Cherrypicking & VAM Hunting Time Test - How much have you been rushed?

nesvt

I had to drive for a while on business today. After three hours, I stopped at a small antique shop. I was there about a month ago for the first time. One that day, the guy was closing up... but I found out that he had some coins for sale. This time I came earlier. I walked in and before I could open my mouth, the owner told me he had to close early today and was just leaving. Someone walked in five seconds behind me and got the same message. They left. I stayed. Told him I was there a month ago and was looking for Morgans. He said to come back tomorrow because they were all locked up in a safe, and he had to leave. I wouldn't be back for another month at least. I explained. He said that he did just buy a lot of Morgans a few hours ago, but he hadn't even examined them all yet. He wanted me to buy the whole lot... about 170 coins. I checked out a couple and had to pass. Too much $$ for me. Only $12 each, but the few that I looked at were severely cleaned a few decades ago. The guy was nice. Told me to send him a list, give him two hours notice, and he'd pull stuff out of the safe for me to check out. He has a few hundred more Morgans, but he had to go now. I wanted to check out the rest of the coins on the counter.

That's a long winded intro... after 12 minutes, I had looked at all 170 coins. Under 5 seconds each. No loupe, just my nearsighted eyes. I'm sure I missed a lot. I just glanced at dates, mint mark issues, clashing, filled letters, die breaks. I picked up a few coins. He charged me $15 each. I found an 1882-O O/S VAM 3 (VF cleaned), 1921-D with some light gold toning (AU50), 1889-P with a double ear and double letters on lower reverse (XF), 1887-P with some odd and spotchy toning on both sides (XF), a very dark 1881-O, and a couple others. I'll go back when I have more time and can warn the guy.

Anyone else ever get rushed liked this?

MrSpud

Yeah, I stopped by a store in California recently when I was on a business trip. I only had one afternoon to check out a coin shop I had heard about. I got there 15 minutes before it closed. I got to look at some of the trays of coins as they were pulling them out of the display cases to put into their safe for the night. I ended up buying a few coins, one of which I posted a picture of on this forum and most people said it was AT.

Wolf359

I rarely get time to stop at stores. Mine are almost all on-line.

markglicker

I visited a store in Tucson, 15 minutes before the stated closing time. The owner told me that he had been robbed several weeks earlier, and was extra cautious. He would not let my friend and I in. Understandable. A few months later, I dropped by in the middle of the day. Every case in the store was empty. The owner said he no longer kept coins out, but in the safe. I walked out, without looking at any coins.

It is a sad situation for the guy, but it might be time for him to wrap it up, in the retail coin business.

nesvt

The guy was nice. His main focus is not coins. I've already sent him my "list". Didn't want to make it huge. He's pulling out a bunch of 1921-D's with die cracks/breaks for my next visit.