If you had to scale back your coin buying budget to $25, $20, $15, or even $10 a purchase...

Broadstruck · November 28, 2014 4:33AM

Could you still enjoy the hobby at the same level as before

Figured this would make for a good question and personally I know I could

Rampage · November 28, 2014 4:36AM

Yes I could.

DaveG · November 28, 2014 4:36AM

Well, I've had to reduce my coin buying budget significantly over the past several years.

I've switched to buying more books, exonumia and ephemera and doing more research and writing.

I'm having more fun (numismatically speaking) than I've ever had.

Zoins · November 28, 2014 4:39AM

Yes, a lot of what I enjoy is the key word in my avatar - research

Shamika · November 28, 2014 4:39AM

Absolutely I could. I'd just try to find the finest examples for the low cost grades I'd have to limit myself to.

Shamika · November 28, 2014 4:40AM

One other side effect... I'd be forced to consider collecting series that I've not thought of.

Sonorandesertrat · November 28, 2014 4:50AM

OldEastside · November 28, 2014 5:07AM

Good ? and I actually thought about it and concluded "YES" in fact it could be far more challenging

Steve

kiyote · November 28, 2014 5:10AM

After buying a house and having to decide between a new, energy efficent window or a $500 coin I scaled back a lot. This break in silver prices has me finishing my BU Franklin set though, and it's a lot of fun hunting for nice $25 coins.

coinsarefun · November 28, 2014 5:11AM

No.

joebb21 · November 28, 2014 5:17AM

I dont know how many proof liberty nickels I could buy with $10 but I guess I would start up the ol dansco again

LindeDad · November 28, 2014 5:20AM

Thought I was doing that with the Eagles (first raw them MS69 dang they make 70's too) but that 2008/7 sure put kink in it. Heck it's still fun got most of the Maple Leafs in OGP for the fun of it.

MGLICKER · November 28, 2014 5:26AM

Hell yes. It would give me an excuse to go through the tons of raw stuff at every show.

bosco5041 · November 28, 2014 5:31AM

I would not enjoy collecting at the same level but I would still enjoy it.

Dentuck · November 28, 2014 5:38AM

Yes, easily.

DeepCoin · November 28, 2014 6:06AM

I could easily scale back... if everyone took a zero off their budget, the true fans of the hobby would easily stay with it, just finding other interesting ways to collect....

BillJones · November 28, 2014 6:12AM

No

Old, with some rarity and a good story have long attracted me. I could buy some books at that level, but coins would be a bust.

I was doing it in the late 1960s, but the coins that sold for then are usually $100s of dollars now.

topstuf · November 28, 2014 6:16AM

Only if I used the money for bullets and took up a life of crime.

Type2 · November 28, 2014 7:00AM

It would be hard for 1 or 2 maybe 3 pick's then i would have the $$ to go right back at full speed. But i think i can do it and enjoy it so yes.

GotTheBug · November 28, 2014 7:01AM

USMarine6 · November 28, 2014 7:09AM

At $10 hrmm I don't think so but at $25 certainly

topstuf · November 28, 2014 7:09AM

STAMPS !!!!

MGLICKER · November 28, 2014 7:12AM

<< <i>STAMPS !!!! >>

!

Catbert · November 28, 2014 7:15AM

No way, no how. I would do what I do now and save the money each week to accumulate cash for the right coin or sell something in the collection currently.

SmEagle1795 · November 28, 2014 7:20AM

<< <i>Yes - I would allow myself to be seduced by the power of the Dark Side.... >>

There is indeed a lot of enjoyment to be had at $25 in ancient coins

Although, I'd admittedly save up for a bit and buy $100 coins - many collectors of ancients have never spent over $100 and have been able to thoroughly enjoy the hobby for most of their lives.

jayPem · November 28, 2014 8:10AM

Done.

SeattleSlammer · November 28, 2014 8:15AM

Not likely.

coinkat · November 28, 2014 8:24AM

easy answer- yes

ms70 · November 28, 2014 8:34AM

No.

BaronVonBaugh · November 28, 2014 8:36AM

If I can't afford the coins I need I might as well go play with my trains.

UncleJoe · November 28, 2014 9:00AM

Yes, very easily. In fact, for many purchases that I make, the scale above is an increase in budget!

Joe.

Cameonut · November 28, 2014 9:08AM

No, I would play with my vintage trains as well.

410a · November 28, 2014 9:16AM

No.........and I find too many $100 coins that are a waste of money.

TwoSides2aCoin · November 28, 2014 9:33AM

The beauty of the hobby is discretionary money. Scaling back implies a malfunction in the concept. The idea is to step up, not scale back.

DollarAfterDollar · November 28, 2014 9:49AM

I'd buy the absolute cleanest, mark free, no problem coins I could find. Getting them graded on a significantly reduced budget would probably not happen.

WildIdea · November 28, 2014 11:37AM

Well when I buy a coin for twenty bucks it's a pretty relaxed situation and I like that....when it's say a 5k coin I really put a lot of effort into making sure it's not a blunder and that can be stressful. So Yes, it would be fine to swim in that end of the pool really, maybe stay there, ha ha.

crypto79 · November 28, 2014 12:00PM

I would put together one hell of a slider Franklin dansco and maybe rosies

erwindoc · November 28, 2014 12:07PM

Yes. I'd do much more roll searching. Typically do this when I've blown up my budget even now.

EXOJUNKIE · November 28, 2014 12:23PM

Yep. I do it all the time. I have a lot of different coin collecting interests. Sometimes I'm just as happy adding a $10 token to one collection as I am adding $100+ token to another.

lordmarcovan · November 28, 2014 2:53PM

Yes. I've been there before, in fact.

As mentioned, the power of the Dark Side is mighty.

There's also metal detecting.

Burks · November 28, 2014 3:05PM

World coins offer a TON of cool coins at bargain prices. It's where I spend most of my time as I'm down to key dates on almost all my current collections.

It's either buy the key dates or a 1990 Skyline GTR......

SPalladino · November 28, 2014 3:50PM

I'm an Ike collector (among others), so the answer is a no brainer -yes. And, I would cherry pick some nice Ike DIVa varieties while I'm at it .

pcunix · November 28, 2014 5:55PM

Sure. I'd only buy every 24 months at $25 per month.

I do that now with a $50-$100 a month budget, generally buying once or twice a year.

pennyannie · November 28, 2014 6:02PM

No, after about 3 purchases for 25 bucks I would fold up shop.

Bochiman · November 28, 2014 6:39PM

I've done it.
So, yes, but it does vary to the level of enjoyment.

Also, I've learned to NOT expect much of a return on what I've spent when buying in the low range.

lasvegasteddy · November 28, 2014 7:52PM

most of my buys are in this range....raw toners
some of my better buys are found in that range...

TwoSides2aCoin · November 28, 2014 9:07PM

<< <i>Could you still enjoy the hobby at the same level as before

Figured this would make for a good question and personally I know I could

>>

Let me throw a curve ball in here. Looks pretty safe from a dealer's perspective.
The conversation went something like this :

"You know sir, that Morgan might be worth $30, but I've had to scale back my coin buying budget, so I will pay you $10"

… "but I promise to enjoy it, considering this economy "

And there are plenty of "collectors" who attempt this in the shop.

I have to give them credit.