HSN Coin Collector show last night

astrorat

Hey folks-

What in interesting show last night. Here are the deals that were offered:

2004 American Silver Eagle ICG MS-70 for $80
2004 American Gold Eagle ICG MS-70 for $900 (I think I am remembering this one correctly)
1999-2004 PDS State Quarters in BU and Proof for $400 (but in a special set of holders!)
1960-2000 Proof sets in original packaging for $1380 (or within a few dollars)
2000-2004 Sac dollar set ICG PF-70 for $500
Complete SBA dollar set in BU and Proof in a Dansco albumn for $900
2001 State Quarter ICG Signature Series matched serial number set for $100 (this is actually not THAT bad of a price)

and finally . . .

1908 No Motto St. Gaudens in BU for $900 . . . the part that is tragically humorous about this last offer was to see the "Coin King" (as he is referred to on the show) handle this wonderful coin improperly. He places his fingers on the obverse and reverse in order to "show" the audience the edge. After suffering this indignity, the obverse was then again displayed for the camera and the image included a new, perfectly visible fingerprint in the field! I just about fell out of my chair I was laughing so hard.

I always enjoy hearing the pitch on their offerings . . . boy do they push the envelope!

Lane

kryptonitecomics

I watched during the selling of the Saint Gaudens as well. That guy could sell sand in the desert as he made that coin sound like the rariest coin on the planet since it was missing the motto........either very funny or very depressing depending on how you look at it and if you are one of the unfortunate souls who actually buy one at that price.


Most of those $20 Saints look no better than MS61 or MS62 and a few may be AU58 slidders

mrpaseo

I've seen the show and I just get pissed off every time I see him handle the coins and lie about the condition/rarity and price/worth of everything they sell. I thought this is a form of faulse advertisement, and I thought that stuff was illiegal....what do I know. I know this stuff would not happen on the coin auction sites, hell even on ebay we report these losers.

I wish there was a way we could stop this, after all they are targeting people that do not know any better such as my mom who might want to buy me a coin or worse off someones grandmother

All I can say is "They" suck!

Enought, now I'm off to do some PT!

Ray

coincan101

i have seen these shows too and am amazed at the amount of coinage they sell. they misrepresent the coin in one tone of voice and then correct them selves in a much more subduded tone of voice. but they always correct them selves. as a new collector i got some great advice from my coin dealer who told me above all else never buy from a t v show. and he showed me why whith his prices, explained the grading and explained if i bought a raw 2004 silver eagle it would be just about the same grade as what they sell. now some might think he was just bad mouthing another sorce for newbies to buy coins but he wasnt. he took the time and explained things to me with other customers in the store. some of them shook their heads but nobody looked down at me. i think real coin collectors are great people, honest and trustworthy. i get that from here and somthing should be done about the carnival barkers who sell on t v. i would also like to see one of those catalogs the one guy keeps quoting prices from. i wonder if he prints this so called catalog and sets his own prices?

astrorat

Yes, the guy could sell an Eskimo a refrigerator . . . that is why he is on the air. He is good at what he does, they sell lots of coin, and make lots of money . . . otherwise, the show would not be on the air.

If you listen carefully, I think you will agree that they actually do not lie. They may make statements out of ignorance (e.g. regarding the history of some of the coins, etc.), but they choose their words carefully when discussing value, rarity, etc. They pitch the sizzle and not the steak. Sort of like when you go to the jeweler and buy a "rare" diamond ring.

Okay, I am NOT advocating buying coins from the TV shows, but here is an argument for their price on a couple of their offerings last night. This is ONLY a discussion and NOT an endorsement of buying coins on the show.

Their prices are not cheap, but you are paying for a major convenience . . . buying a coin from your living room with just a telephone call. Perhaps not a convenience for sophisticated collectors, but it is for their target market.

Let's say you want an ICG MS-70 Silver AE. You get on the phone and order one for about $86 delivered. Let's not argue over the grade on the slab, but just consider it a high-end Silver AE. Now let's say you would rather have personalized service and want your dealer to find one for you (assuming you know a dealer or know someone who can do this for you). They spend an hour of their time searching, filling out the paperwork, packaging, and delivering the coin for slabbing. How much is an hour of a professional's time worth? Probably $50-200, depending on the dealer. The cost to submit, including postage, insurance, and grading is around $25. The cost of the coin is about $7. So, if you choose to go it alone and assuming you end up with a coin graded as you anticipated, you have $80-$85 in the coin (assuming a "low-cost" dealer). Oh, and it will be about a month before you get it. That is about the same price as QVC, except with QVC you can order it from your couch and get it in a week or so.

Okay, now stop laughing . . . no really, stop laughing!

Now, with a small investment of your time, you can "learn" the secondary market and realize that you can easily find these coins at your local dealer or on the internet for much less because others have already "paid" for the professional's time and slabbing associated fees.

You can make almost the same argument for many of the items they offer. If you are a collector, their prices are silly. But imagine if you are an impulse, one-time buyer, you might be able to realize how the item could seem attractive.

And no, I DO NOT recommend using TV shows to purchase coins.

Lane

stephunter

I was flipping through chanels and just happened to catch the show just as the Saint was being sold. The coin is on the stand on the counter and gets bumped by the guy selling it. So the "coin king" picks it up to put it back on the stand and in the process puts his finger prints on the coin. Not my idea of a "coin king".

SlangNRox

It is always entertaining to watch these shows.
He can probably sell water to a well.

ss350camaro

It was on HSN

kieferscoins

Lane has a very good point and most die hard collectors would rather totally bash the TV company then think of it from this point of view.

Cameron Kiefer

OHMoneyMan

<< <i>1960-2000 Proof sets in original packaging for $1380 (or within a few dollars) >>



You forgot to mention the added bonus. They did add the 3-piece Silver Bicentennial set to the collection of proof sets and SMS sets, as an enticement for those who were still undecided.

Mike did mis-speak, though, when he said the collection included all the proof Ikes and all the proof SBA's. I guess he forgot that the 1999-P Proof SBA was not included in the 1999 Proof set, but was sold separately. Oops!

Peace,
OHMoneyMan

Edited to add the third "n" in bicentennial, which I would have sworn was there originally.

ddbird

I live like 15 min. from QVC station, and they have a store where they keep all the items they dont sell. There actually are a few good coin deals on the reduced items. I picked up a few "Experimental finish" saqs for like $10 each!

astrorat

<< <i>It was on HSN >>



Yes, thanks Doug, it was HSN . . . I changed the title to reflect the correction.

Lane