box of 20 was what you keep at the house and rotate it in and out of the safe deposit box 😉🙀🦫

Maywood

If you understand the concept, the reasoning behind the idea, then it should be clear that it isn't for everyone but is probably a more sound approach to collecting then ones embraced by the majority of collectors. Most people just don't have the discipline required for a Box of Twenty.

LukeMarshall

@tcollects said:
maybe 20 boxes of 20, but even then... discuss

I was literally going to open this thread and say "how about 20 boxes of 20"

Great minds...

ShaunBC5

I’m too young for a box of 20. When I’m older and have enjoyed more coins, maybe it’s a great way to consolidate and enjoy the fruits of a long successful hobby. It also is something I’m not ready for because I’m still hopeful that my coin budget will increase significantly. It wasn’t long ago that a $200 purchase would have been the prize of my box of 20. In 10yrs, with income up and kids out of the house I hope to be stretching for much different options.

SanctionII

The box of 20 concept is useful for ones who desire to be disciplined and very focused.

However, taken to the extreme it can be detrimental (sort of like extreme dieting, where one deprives yourself of sufficient food that is required for good physical health, leading to problems).

Why place arbitrary limitations on yourself, if by doing so you deprive yourself of hobby fun (replacing the fun with not fun)?

One can be disciplined and focused in your hobby pursuits, while playing in multiple areas of the hobby.

BillJones

There are too many coins that I like to limit my collection to 20 coins. My number is much higher than that by a huge factor.

Mr_Spud

I always thought the concept of a box of 20 was for people who wanted to sell off a large collection of low to mid value coins and use the money to buy a much smaller amount of trophy coins of very high value. Sort of like if a silver stacker trades their hoard of silver for a much smaller but more valuable (per unit) amount of gold. You end up with some very high $ coins that would be much easier to liquidate if needed and also easier for people who inherit them to sell.

But I’m sure there are other valid interpretations of the box of 20 concept.

Mercury

I like the idea of the concept.
Buy fewer coins, but better coins.

Baley

Sometimes, I'll choose 20 out of my thousands of coins and put them in a box. The idea of strictly limiting a coin collection to 20 coins, meaning that in order add one, I'd have to sell one, is ridiculous to me personally

hfjacinto

When I had only 3 coins, I thought it was a good idea.

Now.....

Not so much

Catbert

Well, I kinda like the concept of less is more. While I own more than 20 coins, I'm not afraid to sell to upgrade to acquire funds (combined with new funds) for a new piece. I also can lose love for pieces of owned a long time.

While I like to think of myself as a type collector, I don't like to feel obligated to buy a half dime or the numerous seated dimes or susan b anthony dollar, as examples. I just want to own coins that interest me, have nice eye appeal, and make me happy. So, I reject the comprehensive obligations that type sets impose.

And, for the first time, I've decided as a side project to collect a sliver of a certain series. So, this may be contradictory to what I wrote above, but I like the design and denomination so it still is a winner for me.

MedalCollector

I’ve adopted the “Box of Plenty” collecting philosophy.

No limits!

krueger

After collecting many by date sets, walkers ,Mercurys, Washington Quarters, US Type.
US Philippines through high registry sets. I now use the 20 concept , but yes maybe more than 20
maybe a hundred whatever in number. The key here is They are , just random coins & medals I think are special and I really like
to look at or do some research study on. I am not tied down to any type denomination, or set to complete.
I enjoy these coins more than most of my sets.
Have Fun with your coins

amwldcoin

Hmmmm. Box a 20 x's 45 maybe?

MasonG

"this 'box of 20' idea is for the birds"

If you sell expensive high-end coins and can encourage people to liquidate their inexpensive ones in order to buy yours, it's not that bad of an idea.

Just sayin'.

pcgscacgold

I like the idea of a box of 20. Currently I am working on a "box of 20" $10 Indians and a box of 20 Double Eagles.

For my gold type set it is more of a "several boxes of 11" as that is how many fit in the Intercept Shield box when using their individual boxes.

ChrisH821

I agree. You can't even keep a Buffnick date set in a box of 20, so I made a box of 23. I should have done 24 to allow for 1913 type 1 and 2.

1630Boston

@lermish said:
When opening this discussion, I really expected to see 20 bird themed coins.

17 more to go on my box of 20
.
.

Weiss

Box of 20ist here.

I've been a coin collector for almost 50 years. A few decades ago, I had an epiphany: The idea of collecting, as it's usually understood (one denomination, one design, all the years and all the mintmarks) didn't appeal to me in the slightest. In fact, it sounds tedious and boring. Or worse: uninteresting.

So I was already on a bit of an unusual tangent compared to most collectors.

And I'd had a pretty good hoard of coins much of my life. Boxes of coins I bought as a kid. Boxes of stuff given to me by friends of the family. But not a lot of really good quality.

As a young adult, I started to have disposable income. And I could see I was coming to a crossroad: With no desire to collect series, and with an increasing coin budget, I could either hoard boxes and boxes of lower quality coins, or I could seek out exceptional coins. It's a tough thing to do, and to many of us it's a break from your natural inclination to hoard. But I didn't like what the alternative might lead to.

So it became a focus on quality over quantity.

And I started to reflect on what types of coins I was drawn to: Historically interesting. Representative. Artistic. Elusive. Enigmatic. The more complex the meaning, the more interesting it was to me.

Maybe it was a COINcidence that I was having these revelations at about the same time that posts started to emerge here about the Box of 20 concept. At first I thought it was outrageous. Stupid, even. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized here was a philosophy that I could make as rigid or flexible as I like (it's my collection, after all), but that at its core would help me focus on both quality over quantity, AND those elusive qualities that attracts me to certain coins.

With the limited real estate of a box of 20, I started to explore the factors that would take selections to the next level. So that became top tier TPG (PCGS or NGC). Then eye appeal. Then grade (pop top if possible). But also early, scarce slab. And then add a green CAC--or even gold CAC.

And while I do have a core 20 coins in my collection, I'm not a fundamentalist. For example, in my box of 20 there is a Thomas Elder 1909 Hudson-Fulton gold So Called Dollar (HK-371, Delorey 75). A very rare and elusive piece, one that still gives me a jolt when I see it, one of maybe 50 struck with maybe 25 survivors. It's also the former pop top, recently dethroned by an MS69. But Elder released the same piece in other metals: aluminum, bronze, and silver. All are quite scarce. So while the gold is in my Box of 20, it's the anchor to my complete run of the other metals in the series.

Similarly, the silver Hermon MacNeil (standing liberty quarter) 1901 Pan American Exhibition is in my box of 20. But it, too, is an anchor for the bronze and the gilded medals in the series.

Another outlet I have is "interesting bullion". When I need to add to my bullion holdings, I allow myself to purchase pieces where the premium is significantly less than 100% of the gold (or silver) value. I can rationalize those pieces as fancy bullion rather than coins that effect my box of 20. Yeah, that's a bit of a cop out. But it, too, makes me focus on really good quality pieces with some potential for greater appreciation. If coin series bore me to tears, imagine what I think of same date rolls of gold eagles.

Maywood

@SanctionII said: The box of 20 concept is useful for ones who desire to be disciplined and very focused.
However, taken to the extreme it can be detrimental (sort of like extreme dieting, where one deprives yourself of sufficient food that is required for good physical health, leading to problems).
Why place arbitrary limitations on yourself, if by doing so you deprive yourself of hobby fun (replacing the fun with not fun)?
One can be disciplined and focused in your hobby pursuits, while playing in multiple areas of the hobby.

Methinks you presume quite a bit about how others choose to collect. Based on your recent submissions and threads this concept isn't one you'd choose. That's fine and it was worked well and seems to satisfy you. Others just don't think the same and it seems you judge them harshly for that.

Collect what you like/as you like is a good motto for the Hobby.

Randoms

I haven’t yet finished my box of 10

tcollects

Interesting ideas, everyone. A related question to ponder... Should you be able to physically pick up your whole collection? I'm getting close... My boxes weigh about 65kg, so if the Big S goes down, I'm not going to be able to carry any food, water, survival items, etc - just the coins, maybe a picture of my family.

MidLifeCrisis

As Ben Franklin said…Mind Your Business

SanctionII

Maywood.

My collecting focus has been narrow over the years.

It is now changing and becoming broader.

The numerous coins I have previously collected and recently had slabbed will eventually morph into other more varied and more interesting coins, currency and other items that tickle my collecting fancy.

1630Boston

I like the idea.............right now I have a box of 55
I will probably downsize when my son goes to college,
perhaps to a small box of 4 as follows,
.
.

1630Boston

@Weiss
And I'd had a pretty good hoard of coins much of my life. Boxes of coins I bought as a kid. Boxes of stuff given to me by friends of the family. But not a lot of really good quality.
.
That is it in a nutshell
boston

Aspie_Rocco

I have found a box of 19 works well for me, as 20 becomes too heavy. There is a box of 10 somewhere too.

divecchia

I don't see myself going down to only a box of 20, but you never know. Below is my box (a briefcase) and it can hold 135 coins. I don't expect to have more coins than that.

Donato

lkenefic

I think it come down to the purpose (and definition) of a Box of 20, and this is as diverse as the coins we collect. I could never see limiting myself to just 20 coins. I understand the draw of having just 20 high end quality coins, but that sort of collecting just isn't for me. Quantity has a quality all it's own!

My personal Box of 20 is simply an extension of my Type Set and includes some of the coins that I felt best represented the gaps that the 7070 has... I couldn't fit everything I wanted... obviously... but I felt what I came up with also fit my budget. I included a few Hard Times tokens (an important phase of US history reflected in these issues), some early copper (1794 LC), a Colonial (1787 New Jersey), California Fractional gold (again, historically significant), an 8-Reales piece (chop marked), and then gold by denomination ($1 -$20). I'm about halfway through the box... still looking at Fugio Cents and the higher dollar gold pieces and a few others, but I'm really happy with how its coming together.

Here are a few...

Zoins

@lermish said:
When opening this discussion, I really expected to see 20 bird themed coins.

I can see a box of 20 eagles!

1630Boston

Donato has a plan....@divecchia
and I like it
boston

divecchia

@1630Boston said:
Donato has a plan....@divecchia
and I like it
boston

@1630Boston

Hey Boston.

Yes, I have a plan and I'm glad you like it.

Donato

Zoins

@tcollects said:
this 'box of 20' idea is for the birds

Here's an idea for the birds!

Fill up your box of 20 with bird seed!

Zoins

There are a few collectors that post their Box of 20, including removing coins from the set, but they are few and far between from what I've seen.

@Weiss has the most prominent Box of 20 I've seen on the forums, but even above, he shows he owns more than just those 20 items.

@lordmarcovan has also posted his Box of 20:

https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/969136/lordm-box-of-20-archive-09-15-16/p1

tcollects

@Zoins said:

@lordmarcovan has also posted his Box of 20:

https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/969136/lordm-box-of-20-archive-09-15-16/p1

you know lordmarcovan can't hold it back to 20, he's gotta have a stash

Maxfli

@Weiss said:

I had an epiphany: The idea of collecting, as it's usually understood (one denomination, one design, all the years and all the mintmarks) didn't appeal to me in the slightest. In fact, it sounds tedious and boring. Or worse: uninteresting.

I had that exact same epiphany.

Maywood

The Box of 20 concept isn't something that a beginning collector would embrace. It's not even something many, many collectors ever embrace, but it seems that it is the kind of thing that strikes us as we advance in the Hobby. Also, like myself, there probably aren't many purists who only have 20 coins in one box. I have two boxes that still have spaces open which are my goal, but there is still other stuff I've had for decades which I'll sell eventually. My hoped for ending is just the two boxes of top quality absent of the quantity that I don't care much about any longer.

I guess that means I'm a work in progress.

ricko

Even when this concept was introduced - years ago - it did not interest me. I buy coins I like, and I like the coins I have. Twenty would not be sufficient to cover even favorites.... Cheers, RickO

stawick

@Aspie_Rocco said:
I have found a box of 19 works well for me, as 20 becomes too heavy. There is a box of 10 somewhere too.

That has a familiar look to me.

messydesk

20 is really an arbitrary number. The concept is that at some point your collection should increase in quality rather than size, to which I say

Nysoto

Doesn't work for me. Heck, I can't even stick to a box of 20 for a single date.

Wasn't the saying coined by a dealer who specialized in high-end coins?

olympicsos

Boxes of 20 as a concept works well because there are some series where you will never have a complete set. Or at least a high quality complete set. It frees you from the concept of having a complete set, which I think is good as it makes the hobby more fun and less competitive and less about numbers as is the case with the rise of registry sets. Also some areas like gold, almost no one can get a complete set of anything.

MrEureka

Depends on what you collect. For example, I think it would work well for 1793 Large Cents by die variety.

MrEureka

.

lkenefic

@olympicsos said:
Boxes of 20 as a concept works well because there are some series where you will never have a complete set. Or at least a high quality complete set. It frees you from the concept of having a complete set, which I think is good as it makes the hobby more fun and less competitive and less about numbers as is the case with the rise of registry sets. Also some areas like gold, almost no one can get a complete set of anything.

This was at least part of my calculus. I'll never have a complete Date/MM set of Morgan Dollars... heck, I even gave up on the date set (very doable) because I just got bored with the series, but I still love the design and it was one of the first issues that drew me to coin collecting. I kept my partial set of Morgans... but I think I'll likely include a DMPL example in my Box of 20...