What to collect

mrmaccoin

OK so I started to collect coins because I was looking for a hobby and my dad introduced me to it. My next question is what to collect. I've talked to dad and he says collect what you want it's your hobby, but what is the best thing for a new collector with limited means to collect. There is so much stuff out there. I love the modern type set that dad has and that looks like a goal but with my income at present some of those coins are out of reach. I thought of collecting mint sets or proof sets from birthyears of people that are close to me but my birth year (1975) says 1776-1976 on them so I'll never really get mine and that's no fun. So the question remains what to collect??????????????????????

Just wanted to get some other opinions. Thanks

VonZipper

Maybe start off with the state quarters, Ikes are'nt too bad.

WACoinGuy

The moderns are a good way to go -- that's how I got started. You'll find that you'll be able to fill in a lot of the dates from pocket change, then eventually you'll hit a point where you'll need to consider buying some coins to fill the key holes in your set.

mrmaccoin

You know I've got them all (state quarters) but i never really considered it a collection that makes me feel like i have something to start on thanks

nwcs

Welcome to the hobby and to the board!

Here's how I figured out what I wanted to collect: I collected a bit of everything. After a while, I got to the point where I saw that I leaned to particular things. For example, I have centered on Lincoln cents and Morgan dollars. I have nice examples of others, but found they didn't interest me. I'm developing an interest in gold coins, but they're still too pricey for me right now.

Enjoy the hobby cause it's a lot of fun! Much to see, much to learn, and a lot of nice people. Just ignore the trolls when they pop up.

Neil

mbbiker

I know this is the US coin forum but you could collect 1975 Proof/Mint sets from countries all over the world and if you don't know world coins are cheaper than US coins that is what started me in collecting darkside (world coins) i didn't have the money to spend on US coins so i moved on to the darkside you can get some really cool coins for not a lot of money, try going on e-bay and looking at PF sets from 1975
here is a link to one of my favorite darkside PF sets link

AbesNeighbor

Try to buy each regular strike or Proof America Silver Eagle since 1986 to date. Its real doable with the '95W being the tough expensive one. Buy a coin a month or one every two months until you have the entire set.

I would suggest the proofs, if you can afford them. When you are finished you have a great and beautiful set. It would also be worth some money.

Dan

clw54

Which modern coins are out of reach?

supercoin

I think most people would get more enjoyment out of a series than a mixed group of mint/proof sets.

I'll second the Ikes as a good set... inexpensive, a lot of variety, a lot of challenge in higher grades, you can readily learn more about them than a typical dealer, and the historical period encompasses your birth year nicely.

indianabyron

Collect what makes your heart bump. Really its best to collect what you like what you find neat or cool. For many like me thats pretty much anything that looks good. Really your liking and dislikes will develope over time. So you need to find something you like.


Byron

Cam40

What to collect...The choices are vast in this hobby.But before you go off and start buying alot of coins learn about grading of coins from reading here and buying certain books on coins.
Once you have a rough idea of what an MS looks like compared to circulated coin.
Best way to do this really is practice practice practice.Buy lots of rolls from the bank (all denominations)
and go through them not just to look for dates but to compare the conditions also.
It takes a little while to train your eye to spot some things.Specificly the surface of a BU coin useing a loupe.

Loupes come in a few ranges of magnification.3X,7X,10X,30X. I personally like a 7x,or 10x.

Vewing with a loupe takes training too.Trial and error.Find what works for you.
ALSO knowing how to differentiate between hairlines and die lines.The two may look the same at first but they are complete opposes of each other.

09sVDB

Most of all collect what you like but before you spend any significant money, buy some books and educate yourself.

dabugler

I'd start with a 20th century type set. Makes a great conversation piece. I recently completed a washington quarter series. It goes real well with the state quarters. I too am on a limited coin budget. May favorite series has got to be the lincoln cents. I started with circulated coins and am now slowly upgrading them to uncs. It's fairly inexpensive to do, except for a couple of keys, and I find the process very satifying.

barberlover

How about going to local coin shows with friends or with your parents, when i was a kid i felt like a kid in a candy store when my dad took my to local coin shows. Once your there look around to see if anything in your budget appeals to you, no one can really tell you what to collect so you have to look at the coins first then ask if its affordable for you, when i was young i loved red brown wheat cents that at the time were called unc. or choice unc. I think many of the dates from the 40's and 50's are still affordable and very collectable in grades of 63 or so. Go to a show, look around see what sparks your interest and have fun.

paigowjohnny

<< <i>Most of all collect what you like but before you spend any significant money, buy some books and educate yourself >>



By all means....buy a good grading book...I recommend the ANA guide. If you do decide to branch off into more "expensive" categories like UNC Morgans, make sure you have looked at a lot of coins and get a feel what a cleaned or otherwse screwed up coin looks like. Don't make the "johnny" mistake

And be very wary of buying raw from the "big advertisers" in the major coin rags...another johnny faux pas

If you're like most of us...something will eventually catch your eye. I started on Morgans because I won one once at a coin club raffle, and it just grew on me. By going and looking at Morgans, I fell in love with Walking Liberty halves...next thing you know I've done a set of those...then some guy sold a block of old Liberty nickels at a coin club meeting...now I've got the circ Liberty bug.

If you can find a local coin club...by all means join it...

Typetone

I wrote an article on 20th Century Type which is on the PCGS home page. Why not give it a read. 20th Century type I think would be great for a new collector. You get to learn about a lot of different coins, learn about the hobby, and have a nice set to boot when finished. Best yet, It doesn't have to cost a fortune. In fact, about $7,000 could get you a really nice mint state set.20th Century Type Set Article

cladking

Only the quarter, half and dollar in the 1975 mint set have the '76 date. The cent,
nickel, and dime each have the '75 date. There are lots of good coins that can be
collected on a limited budget and they are not all moderns. There are lower grade
classics, world coins, and tokens. It is a good idea to try to put together some sort
of set or coherent collection rather than an assembly of disparate items. It will bring
you more satisfaction and knowledge in putting together the collection. You might
consider a mint set collection. Collect what you find interesting!

Good luck. Have fun.

ms71

There's no great need to have a lot of focus when you're starting. Buy whatever looks interesting. Just don't spend a lot of money. If it's something in 19th century type, probably a Fine will do. In 20th century, maybe xf to AU. Eventually, you'll probably find yourself checking out certain coins in your collection more than the others, and you'll be on the way to a specialty. Enjoy!

Baley

I'd start with a 20th century type set, collecting currently circulating types in BU or Proof, obsolete types in EF or VF, maybe even as low as Fine for the Barber coins. Then I'd buy a couple of VG and Fine Seated Liberty coins to get a feel for them, then work on that challenging 1839-1891 period a bit at a time in nice VF and EF, and maybe pick up some capped bust coins in honest, uncleaned Good or VG.

Early (pre-1808) copper is it's own challenge, and I'd advise doing lots of reading before making a purchase.

It's fun when you get your first 2, 3, and 20 cent pieces, those can be tough holes to fill, especially the 20, look for UNCLEANED they're harder to find than you'd think, as are all the draped bust types, but its VERY rewarding when you locate and procure a nice specimen.

welcome to the forum and good luck!

MacCoin

hi Joe glad to see you on. Hi evryone this is one of my boys.

RonMan

Hi Joe...welcome to the forum.

I'd second the idea of the Silver Eagle Collection...easy to do, affordable except for the 95W , large coin and a great design...IMO.

Or, maybe a nice set of Franklins...LucyBop would become your best friend here.

Good luck,
RonMan

Petescorner

Hey Joe, Welcome!

My first collection that I completed was a low grade set of Buffalo Nickels. There are 64 coins (not including errors) and almost half of them can be collected in readable dates for under a buck a piece. Not a bad way to start!

TommyB

Collect state quarters. Then you can buy my p and d rolls from each state through mississippi, and I can use the money to buy something worthwhile. Just kidding, but I really can't wait to get rid of mine and get on to other things. So in other words, forget state quarters.

I enjoyed putting together a nice 20th century type set. I found some easily on Ebay, but got the tougher ones, (barbers and SLQ's at coin shows. My set is AU/MS, and I am glad I have it.

GaCoinGuy

I kinda like the modern proof type set, PCGS lists the modern as 1950-present.......you can get almost all of these for really decent prices. I particularly like the late 60s and early 70s proofs.......the thrill of the hunt for those early ones in DCAM.

TomB

Collect books, collect knowledge, collect fun. You will figure it out.

Blade

When I started on a limited budget, my local dealer was real cool. Definitely get to know all of the local dealers and spend some time in their shop. It is so much more personal than E-Bay shopping and you get to look at lots of real coins!

MY local dealer did a healthy business in silver melt. He would allow me to go through the bags and buy any coins for $1.00 over silver melt for each $1.00 in silver coin (hope that makes sense). i.e., 4 quarters for $1.00 over silver melt prices. I stopped by almost every Saturday for a year. Ended up with the following for not much over bullion prices:

- A 75% complete set of silver Washington quarters. Dates in mid-50's to 1964 were AU & MS
- About 10 really nice Standing Liberty quarters in VG to VF
- A monster toned Roosevelt dime
- A bunch of AU-MS Mercs
- About 15 barber quarters and dimes in VG to VF

It was great fun and I only spent $6 to $12 per week. I wish I had the chance to keep doing this today.

bulloncoins

It's like your first love....You'll know it when you see it. Money won't matter as much as how bad you want it. If you want it bad enough......you will figure a way to afford it. (But I vote for silver Eagles.)
You can get most years at a good price in BU if you look hard enough and can upgrade to slabbed coins the older you get if you are still interested.