Think I've lost my way...numismatic pep talk needed!
Monstavet
Posts: 1,235 ✭✭
Long story short, I am numismatically confused and could use some advice or a bit of a pep talk to help me choose my path.
Got into collecting about 12 years ago. Wasn't brought in by state quarters, just a coincidence really. Actually it was getting a half dollar from my birth year in change that got me to start thinking about coins. Anyway...began collecting JFKs and Jeffersons and put together decent registry sets of the proof issues as well as other odds and ends. Eventually sold it all and used the money towards a down payment on a house. It was a good decision and a needed break from collecting.
Got back into coins around 2003-2004 and after dabbling with some different stuff, decided on attempting to conquer 'The Complete Type Set.' I knew it would be a long journey, and I figured on 10 years to complete it. I also have a pretty nice set of circulated Walkers I work on from time-to-time. I've had some breaks in the past seven years - my professional career really took off and I needed to spend a lot of time on that. Career is stable and going well and over the past 15 months I have been working steadily on my collection.
So, I am 7 years into the Type Set, and over 50% complete. Budget and time constraints being what they are, I will probably need another 7-10 years and likely 2-3 times what I have spent so far to complete it. Looking over the set I have assembled, I really like most of the coins, but there are some that I already view as needing upgrades. Looking at what remains to be collected, I have a lot of mixed feelings, including: a) Excitement about researching the types I do not have and as I have been slowly working backwards through time, it is really cool to finally be working on some of the early 19th and late 18th century material. b) Frustration with certain types. Sorry half-dime and 3CS guys. I strongly dislike these coins. Not the designs, which are fine. But for the amount of money on something so damn small I could sneeze and lose the coin...I just find them endlessly unsatisfying. I feel like I HAVE to buy them to finish the set, but I get no pleasure from it. c) I already have a pretty big chunk of change tied up in this collection. I know there are folks who have single coins worth more than my entire collection. As my personal wealth has increased, so has my budget for coins - but not necesarily my comfort level with owning expensive coins.
I view my collecting options as this:
1) Stop whining and finish the damn Type Set! (but I am worried I am not going to be that satisfied with it when finished)
2) Take another break and come back with fresh eyes. (but I am feeling pretty motivated about collecting in general)
3) Abandon the Type Set and focus on building best set of the Types I like (still love nickels and half dollars) - kind of a Box of Twenty approach. This would allow me to spend more money on each individual coin and build a more satisfying personailzed set.
Right now, I am pretty much settled on Curtain #3, but can't shake the feeling that I failed at the Complete Type Set. Is it wrong to change ships at this point? I'd love to hear from members who have finished or decided not to finish sets. Have I lost my faith? In some ways, the Type Set has been a great 'mission' sort of an endless quest for the Holy Grail. Perhaps the coin gods are testing my faith and planting seeds of doubt!
Thanks for reading and I look forward to any advice or suggestions.
Got into collecting about 12 years ago. Wasn't brought in by state quarters, just a coincidence really. Actually it was getting a half dollar from my birth year in change that got me to start thinking about coins. Anyway...began collecting JFKs and Jeffersons and put together decent registry sets of the proof issues as well as other odds and ends. Eventually sold it all and used the money towards a down payment on a house. It was a good decision and a needed break from collecting.
Got back into coins around 2003-2004 and after dabbling with some different stuff, decided on attempting to conquer 'The Complete Type Set.' I knew it would be a long journey, and I figured on 10 years to complete it. I also have a pretty nice set of circulated Walkers I work on from time-to-time. I've had some breaks in the past seven years - my professional career really took off and I needed to spend a lot of time on that. Career is stable and going well and over the past 15 months I have been working steadily on my collection.
So, I am 7 years into the Type Set, and over 50% complete. Budget and time constraints being what they are, I will probably need another 7-10 years and likely 2-3 times what I have spent so far to complete it. Looking over the set I have assembled, I really like most of the coins, but there are some that I already view as needing upgrades. Looking at what remains to be collected, I have a lot of mixed feelings, including: a) Excitement about researching the types I do not have and as I have been slowly working backwards through time, it is really cool to finally be working on some of the early 19th and late 18th century material. b) Frustration with certain types. Sorry half-dime and 3CS guys. I strongly dislike these coins. Not the designs, which are fine. But for the amount of money on something so damn small I could sneeze and lose the coin...I just find them endlessly unsatisfying. I feel like I HAVE to buy them to finish the set, but I get no pleasure from it. c) I already have a pretty big chunk of change tied up in this collection. I know there are folks who have single coins worth more than my entire collection. As my personal wealth has increased, so has my budget for coins - but not necesarily my comfort level with owning expensive coins.
I view my collecting options as this:
1) Stop whining and finish the damn Type Set! (but I am worried I am not going to be that satisfied with it when finished)
2) Take another break and come back with fresh eyes. (but I am feeling pretty motivated about collecting in general)
3) Abandon the Type Set and focus on building best set of the Types I like (still love nickels and half dollars) - kind of a Box of Twenty approach. This would allow me to spend more money on each individual coin and build a more satisfying personailzed set.
Right now, I am pretty much settled on Curtain #3, but can't shake the feeling that I failed at the Complete Type Set. Is it wrong to change ships at this point? I'd love to hear from members who have finished or decided not to finish sets. Have I lost my faith? In some ways, the Type Set has been a great 'mission' sort of an endless quest for the Holy Grail. Perhaps the coin gods are testing my faith and planting seeds of doubt!
Thanks for reading and I look forward to any advice or suggestions.
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I was working on the 144 piece Classic Commem set. I managed to put together 74 of them and got sidetracked by putting together a second set of Booker T. Washingtons and starting a second set of Carver/Washingtons. Actually it was a third set of C/W's as I have a set in Wayte Raymond pages. I came to the conclusion that my age, the economy, and the rising price of several of the needed key coins in the Commem set were working against me. I figured I didn't have enough years left to finish the set. I am currently working on odds and ends. I finished a circulated set of Walkers I started 50 years ago. I am working on my Birth Year set needing only the "P" mint Nickel and Cent to finish the set. I just bought four Roosevelt Dimes I have not seen yet. I don't know why the Rosies, just a whim. In a bad economy I figured i could buy things I could still afford just to feel normal. Somewhere out there is a set with your name on it. All you have to do is find the set.
Ron
Edited for spelling
For a long time, I was working on an uncirculated 20th Century Type set - but I found that my interest really on lied with the >1950 coins, and that I was collected all the 1950< out of obligation to the set. So...
I changed my set to be an uncirculated type set 1900 to 1950 - this was fun, but eventually I realized that I did not like tying up so much money in uncirculated examples of all the Barber issues, when in my view, they were repetitive & not really the most important coins in the set. So...
I changed my set again: this time to 'America's Coin Renaissance' (design changes that occurred between 1907 and 1921, including gold) - and now I am very happy with my set!!
Bottom line: you should collect what excites you, not what you feel obligated to - Registry categories, Whitman folders, etc., at the end of the day are merely other people's notions of what a collection might be, when at the end of the day your own satisfaction is really all that matters.
>>>My Collection
There are other options as well. If you want the fun of learing and hunting for coins, why not dabble in an interesting but relatively inexpensive area for a while? You can have a lot of fun without a lot of money on things like Civel War tokens or So-called dollars - no need to finsh a set, but fun to learn about and pursue.
Anyway - remember that this is supposed to be fun first and foremost. Good luck.
merse
I've decided long ago that I alone will define my purchasing direction. Any coin that doesn't completely excite or interest me is subject to sale so I can add something better to the collection.
Just follow your heart, not someone's predefined strategy.
Come to the Dark Side... we have cookies.
And coins that will knock yer sox off.
Which are for the most part very budget-friendly.
And we won't even require that you quit collecting Liteside coins, since US Coins are World Coins and are in fact a subset of the All-Powerful Dark Side.
Of the three options you mentioned, your "Box of Twenty" idea sounds the most liberating. Don't forget to add some Darkside to it.
PS- Click here... if you dare!
Positive BST Transactions (buyers and sellers): wondercoin, blu62vette, BAJJERFAN, privatecoin, blu62vette, AlanLastufka, privatecoin
#1 1951 Bowman Los Angeles Rams Team Set
#2 1980 Topps Los Angeles Rams Team Set
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Fellas, leave the tight pants to the ladies. If I can count the coins in your pockets you better use them to call a tailor. Stay thirsty my friends......
<< <i>not for nothing but no one has ever seen the devil or lordmarcovan at the same time. just sayin............MJ >>
Boo!
Y'know, there's a very good reason for that. I can explain.
PS- hey, at least I didn't try to lure 'im into collecting Holey coins, right?
As a nod to our sponsors and the PCGS Registry, I reckon there ain't nothin' wrong with that, if you can afford it. I have flirted with that style of collecting a few times, and I have to admit, it was a lot of fun. In fact, it was the Registry that originally drew me to these forums ten years ago.
But it didn't take very long for my tastes to outrun my budget. Soon I realized that the only Registry sets I could be competitive in might be the moderns, and those just weren't my cup o' tea (despite my very deep respect for Cladking, their de facto spokesman).
I went to the opposite end of the spectrum and it wasn't long before I was collecting ancients, which are about as far from modern Registry coins as you can get.
The great thing about this hobby is that the possibilities are almost endless, and it need not be "the sport of kings". Granted, it is nice to admire some of the numismatic heavyweights' coins posted here, but it can also get depressing when you're a mere mortal.
Buck up, Monstavet- even if I can't lure you to the Darkside, there is hope yet. You just have to change gears a bit, is all. Over the past decade I've changed gears maybe seven or eight times. I've had my hand in a little bit of everything, and enjoyed it all. This hobby is like a huge all-you-can-eat buffet. There is no reason to feel discouraged when you lose your appetite for one particular dish. Just pick up a clean plate and go back for something else.
Just do whatever feels right.
I understand where you're at. I want to finish a set of Lincolns but honestly, as I'm about 20 coins in, I know it will take me lifetime at this rate. I've been looking more to pick up a nice Mercury or Buffalo because I don't have one and that seems more appealing ATM.
Yesterday we went to 'the grocery store' which is HUGE megastore with every brand of every type of food know to western civilization.
I was overwhelmed.
This is exactly how I think type set collectors must feel.
Why collect it ALL?
Whats the point? Youll never NEVER have a collection that is truly great. Never. Youll be force to buy those stupidly tiny coins you don like. You can swap grades around..upgrade..until your bones turn to dust.....and youll never have a truly great collection.
S P E C I A L I Z E
Pick your Favorite series within the megascope of TYPE and learn it in and out. Buy the keys, buy the semi keys....research the series, buy the books, network with other collectors who understand that series. Go to shows..and now instead of hunting everything....pare down your quest to three or four pieces. The rarer the better.
Just my thoughts........
TAKE THE MILESTONE COINS CHALLENGE!
I now have all of the type coins from the half cents through the latest dollar coins, and I'm within two pieces of completing my 1795 to 1933 gold type coin set. I've been at it since the mid 1960s when I was in high school.
At first I got one example of every major type that I could afford. That met that I had one Seated Liberty coin for each denomination. Then I went back in filled in all of the holes (No Drapery, arrows etc.) When I got my first job out of college I started to buy the early coins. I’d only be able to buy two or three coins a year, but they turned me on so much it did not bother me. Then over time I kept up grading and expanding. Finally last summer I bought a 1796-7 half dollar which completed my half cent to dollar set.
Collect what you enjoy. Maybe some day you will even like those pesky half dimes. Maybe these will wet your appetite.
1792 half disme
Flowing Hair
Draped Bust, Small Eagle
Draped Bust, Heraldic Eagle
And yes, I have collected the early half dimes by Red Book variety for 35 years ...
AB
member dis:
Go BIG or GO HOME. ©Bill
Funny thing with the IHCs, I was trying to buy them in order (weird, right?) and I got stuck on a common date that no one ever seemed to have in stock...got one at the last small show I was at, at the 1st table by the door.
Pontiacinf: Yes, I remember that coin. Of all the coins I sold to make my house down payment, that is the one I wish I hadn't. The only one. But, I still have my house, and it brings me pleasure every day. Se la vie!
Regarding Registry Sets: A point of clarification - I do not actually have any Registry sets at this time. I did 10 years ago, but retired them and moved on. So, I am not weighed down by competition or points. I would consider one again just for documentation, but it is not a high priority.
Lordmarcovan: please don't ever get urself banhammered from here....I don't think these forums would be worth the pixels they are printed on without you darkening the doorways! And I could totally see myself adding some tasty darkside coins in the future. I'm so corrupt...
Carl: I've gotten some great coins from you. Your approach is sort of how I have been building the set: started with the nickels, then odd denominations, and cents. Moved into halves and so on. In all likelihood, I WOULD sell some of the type set pieces. The reason goes back to the total value of the collection. I'm comfortable with where it is now, but not so much with endlessly adding pieces to it. I am thinking I want to own fewer coins overall, but maybe nicer examples, if that makes any sense.
BillJones: If I am going to own half dimes, those are certainly nothing to complain about - beautiful stuff! Now, if only they were actually that size.... Two coins away from finishing?!! Great work! I'll bet it is impressive to see.
Ambro51: re: never having a great set - absolutely spot on...I think that is what I am feeling is that at the end, finishing the set would not be enough of an achievement.
Y'all have given me a lot to think about. I definitely want this to be fun and not seem like a task. Thank you for taking the time to reply.
<< <i>BillJones: If I am going to own half dimes, those are certainly nothing to complain about - beautiful stuff! Now, if only they were actually that size.... Two coins away from finishing?!! Great work! I'll bet it is impressive to see. >>
You can see it. Here are the links:
Half cents to non gold dollars
Gold type set
<< <i>Looking over the set I have assembled, I really like most of the coins, but there are some that I already view as needing upgrades.
I know there are folks who have single coins worth more than my entire collection.
1) Stop whining and 3) Abandon the Type Set and focus on building best set of the Types I like... >>
when it stops being fun, its work.
someday i will own A coin thats worth several collections...
I did bend over backwards to get a 1911-D quarter eagle, so that I can finish an Indian quarter eagle set. But, it's a coin I like having, not one that I feel I have to have in lieu of something else at the price.
<< <i>
Just do whatever feels right.
Perfectly stated!
Mont- go do a set of Buffaloes
<< <i>
Just do whatever feels right.
Buy what you like!
Vermont Coppers?
Lance.
The coins you no longer want are still a resource that can be used to finance other coins, and the goal is to have a collection that you are happy with, regardless of cost, date, origin or composition.
I knew it would happen.
Someone mentioned type collecting as being a major undertaking requiring years to finish. I just purchased a 7070 Dansco to holder all the various type coins I've grabbed on a whim over the years. Turns out that I only need to purchase about a half-dozen coins to complete the set. That's a collection compiled by just farting around and grabbing whatever interested me at the time. Not all the coins are high quality, but I don't care.
I can relate to feeling pressure to purchase coins. I was sweating out whether to bid on an 1893-S half on EBay. Fortunately (or unfortunately), on the day the auction closed, my bike broke down on a 40-mile bicycle ride and I missed the close of the auction. Relief. Now I don't have to worry about completing a set of mid-grade Barbers anymore. I don't care for coins in slabs anyway (I just cannot bring myself to crack them out).
Collect coins that you like. One needs to change their approach if they feel at all constrained or unhappy with collecting.
<< <i>WoW! Lots of replies! I feel a lot better after reading everyone's posts.
Pontiacinf: Yes, I remember that coin. Of all the coins I sold to make my house down payment, that is the one I wish I hadn't. The only one. But, I still have my house, and it brings me pleasure every day. Se la vie!
Regarding Registry Sets: A point of clarification - I do not actually have any Registry sets at this time. I did 10 years ago, but retired them and moved on. So, I am not weighed down by competition or points. I would consider one again just for documentation, but it is not a high priority.
Lordmarcovan: please don't ever get urself banhammered from here....I don't think these forums would be worth the pixels they are printed on without you darkening the doorways! And I could totally see myself adding some tasty darkside coins in the future. I'm so corrupt...
Carl: I've gotten some great coins from you. Your approach is sort of how I have been building the set: started with the nickels, then odd denominations, and cents. Moved into halves and so on. In all likelihood, I WOULD sell some of the type set pieces. The reason goes back to the total value of the collection. I'm comfortable with where it is now, but not so much with endlessly adding pieces to it. I am thinking I want to own fewer coins overall, but maybe nicer examples, if that makes any sense.
BillJones: If I am going to own half dimes, those are certainly nothing to complain about - beautiful stuff! Now, if only they were actually that size.... Two coins away from finishing?!! Great work! I'll bet it is impressive to see.
Ambro51: re: never having a great set - absolutely spot on...I think that is what I am feeling is that at the end, finishing the set would not be enough of an achievement.
Y'all have given me a lot to think about. I definitely want this to be fun and not seem like a task. Thank you for taking the time to reply. >>
and yes brother I love that coin, hooked me on jeffersons, was the first jefferson I bought-wow that takes me back.
I am surre what ever you do will be stellar, and you know whatever you want to sell check with me, you have a great eye and any throw back
you would have would be worthwhile-good luck and let me know if I can be of any help-you rock bro
Go BIG or GO HOME. ©Bill
<< <i>collect Trade Dollars, they are big & sexy and will impressive once complete, plus you like chops so you can personalize it to your liking >>
I have one great Trade dollar....you might remember it! It is in the keeper pile.
<< <i>
Just do whatever feels right.
My collection seems to follow that path, buy and collect and hoard and treat incoming coins and banknotes like they are entering the roach motel - they check in but not out!
I collect hard side, light side, dark side, inside and outside. I like money in all it's forms, particularly if it is gold or has a pretty girl on it.
I did not like type set collecting. I tried the 20th century type thing and I was never satisfied with what I was buying I always found a better piece and then upgraded and it stared all over again for the same coin. Best thing I ever did was to start collecting a series by date . I chose the US philippines series , some consider this a darkside series. I think it is half way inbetween. But any series would do.
You'll learn what dates can be found and in what conditions on those dates are scarce. You get one of those condition scarce pieces and you don't see another, or better piece for a long time, your much more satisfied with your coin, you feel more excited that you have something . As you gain the specialist
series knowledge your buying/rewards will become more fun.
Krueger