Options
Roughly (be honest 😉) what % of your collection was bought with a quality vs need bias
renomedphys
Posts: 3,982 ✭✭✭✭✭
I think we would all like to just buy quality but let’s face it: some dates/types/grades are just too tough to wait for a coin that may or may not even exist.
I think that in my core collection, out of about 50 coins, probably half a dozen were compromises WRT quality for the grade, or just grade. Sometimes I refer to them as placeholders. Sometimes I’m kidding myself.
Conversely, at the other end there are probably 5-10 coins in there that I paid an extremely high price for just because they were truly awesome.
More to the point: when you find quality that’s truly outstanding, with a look that’s to die for, do you stretch? Would you pay double? Triple?
0
Comments
It depends highly on the set in question, and I'm not sure a % of my total collection would be particularly informing.
My twenty cent piece set? 100% bought for quality. I took a "buy once" approach to the set; the coins span low to high four figures. Not that I'll never upgrade a coin, but I haven't found any worth an upgrade.
My washington quarter set? Ehh, perhaps a third or more were bought because they were "good enough". But most of these were $50-$150 coins. I've upgraded many of them as I've found better and continue to do so.
Nothing is as expensive as free money.
I'll just focus on my primary set because all of my other ones I just buy what I feel like and when I feel like it.
But my primary set of chop marked trade dollars by variety is almost 100% by need. Even the date set is almost impossible to be picky for quality other than a couple of the very easiest dates. Everything else is just buy what you can when you can and maybe an upgrade will be available in 3-5 years. And even more so for the varieties.
chopmarkedtradedollars.com
I get more satisfaction from finding the right coins for me than just finding the right coins for the set. I don't often have to replace a coin, and when I do, I usually end up keeping the first one anyway because I still like it.
Outstanding quality can fetch a premium that dramatically increases as the hypothetical value of the coin decreases, and since I purchase mainly lower-value coins, double or triple is often not enough to secure the very best. Even in those situations, when I lose the coin, I often regret not placing just one more bid.
Young Numismatist • My Toned Coins
Life is roadblocks. Don't let nothing stop you, 'cause we ain't stopping. - DJ Khaled
Varies by set. Toughest set to complete is foreign types that circulated in the US. I buy nothing raw, so 80% need at least. And that set is more educational. Same with colonial type. European medals 75% quality. US federal type depends on the year, but need drives about 50/50 pre-CW and quality drives all later types; however, I’m not driven to buy the best grade, even if affordable.
The definition of quality always differs between two people. It's a crazy World out there when I have to tell another collector, he has nice coins when in fact they are not. Weak strikes, missing details, dull luster and problem conditions.... plague his coins. It gets even worst when I'm asked if I would like to buy any of their coins, what's there to say in that situation? My best excuse; I'm already beyond my budget with coins and with a smile. What they don't know, if they actually had something, my interests would be quite noticeable. But most just don't get that.
The single word of quality must cover many aspects of a coin in my definition. For Jefferson nickels, the qualifications for full steps (FS) is quite loose and serves only as a disqualifier so actual high-quality coins can pass through hands on down to the more conscientious collectors who actually look for every detail on a coin. And the most lustrous and high condition coins. So to answer, early-on I bought coins of inferior quality because I was naive or still learning. But today they must be proof-like with VEDS strikes as two of my recent additions show.
And this one, the luster is not great, grades MS64 imo but it was only $40.
I compromised a bit on the hair details on this one but the PL fields, toning and steps on such a tough date, alright.... so I let my guards down a bit, I'm only human.
Leo
The more qualities observed in a coin, the more desirable that coin becomes!
My Jefferson Nickel Collection
My most recent endeavor, seated liberty half dollars, started trending towards the "need" bias. It's the main factor in my decision to pump the brakes and hold off on buying for a while.
I had to buy extremely rare varieties in any grade in my quest to get to a certain number of varieties for a given set. I had one coin that I couldn’t stand to look at so I got rid of it. Today, any coin/note in my collection must have eye appeal, no matter what the grade.
0%, but that's because I don't collect sets so I don't need anything.
I paid $100k for this which would be more like $250k in today’s cheeto dollars
With that said, you could offer me the worst dog of a rattler 1909vdb proof and I’d be a buyer
I learned from experience long ago that set completion is not a good fit for me… I end up buying less than stellar coins to fill a spot, hate the coin(s), and end up selling it at a loss. Rinse and repeat.
Now, more of a choice early US federal type guy, appreciate lower grades as well as long as it interests me, is original and nice for the grade. If it’s a OGH or fatty holder, all the better.
Far less risk of buying a coin that I really don’t care for, and losing money in a quick flip.
So “need” as a buy criteria is just about 0%….
Other passions include golf, Moto Guzzi motorcycles, and Euro motorcycles in general.
Chris
Not US coinage but I buy what's available when it is available. Most of the dates I do not own do not exist or at least are not publicly confirmed in the quality I'd prefer to buy, and the few that are haven't come up for sale in the 15+ years I've prioritized it.
I have bought more annually since 2022, but almost all of it is in lower quality vs, any prior year when I bought proportionately far fewer.
Quality vs "need" is always subject to availability, but some purchases are just sheer opportunity.
While sometimes it is a "take what is available, hope for better later" as @lermish so aptly points out, there are times when you already have a higher quality example and there is no need, and yet, the opportunity is still right.
I bought a duplicate CBH two weeks ago. It's a P55 and I have a P55cac. It won't supplant my set piece but when I asked "how much?" the price was such that I really couldn't say no. It'll probably cac too, which will make it an even bigger win on the "value" side.
There was no "need" or "upgrade" quotient in there at all. I bought it because I liked it AND it was for sale AND it was priced right AND it's an in-demand coin that I could probably sell tomorrow AND I had the money.
“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
When I put together my top 144 piece registry commem set, I think one third of the coins I added were "nice" for the grade but easily purchased anywhere. When Pinnacle offered to buy the set, they only wanted 94 of the coins, and I learned my lesson.
Commems and Early Type
Maybe 5%. I bought a so-so 1799 cent to fill a date set hole. It has strong date and the detail of a VF-20. There is some light corrosion. PCGS net graded it VG-10. Wanted fill hole without spending $30 k +.
I bought an over-graded 1815 quarter to finish off a “one U.S. coin per year set.” The mint did not issue any cents in 1815.
On the other side, I totally blew a purchase at Winter FUN. It happens.
The alternative to the 1794 Half and very difficult to find in this state of preservation. I am sharing this image to remind collectors that there are moments when rarity is offered when we are simply not seeking it.
Experience the World through Numismatics...it's more than you can imagine.
When I am re-selling, my only condition for buying is price.
95% 8-)