A "DIFFERENT" coin show experience today.

keyman64

I went to a small local show today. I have temporarily misplaced my 10x/20x loupe unfortunately. I knew this as I was walking out the door with the kids. It's a small show that isn't far away. I figured what the heck, no big deal. For the couple of tables that I would stop at I would just ask to borrow a loupe of theirs and figure it would be a 10x or whatever. I can deal with that. I did not have my heart set on doing anything specific. If I happened to find something, great, if not then that was fine too.

I stopped at 4 tables that I figured I would look at a few Mercs at...I asked at each table if they had a loupe I could use for a second. Granted, I am looking for varieties for the most part so to see a Merc Variety you really need some serious magnification most of the time. Yes, I know...using the dealer's own loupe to try to score a Cherrypick is a bit over the top but I figured what the heck, it was worth a try. Every now and then I even find something other than a Merc to buy...and non-cherrypick material so I was not there necessarily to just score a Cherrypick...I just figured I would go down there and try to enjoy myself. At each table I went to, the highest magnification loupe that the dealer had was a 5X and while at one table, the highest he had was a 3X!!! Are you freaking kidding me?! I could understand if the only coins they dealt with were Silver Dollars but these dealers had DIMES and HALF DIMES!!!! Holy Cow! With so few dealers having powerful loupes, it is no wonder that they get Cherrypicked all the time. After a couple of tables of pseudo-frustration, I left. I was there for less than 20 minutes. I am not disappointed with the experience or really frustrated. I almost expected it but I also expected dealers that carry small coins to have a 10X. Clearly I was wrong and I learned something.

At one of the tables, I asked for a loupe and the dealer did not know what I meant and then asked me if I meant a "magnifying glass". FOR THAT ONE DEALER

It was a learning experience for me. If you do not have your favorite loupe, do not bother going to a Coin Show...especially if you are looking for small coin varieties!

coinsarefun

Been there done that a few times

I figure if I'm looking to buy....what the heck and have asked to use theirs.
Some have given me a magnifying glass so big you can a start fire with it from 2 miles away!

savoyspecial

IMO 5x is all you need. There is such thing as looking to close at a coin


OK, maybe 10x if you specialize in fly-speck varieties, but I can't imagine ever needing a 20x

LanceNewmanOCC

<< <i>IMO 5x is all you need. There is such thing as looking to close at a coin
OK, maybe 10x if you specialize in fly-speck varieties, but I can't imagine ever needing a 20x >>


that is ok with me. i hope more people go with less magnification
.

abitofthisabitofthat

You would be disappointed coming to my table as well. I never use more than a 6X. I have no interest in varieties that require greater magnification. Do I get cherrypicked? Probably. It is a trade off. Time is money, and mine is better spent searching for coins for the inventory that I focus on. Merc varieties? I am not even aware of any, much less actively checking for them.

Sorry you could not get what you were looking for at the show, but any day taking the kids to a coin show is a good day.

keyman64

For Merc Varieties, 10X Minimum is required for many but for others a 16X is required Minimum. Last I checked, it takes no more time to hold a 20X up to your face than it does a 5X....after you flip through the Cherrypickers' Guide a bit you are able to memorize what to look for so you are not standing there for any longer than you would with a 5X really...at least that is my opinion.

There are 26 Mercury Dime Varieties that PCGS blesses for their registry set. Here are a few of them.











This is one of the few you could see with a 5X!

TomB

I use a 5x all the time as well as a 10x. However, the 10x is a higher quality loop and I do not offer it to folks who forget their own. In other words, I am not devestated to lose an inexpensive 5x loop to someone who walks away, but will not take that chance with my quality 10x.

keyman64

<< <i>I use a 5x all the time as well as a 10x. However, the 10x is a higher quality loop and I do not offer it to folks who forget their own. In other words, I am not devestated to lose an inexpensive 5x loop to someone who walks away, but will not take that chance with my quality 10x. >>

I certainly understand and respect that but if there is only one person at your table and you are willing to let a person hold a few thousand dollar coin then to add a loupe on top of that would not seem like a big deal to me...and remembering to get TWO things handed back to you should not be hard either...but at at a larger show with lots of activity and lots of people at your table, I certainly understand.

Today was eye opening to see why so many dealers leave money on the table with varieties....they just don't have the right tools for their own profession. That surprised me.

LindeDad

Sounds like you want the condemned to supply the ammo.

CoinBuyer12

I have a 10X loupe. I could read a sentence engraved into the V of the VDB on a wheat cent.

mozin

I use a slide-out 4X Bausch & Lomb I bought decades ago. It works fine for Classic Commemoratives and Bust Series coins. If I need more, I whip out an old 16X or my newest 3-6-9. What I like about the 4X is that I can see almost the entire half dollar all at once. Those tiny lenses don't give me much of the whole picture all at once. Younger eyes may work fine with the tiny lenses, but not for me.

If I forgot to bring my lens to a coin show, I would be tempted to run to the supply table and buy one. Borrowing a lens many times is not for me, too much aggravation with different lenses and different dealers.

sniocsu

I feel lost w/o my 16x. I will easily trade down to a 10x and possibly 5x, but the optics on it have to be stellar

keyman64

Oh I did look to see if anyone was selling loupes but it was a small show and none were available. No biggie, just an interesting experience.

abitofthisabitofthat

<< <i>For Merc Varieties, 10X Minimum is required for many but for others a 16X is required Minimum. Last I checked, it takes no more time to hold a 20X up to your face than it does a 5X....after you flip through the Cherrypickers' Guide a bit you are able to memorize what to look for so you are not standing there for any longer than you would with a 5X really...at least that is my opinion. >>



It does take more time to look for varieties than to scan for type coins. Studying a CPG to identify all varieties in all series takes time (lots). Stocking CPG varieties in inventory for a long time to find a buyer willing to pay a premium takes time.

So a collector cherrypicks me for a Merc variety? I do not care. In the time it would have taken to make the effort to deal with 20X varieties, I can buy and sell bags of circ Morgans, bags of junk silver, or other large deals I make money on. I can ferret out the few truly original Bust coins on the bourse.

I am not knocking 10-20X varieties. I am sure that they are fun to collect. For me as a dealer, they are not profitable.

Walkerguy21D

I use a widefield 3X to help me quickly scan coins through display cases, etc.
If something looks good, out comes the 5X Eschenbach, a magnifier I should have purchased years ago.
I keep a 10x in my bag, just in case I need to study a mint mark on a raw coin. I've also been known to 'stack' two mags
to get stronger view too. I readily share my magnifiers with anyone needing one.

Boosibri

I use a 35mm film viewing glass at 8x magification. I for anything under a half dollar I have the entire coin in view at 8x. Expensive glass but I would never use anything else now.

Cameonut

You are always welcome at my table and I'd be happy to loan you my Zeiss 3x + 6x loupe to look at whatever you want.

It's all about customer satisfaction.

Now, I do look for varieties so good luck cherrypicking me....

Fountainhead

<< <i>I went to a small local show today. I have temporarily misplaced my 10x/20x loupe unfortunately. I knew this as I was walking out the door with the kids. It's a small show that isn't far away. I figured what the heck, no big deal. For the couple of tables that I would stop at I would just ask to borrow a loupe of theirs and figure it would be a 10x or whatever. >>



I mostly use my 6.5x Pentax Papilio binoculars. Close-focuses to nineteen inches. That's not as good as a 10x loupe to the eye, but it is much quicker, especially when examining many coins at shows in dealers' cases. (There is also an 8.5x model.)

DaveG

keyman64,

For us "old guys", a "loupe" is what jewelers and watchmakers stick into their eye socket and a "magnifying glass" is what you hold in your hand. (A pedantic coin collector/dealer? This is my "shocked face"!)

For most of us who just use magnification to grade a coin, 5x is pretty much all we need - even for dimes

Just out of curiosity, I read all kinds of posts about "cherrypicking" dealers for varieties one needs a 10x to appreciate, but I've never read a single post about selling such a coin for a big premium and I've especially never read a thread from a collector who paid a premium to buy such a coin.

Is there really a market for such "cherrypicks"?

keyman64

<< <i>keyman64,

For us "old guys", a "loupe" is what jewelers and watchmakers stick into their eye socket and a "magnifying glass" is what you hold in your hand. (A pedantic coin collector/dealer? This is my "shocked face"!)

For most of us who just use magnification to grade a coin, 5x is pretty much all we need - even for dimes

Just out of curiosity, I read all kinds of posts about "cherrypicking" dealers for varieties one needs a 10x to appreciate, but I've never read a single post about selling such a coin for a big premium and I've especially never read a thread from a collector who paid a premium to buy such a coin.

Is there really a market for such "cherrypicks"? >>

For a few of them there is not much of a premium unless they are slabbed and attributed by our host. It helps to be darn near Top Pop as well. Here is one of the silly varieties from last week, unattributed. A silly $400 coin with a spot selling for $1,645!

I own close to a dozen top pop Merc Varieties and I am sad to say I have spent wayyyyyy too much money on all of the ones that were not Cherrypicks. If you need at least a dozen examples I can provide them.

If they are Top Pops there is a strong market among about 6 people.
There are a few varieties that are popular beyond just these half dozen crazy people within the niche.

For average grade examples of the more common varieties, you are absolutely correct! Good luck getting a huge mark up and good luck finding a buyer that you can sell to....

Some of these silly Merc Varieties are really RARE with only a few examples known. There is a market for them if you can find more examples, especially if they are Top Pop! There are a number of varieties I am still looking for...too few people are looking for them.

MICHAELDIXON

Lesson learned: Don't leave home without YOUR loupe!

keyman64

<< <i>Lesson learned: Don't leave home without YOUR loupe! >>

Correct!

Southcounty

I own three loupes, two of the three I purchased at coin shows after I remembered that I left my other loupe at home. Nothing expensive, but it was always better to just purchase another one at the show and then have an extra. I even left one in my car in case I drove to a show and forgot to take one with me.

keyman64

I had a spare 10x for a long time but gave it away to a YN about 2 years ago...I used to keep it in my car as well.

If there was someone selling loupes at the show today, I would have bought one!

PerryHall

I keep an inexpensive 16X loupe in each of my cars Even if you're not going to a coin show, you never know when you're going to need to check out a coin.

cladking

I do most searching unaided or with a wide field 8x glass. I do carry
an 18x loupe for variety confirmation.