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What year did you start collecting/stacking coins?
CoinHoarder
Posts: 2,725 ✭✭✭✭✭
I started around 1964 or 1965.
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Around 1960, with my Dad, when I was about 4 years old, filling in “pennies “ in my new blue Whitman folders. Out of all the keys and semi keys, we only found a well worn 09svdb., which I no longer have as it was stolen, I believe by someone I knew. I do still have the other coins and folders. Never knew it would bring me a lifetime of enjoyment!
Around 1972 with what's went to canadian and went to American coun with the bi Centennial. My uncle gor me started with Canadian to help get my feet wet, the rest is history
1967 or so, seriously around 1970
1960
“The thrill of the hunt never gets old”
PCGS Registry: Screaming Eagles
Copperindian
Copperindian II
Indy Eagles
Gold Rush
Retired sets: Soaring Eagles
Copperindian
Nickelodeon
Early Walkers
Successful transactions: redraider, winesteven, renomedphys, splitaces, oreville, ajaan, Cent1225, onlyroosies, justindan, blitzdude, DesertMoon, johnnyb, Heubschgold, SunshineRareCoins, ParadimeCoins, ndeagles, Southern_Knights, pcgsregistrycollector
1966
My first coin was a 1864 2 Cent Piece Large Motto. I still have it.
1984
About 1953/4. Cents, nickels, dimes in Whitman folders. Ruined a lot of coins.
About 1970, and I too ruined a lot of coins with baking soda, etc…. Funny to think about how often those ruined coins subsequently changed hands, were they able to avoid being melted, and are they still to be found in flea market junk boxes to this day.
Other passions include golf, Moto Guzzi motorcycles, and Euro motorcycles in general.
Chris
The late 1990s, I was looking for an alternative to paper "investments". I started with older Euro bullion coins and silver eagles and maples.
1963
February 1961.
1975 but consistently since 1998.
2018 after finding the YouTube channel RobFindsTreasure. Started attending clubs/shows in 2021.
1970-1980 stopped, 2005- present big time
1999, if buying junk silver counts.
Successful BST:here and ATS, bumanchu, wdrob, hashtag, KeeNoooo, mikej61, Yonico, Meltdown, BAJJERFAN, Excaliber, lordmarcovan, cucamongacoin, robkool, bradyc, tonedcointrader, mumu, Windycity, astrotrain, tizofthe, overdate, rwyarmch, mkman123, Timbuk3,GBurger717, airplanenut, coinkid855 ,illini420, michaeldixon, Weiss, Morpheus, Deepcoin, Collectorcoins, AUandAG, D.Schwager, blu62vette, morgan13, torinoCobra71.
I love Rob! Learned a lot from him as a YN.
2017 went full send on a Krug when wall street bets were taking down hedge funds.
Llamas and alpacas are camels. They aren't like camels, or related. They are camels. When was anyone going to tell me this?! How long had Bill Nye been holding out on us?
I started collecting coins as a young kid in the mid-1950s. I still remember when my elementary school displayed a large poster on the wall in the lobby announcing the new Lincoln cent with the Lincoln Memorial on the reverse showing a large picture of the new reverse design.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
In a serious capacity - 2021
Founder- Peak Rarities
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Collected raw coins, since I was a kid, on and off again. 1993 was the year that I fell in love with the Walker and became completely enamored with the early dates. Got serious, joined the registry and started collecting certified only (PCGS and NGC) in 2005. I’ve been pretty consistent ever since then. Have branched out into other series within the last 7 or 8 years.
Sometimes, it’s better to be LUCKY than good. 🍀 🍺👍
My Full Walker Registry Set (1916-1947):
https://www.ngccoin.com/registry/competitive-sets/16292/
1955
1979-1980, third grade. Got mostly away from it ~1988 to 2003, though I tuned in enough to sell some things in early 1994 as a penniless college grad trying to get launched. I've been at it pretty steadily ever since coming back, though.
2012 when I was 8 years old!
Three times with long periods of inactivity. First time 1962, Second time 1972 and Third Time 2003.
https://www.pcgs.com/setregistry/gold/liberty-head-2-1-gold-major-sets/liberty-head-2-1-gold-basic-set-circulation-strikes-1840-1907-cac/alltimeset/268163
March of Time - 27 Centuries in Gold
https://coins.www.collectors-society.com/WCM/CoinCustomSetView.aspx?s=36590
1957.
My dad said I could make a collection out of his pocket change but all my older brothers had first crack at the cents so I collected buffalos. Believe it or not I sold it at a profit in 1968 when I decided girls were even more fun than pocket change. I started up again in 1972 when I had a real job and read that the mint and FED were switching to FIFO accounting and would begin rotating their coin stocks. I knew exactly what effect this would have on all the survival curves of coins that weren't even being looked at by coin collectors much less actually collected.
If you don't count 1974/5 before baseball, guitars ... and girls ... and all the things that start to happen after about the 5th grade ...
I really started collecting in 1987 when I was in the USN. I have had multi-year streaks where I was involved, and a few multi-year times where I wasn't and was very much involved in other things (family, business, other hobbies).
My current reiteration started up again right before COVID (like about a month before the "shutdown"). FWIW, I still worked full-time in-person throughout COVID, so the way it affected me was probably different than some. Anyway, right before, after a dinner helping an old girlfriend's Stepfather sorting and considering his collection, I caught the fever all over again and started reading about coins and currency, and going through my collection for the first time in about 7 years.
“We are only their care-takers,” he posed, “if we take good care of them, then centuries from now they may still be here … ”
Todd - BHNC #242
A lot of interesting history here!
2003
1946-S PCGS MS64 BOOKER T.WASHINGTON 50 CENT
Started with pocket change and blue Whitman folders sometime in the late 80s.
Around 2020 I started collecting in a more serious and focused manner.
Mid 1990's up to 2008 then stopped for a while and changed directions twice until now were I seem happy with my goals.
Liberty Seated Half Dollars (lower circulated grades)
Around 1993. War year Merc dimes and Proof Franklins. Now I buy what I feel like at that moment, but last one just happened to be a 42/1 Merc in VF35.
Around 1960...I still remember the first edition of Coin World that excited me when it came out that year.
My grandfather was a brick mason from Italy who built cobblestone streets in our town and had found a few hundred Indian Head pennies in sewers, that sparked my initial interest in old coins.
Commems and Early Type
Excluding penny collecting as a youngster, started collecting Morgans in 2004. Was a great time to buy on EBAY, some great deals were made and the older holders were plentiful without a premium.
I started hunting Lincoln’s in 2017 then moved on to making moderns, but I didn’t actually start buying coins to collect until last year.
2020 lol newbie here
Proud follower of Christ! I love the USA! Land of the Bright and Beautiful! 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
I am learning so much in this forum, and I have a lot more to find out about this modern numismatic world.
A smattering of stuff pre-1976 when I was a kid, like Indian Head cents, buff nickels, wheat cents, got a few standing liberty quarters and the like. Back when they were selling in the jewelry section of dept stores. Too young to have a job, but dropped allowance $ on some of this. Nothing in that great of a condition.
I do have about 20 or so misc 19th century coins I'd like to send in for grading. Most not really worth it tho.
Then the Bicentennial silver proof coins in 1976 (10-11 years old) got me hooked on modern proofs, and havent looked back. So shiney!!! lol
I sure do miss my dad.
My story is similar to @pursuitofliberty I did the the Kids stuff collecting, merc dimes and various type coins from the LCS around 1972, but teenage years, and high school, I lost track of it entirely. Then it hit me hard again in the early 90's and I picked it back up around 1993, but this time I had money, as I was riding the software/telco wave as an account exec. I got hooked up with Joe O'Connor who at the time was at Whitlow in Chicago, and I bought some amazing coins from him back then, Seated dollars in PF-66, beautiful pattern dollars, Morgans in PF-67 (see images below)...all those coins now reside in higher grade holders. Then I walked away from it around 2000, and didn't return until 2019...been going solid since then.
1966 or 67; not exactly sure, I was 5 or 6 years old. We were at my grandmother's cafe in Beloit KS, she gave me a Roi-Tan cigar box with a ballpoint pen, some paperclips, a few used stamps she had cut off that she thought looked neat, some wheaties and a Franklin. I don't remember the date/mint as I got several more over the years from her and it was mixed in, but I still have them. I had the cigar box for a couple of decades, but it eventually just fell apart.
I was maybe 5 or 6 years old and visiting my uncle. One of his cows threw me against the fence while we were brushing it and I cried for a bit. My uncle gave me a Sacagawea dollar to help cheer me up, and ever since then I've been hooked.
1963
I was 5 years old and in the hospital for a week (don’t remember the details but I woke up one day and was unable to walk and wound up in the hospital) and my parents bought Whitman penny and nickel albums and rolls of coins from the bank every day to keep me busy. I was hooked. Fast forward 62 years later and I had a knee replacement 12 hours ago and I’m home in bed recuperating and looking at coins on eBay and going through auction archives.
Really excited when I got my First Memorial cent!
Early 60’s from change. Took me a couple decades to realize you could buy coins.
I claim February 1969.
December 2019. Found my Dad's 20th century type album from his boy scout era and the rest was history. Had $1,000 from my grocery store job and began to flip coin collections to add to my stash.
Earlier, I had a stint of coin roll hunting as a middle schooler. I had $42 cash that I bought rolls of nickels with at the bank. Until one day someone broke into my Dad's car and stole the $42 from the glovebox.
"But seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you" Matthew 6:33. Young fellow suffering from Bust Half fever.
BHNC #AN-10
JRCS #1606
I started probably in 1956 or 1957. I had a friend who was collecting coins and had a quite extensive collection. One thing he showed me was a lettered edge 1800's half-dollar. I thought that was the coolest thing since sliced bread. I don't know where he got his money but he did have some rather nice coins. I also had a couple of neighbors who had quite extensive collections. One in particular would take me to the local coin club one time per month. Most of my acquisitions were from circulation as I had a paper route and had to make collections from the customers. I did buy a few coins from dealers or the auction at the local coin club. Pretty much stopped while in high school, girls, sports, etc., and also in college for the same reasons. After college, joined the Coast Guard, active duty, marriage, kids and the job also got in the way. Periodically since then, off and on, have been involved.