Why do you collect moderns (Post-1964)

tjkillian

Why do modern collectors collect modern coins?

coinsarefun

Because I like them

ahooka454

every cool error i have or dbl die has been plucked from circulation and the modern mint/proof sets are full of interesting finds....

LindeDad

Because I can!!!!!!

cladking

I got interested in them as a circulating coin.

I wasn't really collecting them because they seemed so incredibly common
and the FED kept releasing old clads that were still brand new because they
got caught in the back of a warehouse somewhere. When it was announced
that they were going to start rotating their stocks it seemed like an easy way
to make quick money by setting aside new coin.

By the time I realized it wasn't going to be so easy I knew a little about the
coins and was hooked as a collector.

Russ

Because they are EXTREMELY difficult to locate in high grade deep cameo.

Russ, NCNE

TwoSides2aCoin

I have this thing for shiney new coins.

OPA

Variety... not only in designs, but also in price.

Boothill40

I was born in 64 and I just like them.

FLBuffaloHunter

Because todays Moderns are tomorrows Modern classics

Leonidas

A picture paints a thousand words.

vplite

Because many are a virtual bullion proxy.

lonelyp

I voted OTHER,
Affordable, is also a big part.

I was born in 61, and no longer feel all that modern myself.

Walkers and Mercs are Clasic enough for me. even if I do dabble in slightly older series now and then. (Morgan and Peace dollars)

ricko

I like the ASE's and AGE's.... not to mention Buffs, Walkers and Mercs..... and Carson City Morgans... hmmmm... I like coins... Cheers, RickO

rec78

I voted other--i collect all us coins and need them for albums. They are not my favorite coins by far. Bob

edited to add---i meant that i collect all coins intended for circulation--not modern commemmoratives.

19Lyds

For the exact same reason that others collect classics!

Thats my story and I'm sticking to it!

hockeyfan9

Because it is all I can afford.

lordmarcovan

I don't, for the most part.

However, were I to collect modern coins, my motive would likely be interesting and/or attractive designs. Collecting them as pieces of art, in other words.

I prefer to collect older coins, for their history (and a little of the previously mentioned artistry, too, at the same time).

With modern coins, you lose out on the history end of it but as a compensation, you often get better-quality material that is made to a higher technological standard. (DCAM Proofs, for example).

It can balance out. I'm still a little biased towards the history end of things (as evidenced by my current pursuit of Roman Imperial coins), but for beauty/quality/affordability, moderns offer a lot.

And, as our esteemed Cladking taught me a decade or more ago, moderns can have their own rarities and sleepers, too, even without considering errors and varieties.

lordmarcovan

I should add that modern coins often lend themselves better to a particular theme, too (the Statehood quarters/Presidential dollars/First Spouse coins being just a few examples). I personally find that collecting along a theme of some sort is preferable to just randomly accumulating pieces because you like them. If I didn't stick to a theme, I'd be all over the place. There's nothing inherently wrong with that, but having a theme and sticking to it, even if it's just a basic date & mint set, makes things more fun.

It's not always so easy with older coins, especially the really old ones. As an example to the contrary, with my Roman coin collection, which is a portrait set by emperor/empress, I have to skip some because they're unobtainable. Some are unique or limited to just a few pieces in museums. It makes them harder to assemble into a "completable" set, and for some collectors, myself included, one has to pursue a goal which is attainable, eventually. For my set, I use a database which lists emperor rarities with ratings from 1-9, and I'm forced to omit the R-8 and R-9 coins. Some Roman rulers, particularly in the later Empire, are only known to have struck gold coins, and all ancient gold is tough to get. If ancient coins were easier to collect, more people would do it, and the prices would be a lot steeper. MOST of the coins in my set are much scarcer (not to mention 1,600+ years OLDER) than a 1909-S VDB Lincoln cent or 1916-D Mercury dime, for example, but supply and demand issues keep their prices down. More collectors for that Lincoln cent or Merc dime mean those particular US coins are worth more.

Additionally, for modern coins, the albums and supplies necessary to properly house and organize a coin collection are far more readily available.

One shouldn't forget that today's "modern junk" is often tomorrow's sought-after sleeper.

ElKevvo

I collect them because they are mostly affordable, easier to obtain (except as Russ mentioned in the higher grades), and several of them, especially the Commems, are nicely designed. I am including NCLT in my definition of 'Moderns'...

K

Zoins

Some are historically significant

FatMan

I collect NCLT from the mint because they are affordable, sometimes attractive, mindless, and help pass the time while I collect real coins. I know this will sound harsh to some, but it is the truth. The NCLT gives me something to do leaving me free to be extremely patient in finding the right coins for my Dahlonega and Early Commem collections.

TwoSides2aCoin

It's not that Beanie Babies™ are bad

Zoins

<< <i>I collect NCLT from the mint because they are affordable, sometimes attractive, mindless, and help pass the time while I collect real coins. I know this will sound harsh to some, but it is the truth. The NCLT gives me something to do leaving me free to be extremely patient in finding the right coins for my Dahlonega and Early Commem collections. >>

Some people will debate whether early commem are "real coins," as opposed to NCLT.

FatMan

<< <i>

<< <i>I collect NCLT from the mint because they are affordable, sometimes attractive, mindless, and help pass the time while I collect real coins. I know this will sound harsh to some, but it is the truth. The NCLT gives me something to do leaving me free to be extremely patient in finding the right coins for my Dahlonega and Early Commem collections. >>

Some people will debate whether early commem are "real coins," as opposed to NCLT. >>

Good point.

tjkillian

Wow, this is a first: a thread on modern coins and not one post bashing them. Have we wised up and now let folks choose what they wish to collect without regard to what we, ourselves, prefer?

I think we all have seen the light.


Me, I prefer 18th and 19th century coins for their beauty and their history. I wish they were cheaper and more available, but I will continue.

Happy New Year, now it the time to start drinking (and not driving.)

Sotty

Because I collect all the coins of a given year. so I need them to
keep up to date. All 34-07 bu coins and 50-07 proof sets.

garsmith

At first I collected Sacies because they reminded me of the girl in my dreams. Now I collect them because the girl of my dreams is my wife and they remind me of her!

morgansforever

Affordable and available.

Not to mention pullin nice FS examples out of a rolls, from the bank

Everything was modern at one time or another, even 09S VDB's.

oxy8890

Because they go with the rest of my Lincoln and Type sets.

Konahead

Here is an idea, I collect what I like and I don't care if it is 400 or 1 year old. Better question is why don't you collect modern coins? IMHO

jmski52

Because if I didn't, I wouldn't be able to post all of the aggravating rebuttals to the elitists who think that classic coins have a lock on collectability.