OT-What got you interested in the darkside?

ormandh

I Have been a collector for 10 or some odd years, mostly US coins. I began collecting darkside stuff about that long, but only as I came across them. I was a landlord at an apartment complex that housed profs. and students from different countries. I would come across coins from all around the world when these people left and moved back to their perspective countries. I ended up with about 200 different modern coins(not worth much) and became enthralled with them. I went and purchased the Krause 8th edition of the 20th century coins and then later purchased the 2nd edition 18th century. The darkside actually pulled me in. I then started to buy US stuff because that was all I could readily find and the fact that my grandfather gave me many. Ihave now found myself bored with the US stuff and have been paying much more attention to the darkside. I find this more satisfying for many more reasons than I can list.

What pulled you guys in? I look forward to reading any and all reasons that you care to offer. -Dan

oldshep

Cosmicdebris has a lion head coin from Yemen that is spectacular!! That is what sucked me into the darkside - then I found some beautiful designs of sailing ships and I was hooked.

Shep

bosox

I grew up in Maine and used to get greyside coins in change as a kid. Later I was stationed in Europe with the military and started on a WWII collection.

ajaan

The cost of US coins got me interested in the darkside. US coins just got too expensive. World coins were, are still are to some degree, a bargain. Also, living on the US/Canada border Canadian coins were always found in change.

wybrit

I found out that good looking women go crazy for a guy who collects world coins.

But seriously, I lived in the country, so took to collecting its coins. After a bit of a hiatus, the dormant interest awoke and even though I had since moved back to the US, I was still interested in the British stuff. I'm glad the interest reawoke when it did, it's hard to find and bloomin' expensive now.

Stork

<< <i>Cosmicdebris has a lion head coin from Yemen that is spectacular!! >>

Strangely enough, that is exactly what got me poking around the Darkside of PCGS. I was looking for some bullion too and discovered foreign gold at about the same time too. From there it was OFEC and a Japanese type set as I was living in Japan at the time. I've made a few detours, but I'm back to those primarily, along with some medal interests. But the Yemen lion, followed by Cosmic's Britannias brought me over here.

spinaker2000

It was all Mongoose's fault!! Met Joe at a Raleigh NC show. I was collecting US coppers. He gave me a bunch of British stuff as we left the show. The rest is history.

worldcoinguy

I studied in Seville, Spain for a spring semester in 1993 and spent the summer in Kiev Ukraine. Both experiences stirred some numismatic interested that have been with me since that time.

Refrema

I started collecting US as a kid in Iowa, and a dealer had junk darkside coins that interested me as from places I would never see in my lifetime. Actually, I started working for Kodak International, and have since worked more around the world than I have in the US. I have lived in 3 other countries, and learned several languages.

Being able to travel everywhere around the world over the last 40 years has made me appreciate what the darkside has to offer. Add to that the beauty of the designs, and the history behind the coins, US coinage is just too boring.

Bob

Sapyx

I was a world stamp collector as a kid. Went to a stamp and coin show and saw the scratchtrays of cheap world coins. I was fascinated, especially by the brass ones and the ones with weird writing on them, so I asked my folks if I could buy a few. They saw I was actually interested in coins and gave me their small hoard of old and foreign ones they'd picked up over the years.

Once I realised that coins could be much more historically fascinating than stamps, I gave all the little paper things to my brother and never looked back.

He's still into stamps, the poor guy.

AuldFartte

I was a liteside collector off and on for decades. I joined this forum to learn more about US coins and chat with people with similar interests. Turns out a lot of the litesiders are arse-holes, IMHO, and the prices of good US stuff went through the stratosphere. I was just looking through all the forums here and started reading this one regularly. The Canadian collectors got me started with dollars by type, then a Canadian type set, branched out to coins for everyplace on the planet for a while, then became totally and irrevocably hooked on British coins thanks to people here including, but not limited to, Wybrit, Æthelred, Spinaker, Cosmicdebris (for those damned Conders!), Blackhawk, AndyBruce, Simon (can't remember his screen name) from the UK, and several others.

Thanks to the wonderful people here, I have found the Darkside to be the most enjoyable "place" I've ever been. Thanks, all

shirohniichan

I've been interested in the dark side ever since I was a little kid. My grandparents up in BC bought me a silver dollar of my birth year and a Centennial set (circulations coins from the bank).

My latest interest in the dark side came from when I collected US trade dollars. I decided to get world silver crowns that circulated in 19th century Asia, and I noticed prices on US coins going up faster than I was willing to follow.

theboz11

I collected everything that interested me on the lightside many years ago, from there I started looking for Beauty instead of filling holes and making sets. The Darkside has by far the best looking coins and medals to collect. The price is right also

Kurt4

At a show a darkside dealer actually talked to me about coins and history. I bought a few and seeing my budding enthusiasm, he just handed me some and told me to have fun. I did and continue to do so. Never saw him again. I hope someday I do and I hope he lets me buy him dinner. Also since then, the quality of people that I meet that collect darkside. This forum is a prime example.

ozzysdad

Darksider's are the best, There are a few on the Liteside that are decent folk's. As for the reason i became interested in darkside, There is a much wider range and varietie's to collect, And while some are rich with history, they are most often more affordable, and can be found in nice condition. I'm waiting on a bunch i just bought to come in.

ksteelheader

<< <i>What pulled you guys in? I look forward to reading any and all reasons that you care to offer. -Dan >>






These two guys had a hand in it!!!

WillieBoyd2

I was in high school in 1964-65.
I got interested in non-US silver coins then because countries all over the world were removing silver from their coins.

tbirde56

I started collecting cents and nickles from spare change my parents gave me in the early '60s. I got some Mexican coins from some neighbors and then some Brazilian coins and notes from some other friends of my parents. I had no real way to find out more ore acquire more until I was a teenager and came across a Littleton Coin Company ad for their approvals. By then my collection of circulated Lincoln cents, Jeff nickles, and Roosie dimes were mostly complete and very boring. With world coins and paper money I could 'visit' countries that I could never do in real life. When the SCWC came out about 1972 the U.S. collection was all but forgotten and the size of my world collection has since swelled.

NJMark1

Mostly the unending variety of coins. There is always something interesting to find.


Mark

cladking

It was 1976 and I'd been collecting almost 20 years. I've never had much of a coin budget
and in those days it was extremely meager. This left me always looking for bargains and it
left me poking through large volumes of coins. Silver had just started another big run which
would take it to $50 and dealers had buckets full of poundage. I was pulling out silver but
sometimes accidently left good silver or picked up cu/ ni so I checked the 1st edition Krause
out of the library and started learning the difference. I absorbed the information about key
dates of cu/ni without even trying and before long was collecting most of the world coins.

Unfortunately there were a lot of other collectors doing about the ame thing so this silver
dried up fairly quickly. You could still find some silver on rare occasion even in '79 but it wasn't
often worth the effort of looking unless there was other stuff of interest.

danglen

You mean there's another side?????? Where, when, tell me it ain't so.....

Sylvestius

<< <i>...then became totally and irrevocably hooked on British coins thanks to people here including, but not limited to, Wybrit, Æthelred, Spinaker, Cosmicdebris (for those damned Conders!), Blackhawk, AndyBruce, Simon (can't remember his screen name) from the UK, and several others.

Thanks to the wonderful people here, I have found the Darkside to be the most enjoyable "place" I've ever been. Thanks, all >>




Sylvester/Ætheling would be the one you're looking for!


Why did i get drawn into the darkside? I was born into the DARK, i am the DARK.

Then due to historical reasons i shifted from merely British into French as well and my fate was sealed, not to mention the Romans. Hmm grave trouble it can bring. Too many coins there are.