Why do you collect the series you collect?

SkyMan

Assuming there is a specific series that floats your boat, how did you get interested in it? (Oh, and a picture or three would be nice).

I like to collect Franklins. I was born in 1958 and the largest coin minted that year was a Franklin, so that is more or less how I got started. I first became interested in cameo Franklins, and then over time migrated more to toned business strike Franklins.

Barndog

I initially intended to collect Capped Bust Half Dimes in the form of a year set (1829-1837) in higher AU grades as a way to collect something old, cool, and not too expensive. I figured nine coins wouldn't be too difficult to do and might be rewarding. When I first started out I had no idea about die marriages. Die marriages changed everything.

Anyway, here's the first half dime I ever owned:

LanLord

I collect everything I can, however, I consider my favourite series to be the Capped Bust coins.

I collect those because when my father died in 1995, there were two nice condition (although obviously dipped to hell) bust half dollars
in the coin set he left to me.

I looked at them and began finding die cracks and evidence of die clashes. That made me wonder if other bust coins had those too.
I began with a coin or two every now and then, eventually wondering if I could do a date set, then a die marriage set, then an "all you
can get set".

BillJones

I collect U.S. type coins, 19th century political and presidential campaign tokens, medalets and medals, and I dabble in other things, like paper money from time to time. My interest in history is what drives me. I find it fascinating to have items that were made and were in use when certain events were or occurring or some historical figure lived or was in power.

I like type coins because they give me a change to collect a little of everything. I like to learn a lot about coins I don’t own and probably never will own. As a collector I’ve learned that I have to maintain some direction and not just grab anything that might strike my fancy at the moment.

As for type coins, this 1805 dime got me hooked on early U.S. pieces. This piece inspired me to acquire more coins from this era.



As for my political collection, it's hard to say which piece got me started, but here is one of my favorites. This was among the first peices that were issued during Abraham Lincoln's 1860 run for the presidency. Most examples are known in white metal; this one is in copper. It's not rare, but it took me several years to find one.



And here is another scarcer Lincoln piece that was issued after the first shots upon Fort Sumpter.

ocon4008

I hoard coins I like; mostly Morgans, but I will hoard key dates as well.

ambro51

Ive been collecting the gold dollar series with a passion for over a year now, and Im about at the halfway point to completion. Gold dollars offer a few things that make them extremely interesting...each coin and MM has its own story to tell, and learning about the coins has been as much fun as owning them. I think the series is EXTREMELY undervalued in todays market and gold dollars are an excellent long term collection that can keep me entertained on a high level for years to come. Once the set is completed, it will rank as one of only a FEW gold dollar sets ever put together...and can be considered a lifetime numismatic achievement. Considering the amazingly low surviving population of many of the coins, perhaps a dozen or so exist in numbers between 30 and 70 pieces.....the challenge sometimes is actually finding the coins for sale in the grade you collect in, and Ive decided that AU is the way to go with these coins.

The series is JUST difficult enough to make it damn near impossible.....and thats what I like about it. The 'road less travelled' is always the most interesting. When people say "they are small", all I can say is, well, what size slab is your morgan dollar in?

dsessom

The first coin I can remember sparking my interest in numismatics was a Barber quarter that one of my best friends had when I was about 12 years old. I don't even remember what date it was, but it seems like it was an 1899. One of my best friends had a small collection and got me interested for a few years - from age 12 to 14. When I got interested in girls, I sort of forgot about coins until a couple of years ago. I am still fond of Barbers, but my two favorite series are Liberty nickels and Ike dollars. An odd combination I know...

My newest addition to my AU58 V Nickel set:



My favorite Ike dollar - 1972P Type 2 PCGS MS62:



And, my favorite Barber: 1899P PCGS AU58

CEOGBOSE

Peace Dollars and Eisenhower Dollars. My Grandfather use to bring me an Ike every time he came back from a trip to Reno when I was a kid.

Billet7

Early quarters, Seated quarters, and Early copper (pre 1815...but if you have an 1815 US copper, I will take it off your hands )

I just like them. I generally collect stuff that has been circulated...I like it that way, it's a real coin that has been used...it has some history. Not a lifetime looking at the underside of someone's cabinet.

Of course that could be justification for not being able to afford high grade early coins.

crazyhounddog

I collect buffalo nickels:Beating Heart; I just love the way the design fills up the planchet and the toning on the alloy 75% copper & 25% nickel is always very eye pleasing ....

kryptonitecomics

I have always prefered Morgan dollars to any other series because of their size and design and history. The fact that it is easy to find spectacularly toned examples just about everyone adds to my love of the series. I am not a set builder.....I pick each coin on it's own merit and have no problems having multiples of the same date and mint mark as long as they have good eye appeal.


One of my favorites...

coinkid855

I like Morgans...You get a lot of bang for your buck, they tone easily and attractively, and you can find varieties worth a ton more than you paid for them:

Edited to add: Also, the history aspect is cool as well.












-Paul

chumley

morgans have always done it for me....I think its a combination of the bulk of them ,the design and the historical component of whose pocket may this have been in?

Sonorandesertrat

Several decades ago, I completed sets of Standing Liberty quarters and Barber halves, in AU55-58 because that was what I could afford. I also finished a DANSCO 7070 album with the gold page---this exercise taught me a lot about other types of coins. Then I left the hobby for 25 years. I have always been a book collector, and numismatic books sparked my interest in pre-twentieth-century coinage, tokens, and medals. Today, I am collecting type coins/medals/tokens from the 18th and 19th centuries, because I don't have the patience to attack a long coin series anymore.

Steve27

As a kid, I liked silver coins, but I could only afford to collect dimes out of circulation, and my favorite type were Mercs. I finally finished my set a couple years ago with this purchase:



As an adult I found Carson City coins to be very appealing (particularly after my father gave me his GSA coins):






And more recently I have become a type collector, and a world coin collector:

Lakesammman

Private gold - for private reasons.

Just kidding - interesting monetary history, stories of pioneers stepping in to meet the needs of local commerce, beautiful coins ....... and it only takes 6 coins to complete a regional type set (Georgia, Carolina, California, Utah, Denver, Oregon City).

dizzyfoxx

I collect the series I collect because the series I collect is very collectible. (say that ten times fast!)

SkyMan

Some fun stuff guys!

fcloud

It is easy to collect the most beautiful minor coin the US has ever created...

Barbercoin

Aa a young boy back in the 60's pennies got me interested, probably because of the 55 double-die craze. Later as an adult, I liked basically anything; buffalo, mercs, and walkers. I was all over the place, with no particular direction.

While working part-time for a dealer/friend of mine in the mid-eighties, he suggested XF Barber Quarters. He said years down the road, they would pay for themselves many times over. That sounded good to me, and "off I went".

Sadly, I still haven't completed a set, but I loved the journey.

doh

They're hard to find and I love the thrill of the hunt!

tydye

I collect these by overton. Started with a date set 10+ years ago and have never lost interest. I guess why these one has held my interest is the fact that I can almost comtinually add coins to the collection. Other sets I have done in the past usually get completed in a year or two and then I lose interest or have one big stopper that also ends my interest

TennesseeDave

I mainly collect Capped Bust half dollars and Trade dollars now.I just love the way they look in problem free circulated condition.

IGWT

I started collecting Lincoln 1c, Jefferson 5c, and Roosevelt 10c from circulation when I was a kid. I wasn't at all familiar with earlier coinage. One day, when I was about 12 years old, my mother unearthed an 1883 shield nickel while we were weeding the vegetable garden . I had no idea what it was; then, after I was able to identify it by referring to the Red Book, I thought I had died and gone to heaven. It’s quite corroded, but the details are still sharp, suggesting that it had dropped out of someone’s pocket before it had seen much circulation. That one nickel, which I still have, was my "most valuable" coin for many years.

Pulling my childhood collection out of storage to share with my daughters rekindled my interest a few years ago. That lonely shield nickel and the memories that it evoked called me to collect the series. My interest has since deepened and broadened. First, a lot of history took place during the post-Civil War years. This turning point in our nation – everything from politics to our monetary system – is reflected in the Shield Nickel series. Second, the die varieties in the series reveal information about the minting process that “perfect” coins keep secret. I don’t think there’s another type with varieties listed in the Red Book for both the first and last years of issuance. The well-known varieties of 1866 and 1883 are bookends with volumes of varieties between them. Third, I can afford to tell a story that spans 18 years without any branch mint issues (well, not so much considering all the varieties).

erwindoc

I like Roosevelt dimes. Their small size and relative unpopularity means you can find amazing coins in superb grades for much less than other series. The silver ones can also tone the colors of a rainbow!

MidLifeCrisis

History.

Actually, I've been thinking about why I collect colonial era coins for a little while - since I saw this thread. All the reasons I can think of really are some aspect of history. It just fascinates me to hold a 17th or 18th century coin that has some connection to the formation of early America.

Here are some reasons that I borrowed from the Colonial Coin Collector's Club:
Collecting colonial numismatic material allows you to avoid the monotony of collecting regular U.S. Mint issue coins by variety or type.

The number of different types and varieties is much greater.

It also allows you the thrill of chasing many rare varieties which still remain surprisingly affordable compared to U.S. Mint coins of similar rarity.

You can also enjoy comparing the wide variety in style and craftsmanship found.

There is a special charm to the crudeness of some of the coins, as well as great beauty to be found in some of the tokens, medals, and currency designs of the period.

You can learn about the colonial economy, about the relations between England and her colonies, and the relations between England and the rest of Europe and America.

Equally fascinating are the stories of entrepreneurs of the time such as John Hull, William Wood, Dr. Samuel Higley, John Chalmers, James Jarvis, Gouvemeur Morris, Capt. Thomas Machin and the many businessmen and rogues that participated in the state coinage business during the Confederation period.

yellowkid

I was drawn to the commems when I collected briefly in the 70's and again when I started a couple of years ago. I think it is the variety that appealed to me, I never cared much for collecting a lot of one issue. I do collect types also, and tokens.

RYK

If I collected something different, I would have to change my nickname here.

melvin289

My first love was 3¢ Nickels. After a while I couldn't find them anymore. This was before the internet and I had to rely on local sources. I drove to Charlotte once a week to a B&M. there was a post man that frequented the shop who collected early commems. I was in the shop the day he bought his 144th and final commem. He carried them in a brief case in 2 x 2's. I thought to myself now there's a nice set of coins. To date I have 74 of the 144 and like the Booker T. Washingtons and Carver/Washingtons above all. Both are under appreciated coins.

The commems represent all that is good and bad about our country. They run the gamut from honest to goodness causes that need to be commemorated to greed and corruption.

Ron

TwoSides2aCoin

...because I like errors/varieties, and most series have that. So it's not a series I collect, per se... rather coins in the series.

BillyKingsley

It's all about the history for me. History is one of if not my favorite topic, and when I discovered the history aspects of coinage, I was hooked.

Unfortunatly for me, a lot of older history is out of my price range. But I am happy to collect the modern circulating coinage by date/mintmark. (I do every series of US coinage currently in production, although access to half dollars and dollars is limited)

For one, it is accessible. I can go to the bank any day I want and get some rolls to search (My primary source for new coins for my collection.)

Two, it's fairly cheap. Whenever I go roll hunting, about two times a month, I usually get four rolls of cents. I can usually afford to set $4 a month aside for my collection, and the rejects go back in the spending jar anyway.

Three, complete sets are not easy, yet are not unobtainable either. I've been doing this for almost two years now and there are still some dates I have not found in any condition. Sure, I could buy them, but I enjoy the thrill of the hunt.

Four, today's present is tomorrow's history. Sure, today might not be exciting too much, but it will be history someday. I'm sure as well that someday I will be nostalgic for today. Heck, I would give practically anything to go back to the 1990s. I see no reason that the same won't happen with the 2000s or 2010s eventually.

Five: There is nothing quite like the feeling of tearing into a roll of coins and seeing a shiny new example looking back at you amid the moldy, scuzzy examples that make up 1/4 of all the rolls! Find something really old, and it's a high for a week. Way more fun then drugs or alcohol would be, I would guess (I have not ever done either, nor will I, by choice!) So far the oldest I have found is a 1912 cent, I found it about a month ago and I'm still happy about it! Again, the thrill of the hunt.

I also collect world coins and currency, both world and US. While I can't search rolls of world coinage, I can buy mixed pounds and the thrill of the hunt aspect is there in that. You never know what you will find. So far I've found as far back as 1893 and as new as 2009.

Lewy

Lewy

Because (as far as I know), I am the 'only' person who does collect this series.

Ed1840

I inherited one, and now I have many. Oldies but Goodies.

Quarternut

Capped Bust Coins...cause their dripping with history and so freakin !

Nuff said!




QN

OKbustchaser

Aw, come on Steve. Can't you find any coins that haven't been damaged?

ProofArtworkonCircs

Dsessom, your 1972 IKE looks like the scarcer March release.

AuroraBorealis

That`s cool "SkyMan" what sparked your interest in digging collecting Frankies and you posted two very different but VERY cool coins...I would have to say my interest in the 2 series i like the best started back on my dads farm and in our shop in my dads dusty old wooden desk every time i went in for a pencil there was a bunch of beat up old coins sliding around...Everything from a few Peace and Morgan Dollars to Walkers, Frankies, Buffalo Nickels, Merc Dimes a bunch of Wheaties and a few Indian Pennies...Just kicking around anytime anyone went in the desk...lol (I miss those days!) But out of those i would have to say the Morgans and the Indian Pennies i dug the most and is that same way to this day...Here`s a few with my last Morgan fairly new my partner in crime held it for a quick shot...

AB

Quarternut

<< <i>Aw, come on Steve. Can't you find any coins that haven't been damaged? >>



Sorry, sold all my un-damaged Bust Halves a couple of years back (at the height of the market )

All I have are errors, counterstamps, love tokens, etc.

Now Bust Quarters are another story...

QN

Elcontador

I began collecting Liberty Nickels in PC 6 because they were the only type coin I could find which at the time was available and not butt ugly (note, I don't consider IHCs to be type coins). The type coins were not hideously expensive, either.

Trime

TRIMES (The under appreciated and under collected series):
While my collections run the spectrum of US, Canadian coins my passion has been the 3CS series. I selected this series many years ago because the mintages were low and the # of collectors even lower. Thus, I could acquire a first rate gem collection of MS and proof coins at a fraction of the cost of a more popular (widely collected) series. I expanded into 3CN as a natural extension of fractional odd denomination coins. In both relatively short series there are some difficult coins to locate but no absolute stoppers (except type 1 3CS proofs). Not too surprisingly there are many pattern coins in this denomination to tweak the interest. While not usual coins for investor/collector types, they had nowhere to go than up in value as new collectors discover these under promoted coins. I will not be surprised if the soon to be released and only comprehensive book on 3CS acts as a catalyst for interest and enhances the cost of new acquisitions. Think of the difference in cost of a MS 1901-S Barber quarter and a 1868 MS 3CS of similar grade ; then look at the mintages and POP #s. If you want even rarer but actually easier to find low mintage dates consider the virtues of Type 2 3CS proofs. Total #s are so small that adding a dozen new serious collectors to the fold would make each coin hard to compete for. Downside: need glasses as these are truly fish scales ;-).

bluelobster

I lke to collect type coins. and I agree with Bill about the reasons why it allows you to open your collector interest to many series, without getting to stuck on filling holes.
But I am a right brained individual, I think it's safe to assume left brained collectors(probably the vast majority) like to collect more within set parameters and would tend to focus on a series and would be much more specialized in there collecting habits.

I keep moving to older coins generally with my last purchase a Fugio, which I think are one of the coolest coins out there

TwoSides2aCoin

As long as we keep having presidents, I'll keep collecting a piece of our history. And remember kids :
They ran out of land a long time ago. Get some National Park quarters before it's too late .

AuroraBorealis

<< <i>I began collecting Liberty Nickels in PC 6 because they were the only type coin I could find which at the time was available and not butt ugly (note, I don't consider IHCs to be type coins). The type coins were not hideously expensive, either. >>



http://typesets.wikidot.com/indian-head-cent


AB

AuroraBorealis

<< <i>

<< <i>I began collecting Liberty Nickels in PC 6 because they were the only type coin I could find which at the time was available and not butt ugly (note, I don't consider IHCs to be type coins). The type coins were not hideously expensive, either. >>



http://typesets.wikidot.com/indian-head-cent


AB

Opps sorry here`s the link...

Colorfulcoins

<===== cause they're relatively cheap, common, and tone real pretty !

66Tbird

I'm a type set collector at heart, mainly 1800 froward in MS and nothing smaller than 5¢. But the series I like the best is the Trade dollar because of its symbolism, design and size. I have a half dozen or so in high AU, low mS and most are a variety of some kind, ddo or 7 over 7.

bestclser1

<< <i>That`s cool "SkyMan" what sparked your interest in digging collecting Frankies and you posted two very different but VERY cool coins...I would have to say my interest in the 2 series i like the best started back on my dads farm and in our shop in my dads dusty old wooden desk every time i went in for a pencil there was a bunch of beat up old coins sliding around...Everything from a few Peace and Morgan Dollars to Walkers, Frankies, Buffalo Nickels, Merc Dimes a bunch of Wheaties and a few Indian Pennies...Just kicking around anytime anyone went in the desk...lol (I miss those days!) But out of those i would have to say the Morgans and the Indian Pennies i dug the most and is that same way to this day...Here`s a few with my last Morgan fairly new my partner in crime held it for a quick shot...

AB






>>

AB,Gorgeous color coins,a few even look familiar.Great avatar too.All my best

bestclser1

AuroraBorealis

Thanks for that "bestclser1".... And glad you like my new Avatar...
Holy smokes!!!! I have to go into the next room to pick up my socks after viewing the 3 amazing beautiful Morgans you just posted...The left 2 80`s look like mint bag toning but the wild gorgeous 04 looks like an end roll to me...Amazing coins! Guess it`s safe to say Morgans are your favorite series?


All the best to you too, my friend....AB