First Coin Club Meeting
StrikeOutXXX
Posts: 3,352 ✭✭✭✭✭
Well, after finding out our area had a coin club, I went to my first meeting last night. It is in the basement meeting hall of a bank about 20 minutes from my house. There were probably 25-30 people there, and other than one teenager who ran the auction items to the winner and collected the money, I was the youngest person there. Average age was probably around 65-70ish. They welcomed me and another new member like we were their grandkids, so it was all good.
I found the person who told me about the club, he introduced me to a few people, I bought all the various tickets (There were free door prize tickets, but you could buy additional prize tickets, 50/50 tickets, a special gold coin ticket, and I think there was one other ticket in there somewhere). I paid my $6.00 for the year and became a member. I then had about 10 minutes to look over the 60 auction lots/items and picked out a few I liked and some for my son (He stayed home, told me to check it out first before I brought him). There is usually two dealers that come to the meetings from about 30 minutes away, but only one was there this time. He is a 30-year member of the club, and a real nice guy. He had a typical glass case of mixed items, then had smaller books of particular types of coins. I only had about 5 minutes to look at his stuff before we started.
There was 10 minutes of club business - treasurers reports, planning the July x-mas party, etc. (I live in the snow belt, so 2/3 of the members go south for the winter). They had to do the preverbal embarrass the new guys introductions, and it was on to the auction phase. They do 15 lots, then pull some door prizes, and a 20 minute break after 30 for snacks, mingling, or visiting the dealers, so that broke it up a little. I won a 1975 mint set as a door prize
. Most of this stuff was raw, but I picked up a few BU franklins and some VG Barber quarters between $4- 5.00ea in the auction. I would say 1/2 the lots sold for at least 50% of most price guides. I asked someone there if that was normal, and they said yea, it's a club thing. The few slabbed MS64/65 items went about $100 under the PCGS online guide. I'm not 100% sure yet, but most auction items are member coins with the dealers rounding out the 60 items with a % of final price going to the club.
I still don't really have an area I specialize in, so when people asked, I just kept saying I specialize in coins that make me smile when I see them. I still think I'm leaning towards Barbers though... time will tell. During the auction and while looking at the dealer items, I kept wishing I had forum members with me. There was some coal script and I wondered where is Whitby, exposition metals that could have used Jonathanb's expertise on, some commens that Dizzy could have guided me on but I might have had to apply some crayons to the slabs to add color to get him to look at them, and the gold books - I'm sure RYK, Longacre or numerous others would have come in handy. I learned the hard way I shouldn't ask dealers if they have any weenie coins very loud though.
I read some of the other club reports, and I'm not sure if my club is a "Guest speaker" presentation sort of thing like some, and I'm pretty sure we don't have any prominent members of the coin world. I think it's more a companionship and a place to gather seeing as we're in a fairly remote area. I had fun and am glad I went though.
I found the person who told me about the club, he introduced me to a few people, I bought all the various tickets (There were free door prize tickets, but you could buy additional prize tickets, 50/50 tickets, a special gold coin ticket, and I think there was one other ticket in there somewhere). I paid my $6.00 for the year and became a member. I then had about 10 minutes to look over the 60 auction lots/items and picked out a few I liked and some for my son (He stayed home, told me to check it out first before I brought him). There is usually two dealers that come to the meetings from about 30 minutes away, but only one was there this time. He is a 30-year member of the club, and a real nice guy. He had a typical glass case of mixed items, then had smaller books of particular types of coins. I only had about 5 minutes to look at his stuff before we started.
There was 10 minutes of club business - treasurers reports, planning the July x-mas party, etc. (I live in the snow belt, so 2/3 of the members go south for the winter). They had to do the preverbal embarrass the new guys introductions, and it was on to the auction phase. They do 15 lots, then pull some door prizes, and a 20 minute break after 30 for snacks, mingling, or visiting the dealers, so that broke it up a little. I won a 1975 mint set as a door prize
. Most of this stuff was raw, but I picked up a few BU franklins and some VG Barber quarters between $4- 5.00ea in the auction. I would say 1/2 the lots sold for at least 50% of most price guides. I asked someone there if that was normal, and they said yea, it's a club thing. The few slabbed MS64/65 items went about $100 under the PCGS online guide. I'm not 100% sure yet, but most auction items are member coins with the dealers rounding out the 60 items with a % of final price going to the club. I still don't really have an area I specialize in, so when people asked, I just kept saying I specialize in coins that make me smile when I see them. I still think I'm leaning towards Barbers though... time will tell. During the auction and while looking at the dealer items, I kept wishing I had forum members with me. There was some coal script and I wondered where is Whitby, exposition metals that could have used Jonathanb's expertise on, some commens that Dizzy could have guided me on but I might have had to apply some crayons to the slabs to add color to get him to look at them, and the gold books - I'm sure RYK, Longacre or numerous others would have come in handy. I learned the hard way I shouldn't ask dealers if they have any weenie coins very loud though.
I read some of the other club reports, and I'm not sure if my club is a "Guest speaker" presentation sort of thing like some, and I'm pretty sure we don't have any prominent members of the coin world. I think it's more a companionship and a place to gather seeing as we're in a fairly remote area. I had fun and am glad I went though.
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"You Suck Award" - February, 2015
Discoverer of 1919 Mercury Dime DDO - FS-101
"You Suck Award" - February, 2015
Discoverer of 1919 Mercury Dime DDO - FS-101
0
Comments
My first club meeting was pretty confusing, too, but by my third meeting I've found I'm getting into the swing of things.
Keep us posted!
Check out the Southern Gold Society
FrederickCoinClub
There are absolutely no US coin clubs here in Germany (well, I suppose that there might
be one or two on military installations somewhere - but I am kind of out of the way) and
I enjoy reading these reports, and also the show reports, of course.
Can't wait 'till next summer (07) - the big move back to Iowa after 20 years overseas (this time).
John
SFC, US Army (Ret.) 1974-1994
<< <i>Good to read that you checked out a local coin club. Was it a member club of the ANA? They had a large auction for a club. Do they have auctions at every meeting? >>
I'll have to check on the ANA at the next meeting to be sure, but I'm thinking no.
They do have auctions at every meeting from what I gather. About one week prior to the meeting they mail us a paper with a description of the items to be auctioned and an "Estimated Value". From looking at the one from last month, they are fairly close to '07 Redbook or in some cases the PCGS online guide, but the bidding starts and usually ended at about 1/2 the estimate.
Most of the members are over 65, don't own computers, and hate slabs. Almost none of them speak in MS-grades, so I have to convert the BU word grades in my head as I'm following along with them. I'm sure all of them could run circles around me numismatically, but not sure if many are up to date on the more modern things - the toning craze, wide AM cents, cheerio Sacs, state quarter errors, VAMs, etc.
I'm already going nuts waiting for 3 more weeks to pass.
"You Suck Award" - February, 2015
Discoverer of 1919 Mercury Dime DDO - FS-101
Very nice report.......PM sent you
Connor Numismatics Website
More and more these days I find myself pondering how to reconcile my net income with my gross habits." - John Nelson.
<< <i>I think these are my favorite threads. I love reading show reports and coin shop experiences and the like. Thanks for sharing.
Reading the other members club reports put me over the edge when I was debating going to this one, so figured it was the least I could do. I like reading about and looking at $200k+ coins as much as the next guy, but the chances of me ever owning one is slim to none. Every now and then I like to read about things I can buy or participate in at this point in my life.
I can't wow people with a wealth of numismatic knowledge at the moment, so you get my coin show/club reports, snoopy coin bank auction finds, antique store treasures and crappy coin photography threads for now...
"You Suck Award" - February, 2015
Discoverer of 1919 Mercury Dime DDO - FS-101
Our auctions are about the same size as yours, but some of the material is overgraded and won't draw the reserve bid. 99% of it is raw (the only slabbed coins have been a few I've put in now and then). Of the material that sells, generally "bid" prices are realized.
Good report and thanks!
Pete
Louis Armstrong
Coin clubs are cool.I belong to a few.(Like for 20 years)
I would say,get involved,and you'll have fun.
Some times,getting involved, can be a pain but,It's worth it.I've had, and still having, alot of fun in this hobby.
Good luck.
Brian