Report on San Antonio Texas Show
GOLDSAINT
Posts: 2,148 ✭
Here is my view of the small San Antonio Texas show.
This is a one-day show of about 60 to 80 tables. It is held very year at this time on Saturday only, and opens at 9:30 A.M. My wife and I were at the door at the opening. Several of the regular Texas dealers from San Antonio, Austin and surrounding areas were set up at the show. By the time 10:30 rolled around there were about 200 people milling through the large room at the civic center where this is held.
It was obvious that most of the dealers there wanted to buy, as they paid much more attention to people with items to sell, and left customers basically to fend for themselves.
I have still never quite figured out the mentally of most of the collectors, and small dealers, that I see at these smaller local shows. I think they get up in the morning and find their sloppiest, torn clothing, to wear to these shows so they can plead poverty. Honestly most of these folks look like they slept under the bridge last night. Perhaps that works, but I doubt it.
There were dozens of small dealers picking through coins from $5 to $150 buying every half decent coin they could find, and lot bargaining down to the last dollar.
In general I did not see any nicer high-grade coins. There was lots of common Gold, and everyone had Morgan’s with the exception of the World dealers. A few dealers had everything slabbed but the ratio of slabbed to Raw was about 90% Raw.
Specifically I was looking for good Bust Half material and saw about 100 coins, 4 were slabbed, the rest were way over graded, cleaned, polished, and 20% plus over CV’s retail prices. I saw nothing over an R2. I ask one of the dealers from Austin, whom I have known for many years, if he had any good Bust Halves and he showed me the only one he had, a Raw 1837 dark AU. One of his dealer friends walking by just laughed out loud when I ask to see some better date slabbed material, and made an additional comment about what a beautiful wife I had, that part is of course true.
I had contacted Dick Osburn before the show to see if he was coming in and he emailed me that he just could not do these one-day shows.
There were a few nicely dressed cordial dealers at the show that looked like recent retiree’s, most likely collectors that are looking for some type of semi-retirement business. There seems to be a few more of these folks at every new show I go to.
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Comments
I did not buy one coin!!
Jerry
The Houston Money Show has grown to 250 tables in Jan 05 and thats our largest Texas show.....next would be the TNA in May at 125-135 tables.
TBT
"The Houston Money Show has grown to 250 tables"
The Houston money show was a good show and I will attend that one again.
One thing about these small shows is that 95% or more of the stuff you see is just the tired old stuff the same guys have been carrying around from show to show but once in a while va, va voom!!!!! You find something great!!!!
I talked to the chairman of the Houston Money Show at the ANA and he said they had to move to a bigger (and nicer) venue. It's getting bigger every year.
New collectors, please educate yourself before spending money on coins; there are people who believe that using numismatic knowledge to rip the naïve is what this hobby is all about.
The Money show is going to be held at a large convention center this year and for future shows. This show could turn into a major show as long as the big boy dealers realize that the show is now in a nice large convention center. Hopefully within a few years Heritage will see this and put a auction on for this show. My fingers are crossed.
When is the Monry show set for?
"Hopefully within a few years Heritage will see this"
I dont know why Scotsman comes all the way in from the East to do the auctions when Heritage is right there in Dallas?
New collectors, please educate yourself before spending money on coins; there are people who believe that using numismatic knowledge to rip the naïve is what this hobby is all about.