Requesting advice on building a collection

Millertime

Hello all,

First, I'd like to say this message board is awesome. It's like a mini coin show every day. Now for my question with a little history, please bear with me.

I've recently started bulding my collection again and wondered about my method. I've bought quite a few things off of eBay and have for the most post avoided being totally screwed, at least I'm happy with my purchases. After spending days reading through this forum I've seen a lot of mention of Heritage Coins so I checked it out and am interested in the wide, wide selection. I've also found a local coin shop that I will start to frequent more often, at least too actually see the coins. I'm working on building a type set that includes all types of coins minted, form half cent to double eagles. I'm just looking for F-AU coins, decent detail but not too pricey. Since I'm not specializing on any one type I'm looking for bargains so I don't worry about the years or mint mark. Right now I look for a type (like a half dime) on eBay and guess a rough grade (conservative) and use the Red Book to get a value, then I plan on bidding below this. If I win great, if not I find another one. With Heritage Coins there's the buyer's premium and higher shipping costs but the grade is already established. With the dealer I assume that they have a decent markup. I have heard about the Greysheet prices, wholesale prices, dealer prices, PCGS pricing guide, that I should only use the Red Book for inventory purposes and not a pricing guide, etc....

I'm not a cheapskate and expecting to find a double eagle for under $100 (not that I'd turn it down), I'm just looking for some decent bargains. Am I proceeding about this in a decent manner or does someone have any advice on doing it different.

Now if I could get my time machine up and running I'd travel around and save my pocket change .

I apologize for being so long winded but would appreciate any comments. Thank you very much.

Millertime

JrGMan2004

Not too bad... personally, I use the EBay, Teletrade, and Heritage auction archives to get a better feel for pricing. Yes, there's some extreme exceptions both ways of coins that sell higher or lower than the norm, but it's a good place to start and get a feel for about how much a particular coin sells for in certain grades... Good luck in your hunting

Millertime

I just checked out Teletrade and it definitely looks like a place to watch. Thanks George.

JrGMan2004

You're welcome You can also watch the Buy/Sell/Trade forum here on the boards... lots of dealers (And collectors for that matter) that advertise their coins for sale... lots of nice folks that post on these forums

wayneherndon

I suggest you post a list of things you're looking for on the BST board here. I'm sure you'll get at least a few of them offered to you at a reasonable price.

WH

Millertime

Thanks for the tip WH. As soon as Christmas ends I'll do that.

roadrunner

Be in no hurry. Be very patient and particular with your purchases.
Get used to passing a lot. And buy only the most eye-appealing, naturally toned, and well-struck coins with ultra-clean surfaces. If you don't know what that is on each type coin, hold off until you do. One of the biggest mistakes a buyer makes is loading up on everything early because it's bargain priced, or appears to be. A discriminating eye is your best friend. You need to pass on most of the coins you look at and buy only the cream. That's the one common thread the constantly runs through this forum. If it's average, you'll probably pay too much and be stuck with something.
The market has loads of average stuff, that's why you shouldn't want it. Leave that to the other 90% of the buyers. IF what you buy is extraordinarily nice, you'll always be happy with it. It has to be nice enough to keep "forever."

roadrunner

tradedollarnut

Before you buy too many coins off ebay or Teletrade, I suggest you get some purchase offers on what you're buying... that will tell you how you're really doing. The potential buyer will be sure to point out all the defects - essentially a free education.

Millertime

How do you get purchase offers when I'm not interested in selling anything? I know if I take coins to a dealer they'll lowball me.

coinguy1

<< <i>Since I'm not specializing on any one type I'm looking for bargains... >>

Millertime, my first piece of advice is: Don't go looking for bargains - you mentioned that twice in your post and that concerns me. If your focus is primarily on price/bargains, you are likely to miss out on desirable coins and end up with less than desirable ones.



<< <i>With Heritage Coins there's the buyer's premium... >>

Don't worry about buyer's premiums (most auction companies have them) - simply reduce your bid accordingly to account for the premium. For example, if you are willing to pay $100 for a coin and there is a 15% buyer's premium involved, bid $87. That way, if you win the item at your maximum bid of $87, you will be paying approximately $100 total.



<< <i>I have heard about the Greysheet prices, wholesale prices, dealer prices, PCGS pricing guide, that I should only use the Red Book for inventory purposes and not a pricing guide, etc.... >>

No price guide is perfect, or even close. Do your homework by: checking prices realized from public auctions and Ebay, comparing different dealers' asking prices, asking fellow collectors what certain coins typically sell for, etc.

Don't be afraid to ask questions and best of luck and enjoyment to you.

Millertime

Mark

Thanks for the advice, I really appreciate it.

<< Millertime, my first piece of advice is: Don't go looking for bargains - you mentioned that twice in your post and that concerns me. If your focus is primarily on price/bargains, you are likely to miss out on desirable coins and end up with less than desirable ones. >>

I guess I should clarify "bargains". Since I mostly use the Red Book (I even have Post-It tabs on it) I consider a coin a bargain when it's price is below the book value. I never take the word of the seller as far as grade goes, I always make try to give it a conservative grade and base my bid price on my grade.

Ex: I was looking for my first large cent (any year) and I found an 1851 NmlDt in F+ cond. I paid $10.45 (+ $4 s/h), Red Book price is between 19-23 so I consider this a bargain. But, as noted in an earlier thread, I also paid over $200 for a 1798 Large cent (according to one very knowledgable person on this forum I did ok on it). This one wasn't a bargain but I was specifically looking for a coin in the 1700's with decent detail. I think as I start looking for certain coins I'll try to find more desirable coins.


<<Don't be afraid to ask questions and best of luck and enjoyment to you.>>

It's easy to ask questions and actually get answers with all the fine people on this forum. Thanks Mark and everyone else that has responded to my questions over the last couple days. I spend hours a day online just looking at coins and reading these forums for information. It has been a lot of fun!!

Millertime

morgannut2

Go to a coinshop and pickup a Coin World newspaper. If you subscribe, they'll send you a small paper priceguide (Trends or some new name). I see dealers using it at auction all the time to figure out retail verses bargins. A LOT easier to carry around, and much better than a big inaccurate RED Book, IMHO

DaveG

As a beginner, you'll want to do as much of your shopping as you can in person. That way you can learn what to look for - original surfaces (as little cleaning or dipping as possible), good strike, eye appeal, etc. - without having to send the coin back if you don't like it.

If you have a good local dealer who's willing to talk to you, spend some time (and money) in his shop. Find out of there's a coin club in your area and join it. Find out if there are coin shows in your area and go to them.

A lot of folks build a nice type set, buy you might want to remember that "common coins will always be common coins." There's no reason why you have to have the most common example of each type in your set - you might want to look for key or semi-key coins instead. For example, instead of having a common 1958 wheat cent, you might buy a 1909-S VDB or a 1914-D - these coins are more expensive, but they generally hold their value well (and increase in price) because every Lincoln cent collector wants these coins and while there are tons and tons of nice 1958 cents around, there are more Lincoln cent collectors than there are 1914-Ds, for example.

Also, tradedollarnut has a great suggestion. Take a few of your coins to a dealer and ask "What will you pay for these?" [You don't have to accept his offer.] If he offers too low a price (say, less than half Red Book), ask him why, as in "I thought this was a nice coin, is there something wrong with it?" If you're lucky, he'll tell you what's wrong with it. (Take his opinion with a grain or two of salt, after all, he's trying to buy the coins for as low a price as he can.) You might also find out that he won't offer much for your coins because he already has many coins just like them in his inventory.

You might also want to get a sample pack of the Grey Sheet (Coin Dealer Newsletter). This is a good wholesale price guide. You should probably expect to be able to sell a reasonably common coin for about 90% of Bid. (This will give you a good idea of the spread between wholesale and retail prices.) If you get offered less than that, either you need to find another dealer or you need to find out what's wrong with your coins.

coinguy1

Millertime, thanks for your clarification of "bargain". I feel better.

Also, I would second DaveG's advice about trying the Coin Dealer Newsletter - I think it is far more accurate and timely than the "Redbook".