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I saw something pretty painful at the coin store: Ex HSN coins

kiyotekiyote Posts: 5,585 ✭✭✭✭✭
in U.S. Coin Forum
My dealer has about two dozen plastic cases marked "Westward Journey Nickels, platinum edition". The set contained a P and D nickel with a micron of platinum coating. I remembered these being sold on HSN. (They were not available anywhere else, folks, hurry on these!) It's depressing to think someone paid good money for them, but it's even more depressing to think what my dealer offered the seller.

They were all marked $2.00 a set. :/

"I'll split the atom! I am the fifth dimension! I am the eighth wonder of the world!" -Gef the talking mongoose.

Comments

  • DeadhorseDeadhorse Posts: 3,720 ✭


    << <i>My dealer has about two dozen plastic cases marked "Westward Journey Nickels, platinum edition". The set contained a P and D nickel with a micron of platinum coating. I remembered these being sold on HSN. (They were not available anywhere else, folks, hurry on these!) It's depressing to think someone paid good money for them, but it's even more depressing to think what my dealer offered the seller.

    They were all marked $2.00 a set. :/ >>



    Sadly, I've seen worse. I've watched clueless folks bring in Coin Vault crap. They were ripped for thousands and thousands.

    "Lenin is certainly right. There is no subtler or more severe means of overturning the existing basis of society(destroy capitalism) than to debauch the currency. The process engages all the hidden forces of economic law on the side of destruction, and it does it in a manner which not one man in a million is able to diagnose."
    John Marnard Keynes, The Economic Consequences of the Peace, 1920, page 235ff
  • BECOKABECOKA Posts: 16,961 ✭✭✭
    ANA should pay the TV channel that hosts coin vault to put an infomercial about coin vault and the rip offs for a half hour before it starts. image
  • GritsManGritsMan Posts: 2,599 ✭✭✭
    See my new poll. I am intrigued about this...
    Winner of the Coveted Devil Award June 8th, 2010
  • GemineyeGemineye Posts: 5,374 ✭
    The bastiges who sold those coated coins on their shows should be strung up by their image.............
    ......Larry........image
  • PerryHallPerryHall Posts: 46,435 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Did you ever buy a coin collection that was bought from Littleton? image

    Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
    "Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
    "Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire

  • GrumpyEdGrumpyEd Posts: 4,749 ✭✭✭
    I laugh when those TV shows sell the plated coins and rave that they're "GEM UNC"!!!!

    Yea right try getting it graded, they should say "it was a GEM before we ruined it" image
    Ed
  • SwampboySwampboy Posts: 13,051 ✭✭✭✭✭


    << <i>Did you ever buy a coin collection that was bought from Littleton? image >>



    yes. not pretty.

    "Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working" Pablo Picasso

  • GrumpyEdGrumpyEd Posts: 4,749 ✭✭✭
    I saw lot's of coins in cellos from Littleton at a dealer, I gasped because I thought the numbers on the cellos were the price someone had paid. The dealer was laughing and said those are item numbers but they weren't exactly bargains either.

    Atleast they didn't ruin the coins with plating like the TV sellers.

    image
    Ed
  • phillymattphillymatt Posts: 170
    Same here, my coin dealer sadly too has that lots of that plastic crap wrapped coins in those holders and bought them cheap and sells them cheap, they have dust on them.
    I've seen them in his store for years. Nobody wants that junk. Sadly the original buyers are probably now non-collectors.
    Sure, we want to go home. We want this war over with. The quickest way to get it over with is to go get the bastards who started it. The quicker they are whipped, the quicker we can go home. - General George S. Patton
  • kiyotekiyote Posts: 5,585 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Was it Inside Editon that did a special on this very topic? It was blistering. I saw the Franklin Mint ripped a new one on exposes, too. Someone complained that their "Wizard of Oz" silver one oz set should be worth $40.00 a coin and the dealer brought out a 5 gallon bucket filled with Franklin Mint crap that he just threw in there as junk silver.
    "I'll split the atom! I am the fifth dimension! I am the eighth wonder of the world!" -Gef the talking mongoose.
  • DeadhorseDeadhorse Posts: 3,720 ✭


    << <i>Did you ever buy a coin collection that was bought from Littleton? image >>



    Sure have. Just last night, I got a call from an older guy who is about to retire and he asked if I would be interested in a full set of Buff nickels. After a bit more conversation, I learned they all came from Littleton over the last several decades. Haven't seen them yet, but I'm expecting cleaned and probably several whizzed poor condition coins since he told me they were almost all bright and shiny. Oh Yeah, he's also got batch of Peace Dollars as well and they were UNC according to Littleton. I know those will be cleaned and somewhere between F and maybe AU. He said he had paid between $35 and $120 each for them over many years. I mentioned the '21 and '28, he said he didn't have those years.

    It might not be a pretty scene.
    "Lenin is certainly right. There is no subtler or more severe means of overturning the existing basis of society(destroy capitalism) than to debauch the currency. The process engages all the hidden forces of economic law on the side of destruction, and it does it in a manner which not one man in a million is able to diagnose."
    John Marnard Keynes, The Economic Consequences of the Peace, 1920, page 235ff
  • BECOKABECOKA Posts: 16,961 ✭✭✭


    << <i>

    << <i>Did you ever buy a coin collection that was bought from Littleton? image >>



    Sure have. Just last night, I got a call from an older guy who is about to retire and he asked if I would be interested in a full set of Buff nickels. After a bit more conversation, I learned they all came from Littleton over the last several decades. Haven't seen them yet, but I'm expecting cleaned and probably several whizzed poor condition coins since he told me they were almost all bright and shiny. Oh Yeah, he's also got batch of Peace Dollars as well and they were UNC according to Littleton. I know those will be cleaned and somewhere between F and maybe AU. He said he had paid between $35 and $120 each for them over many years. I mentioned the '21 and '28, he said he didn't have those years.

    It might not be a pretty scene. >>



    You will have to report back.
  • BlindedByEgoBlindedByEgo Posts: 10,754 ✭✭✭✭✭


    << <i>Did you ever buy a coin collection that was bought from Littleton? image >>



    Yes... Depressing.

    Check out my current listings: https://ebay.com/sch/khunt/m.html?_ipg=200&_sop=12&_rdc=1

  • FredWeinbergFredWeinberg Posts: 5,877 ✭✭✭✭✭
    I'll bet that they are NOT whizzed, cleaned, or overgraded coins,
    unless your customer cleaned them himself.

    Littleton is very picky when they buy coins, and their coins
    are nice pieces.
    Retired Collector & Dealer in Major Mint Error Coins & Currency since the 1960's.Co-Author of Whitman's "100 Greatest U.S. Mint Error Coins", and the Error Coin Encyclopedia, Vols., III & IV. Retired Authenticator for Major Mint Errors for PCGS. A 50+ Year PNG Member.A full-time numismatist since 1972, retired in 2022.
  • PerryHallPerryHall Posts: 46,435 ✭✭✭✭✭


    << <i>I'll bet that they are NOT whizzed, cleaned, or overgraded coins,
    unless your customer cleaned them himself.

    Littleton is very picky when they buy coins, and their coins
    are nice pieces. >>



    And grossly overpriced. My sister bought me a birthyear set (1947) from Littleton and every coin was cleaned bright and a few were polished.








    Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
    "Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
    "Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire

  • rheddenrhedden Posts: 6,630 ✭✭✭✭✭
    I cannot imagine Littleton selling cleaned or whizzed pieces. Having sold to them many times, I can say that Littleton generally won't purchase any coin that PCGS would bodybag. They even reject some that PCGS would grade, for trivial stuff like weak strike or lack of full rims.
  • DeadhorseDeadhorse Posts: 3,720 ✭


    << <i>

    << <i>

    << <i>Did you ever buy a coin collection that was bought from Littleton? image >>



    Sure have. Just last night, I got a call from an older guy who is about to retire and he asked if I would be interested in a full set of Buff nickels. After a bit more conversation, I learned they all came from Littleton over the last several decades. Haven't seen them yet, but I'm expecting cleaned and probably several whizzed poor condition coins since he told me they were almost all bright and shiny. Oh Yeah, he's also got batch of Peace Dollars as well and they were UNC according to Littleton. I know those will be cleaned and somewhere between F and maybe AU. He said he had paid between $35 and $120 each for them over many years. I mentioned the '21 and '28, he said he didn't have those years.

    It might not be a pretty scene. >>



    You will have to report back. >>



    Gladly. We're not meeting till next week at my bank. Given that some of them were bought 35 years ago, he may not lose money, but I think he could have done much better with a simple savings account. He was buying some of those Peace Dollars back when silver was sky high. He has a few other odds and ends as well, so we'll see. He says the Buff set is complete with both type '13 nickels, so it's a matter of condition.
    "Lenin is certainly right. There is no subtler or more severe means of overturning the existing basis of society(destroy capitalism) than to debauch the currency. The process engages all the hidden forces of economic law on the side of destruction, and it does it in a manner which not one man in a million is able to diagnose."
    John Marnard Keynes, The Economic Consequences of the Peace, 1920, page 235ff
  • DeadhorseDeadhorse Posts: 3,720 ✭


    << <i>I'll bet that they are NOT whizzed, cleaned, or overgraded coins,
    unless your customer cleaned them himself.

    Littleton is very picky when they buy coins, and their coins
    are nice pieces. >>



    We'll see, but I'm not holding out any hopes for real gems. I've seen some of their stuff that was cleaned, etc. No, I can't say if those people bought them that way, however I suspect many of them did. A few years ago, one guy came out and told me he used pencil erasers on a batch of IHCs, so who knows what they looked like to start with?
    "Lenin is certainly right. There is no subtler or more severe means of overturning the existing basis of society(destroy capitalism) than to debauch the currency. The process engages all the hidden forces of economic law on the side of destruction, and it does it in a manner which not one man in a million is able to diagnose."
    John Marnard Keynes, The Economic Consequences of the Peace, 1920, page 235ff
  • PrivateCoinCollectorPrivateCoinCollector Posts: 2,415 ✭
    I have bought many collections with Littleton stuff in it. The coins come in little softplastic bags/holders. Seemed to be graded OK, and did not generally see anything polished or whizzed. I did see invoices for what they paid for the coins (wow) and they do tend to be fairly worn coins.
    Morgan HerdTO Gold Mine
  • tjkilliantjkillian Posts: 5,578 ✭✭✭
    Littleton charges way too much, but generally their coins are properly graded and not bodybag material.
    Tom

  • habaracahabaraca Posts: 2,037 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Let it rest

    God is judging him now

  • mnmcoinmnmcoin Posts: 2,165 ✭


    << <i>I'll bet that they are NOT whizzed, cleaned, or overgraded coins,
    unless your customer cleaned them himself.

    Littleton is very picky when they buy coins, and their coins
    are nice pieces. >>



    image

    'Zactly what I was thinking!

    morris

    "Repent, for the kindom of heaven is at hand."
    ** I would take a shack on the Rock over a castle in the sand !! **
    Don't take life so seriously...nobody gets out alive.

    ALL VALLEY COIN AND JEWELRY
    28480 B OLD TOWN FRONT ST
    TEMECULA, CA 92590
    (951) 757-0334

    www.allvalleycoinandjewelry.com

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