Central States 4/28/23 Report
U1chicago
Posts: 5,613 ✭✭✭✭✭
What follows are some general observations and tidbits that I found interesting:
~The online preregistration was a nice touch; I bought the pass yesterday night (paid via PayPal), saved $5 ($10 vs. $15 in person), and was able to skip the bigger line and go straight to a separate table where a person scanned the pass and handed me a tag to enter.
~There was a decent crowd waiting to enter prior to the 10 AM start (smaller than what I have seen on the first day of this show but that is to be expected).
~I started on the second floor in the “budget” section…this was a new idea for this year to give people a chance to purchase tables at a lower rate. I made a quick tour of the area (seemed to have about 10-15 dealers) and did not see anything too exciting. This area reminded me of some of the small local shows in the area. There was only a handful of people walking around and not much activity (although that could have changed since this was only 10 AM). I do wonder how the dealers in this area did. One would have to go up a floor from an area outside the main bourse so I’m not sure how many people made the trip. Heritage also had a viewing area several doors down, so maybe that helped get a few extra people to explore this room.
~The main bourse was larger than prior shows. There were a handful of empty tables (no signs on some, so maybe they weren’t ever occupied) and some empty space that could have housed more tables if there was demand to further expand the show. Overall the area was full and the majority of dealers were still there Friday morning (second full day but third day overall). I did hear one dealer mention that two days was enough for a show and he was ready to head home but in general it seemed most weren’t leaving yet.
~Another new feature of the show was a wholesale dealer to dealer area in the corner. I saw some action going on there. This seems like a good idea for those dealers so that they can be on their own and not cause confusion when their tables are mixed in with the rest.
~There was also a currency and world section marked off in the back-both of these were fairly small (about two aisles total). Quite a few dealers outside of this section also had world and currency but I guess it is nice to have a section where you have dealers that are exclusively currency or world (I heard one of them in this area say that he has a coin from every country but the US for sale).
~I noticed one unusual table where the dealer had a picture of the coin taped over the slab. So you could not see any coins (without taking it out)-just the picture of the coin. I found that a bit odd. I liked the idea of getting a photo of the coin but I would think seeing it and having the picture under the slab would be a better idea?
~I was able to cash out my tuition! Years ago I mistook a ½ oz platinum coin for a 1 oz version and bid as if it were the larger size. Of course, I won it at above market value and it has sat reminding me to be more careful in the future. Well I was looking it up before the show and noticed that greysheet bid had increased quite a bit lately (to a level above my cost). I decided to take it along to the show and at least try to break even. I did even better, scoring a small profit! Had I spent the money on something else back then, I would be better off; but still, getting out of a poor buy is a nice feeling. And no, I don’t plan on buying any more ½ oz platinum coins for 1 oz pricing.
~I also sold three nice coins that had not been moving online; one I discounted a bit more from my ask but the other two sold for slightly more than what I had offered them for on the forums and IG (sometimes seeing a coin in hand and/or finding the right dealer at a show works out better than the BST, IG, or eBay).
~I did not find any interesting old or unusual holders to purchase (saw some rattlers, PCI, ACG, Hallmark, white NGC but none drew my attention or they were priced too high). I also did not find anything from my “Stans” set; I was actually surprised to see one Tajikistan silver coin (raw with box and COA) but the price was $395 and I already have that spot filled with a cool looking coin that cost me $75 (plus grading fees).
~I saw plenty of toners; Morgans are my main focus and lately I have grown fond of ASEs. Several dealers had the typical moon money prices while others were more reasonable. I saw a few similarly toned ASEs and the prices ranged from $500 to $2,000. I did pick one up that was fair at today’s market rates.
~Overall it was another good show. It’s always fun to spend a day with coins. And being able to buy and sell some pieces makes it even better.
Comments
Thanks for the report @U1chicago
I also found it strange to see the display showing photos of the coins taped over the actual coin. The dealer must think their photography skills are great.
I arrived on Thursday just a few mins after 10am. I agree, the online ticket purchase was a great addition this year. Got into the show in less than 5 mins.
Nice color on that Eagle. Congrats.
Successful BST with BustDMs , Pnies20, lkeigwin, pursuitofliberty, Bullsitter, felinfoel, SPalladino (CBH's - 35 Die Marriage's)
$5 Type Set https://www.pcgs.com/setregistry/u-s-coins/type-sets/half-eagle-type-set-circulation-strikes-1795-1929/album/344192
CBH Set https://www.pcgs.com/setregistry/everyman-collections/everyman-half-dollars/everyman-capped-bust-half-dollars-1807-1839/album/345572
Excellent write up! I really got the "gist" of what the show offered.
Pete
Thanks, musta felt good to flip that 1/2 oz. That ASE is mellow. Peace Roy
BST: endeavor1967, synchr, kliao, Outhaul, Donttellthewife, U1Chicago, ajaan, mCarney1173, SurfinHi, MWallace, Sandman70gt, mustanggt, Pittstate03, Lazybones, Walkerguy21D, coinandcurrency242 , thebigeng, Collectorcoins, JimTyler, USMarine6, Elkevvo, Coll3ctor, Yorkshireman, CUKevin, ranshdow, CoinHunter4, bennybravo, Centsearcher, braddick, Windycity, ZoidMeister, mirabela, JJM, RichURich, Bullsitter, jmski52, LukeMarshall
Thanks for your report, I saw that unusual table as well. I didn't even bother to ask, but I was scratching my head.
Type Collector of U.S. Pre-33 Gold https://instagram.com/deplorable_dan Successful transactions with- @drfish, @Cladiator, @johnny010, @Pedzola, @PerryHall, @2windy2fish, @Ike1964, @JohnThePainter, @rpmsrpms, @REALGATOR
It did!
And yep the ASE has some nice mellow colors on both sides.
The only thing that I can say is that the table made me stop and look. So if the dealer wanted to capture attention, he succeeded.
For the one or two of you (and that may be ambitious
) who might have wanted to see the coin from Tajikistan that is currently in my set, here it is:
Thanks for your report! I wish that I could have been there.
Went today. I did see the pictures taped over the slabs and while it stopped me for a moment, I decided that I liked it. The items that I saw with pictures were Civil War Tokens that can be kind of hard to see, so he had blown-up the pictures to a little larger than a quarter so that you could better see what each was without having to pick up them up.
I arrived at 10 with my pre-purchased ticket and got right in with no delay. Retail traffic was light but picked up later in the morning into early afternoon. The dealers with which I spoke said Thursday was a good day for them and today seemed to be shaping-up that way too.
Nice report, thanks for posting it.
I talked to him a while. I get the idea but it was unusual.
He said that he wanted people to be able to see them better just in passing.
They were mostly small, civil war sized pieces.
Pretty nice ones too
That makes some sense. Thank you for the additional info!
If anyone is there tomorrow and looking for CWT or store cards it would be worth a look.
He also had a nice "smoker" token in 63 or 64 RB. Oddly no picture on that one.
It could be that he purchased it at the show. I didn't ask the price.
@U1chicago... Thanks for an interesting report. Nice Tajikistan coin too. Cheers, RickO