Boston show - - the worst in my book
Yale68
Posts: 376
Just my own view - - worst show I have ever attended. Couldn't find a dealer who would give me a decent price on some PQ Morgans I was looking to unload (e.g. if greysheet bid was $1000, a typical offer might be $700). But on the buy end it was even worse - - the prices they were asking was ridiculous. In one case I was interested in a coin with greysheet bid of $520, and he wanted $2300. Well, I won't be back to this show ever again. Fortunately Boston is a great city, and the rest of the day made the trip from CT worthwhile.
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Rainbow Stars
<< <i>Just my own view - - worst show I have ever attended. Couldn't find a dealer who would give me a decent price on some PQ Morgans I was looking to unload (e.g. if greysheet bid was $1000, a typical offer might be $700). But on the buy end it was even worse - - the prices they were asking was ridiculous. In one case I was interested in a coin with greysheet bid of $520, and he wanted $2300. Well, I won't be back to this show ever again. Fortunately Boston is a great city, and the rest of the day made the trip from CT worthwhile. >>
You do realize a coin show is made up of individuals dealers all with different inventories, business models and ways of doing business, right?
If you want to sell these coins, you have a few good options:
1. Try to find dealers who specialize in the material that you are trying to sell.
2. Go back to the dealer(s) who sold the coins to you. He/they might be the strongest buyer, especially since you might have a relationship.
2. Sell the coins yourself on the BST board or ebay or try an auction company like Teletrade or Heritage.
Price guides are guides--not the be-all and end-all. BTW, you did not indicate whether your coins are certified are raw in the OP.
It is always hard for us to be reminded that coins are not really liquid investments. They are collectibles; and as such, they are only worth what someone is willing to pay you for them.
Sunnywood
Sunnywood's Rainbow-Toned Morgans (Retired)
Sunnywood's Barber Quarters (Retired)
I would not categorize the show as strongly as some of the posts, but if I didn't pick up a few coins fron BigD5 it would have been a waste of time.
Dealers will look through what you have to sell, really get excited about a few coins, then pull out a blue sheet. Then they want to pay back of blue sheet
On the buy side, most of the material was subpar or average at best, and the asking prices were quite high.
I was looking to buy a couple of simple coins (a basic low grade MS61/62 $2.5 lib and $5 Ind in PCGS plastic). All of the ones I looked at were bottom of the barrel coins, but on the flip side the asking prices were around 63 money.
Maybe I got spoiled by going to FUN, LB and Baltimore?
On a strictly personal note, I thought the show was fantastic. I've been looking at medals lately because I don't want to fight the crowds in the more traditional collecting areas. I've been buying stuff on eBay, both stuff that I want to keep and stuff that I thought was a particularly good deal. Some of it I've been able to turn right around and sell back on eBay, but this was the first time where I had enough leftovers at the same time that it was worth taking them with me to a show and shopping them around.
I've been a long-time buyer, but this was my first time as a seller, and I didn't really know what to expect. One thing that surprised me was that there wasn't a whole lot of dickering. I showed what I had; the dealers indicated what they were interested in; I quoted a price; they accepted it or not.
The other thing that surprised me is that different dealers were interested in different things. I might have showed 10 pieces to 5 dealers, and each one took 2 of them. I sort of expected that the first dealer would take the cream, and maybe the second dealer would find something left in the dregs, and then I'd be stuck with whatever was left. But everyone seemed happy down the line. I don't know if I was wrong across the board, or if that was due to my having a box of medals that by their nature are sort of esoteric. I suspect that things would have been different if I had a box of slabbed Morgans instead...
By the end of the day I'd sold just about everything I brought with me to sell, plus several pieces that I didn't really plan on finding buyers for but that I put in the box simply because they were on my desk and the box wasn't full yet. In most cases I got more than I paid for the items on eBay. The only exception was one item where I messed up and paid more than 2x what I should have paid in the first place. I was expecting to take a loss on that one, and instead I got back what I paid. In a few cases I got back 5x what I paid (or more), but that's somewhat easier to do for items that cost $10 to start with.
The only mistake that I'd like to correct the next time was that I didn't leave enough extra time to do the selling. There were several dealers I saw on my first pass through the show that I wanted to go back and look at, but who had left by the time I was ready to think about buying. That's too bad, because at that point I had cash in my pocket too :-)
I did buy a few pieces for myself, but I left the show with as much extra cash still in my pocket as I spent on new stuff. It was a strange experience, but I wouldn't mind repeating it!
jonathan
I agree with the take on prices. I think some dealers are trying to make everything they can out of this market. I bought two Indian cents but that was it. Prices were way too high.
roadrunner
<< <i>Where and what is a CT? How many dealers were at that show? Maybe they heard you from some place called CT and figured you didn't know much about coins. Also, where is this Boston place? >>
I hope your kidding
Go BIG or GO HOME. ©Bill
<< <i>I've been a long-time buyer, but this was my first time as a seller >>
uh-oh
Prices overall were somewaht strong, all depending on what area you were looking at. I found some great buys in some semi-popular series ($2.5 Classic, Capped Bust Halves, and toned type). If I had more money, I would have done much more buying, as I saw a few pieces that were priced fairly low (in my opinion). To say that the show was overpriced is a huge generalization IMO. I personally had several pieces at 10% (or more) of CDN bid.
There was one dealer, Dennis King I believe, who did have some very high priced toned coins (in regards to their price if average). However, his pieces are truly exceptional. It is not often you see some coins with as much vibrant and natural toning as Dennis`. If anyone gets a chance to see Dennis' coins, I highly suggest you stay for awhile, you won't be dissapointed in the quality section!
<< <i>I went to the show today and I was disappointed too. As to prices, I had dealers trying to sell me coins at two to three times retail. Then again, Sunday has many amateur dealers who can buy a table cheaply. Maybe some of then were trying to see just how much they could make. One dealer tried to sell me an 1896 PCGS 64 Morgan (CDN ask $49) for $250 because it had nice toning!
Anaconda was THERE?
Check out my current listings: https://ebay.com/sch/khunt/m.html?_ipg=200&_sop=12&_rdc=1
<< <i>I went to the show today and I was disappointed too. As to prices, I had dealers trying to sell me coins at two to three times retail. Then again, Sunday has many amateur dealers who can buy a table cheaply. Maybe some of then were trying to see just how much they could make. One dealer tried to sell me an 1896 PCGS 64 Morgan (CDN ask $49) for $250 because it had nice toning!
Look at the Battlecreek Sale. Common Morgan's realized crazy money. Some of Dennis' coins are much nicer then some of the coins from the Battlecreek sale, and much more reasonably priced.
For me, the show was fantastic. I bought several nice half dimes, from a couple of favorite dealers, which absolutely made my day. An attractive 1863 Liberty Seated half dime, in PCGS MS-63, was waiting for me at J. J. Teaparty's table - a nice upgrade. An AU-50 (raw) 1872-S (mint mark below bow) Valentine V4, with the Micro S mint mark, and quadruple punched date, was acquired from a Connecticut (CT) dealer. Perhaps the prize of the day for me, though, came only minutes after learning that I was not the high bidder the night before in the Stack's Northern Bay auction on a (raw) VF+ 1800 LM-1/V1 half dime. I had placed an absentee bid on that coin, and had been hopeful of adding it to my collection. Shortly after learning that I had not won that lot, board member Darin Whittaker (BigD5) showed me an ANACS VF-30 1800 LM-1/V1 half dime, every bit as nice as the Stack's piece, but with the added bonus of being a terminal die state, with the cud below 00 of the date, for the same price I had bid in the Stack's auction.
True, I did not try to sell anything at the show, but I was asked repeatedly if I had anything to sell. I know most of the dealers there, and enjoyed talking with many of them as time allowed. I had an opportunity to meet board member Nick Chabot (N.J.C. Coins), and after looking at the quality of his coins, I was only sorry that he did not have a half dime for me. I saw lots of activity (on Friday), both buying and selling, and I simply ran out of time, leaving at close to bourse closing. On the way home, we stopped at Hilltop Steak House, for a great steak dinner. Now how could the show possibly have been any better? The show was as much of a social event for me as a buying trip, and for me, at least, goes down as just one more successful and enjoyable coin show. God, I love this hobby.
Experience the World through Numismatics...it's more than you can imagine.
Bottom line: If, as a collector, you go to a coin show and expect to have a bad time, you most certainly will. There is enough negative energy at even the best show to make it possible. If you go to look at some coins, yuck it up with some friends, and have fun, you will have a good time.
<< <i>On the way home, we stopped at Hilltop Steak House, for a great steak dinner >>
That brings back memories, MrHalfDime! Even if you came home empty-handed, a trip to the Hilltop would have made it a great day. I hope you didn't have to wait in line too long
<< <i>
<< <i>On the way home, we stopped at Hilltop Steak House, for a great steak dinner >>
That brings back memories, MrHalfDime! Even if you came home empty-handed, a trip to the Hilltop would have made it a great day. I hope you didn't have to wait in line too long
Did you go to the one on Route 1?
A little further up the road is my all-time favorite Mexican place - called Border Cafe. Has a big "EAT" sign outside. Excellent, one of the things I liked a lot about Boston.
BTW...the one on RT1 is not only the 1st one, but it's also the only one. The rest have since closed their doors.