Win anything from Gerry Fortin's auction last night?

ms71 · August 28, 2022 6:23AM

Did anybody here win anything from Gerry Fortin's auction that ended last night? Any thoughts on the sale, compared with other auctions he has offered?

coinbuf · August 28, 2022 7:18AM

I only bid on one coin which I was outbid on. Overall some nice coins but I cannot help but wonder if there would be more bidding action without the high reserves.

Catbert · August 28, 2022 7:28AM

Seemed the gold under performed, 2nd auction in a row. Good sell through rate on the silver.

I won a few, but awaiting confirmation.

ms71 · August 28, 2022 7:47AM

@Catbert said:
Seemed the gold under performed, 2nd auction in a row. Good sell through rate on the silver.

I won a few, but awaiting confirmation.

I noticed that, also that about 25% of the gold lots were CAC.

SIowhand · August 28, 2022 7:48AM

If you are going to have reserves that high, just put them on your regular price list and skip the silliness.

skier07 · August 28, 2022 7:49AM

@coinbuf said:
I only bid on one coin which I was outbid on. Overall some nice coins but I cannot help but wonder if there would be more bidding action without the high reserves.

I tend to avoid auctions with high reserves and I’m pretty sure lots of other people feel the same way. Why buy a coin at an auction with a high reserve and pay retail or higher and lose return privileges when in affect it’s not really an auction.

Catbert · August 28, 2022 8:00AM

@skier07 said:

@coinbuf said:
I only bid on one coin which I was outbid on. Overall some nice coins but I cannot help but wonder if there would be more bidding action without the high reserves.

I tend to avoid auctions with high reserves and I’m pretty sure lots of other people feel the same way. Why buy a coin at an auction with a high reserve and pay retail or higher and lose return privileges when in affect it’s not really an auction.

This is a good point. However, if one is looking for seated type, there is an opportunity price.

willy · August 28, 2022 8:05AM

I will not bid on the auctions as I do not like the format at closing. Sometimes I want multiple items and if I miss one I will go after the next one harder. He needs a system that staggers the closing like great collections. Or a soft close like DLRC.

pcgscacgold · August 28, 2022 10:26AM

None of the gold coinage would upgrade my gold type set so I sat this one out. It's a great service he is doing for the hobby. He has another Seated dime set auction coming soon.

ms71 · August 28, 2022 10:32AM

@pcgscacgold said:
None of the gold coinage would upgrade my gold type set so I sat this one out. It's a great service he is doing for the hobby. He has another Seated dime set auction coming soon.

Yup, his site is unique among online coin marketplaces. A first stop every morning for the day's edition of his blog.

Boosibri · August 28, 2022 11:10AM

It’s not really an auction. It’s a retail fixed price list with the option to compete to pay even more for a coin if multiple people have interest.

lilolme · August 28, 2022 12:17PM

I had not seen this auction before so I went and took a look.

There are not to many around any more but their is still one locally here. That is coin store bid board. Most of the material is owned by the shop but individuals can also put out stuff. The cards usually have an initial bid on them that is placed by the owner. Then on a specific night at a specific time the bid board closes and you can pick up your winnings or the owners their cards if no bids were made.

This 'auction' is kind of like an internet bid board.

Crusty · August 28, 2022 12:24PM

His sight has tons of things to draw u in. His blog, sales archive, auctions, new consignments, Seated dime variety attributions, etc… He seems to get a lot of tougher Seated materiel that other sights can only dream off. His pics are always very different from the in hand look. Sometimes better and sometimes worse. God help you if you reach out and request a quick cell phone pic of the coin in its slab. If you need a coin he has you need to be prepared to pay what’s necessary. Often times he gets seated coins that hardly ever come up and he seems to know how to get the most for his consignors. I believe this auction like the last one underperformed. His first auctions were special because they were primarily all seated CAC material and they all brought out record prices that they deserved. But as time has moved on the quality has fallen off a bit. I do think he would do himself and auction consignors a favor by advertising the lots on collectors corner while the auction is going on….like other firms do. The hard close is also a problem. And if you happen to win a lot you have to cross your fingers that he doesn’t email you saying he had a software glitch and someone else actually beat you. It all comes down to how bad do you need the coins.

mtnman · August 28, 2022 1:47PM

I usually buy something from his auctions but did not bid this time. There were several coins I would have liked. I love the Liberty Seated coins but I am going to sell mine. I’m losing the vision in my dominant eye and can no longer determine the varieties. Even with my microscope I can’t see cracks that I know are there. Very frustrating and no longer fun.

yosclimber · August 28, 2022 2:48PM

@Boosibri said:
It’s not really an auction. It’s a retail fixed price list with the option to compete to pay even more for a coin if multiple people have interest.

It's still an auction even if there are high reserves.

And that option to compete when multiple people have interest is an important one.
Otherwise you have a somewhat arbitrary rule for breaking ties among multiple potential buyers like
"first person to see the coin and send an email gets it."
A rule like this also leaves money on the table that the consignor does not get.
Plus, it assumes a lot of knowledge on the part of the person setting the price.
Better to "let the market decide" in my view.

One downside of auctions (from a buyer's perspective) is that sometimes a very rich person can dominate them.
Gerry has mentioned this occasionally (and recently) in his blog - Eugene Gardner used to often outbid him
for the top Seated dimes.
And now D.L. Hansen outbids him sometimes.
So for a long time, Gerry tried setting fixed prices and using a "First Right of Refusal" process
so that people could register their interest in a coin ahead of time.
It's complicated to manage that sort of process, though.

oih82w8 · August 28, 2022 2:51PM

Working two jobs, I don't get into a whole lot of auctions, let alone Gerry Fortin's. I'll have check his website for the next date.

pcgscacgold · August 28, 2022 2:56PM

@oih82w8 said:
Working two jobs, I don't get into a whole lot of auctions, let along Gerry Fortin's. I'll have check his website for the next date.

I hear you on that. The current prices in CAC gold meant either stop buying or find a 3rd job. Good thing the job market is good now because I was not able to stop buying.

golden · August 28, 2022 3:06PM

There was not anything for me in the auction.

liefgold · August 28, 2022 5:29PM

For the better date gold he has, the reserves/prices are absurdly high. Double or triple the market price. Not sure if he sets them or the consigner. Although some appear to have sold, most languish on the site for months. I assume the consigner goes elsewhere to sell after a while. I have tried to make an offer but was met with "this is a hot market, they will sell".
Maybe.

Win anything from Gerry Fortin's auction last night?

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