Beginner Blues, any of you remember when your best coin was a ms 60?
rikker
Posts: 118
Hi guys , I just wondered how some of you started out in the hobby? I got kind of down last night looking at some of your registry sets. It finally set in that I am way out my league here, but I am addicted to this message board. I am learning believe it or not . I would like to thank all those who have answered any of my posts so graciously. I know I probably piss some of the elite here with stupid questions. What I have decided to do is set my goals on maybe getting 5 Really nice specimens of coins that I really like and move on from there. What I have been doing is buying coins on e bay that are listed as unsearched, unopened, and praying to find a good coin that I can sell , so I can buy some books on coins or some coins that interest me. I know stupid right. But what else do you do when your coin budget is practically nonexistant. I would also like to congratulate all of you on your registry sets ! I must be a real source of pride. Well thanks for listening , and if any of you started this way I would like to hear it. Thanks for your time. Rick
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For some life lasts a short while, but the memories it holds last forever.
-Laura Swenson
In memory of BL, SM, and KG. 16 and forever young, rest in peace.
For the Morgan collectors - The Morgan and Peace encyclopedia by Van Allen and Mallis
What would your slabbed coins be worth if the grading services went out of business? What would your coins be worth if the Internet was taken offline for good?
I would steer clear of unopened sets, "unsearched" coins, etc. You can't believe those descriptions. And if you don't like them, you are out the cash with nothing good to show for it.
Learn about the coins series' you are interested in. If you are simply looking for an incredible example of a coin whose design you like, take your time, focus on the more common coins in the series, and stick with certified coins, especially if you are new to the hobby. If you go with coinse certified by major grading services, it will greatly protect you from the disappointment of learning your "beautiful example" was hashly cleaned or otherwise tampered with, destroying its value. If money is an issue TAKE YOUR TIME. Troll eBay, learn which dealers have the coins you like with the least markup. Over time, your "couple of nice examples of coins you like" may turn into a registry set of type coins!
If you give us a hint as to which designs you like, we may be able to steer you to dealers who can help you out. Some of us may even have "extras" to sell at reasonable prices.
Best of luck!!
William S. Burroughs, Cities of the Red Night
I have a question for you and your Ebay buying.
Never mind the coin quality or price in this instance, just tell us which auction you would most likely bid on.
This one?
Or this one?
Both have the same year and date, never mind the price now. Just which would you most likely bid on. The one with all the storytelling,
or the one with just the facts?
Ray
1 - I wouldn't bid on either coin, as they both look cleaned
2 - IF I were interested, I'd probably skip all the gobblydigook and get down to the date, grade, and pic.
3 - IF and ONLY IF the gobblydigook was of any numismatic interest would I maybe read it - IE - I do read Anaconda's posts on some of his coins - but then again, I can't afford them so I might as well absorb some of his knowledge.
Frank
The Ludlow Brilliant Collection (1938-64)
If you pissed off some of the Elite most likely they are not worth talking to anyway. Please remember this is a fine Hobby, and Hobby is stressed, to have Fun and Enjoyment with. Every person here had to start somewhere. Just because people have outstanding sets now it does not mean that is how they started out. Collect what you enjoy and can afford at the present. Who knows years down the road You just may have one of those Outstanding sets or a darn good start on one. I know you have probably heard this a million times but if I were you the Books would come first and then the coins. Forget Ebay and go find some reliable Coin Shops or Dealers that long term relations can be made with. Sorry for the Rambling but your post struck a nerve.
Ken
I remember when I was like that. Just 2 months ago or so, I went through my collection, and threw out everything that I didn't need that wasn't in a nice condition (VF+). I consider it pruning my collection. With the money from that, I buy bigger and better things. I would also recommend getting into world coins. You can get some gems for a hell of a lot cheaper with worlds. I have a pretty nice US and world collection (in my perspective of coarse). But you can find some great deals on world coins. I bought a BU 1937 Australian Crown for around $20 a couple days ago. Beatiful coin... and bigger than morgans. You get more for your buck with world
-Jarrett Roberts
An important thing to remember is buy quality from reputable dealers. If you see a coin from a dealer you're interested in post it on this forum. Someone will help you. And email the dealer any questions you may have. That's so you know who you're dealing with.
What I have been doing is buying coins on e bay that are listed as unsearched, unopened, and praying to find a good coin that I can sell As others have said, definitely not a good idea.
For information, go to the library, check out websites, read this forum, ask questions.
Hope this helps. I was there too.
Proof Dime Registry Set
Find a series you like and pick a grade that is affordable and go for it. Learning is never ending and the money comes with time.
As a poor lad growing up I spent about $10.00 in a ten year period, but loved coins all the same. Pocket change and bank rolls had to suffice, but I had a lot of fun looking.
Tyler
That is exactly why this hobby is one that can be enjoyed by everyone, irregardless of budget. I collected circulated Indian Head pennies for years. There was a time when spending more than 10 dollars at a coin show wasn't in my budget, I'd often leave with 3 or 4 coins and the latest edition of Numismatic News or Coin World. I used to love the mail-in auctions in the classifieds. Oh, the joy of finally picking up a 1908-S Indian for 15 bucks! The lean years were, in some ways, more fun...and probably something every coin collector remembers with a certain fondness. I sure wish I had bought more books instead of coins back then....would you believe MS-67 FSB Mercuries for 3 dollars!? My dad used to tell me, "boy, why don't you buy some of those nice lookin' Mercs instead of those wore out pennies?" I had a ball filling those old Whitman albums.......
When we are planning for posterity, we ought to remember that virtue is not hereditary.
Thomas Paine
You can get nice examples in higher grades for very reasonable prices. In fact very cheap.
stman
But think of all the sharks and whales out there, who could swallow me with one bite. It's all a matter of perspective. Your collection will always be more humble than many out there, but it will also be finer than many out there. Enjoy the hobby for its own sake, and remember that despite the sportsmanlike competition that is prevalent on the Registry, you are really only competing against your own goals, not against the others. I've been a collector for 26 years, but only serious for about 10. And I've only been collecting certified coins about four years. Four years ago my budget was $30-75 per coin, and I needed layaways for anything over $100. Then when I got into the Registry I started buying $300-500 coins. Now I am just beginning to play in the $1,000 range. It has taken a lot of scrimping, saving, swapping and upgrading. But it's been fun the whole way.
If you ever get PCGS Registry blues, come visit us over on the World Coin forum sometime (affectionately nicknamed "The Dark Side" by its denizens). Over there, people have lots of fun collecting coins for their aesthetic beauty and history, learning quite a bit about world history as a side benefit. The best thing about it is that those coins are much more affordable. I recently bought an ANACS MS63 RB 1799 British halfpenny for around $65, if you consider the swap value of the trade I did. I sold the same coin for barely over $100. It should have gone for $200+, but my point is this-
What do you think that would have cost if it were a United States coin of the same period, in the same grade? Possibly as much as a new car. And yet here was this copper coin of George III from the 1700's, with tons of original mint red surviving, and nice luster, too. How could anyone pass it up at that price?
I know, different strokes for different folks. I'm only trying to suggest that you need not spend a ton of money to build a very respectable coin collection, and have fun doing it and make friends at the same time.
Cheer up.
As to owning just a few top-level coins, it might be interesting. I am in the process of trying to convert a lot of my $50-750 coins into a handful of $750-1,500 coins. My collection will be small but impressive when I am done. However, it will be too small to be a part of any cohesive set, probably. I'm just gonna go "freestyle" and buy whatever catches my fancy. I might even dump my last-remaining Registry set, which was #6 on the 20th Century Major Design Gold Type Sets the last time I looked. I had it as high as #4 once, for about a day and a half, and then some whales jumped into the pond and locked up the top slots beyond my means.
Many people would envy me, perhaps, for having a piece of the Top Ten in an all-gold Registry set, but it's a pretty small set (8 coins), and to tell you the truth, I'm having a helluva lot more fun at the moment filling holes in my Dansco albums of Irish coins, for $5-50 a pop. There's the Dark Side for ya. Go figure.
<< <i>We all are numismatists and it is that passion and shared interest -- not the depth of our bank balances -- that binds us together. >>
Every set that I have ever put together has been challenging and fun. My first was a set of au to unc business strike franklin halves. I remember how much fun it was to go to the local coin store and hand selecting a coin or two from the stacks of 2X2's. I remember what it felt like to finally have the series finished and to think what my next conquest would be.
I like knowing that behind EVERY registry set there is someone who is really passionate about his collection wether it is the number one collection of Morgan dollars or the number 81 collection of mercury dimes (those merc guys swarm around like ants).
My Barbers