Have you ever abandoned the hobby totally..

Cam40

then picked it up again years later...a few times?...
I get these evil thoughts of selling everything and just putting the money in the bank.
Scary huh.

jtryka

I have a couple times, but it usually resulted from higher education, like when I went to college, and when I went back to grad school. Never put the money in the bank though, instead just went deeper into debt for school.

Cam40

Well those are sure practical reasons.Sounds like it was a right move for you Jeff.
That would be a good reason to sell out and use the money in a good way.
My reasons aren`t practical though,just evil.I,m still able to feed myself.....for now.

Blackhawk

I quit collecting actively for over 20 years. I kept the coins that I saved as a kid, and when I picked up the hobby again I was suprised to see that they were worth substantially less than the price that I bought them for. There's some real deals out there now compared to when I quit collecting in 1980.

Placid

Yes I quit but didn't sell what I had. Just took a break from adding more for about 10 years.

mrpaseo

I have been a collector ALL my life. I started when I was about 10 with coins. After amassing a small meak collection I stopped collecting coins because no one else was collecting them (And the internet was not that big 19 years ago...lol) Most of those coins are still in my collection. Some time between then and now, my father gave me a small collection that he had aquired some how (Not sure if he built it himself, but I'm leaning to the side that he aquired it through someone oweing him some money or something like that). That sparked more interest in collecting for a small spell (This was over 10 years ago, prior Military life. Then due to lack of funds, I stopped collecting them, there was no way to trade them or sell them like Baseball cards. After about 9 years in the Army, I picked up the hobby again and have been happy as a pig in shi.....um...Mud.

It is alot easier to collect coins when you have an income!

Back to your question, Abandoned is the wrong word to use in my situation. To me, it means intentionally leaving, I was forced to leave, I would say I was evicted from the hobby due to lack of funds and trading ability.

One bad experiance I am still suffering over is, I spent 4 years in Germany and did not collect while over there. Then, 6 months after being in the states, I started collecting again. Just think of the darkside coins I could have amassed!

Ray

DHeath

Cam,

I went through that about 3 mos. ago, and decided I really liked seeking/buying coins, but I spent very little time looking at my collection. I decided it wasn't too important for me to keep common date coins in my collection just to complete some series when that money could be at work buying coins I'd appreciate more in different series. I kept the rarer examples and keys and sold the others. I've been much happier knowing I really like every coin in the safe. Good luck either way!

CharlieB

Yes I have abandoned the hobby a few times. Each time I was out of the
picture for a year or two. In retrospect it was the best thing I
did. Each time I returned to the hobby I had a different perspective
about collecting. I became interested in a different series or I
just became more open minded about collecting gold,classics,copper,etc.

The first time I returned to the hobby I switched from collecting
circulated coins to strictly uncirculated coins.

The second time I returned to the hobby about 15 years later
I could not get my bearings on what interested me. I was burned out
on always trying to complete a series. It was a personal
struggle for me and I talked with the dealers about it many times.
I couldn't force myself to take an interest in a particular series
so I threw in the towel and decided to simply concentrate on
buying exceptionally gorgeous coins and no longer focus on a series.
I have been doing exactly that ever since.

- Charlie B -

nwcs

Yeah, I collected a lot in 1988-1990 and the basically left till 2000 when I sputtered off and on till this year. I'm thinking of entering hibernation again, though from a purchasing perspective, not from a learning perspective.

lordmarcovan

I quit between 1984 and 1991 or so. I had sold off all my gold coins in '84 to finance textbooks for college, leaving me with only nickel-and-dime material and a few cheap world coins. The interest remained, but it was dormant while I discovered cars, and... women.

Then, after settling down in my ill-fated first marriage, I picked up where I had left off, and ended up getting into hammered silver medieval English coins and a US type set in the Dansco album. Then there was a very brief hiatus between marriages, while the only coins I could afford were the ones I dug up with the aid of my detector. That is an entirely different pursuit, but a great hobby, and I will always have a passion for treasure hunting, even though that is the latent hobby right now.

My old Dansco type set gave way to a certified 1798-2000 nongold regular issue type set, and that in turn gave way to a 1900-present PCGS Registry type set (including gold). Then I dropped that when they changed the Registry type sets and just kept the gold registered. Now my passion for Registry collecting has cooled a little, but I'm still in the game.

Conder101

No I never have. But on two occasions I have had the hobby abandon me. During late 79 and early 80 when the metals market went crazy and then again during the mid 80's when wall street money poured into coins. During the first period the hobby disappeared as no one had any time to fool with a collector as the had to spend all their time buying scrap silver and ship it to the refiners, stopping to get a new spot quote every hour or so. "No I can't sell you that unc silver dollar that list for $20. I can scrap it for $35." Then during the later period the only people who could get attention were those wanting bulk quanitities of MS-65 stuff for the latest investment fund and who were ready to write checks for large numbers. Again the hobbiest got ignored. But after the metals crashed and the inverstment funds went through the floor the hobbiest remained I kept plugging on.

RotatedRainbows

There were times when I was not an active buyer just kept what I had until something got me interested in things again. I am sure most people have a time or two in there life where coins took a back sit to more important things but somehow managed their way back into the hobby.

Clankeye

I have drifted away a couple times, as either other interests pulled me away, or a general dissatisfaction with the coin "business" took over. Always get pulled back in the same way, though. I find myself looking at a Stone Mountain commemorative and think, "I'll just buy this and keep it around, no big deal." Next thing I know, I'm defining some new goal and dusting off the books and it all begins again.

goyankeez

Before I had a computer and access to the internet (and ebay). I kept what I had, did some mail auctions, and lost interest. I picked it up again in full force after I got a computer. I discovered PCGS, the registry and this forum. No there's no stopping me.

1jester

I've been collecting constantly since I was 6 years old (in 1975), but just small stuff (it's hard to collect very much when you're a poor kid with no allowance). There have been brief periods of time when I could buy investment grade coins, and slabbed Double Eagles, but I've had to sell them too, due to other periods of financial hardship. During the lulls of no income, I still collect pocket change (looking for errors, mostly). I agree with mrpaseo, it's hard to collect when you're overseas. Currently, I'm overseas again, but this time I'm focusing on Darkside material, since there's hardly any American coins available.

Once a collector, always a collector.

Keyrock

Never abandoned, just took a vacation. When I got back into it about 5 years ago, I had better focus on what I wanted, branched into fractional currency and other lrg/sm notes. Right now I can't find the quality I want or the coins so I may be shifting towards the paper collection and just keep my eyes open for the choice pieces. The only thing I ever sold was my low grade stuff, but I would like to think I'll never sell unless something very major happens.....

Rich

mnmcoin

The way PCGS is grading I think I will be looking into teaching this year and at least cut back my coin time. I can't take it anymore.

mo <><