Coin and jewerly auctions. Anyone have experience with these?
tizofthe
Posts: 1,361 ✭✭✭
I'm not talking about coin collertors, Heritage etc. I joined an aution yesterday "Silver coin and ..." and was surprised how much the coinss went for.
Most went to floor biddres. Could someone tell me why the bidders bid so much on these coins.
Examples:
PCI graded eagles - all dates mostly 1986-2012. the lower dates went for 90-110.00 each.
XF 1922 Peace dollars 30 each
1921 Morgans 35-40 each AU/BU
Common date "cc" Morgans BU 250-300
1/4 oz buggs bunny - sold by canaidinal mint for 20.00 - sold for 30+
Rolls of 1964 Kennedy BU 230
These are just some example. Then you add on the 15% premium and shipping cost to get the outrages totals.
So why do the bidders bid so high when the coins are only worth half as much or lwer.
Thoughts???
Transactions..
wondercoin, duffman,PiecesOfMe, Smittys, LogPotato, Bumanchu, Tydye, segoja, Harry779, FullCameo, Twosidestoeverycoin, jmdm1194, rkfish, drewsef, Chrischampeo, Kaelasdad, Ahrensdad, Dabigkahuna, Barbwire, sebrown, mkman123, Gerard
wondercoin, duffman,PiecesOfMe, Smittys, LogPotato, Bumanchu, Tydye, segoja, Harry779, FullCameo, Twosidestoeverycoin, jmdm1194, rkfish, drewsef, Chrischampeo, Kaelasdad, Ahrensdad, Dabigkahuna, Barbwire, sebrown, mkman123, Gerard
0
Comments
Exciting to bid in person? Been there and observed the same exact thing.....Thought the auction house had shills on the coins to get excitement up for the other stuff.
bob
I see this kind of thing all the time and it still amazes me after many years of sitting in on auctions. A lot of it is the combination of the auctioneer and the lack of knowledge on the part of the bidder.
My best auction purchase ever was at a Sheriff's auction that had seized a coin collection from a drug dealer. All the dollars and gold coins that were single brought stupid numbers like you posted. I bought a nearly complete 19th century type set in a Capital Plastic board with many supurb coins and a partial nearly complete Gem Washington Quarter set for around 50 cents on the dollar!(Wholesale) I think the people just bid stupid on what they see hawked on TV for stupid numbers and very few have a clue as to the real values!
You were very lucky. It's been my experience that most of these sales are a complete waste of time. You wait all day for the lot, and when it goes up, you might as well go to a coin shop and pay less money, if the coins amount to anything at all. I have been amazed to see what "junk box" quality coins can bring at these sales.
Big waste of time from what I can tell as. I waited 2.5 hours to bid on all my coins in different lots and the last 1884-O MS63 went for 95.00 again buyers fee and shipping. I never thought ebay would have better prices if looking for certain coins. I may even dump m coins though an auction afte seeing what they go for. I bet I could get 15-20% more than anyplace else. With the amount I have after collecting for 15 years I just may do that. A year or two away and off they all go. To an auction?
wondercoin, duffman,PiecesOfMe, Smittys, LogPotato, Bumanchu, Tydye, segoja, Harry779, FullCameo, Twosidestoeverycoin, jmdm1194, rkfish, drewsef, Chrischampeo, Kaelasdad, Ahrensdad, Dabigkahuna, Barbwire, sebrown, mkman123, Gerard
I agree with everyone who has replied: ignorance of the bidders, failing to take the buyer's premium into account, shills, the excitement of bidding in person, feeling like you should buy something just because you have been waiting for hours.
I call it the 'testosterone factor'....I have watched it at several auctions... prices bid higher than could be bought commercially.....If you rearrange the letters in 'testosterone factor' it can spell 'stupid mindless bid'...
Cheers, RickO
I went to a local auction once. They advertised coins and I went with a coin dealer friend of mine. We had the same experience others have reported- most of the lots were junk silver and went for crazy money. My friend lost all of them because his max was what the going rate for 90% was in Austin at the time. I think people were bidding based on the age of the coins and the word 'silver'.
Bidiots transcend realms.
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Some 'online auctions' have floor bidders as a reserve, and there are few or no bidders at the location. Many of these floor purchases will appear again next month....
The last in-person auction I went to was a place that sells a lot of household/estate stuff. I went because there was a good amount of 90% for sale but people there were bidding it up over 16X face, some lots close to 20X and we are talking quarters and dimes, no halves. I could have just gone down to my LCS and got it for less. Needless to say I did not buy any of it. The auction house was also running the auction like idiots so I left before it was all over. Wasted probably 3 hours of my life there.
Collector, occasional seller
Sounds like OP is talking about "live" on-line auctions such as those on ebay. If on ebay, RUN, RUN, RUN. There you will encounter hidden, high shipping charges, misrepresented items and sellers who keep shutting down and coming back under a new name because of bad feedback. I'm surprised than even ebay allows such vague listings. Ebay could better protect its buyers from "live" auctions by requiring all such listings to:
-accept returns for full refund
-clearly spell out shipping charges
-clearly spell out payment options
-disallowing listings to publish a seller's value estimate of the item
Here's an example of a "live" ebay auction
And here's seller's toolhaus feedback. Probably time to shut down and come back with a new name.
To answer OP's question, mostly inexperienced bidders caught up in the bidding fever.
No Way Out: Stimulus and Money Printing Are the Only Path Left
So has anyone taken advantage of these auctions by selling their widgets there?
Obviously a bit of a risk, but sounds like one could do well selling.
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In our area there are quite a few country auctions that often have coins mixed in with other stuff. Many of these are estate auctions. Everyone has a hoard of old coins, it seems, even if they weren't collectors, so this is what you'll see.
Normally they go high, as in the rest of the examples in this thread. But sometimes you can make a major score, if you're patient. I got a wonderful VF Fugio Cent for $30 once, because nobody knew what it was. Another time I got several wonderfully toned classic commems in their original packaging. A friend scored a 1918/7-D Buffalo that was mixed in a baggie full of regular circ Buffs.
These auctions can be worthwhile occasionally, but it takes patience.
LRC Numismatics eBay listings:
http://stores.ebay.com/lrcnumismatics
NO!!! Most of this stuff is owned and bought back by the auction company. It is just recycled through other auctions. I think the auction the OP is talking about is in Westlake CA.
More than a dozen yeas ago, another NJ dealer and I stopped off at a place in Connecticut on our way to Wolfeboro lot viewing and found:
One or two of four 1853 Arr&Rays described as choice - final grades 2x-MS65, 2xMS64 all NGC -one 64 crossed
1877-CC 50c choice - dusky NGC MS67
1843 $2.5 described as BU,PL (Lof of 2 coins) - NGC PF65CAM check the pops, they only made five. Tyler/Pittman stolen
1832 $2/12 choice - NGC MS66 - think it crossed
The sale was a secret auction (meaning it had been advertised in CoinWorld less than three times).
With the exception of yet another well-known NJ dealer, half of everyone was there.
@MrEureka, another world class etc,, yet another world-class etc and myself colluded like crazy and bought virtually nothing. We made the buyer pay a bit less than 65K for the proof $2 1/2, etc, etc,
@MrEureka has his own exciting auction story to tell
And the 1843 $2.5 just happens to be in the Heritage ANA sale next month. Somehow, I don't think it will be as exciting this time.
Doggedly collecting coins of the Central American Republic.
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