They said something on "American Pickers" that made me think.....

ambro51

The tall guy, he says, holding up an early 20th century tin toy.....to the effect.....the internet has really altered how collectors determine rarity. Before the internet, you could only find stuff in your local area, what you could reach out and touch...so things seemed rarer than they were. Now, you see the big picture and see how many of something is really out there, and values have came down.

Yup, I see his point, but has this happened in coins? I think not....

thebeav

I think that the internet has improved the coin market. Sure, it has shown what is common or not, but.....
Someone that lives in Balls, Iowa can now easily and quickly get any coin that they desire. This was never possible before.....

MadMarty

Back in the 80s and 90s, my wife collected Barbies. Some of them would sell for STUPID money! Same thing you went to the local store and got the ones you needed. Now with E-Bay you realize how much is out there!! Stuff that was selling for hundreds of dollars now might sell for $10!!

Rob790

Supply and Demand. The price can actually go UP with more supply if you understand this.

He's saying that so he can give them lower prices but then sell them for more later. Those guys will say whatever they can to get a good "deal" from the people they "pick". His comments are suspect with self interest.

AnkurJ

Balls, Iowa?

gdavis70

I saw that episode and it wasn't a negotiating tactic... he was giving an informational aside to the camera.

ModCrewman

<< <i>Balls, Iowa? >>

I live in Iowa and think he's actually referring to Sioux Balls, South Dakota.

airplanenut

I feel like it depends a lot on how rare something was at first. I'll give an example with toys and coins.

Many old toys may have been easy to find when they were just toys, but over time the broken ones could have been thrown away or put in the attic. With no production records, unless it was known to be rare at issuance (and what's the point of a rare toy if it's no a collector's edition?) the only guess of rarity is what you see. Once the internet came around, it became easy to find out that lots of people had the toys all over.

For coins, there are detailed records which can help guide someone on rarity before they even know what's been around. If a coin has a low mintage, it is much more likely to be rare than one with a huge mintage. Because junky coins likely weren't thrown away, the internet may have helped determine what is really rare from a quality standpoint. Now a collector can better know not only how many are out there, but where the cutoff is for average and above average condition.

roadrunner

The advent of TPG grading essentially did the same thing over the previous 20 yrs. If that had never been done then it's quite possible the internet would have done it. There's no PCGS or NGC for what the pickers typically come across. And with the popularity of the TPG's, the amount of better material that has come to market would probably surprise most pre-1986 numismatists.

roadrunner