How do you respect a collector who collects what you think is junk?

seateddime

How do you respect a collector who collects what you think is junk?

Everyone should collect what they want but say for example I only collect dateless Buffalos by date. How do you get respect as a collector?

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I don't collect dateless buffalos by date for the record but that would be a neat trick.

I was interested in hearing peoples responses and found them to be most interesting.

I personally feel each collector has to collect within their own means.

I find respect in a collector who takes pride in what ever their collection is and takes time and pride to display thier collection

Louis

<< <i>How do you respect a collector who collects what you think is junk?

Everyone should collect what they want but say for example I only collect dateless Buffalos by date. How do you get respect as a collector? >>





Go see the dealer at the flea market.

Scioto

<< <i>dateless Buffalos by date >>





No respect for you!

IGWT

-- "How do you respect a collector who collects what you think is junk?" --

I say, "That's an interesting Seated Dime you have there."

RYK

One man's junk is another man's treasure. If everyone collected the same thing, the same way, imagine how boring that would be.

291fifth

Much of this hobby is ego driven (witness registry sets, as an example). The higher the value, the higher the ego satisfaction. Collectors of this ilk have always looked down on those who collect inexpensive material. This isn't going to change. It's just part of the psychological makeup of many collectors.

RickMilauskas

I may not think it's a series or type for me to collect but I'm sure I could learn something about numismatics or history from them.

I've listened to presentations on mardi gras tokens and Vietnam war script, all were informative topics.

Longacre

Being respectful to a collector of bicentennial quarters resulted in my getting a swerve on and the last available hot fudge sundae. I respect all collectors: Mamma didn't raise no fool

raycyca

I have respect for what EVERYONE collects. What if everyone collected ONLY Morgans? The demand would be unreal, prices sky high, availability would be few and far between. The commons would probably be $100! All the other coins would get melted and we would lost a LOT of our history. I have NO right to say what you collect is junk. That's why I don't bash the moderns, or the older stuff. We NEED diversity.

I do the same thing at work. I say hello and hold the doors open for the janitors and thank them for their hard work. If it weren't for them, I'd be the only one cleaning the floors, taking out the trash, cleaning patient rooms, etc. Every job is just as important. And every coin is valuable to someone. Every year, I buy 10 circulated silver dollars and hand them out to kids. Their eyes light up the size of a moon most of the time. To me it's junk, but to them, it's probably like an 1856 Flying eagle to us.

TwoSides2aCoin

<< <i>

<< <i>dateless Buffalos by date >>





No respect for you! >>


.... ! my stomach hurts from laughin....trying to figure out how you keep them in order.

With all due respect, of course


You guys are great !

rec78

Same way that you respect anyone else. I think stamps are junk. I still respect the collector. Today's junk collector could be tomorrows best buyer. A junk collector is usually just an ametuer testing the waters. Maybe the bug will catch on and maybe it will just be a passing fancy, only time will tell. Didn't we all start out this way? I did. I dont think very many collectors started out by collecting PCGS slabs in MS65 or better. Most started with junk and progressed from there. You seem to miss the point-collecting should be enjoyable-what one collects does not matter. There was a time when no one collected coins in very low condition-now there is a definite group of P1 collectors and they seem to get a fair amount of respect.--JMHO-Bob

Veep

Live and let live.

cladking

A lot of my collections are close to the bottom of the barrel so I can
relate to the collector. Some of these collections never have any chance
of appreciation or being collected by others. Some of my favorites, like
telephone tokens, I didn't even know what they were when the collection
was begun.

Collecting is largely about learning and gaining insight. It helps to under-
stand one's time or place and to see how the world has functioned in the
past. Collacting helps one in learning and spotting what is insignificant to
the uninitiated.

If I could get them and tell them apart, I'd collect the punchouts from elec-
trical boxes, but like the dateless buffs, collections of these will likely re-
main pretty small.

It seems unlikely many collectors consider "respect" even much of a contribu-
tory reason to begin a collection.

AceK

Judge not, lest you be judged.

DHeath

Generally, my opinion of other collectors has little to do with what they collect, but rather what kind of people they are. JMO

JrGMan2004

<< <i>How do you respect a collector who collects what you think is junk?

Everyone should collect what they want but say for example I only collect dateless Buffalos by date. How do you get respect as a collector? >>

I respect him because he is collecting what he likes, not collecting what someone else thinks he should like or thinks he should collect...

marmac

to each his/her own...

if putting together a dateless buffalo date set is your thing-cool enjoy. if filling sacks with dateless buffaloes is your thing, I would consider that person more of an accumulator than collector.

Collect within your financial limits and don't worry what other people think...

FatMan

<< <i>I respect him because he is collecting what he likes, not collecting what someone else thinks he should like or thinks he should collect... >>

Well said George.

LALASD4

What is junk? The other person might be having the same thought.

BlindedByEgo

People who live in glass houses, shouldn't.

KoinDawg

One collector's junk is another collector's treasure.

tradedollarnut

Recognize and respect the collecting instinct, not necessarily the collection itself.

ILikeMercs

Myqqy

Except that when someone posts a newp that's a POS, many of us (myself included) are quick to point out that it's a POS and that better examples can be found for minimal additional cost and energy- so I think many times we try to educate junk buyers to help them understand the type of quality that's available to them....

MrEureka

If someone is collecting what I consider to be complete junk and he's doing it in a diligent, intelligent and creative way, I can definitely respect him as a collector. For a perfect example, and boy do I hate to admit it, I respect Cameron as a sample slab collector.

flaminio

<< <i>How do you respect a collector who collects what you think is junk? >>

Junk gets a lot of respect from me. There's a lot of love in collecting junk -- sometimes much more so than some millionaire overbidding for some choice piece. It's all about how you feel about your coins, your love of numismatics, and the stories you tell about collecting.

mrearlygold

To each his own. I collect an item that is really going to suprise people when someday they are offered.

I like them so I collect them.

JustaRookie

Hech I can't even garner enough gumption to respect myself much less anyone else..........I collect all over the board as I like it all and just have an addiction to money in general! I am the ultimate money whore as if I am attracted to it in the least little bit then I'll make every attempt to acquire it if possible!!!

NumisOxide

I respect anyone who takes pride in what they collect. Everyone has different interests and taste.

Fairlaneman

<< <i>Much of this hobby is ego driven (witness registry sets, as an example). The higher the value, the higher the ego satisfaction. Collectors of this ilk have always looked down on those who collect inexpensive material. This isn't going to change. It's just part of the psychological makeup of many collectors. >>



291 most of the time your posts are enjoyable. This post is a bunch of bunk though !

Ken

Coxe

Good example. As kids we collected those things from change and by the sack from the local dealer. We'd bring up the dates chemically. But a big part of the fun was trying to figure out (often guess) what the date was beforehand. If one collected dateless Buffs and could discuss the range of possibilities for the dates/mms for dateless Buffs, he'd be due quite a lot of respect as an exceptional numismatist. There are a lot of collectors today who cannot grade much less understand the variation in dies and striking characteristics of the series they collect over its run. This forum, with many folks who really know these things well, is not representative of the general collecting community though.

Gemineye

Collect what you like.....and like what youcollect......
If you think it's junk ......well then it's......junk

Mercury

When I first started collecting, I am sure alot of what I loved would be considered junk. There are a number of coins in my collection that are low grade and I paid to much for. ( I try not to do this anymore) However, that does not diminish what I think of the coins or the history of the coins. I know other people dont feel the same way about my coins that I do. Therefore, who am I to judge anyones collection as being junk. My coin collection is about what I want and I like. As long as your collection is about what you like, it is not junk.

Mercury

seateddime

I don't collect dateless buffalos by date for the record but that would be a neat trick.

I was interested in hearing peoples responses and found them to be most interesting.

I personally feel each collector has to collect within their own means.

I find respect in a collector who takes pride in what ever their collection is and takes time and pride to display thier collection

cladking

<< <i>Recognize and respect the collecting instinct, not necessarily the collection itself. >>



Indeed. I have a friend who collects thimbles and can speak articulately and passionately about them for hours.

How can you not respect that?

TommyType

There's no such thing as a junk coin.....

However, it is possible to PAY too much for any coin, be it common low grade, or ultra-rare high grade.

We all collect to a budget. Respect those who know what they like, know their budget, and can match the two.

seateddime

one of the first coins I ever owned was a cull 3 cent silver coin from the 1800's and at 7 years old I thought is was just the coolest thing I ever saw until I got a big 2 cent coin from 1864 which was really worn.

I thought worn was cool because it meant it was old and I could show it to all my friends.

Artist

One time I had dinner with David Harrington of the Kronos Quartet. When I asked him what the group was working on, he produced a score written by a Native American composer - it featered lines of music cascading out from drawings of clouds. A few weeks later, while attending my sister's college graduation, I spent some time talking to her piano professor. When I asked him what he was working musically himself, he explained that he was composing a four part piece based on Native American theology. Expecting his interest, I relayed to my sister's professor the piece that David had shown me - however, he explained that because the Kronos Quartet were so eccelctic that he had trouble taking anything they did seriously.

Now, it is not everyday that Native American avante gaurde classical music comes up in conversation - indeed it is a VERY specific niche to say the least - yet instead coming together over such an obscure subject, this guy instead found a difference to dwell on and emphasized that instead.

To me, if someone collects coins, I have a HUGE thing in common with them. It doesn't matter to me what their specialty is - actually the further apart from my own interests the better since I am always interested in learning new things and about different ways to enjoy the hobby.

As an artist, a coin's design is for me its most important attribute. To bring some order to my endeavor, I collect by type, 1900 to 1950. I selected those dates because in the beginning years you have some designs that had been circulating since the 1830s, and by 1950, coinage looks pretty much as it does today. Since design is so imporant to me, I only collect Uncirculated coins - I can deal with bag marks on some of the more expensive coins in the set, but to me, wear seems equivilant to some of the design being missing.

However, a collector around here who I especially respect is Lord Marcovan. For him, it seems like history is a coin's most important quality. By collecting holed pieces, Lord Marcovan has found a way to assemble a set of coins that would be prohibitviely expensive in the grades I like - as well as garaunteed that each coin in his collection has a story to tell.

Part of what makes this hobby so great are all the ways one can approach it!

messydesk

<< <i>Good example. As kids we collected those things from change and by the sack from the local dealer. We'd bring up the dates chemically. But a big part of the fun was trying to figure out (often guess) what the date was beforehand. If one collected dateless Buffs and could discuss the range of possibilities for the dates/mms for dateless Buffs, he'd be due quite a lot of respect as an exceptional numismatist. There are a lot of collectors today who cannot grade much less understand the variation in dies and striking characteristics of the series they collect over its run. This forum, with many folks who really know these things well, is not representative of the general collecting community though. >>


An exercise to the reader over 30 is to examine how he collected coins as a child (if this is applicable). Did you respect how you built your collection of what you would likely consider junk today?

seateddime

As a collector of Seated dime I have begun to register my set on NGC.. I enjoy watching the blanks fill in the virtual world much the same as I enjoy filling up my albums. When you get down to the last few coins it is really exciting.

There are many sets ahead of mine but this is what stands out to me.

The #1 set and the #2 set. As a result of NGC scoring coins 1 if they are just off the chart quality the #2 set has many coins which are much higher grades that the # 1 set but just look at the time and effort spent on the #1 set.

This love and dedication to the series and attention to the collection makes this much more respectable to me. While you can not take away from the attraction of an 1845 O in a MS69 you can at least put up a picture.

http://www.collectors-society.com/registry/Coins/SetTypeDetail.aspx?SetTypeID=210

Coxe

<< <i>However, a collector around here who I especially respect is Lord Marcovan. For him, it seems like history is a coin's most important quality. By collecting holed pieces, Lord Marcovan has found a way to assemble a set of coins that would be prohibitviely expensive in the grades I like - as well as garaunteed that each coin in his collection has a story to tell.

Part of what makes this hobby so great are all the ways one can approach it! >>



I agree. I like his approach and see things like that as great ways to enjoy this hobby regardless of your means. AU58 is a great grade also for a lot of people. I have said it time and again that some AU58 specimens exceed the eye appeal of most MS63 of some dates and issues. (1884-S Morgans are good examples.) It's admirable to find a niche away from the stinking herd, where folks practically give away coins, and find a meaningful way to expand numismatics in doing so.

Junk is the coin you buy even though you don't like it just because it fills a hole or has the right tag on its holder.

majorbigtime

To each his of her own.

If you like moderns or overpriced b*******ner toners, so be it.

Leiana

Anyone who tries to further the hobby of Numismatics by collection something he cares about deserves respect and you would do well to to not call his collection 'junk' to his face. Although I know you wouldn't really do that.

-Amanda

PS- I like dateless buffaloes.

seateddime

if anyone called by coins junk I would look them up and down and just laugh at them.

Leiana

Seated dimes are sufficiently interesting to not be junk to most people, I think.

-Amanda

FoundingFather

People have called the colonials I collect "round pieces of dirt" or "dirt slugs." I couldn't get too upset because it was while I referred to their coins as "glorified pocket change" or "look, my mass-produced crap is a little more perfect, under magnification, than yours" coins. Failing to produce enough colonial examples that most would deem as "beautiful," I lost. Especially since I focus on the coins that have something unusual about them that tells a story (counter-stamped, holed, unusual variety, obviously used to cut tobacco on, etc.) - i.e. circulated.