"Things that the CU Forums have taught me" (...that I actually use in my collecting journe

Hyperion

There's tons of good stuff on these boards, some of which have actually influenced my day-to-day collecting habits.

1) "Simple negotiation strategy" - Ask: What's your best price for this item? Either buy it, or not.

This gives the seller a shot to give their best price, no back and forth haggling, no nit-pick negotiation, no knocking the qualities of a coin looking lower the ask, no "how much Should I be able to make on this item", no back and forth, no opportunity for 'hurt feelings' on either side. If an owner is going to make me bleed for the extra .05% that they'd normally wiggle, in most cases that's not a dealer I'd want to deal with anyway.

I now do this in almost every purchase I make.


2) Before purchasing a signifigant coin: "Would this make my box of 20?"

For non-trivial purchases, I usually think: Is this a nice enough example of what I'm looking to get, would it automatically become one of my core "top 20 coins that I'd not sell except as a last resort" coins? This typically will knock out any widgets, coins outside of my Core Interest, suppresses wasteful impulse buys, etc. If I buy a coin, it either better be for an album spot, or it'd better knock a coin outta my top 20, which Ill immediately require myself to sell.


What have you learned here (in general terms) that has affected your collecting???

zeus135

I agree with you on #1. On the 'box of 20' concept, I don't completely buy into that thinking. Some coins are 'just neat' to have, and they wouldn't make my box of 20. Sure, 10 years from now I might not agree, but today I buy some things just because they are cool.

Edited: I now see you said SIGNIFICANT purchases, so I agree with you more.

percyb

I've learned not to buy items listed on Ebay.

MadMarty

<< <i>I've learned not to buy items listed on Ebay. >>



Great! More for me!!!

PerryHall

I learned that you should only buy PCGS slabs with the CAC sticker. Anything else is overgraded junk.

rld14

<< <i>

<< <i>I've learned not to buy items listed on Ebay. >>



Great! More for me!!! >>





I have done VERY well buying off of the bay!

cladking

<< <i>There's tons of good stuff on these boards, some of which have actually influenced my day-to-day collecting habits.

1) "Simple negotiation strategy" - Ask: What's your best price for this item? Either buy it, or not.

This gives the seller a shot to give their best price, no back and forth haggling, no nit-pick negotiation, no knocking the qualities of a coin looking lower the ask, no "how much Should I be able to make on this item", no back and forth, no opportunity for 'hurt feelings' on either side. If an owner is going to make me bleed for the extra .05% that they'd normally wiggle, in most cases that's not a dealer I'd want to deal with anyway.

I now do this in almost every purchase I make.
>>




You might want to refine this a little as well.

Whenever the dealer asks something close to your best off go ahead
and make the counteroffer. You might not want to do this on every
coin or with a dealer you don't know but the dealer wouldn't want to
lose a sale over a relatively small difference of opinion. Most dealers
will always try to keep a little wiggle room and they know they can al-
ways make it up on the next sale.

Most dealers not only need to maximize what they get for each coin
but also total sale.

By the same token if all your offers are being accepted then lower your
offers; you're too high.

MadMarty

Never get in between Laura and her lunch!

RyGuy

I've learned how to differentiate between hard-to-tell examples of coins between whether or not they are AT or NT.

shake-n-bake.

Ryan

Bcsican

I have learned to change my buying habits over the years, where I use to look for the best possible examples to "my" eye in the higest grade I could find, now IM happy with the nicest example to "my" eye no matter what the grade says. It has saved me thousands of dollars, the grades can be so close but the cost of one grade point can skyrocket, many times its too difficult to justifiy the extra expense when it is hard seeing the difference unless under magnification....the boards have been the best place getting information as well as opinions of anything coin related, even our pocket change moderns which IM a big fan of especially the high grade platinum one ounce Liberty, and one ounce gold eagle...

MarkInDavis

Be patient. There are lots more coins out there.

MidLifeCrisis

Before purchasing a signifigant coin: "Would this make my box of 20?"



The "box of 20" concept is an important part of my collecting strategy. Like most people, I only have a limited amount of money to spend on coins and I'd rather use that money to buy fewer, better coins. I learned this and a few other things from forum members.

I also learned the differences between true rarity, condition rarity, and relative rarity. This is important because it can give you some perspective about popular key date coins. This has caused me to change my collecting focus.

Hyperion

<< <i>Be patient. There are lots more coins out there. >>



easy to understand, difficult to master...

lcoopie

that there are coins that just make the grade,
and those that just fail to make the next higher grade

and they are graded the same

and I prefer the later

PerryHall

<< <i>that there are coins that just make the grade,
and those that just fail to make the next higher grade

and they are graded the same

and I prefer the later >>



Unfortunately, these coins are usually priced at the next higher grade.

lcoopie

<< <i>

<< <i>that there are coins that just make the grade,
and those that just fail to make the next higher grade

and they are graded the same

and I prefer the later >>



Unfortunately, these coins are usually priced at the next higher grade. >>

razzle

I have learned to hoard boxes of 20.

Seriously, though I agree with most of the above, the advice from this board which keeps coming back to me is, " buy the book first." Love it. The library is growing. Secondly, and related, is "learn to grade for yourself."

Again, my thanks to all those here who have been motivated enough to ask questions, and those who so patiently answer from an unbelievable knowledge base. My thanks, too, to PCGS for hosting this board. Great for the hobby.

My two resolutions for 2009: 1. I pledge to not use acronyms here which may not be understood by young collectors or new posters.
2. I will avoid the temptation to make private jokes here, for the same reason.

lcoopie

a biggie,

coin photography

ChrisRx

Not sure I can say I learned it here but in the last year I have had more focus.

Walkerguy21D

1. Buy nice VF-AU barber halves anytime you are offered them near sheet prices. I also have a list of 'sleeper dates' I take to shows.
2. Counterfeit coins are much more prevelant than I once believed, especially seated dollars and trade dollars.
3. Slabs offer some protection from #2, but make sure the slab itself is not counterfeit!

mirabela

I agree with a lot of the OP, but I will still allow the impulse buy if I am confident I can easily get out of the coin whole or with a profit.

Along with that --

I have learned not to fall in love with my coins. I can enjoy their stay with me, and send them away happy to know that someone else will take pleasure in them too.

I have learned about many complexities that go into evaluating the quality of a coin, beyond simply assigning it a numerical grade.

I have learned about many complexities that go into pricing a given coin in a given market situation.

I have learned, or been brought around to see, that a core part of an intelligent collecting strategy is to save gem examples of things that are available at or near face value. Eliasberg would not have had his collection if Clapp had not been doing that.

I have learned to love disagreement, as without it the marketplace would offer many fewer opportunities.

MidLifeCrisis

With the help of a fellow forum member, I have learned that I like milk chocolate copper the most.

lasvegasteddy

the subject of rarity versus what i used to think it was all about

and to put my foot in my mouth is better then someone's else foot in my butt