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Post a "Tales from the coinshop" story.
fivecents
Posts: 11,207 ✭✭✭✭✭
You don't have to be a dealer, collectors also have witnessed strange happenings at their coinshop.
Here's a couple of mine:
I spotted a Morgan dollar with a freshly drilled hole in it in my dealer's case. My dealer told me it was an authentic 1889 - CC. Seems this holed coin was a by product of an ugly divorice. While he was at work the past owner's soon to be exwife took his coin collection over to his work bench and drilled holes in every one of his coins using his new drill.
She actually drilled a hole right through the 18 in the date leaving the 89 intact. The hole also managed to miss the CC mint mark leaving it intact also( this sentence could be taken the wrong way). It was unquestionably an 1889-CC.
Another dealer friend of mine told me a customer brought in a bunch of mint products the he had purchased directly from the mint. Most of the items he had purchased in quanity of 5. One of the items was 5 each of the 1995-W gold proof set. He had a choice between buying the sets from the mint with or without the 1995-W silver eagle included. He opted for the sets without the 1995-W SAE because he thought less people would order them and it would make the sets rarer and worth more money. He gets the dumb collector award....poor fella.
Lets here some "Tales from the coinshop" stories.
Here's a couple of mine:
I spotted a Morgan dollar with a freshly drilled hole in it in my dealer's case. My dealer told me it was an authentic 1889 - CC. Seems this holed coin was a by product of an ugly divorice. While he was at work the past owner's soon to be exwife took his coin collection over to his work bench and drilled holes in every one of his coins using his new drill.
She actually drilled a hole right through the 18 in the date leaving the 89 intact. The hole also managed to miss the CC mint mark leaving it intact also( this sentence could be taken the wrong way). It was unquestionably an 1889-CC.
Another dealer friend of mine told me a customer brought in a bunch of mint products the he had purchased directly from the mint. Most of the items he had purchased in quanity of 5. One of the items was 5 each of the 1995-W gold proof set. He had a choice between buying the sets from the mint with or without the 1995-W silver eagle included. He opted for the sets without the 1995-W SAE because he thought less people would order them and it would make the sets rarer and worth more money. He gets the dumb collector award....poor fella.
Lets here some "Tales from the coinshop" stories.
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Russ, NCNE
please tell me the story or send me a link.
<< <i>Russ
please tell me the story or send me a link. >>
Marty spots a proof set with a DCAM Accented Hair and whips out his camera phone to take a shot which, of course, he was going to eMail to me to rub my nose in it. While he's taking the pic, some punk kid looks over his shoulder and says, "Hey! That's a deep cameo Accented Hair! They're worth a lot of money!". The dealer pulled it and refused to sell it to him.
Russ, NCNE
<< <i>The dealer pulled it and refused to sell it to him. >>
Ouch!! That must have left a mark.
<< <i>
<< <i>Russ
please tell me the story or send me a link. >>
Marty spots a proof set with a DCAM Accented Hair and whips out his camera phone to take a shot which, of course, he was going to eMail to me to rub my nose in it. While he's taking the pic, some punk kid looks over his shoulder and says, "Hey! That's a deep cameo Accented Hair! They're worth a lot of money!". The dealer pulled it and refused to sell it to him.
Russ, NCNE >>
Some "punk kid"???, or some honest, wise collector?
<< <i>Some "punk kid"???, or some honest, wise collector? >>
Some punk kid.
Russ, NCNE
said they were part of his mother's estate split up with 6 other brothers and sisters
walked out with a check for $54,000
Amazing to me
Jim
Menomonee Falls Wisconsin USA
http://www.pcgs.com/SetRegistr...dset.aspx?s=68269&ac=1">Musky 1861 Mint Set
He says how much ? I said 38 !
Mind you ive dealt with the guy for years but im riding the Harley so i look like a dirt bag crack head.
I see his eyes kinda glaze over for about 30 seconds and he say's 38 Dollars ?
I says add 2 zero's !
He say's " oh this looks more like a Long Beach thing,i really dont have the clientel for this"
I have lost a considerable amout of respect for this dealer.
Kinda makes wonder how many widows and orphaned he has harpooned !
<< <i>
<< <i>Some "punk kid"???, or some honest, wise collector? >>
Some punk kid.
Russ, NCNE >>
Sounds to me like some honest, wise collector.
<< <i><< Some "punk kid"???, or some honest, wise collector? >>
Some punk kid.
Russ, NCNE >>
Sounds to me like some honest, wise collector. >>
To collectors who - unlike you who buy only labels and plastic - are comfortable cherrypicking raw coins he sounds like a punk kid sticking his nose in where it didn't belong. He's lucky Marty didn't deck him on the spot.
Russ, NCNE
<< <i>
<< <i><< Some "punk kid"???, or some honest, wise collector? >>
Some punk kid.
Russ, NCNE >>
Sounds to me like some honest, wise collector. >>
To collectors who - unlike you who buy only labels and plastic - are comfortable cherrypicking raw coins he sounds like a punk kid sticking his nose in where it didn't belong. He's lucky Marty didn't deck him on the spot.
Russ, NCNE >>
I collect what everyone else collects... What I like, and what I want. Translation: I'm an honest, wise collector. What do you collect??? I assume what you want and like.
<< <i>Russ, Dizzy take your crap else where...jeez. >>
Sorry. I have a difficult time ignoring inanity.
Russ, NCNE
<< <i>Russ, Dizzy take your crap else where...jeez.
Fair enough.
But I will say that if I saw a dealer selling something under false pretenses whether known or unknown and whether it benefitted the seller or buyer, I would definitely mention it.
<< <i>
<< <i>Russ, Dizzy take your crap else where...jeez. >>
Sorry. I have a difficult time ignoring inanity.
Russ, NCNE >>
That's funny, me too.
He offers me 4X face.
<< <i>
<< <i>Russ
please tell me the story or send me a link. >>
Marty spots a proof set with a DCAM Accented Hair and whips out his camera phone to take a shot which, of course, he was going to eMail to me to rub my nose in it. While he's taking the pic, some punk kid looks over his shoulder and says, "Hey! That's a deep cameo Accented Hair! They're worth a lot of money!". The dealer pulled it and refused to sell it to him.
Russ, NCNE >>
Marty is not the sharpest tack in the bunch sometimes.
here's my story, pulled from a thread I did a few months ago:
I bought this coin at the Parsippany Show yesterday, from forum member jimp. I saw the coin last month and failed to purchase it because I didn't know if the price was good or not, but, luckily, I saw he still had it yesterday. I was very happy to get it and I'll tell you why in a minute.
Even though the coin is in a PCGS holder, there is some light hairlining from being wiped on both sides. I also believe the coin has been re-toned. Even though I was aware of this, the coin in hand was too much of a 'looker' for me to pass up. The blue is very vibrant and electric-like
Now, why was I so happy to get it?
Well, when I saw the coin at last month's show, as I stated above, I didn't know if it was a decent price or not. When I got home I actually pm'd forum member 'dimeman'(who better to ask with a handle like that?) and he expressed that he felt it was a pretty good price.
So, of course I had failed to grab Jim's business card, but I thought I remembered exactly where he was sitting. Could I call the guy who helps organize the show and have him help me out with maybe getting the guy's phone #? Why, yes I could, I know the guy pretty well. On the phone with him, I describe one of two spots where he could have been sitting, and he gives me two names and phone#'s.
I call the first guy, very pleasant on the phone, but he does not have the dime.
I call the second guy, very thick Spanish accent. I introduce myself and explain to him why I am calling him on his cell phone. I ask him, 'Do you have an 1895-S dime in a PCGS AU-58 holder?'
'Yes, I have it' he replies.
'Great, I saw it on Sunday and I should have bought it!' I said.
I ask him if he has a store and he said he does in Long Island. So I said let me give you my credit card and you can send me the dime.
He asked me to call him back in a half hour when he was actually in his store. I did and he never answered the phone.
A week goes by, and I remember him saying that he was going to be at the Clifton show, which I had never been to.
So, I call him on the Saturday before the Clifton show, and ask him if he will be there tomorrow and to re-confirm he does in fact have the dime I was interested in. His reply to both was 'Yes.'
8:00 am Sunday morning, I'm out of my house and on a mission to get this dime. I find the building where the coin show is, go up to the door, and it is locked. But there are a few dealers in there! I walked around to the back of the building and entered in by the loading dock just in time to see the dealer closest to the locked door I was just at open it up and prop it open. I walked around for all of 2 minutes, as there was a grand total of 4 dealers, including one who had a dog under his table who wouldn't stop barking.
I called up the guy to ask him where he was, and he says he's at the flea market. I asked him where that was and he said 37th and Columbus. 37th and Columbus? In Manhattan? Yes, in NY he said.
For about two seconds I contemplated driving into NYC to find this guy at a flea market at 37th and Columbus, but ultimately decided I'd be better off hoping to find it at Parsippany, which he had previously told me he would be attending regularly.
So, in summary(you still with me?
Lincoln set Colorless Set
TD
BUT, I did buy 3 coins from that dealer that day. One turned out to be well whizzed, and a great educational piece. Another an obv-DMPL 81-S that NGC graded 64*, and the third this one:
The piece has blinding, 12" + mirrors and very thick frost. NGC graded it a 63DMPL. After selling the 81-S, I paid for the three dollars and the grading, and was left with an educational piece, as well as this monster
But there is more to this story. Later that week, my friend discovered a 1796 half dollar in the collection had a (very) skillfully plugged hole that none of us had noticed. He sold that coin for $8,000 less than his original purchase price. The collector who sold it to him, who surely knew about the hole, said "a deal is a deal" and would not give him any money back. The net result was that he lost money on the collection.
Last weekend we had a two day show and this dealer comes by and starts digging through my junk slab box. While he is digging we were chatting about modern crap. The subject of Accent Hair Kennedys comes up and I'll pull out a NCS graded one to show him what they look like. About 2 minutes later he pulls a slab out of the box and asks "isn't this one of those funny hair Kennedys?". I look and sure as hell it is, a NGC slab with a not marked AH Kennedy. BTW, the grade was PF67CAM. He didn't buy it, but I gave him a discount on the slabs.
A couple years back Gonfunko and I were in a Junk shop in San Peurto, Rico when Gonfunko sees’ an 1893 Queen Isabella Quarter in a case. Unfortunately it was solder as lapel pin with a price tag of $100. The proprietor stated that if Gnfunko was interested, he would sell it to him for $65.
Gonfunko tells the man thanks, and that he will think about it.
We hurry back home where Gonfunko hits the internet to do some quick price research and decides he could make a few bucks on Ebay if he buys the coin. Back to the shop we go the next day when once again the proprietor is asked to see the coin. Only this time, the dealer tells Gonfunko he can have it for $60. It was sold two weeks later on Ebay for $125.
If we were all the same, the world would be an incredibly boring place.
Tommy
"Everything is on its way to somewhere. Everything." - George Malley, Phenomenon
http://www.american-legacy-coins.com
<< <i>A dealer in my hometown occasionally makes "mistakes". Like the 1794 Flowing Hair dollar she sold as type. Never had reason to doubt the story, as it was corroborated by several other local dealers unsolicited.
WOW! That's some story! Do you have any more details?
An authorized PCGS dealer, and a contributor to the Red Book.
I sent all 5 CC's in to NGC and they all came back as MS-64 except for the 91, it came back a MS-65.
I was very happy with that purchase as it was My first big find at any shop, coin or antique!!
Who says You can't find good coins in Antique Malls!
Antique Soda Bottles And Antique Soda Related
Advertising, and many other collectables!
Life is too short, I might as well buy Gold while I'm still around!
<< <i>
<< <i>A dealer in my hometown occasionally makes "mistakes". Like the 1794 Flowing Hair dollar she sold as type. Never had reason to doubt the story, as it was corroborated by several other local dealers unsolicited.
WOW! That's some story! Do you have any more details? >>
Richie, you can bet that if I did, I would have acted on it long ago...
"Everything is on its way to somewhere. Everything." - George Malley, Phenomenon
http://www.american-legacy-coins.com
<< <i>A friend of mine who is a dealer gave an appraisal to a local fellow on his old-time collection, which the dealer offered to buy for $92,000. The collection was full of some fantastic stuff- like a 40-piece "roll" of 1955 doubled-die Lincolns (I saw them in person and bought one- mostly XF-AU). This guy is honest and works on a very tight margin- one of the few dealers that I can both buy from and sell to. The collector and dealer set up a date to meet in the shop and do the transaction. That day, the collector walked in the shop with the coins, and no fewer than 8 dealers from all across the state walked in after him, because they found out about the coins (probably from the collector) and were hiding outside waiting. The intruding dealers started making nickel-and-dime counteroffers to "steal" the collection for a slight premium, before my friend could call the police and have them forcefully ejected from his private property. The end result was that he had to pay the collector $100,000 instead of $92,000. He got the coins, but $100,000 was the fair retail price of the stuff, so he was already just about buried in it.
But there is more to this story. Later that week, my friend discovered a 1796 half dollar in the collection had a (very) skillfully plugged hole that none of us had noticed. He sold that coin for $8,000 less than his original purchase price. The collector who sold it to him, who surely knew about the hole, said "a deal is a deal" and would not give him any money back. The net result was that he lost money on the collection.
That is quite the story! Geesh. The nerve of some people. He should have locked the door after the collector walked in.