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JerrySpringer
Penny Hoarding Member
669 Posts |
 Posted - 07/31/2009 : 17:38:28
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Subject says it all. I was looking to diversify into metals as a hedge against fiat currency for starters. Now I face the challenge of looking rarities of a coin breed just for the sake of collecting....
I wonder if many of us have made the transition from looking at coins as hard assets of metal and into some kind of holy grailish search.
So, is coin collecting picking up with folks in general or are my interests something of an anomaly?
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fb101
Administrator
USA
2856 Posts |
Posted - 07/31/2009 : 18:32:42
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| Many I think come the other way, from coin collecting into hoarding, but you're far from unusual. |
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oober
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
1304 Posts |
Posted - 07/31/2009 : 18:33:15
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I'm about 80/20 hoarding/collecting... I told myself I wouldn't get into collecting, but since I am not a huge SHTF scenario guy and reading about the performance of Numis vs bullion, I thought I would hedge against my hedge a little...
I have picked up a few raw MS Morgans along with my common date what I can afford type set I am working on. |
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highroller4321
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
2648 Posts |
Posted - 07/31/2009 : 21:20:34
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I hoard myself but know a decent amount about coin collecting. I find its a lot easier to buy peoples metal when you buy their coins too.
This summer has been suprising decent for coin collecting. Most of the dealers I have talked to expected a slow summer. The recent ST Louis show had record sales! |
Copper Penny Investing
www.portlandmint.com |
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aloneibreak
Penny Hoarding Member
USA
672 Posts |
Posted - 08/01/2009 : 13:32:01
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i was a collector first but have became more of a hoarder.
lately ive been at the point where id rather sell some of my higher grade semi-keys and buy more junk silver.
bulk over quality i say!! |
My reading of history convinces me that most bad government results from too much government.
Thomas Jefferson
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TXTim
Penny Hoarding Member
629 Posts |
Posted - 08/01/2009 : 13:56:48
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Coin collecting has to be pretty hot right now.
Just try winning a particular coin on e-bay and you'll see how many bidders are against you, especially key dates. |
Beer is my currency. |
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Market Harmony
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
1274 Posts |
Posted - 08/01/2009 : 15:26:42
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I have a background in the stock market and I began to focus on commodities in 2006 when the bull really started to get moving. I was trading electronically for a long time and still do with ETF's.
But then I was driving by a coin shop one day and decided to stop in to see if they had any physical bullion... my dad had some gold coins when I was kid and I wanted to see what silver was like. The dealer, whom I still visit to this day, sold to me at what I thought was amazingly cheap prices. It was common stuff, nothing exotic, and he sold to me for $18 when spot was $17.80. I learned the spread game and how to turn bullion around to make peanuts in profits. There really isn't much in it if you deal in small quantities.
Then I began looking for alternative sources and found a bunch of stuff on eBay and got ripped off a few times on bars that people labeled as .999, but really wasn't .999. But I remember seeing the market on eBay for these poured bars and saying to myself, "if I could make these bars the right way, and been known for quality, then I might have a better market spread" So I invested in the equipment to do it after securing sources of raw material for manageable prices. Market Harmony bullion products was born. When a crucible was nearing the end of its life, I decided to throw in some copper to see what I could do. And then Nate of the Copper Cave found some of my products on eBay... and THAT'S what really got things going.
Now that I've been in the business for a while, I've learned and continued to learn, so much more about the Hobby of Kings. Coins are a natural progression in my endevours, both for MH and for me personally. I have never had a coin collection until about a year ago.
Today, I just bought a complete set of lincoln cents (from 1909 to 1980, minus the 1909 S VDB)... I was once only looking at the metal value of stuff, but today I just spent $525 on $1.95 face value of copper cents! I've never been so happy getting a 1931 S in XF, a 1914 D in F, and 1909 S in VG... Now I just need the elusive 09 S VDB 
Who wants pictures?  |
goto the new and improved realcent: http://realcent.org |
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Ant
Penny Hoarding Member
USA
894 Posts |
Posted - 08/02/2009 : 09:44:18
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I started out buying bullion coins a little over three years ago. It surprised me that the coins were so well made and so detailed. That's when I began to think about collecting.
I have a set of Mercury dimes that I enjoyed putting together, but I look just as hard for XF/AU copies of world cents for my world cent collection. It's worth a fraction of the dime set, but I enjoy it just as much. Likewise my set of halfpennies.
I freely admit that many coins, including some of the ones considered to be the most beautiful in the world, hold no interest for me. But the nice thing about coins is that there are so many different ones out there. We can start up a collection of whatever we like. (There won't be a Dansco album for it, but that's another story.  )
Is coin collecting picking up in general? Hrmm. I think more people are getting interested in bullion and from there, it's a short step to collecting coins. But I don't think there are many folks who are now deciding to take up collecting out of the blue. The hobby still has the reputation of being expensive -- which, as we all know, isn't necessarily the case. |
Lovely dimes, the liveliest coin, the one that really jingles. --Truman Capote
Coins are the metallic footprints of the history of nations. --William H. Woodin |
Edited by - Ant on 08/02/2009 10:02:54 |
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CoinHunter53562
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
1805 Posts |
Posted - 08/02/2009 : 09:51:42
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Well said Ant. I have gotten some people into the bullion game, and it's a natural extension to coin collecting from there (because some buy bullion in the form of average circulated coins and that peaks their interest). I think alot of people are fascinated by the history of the coins, and some of the designs of old.
I know the coin shows and coin shops I attend are still doing well, and have a fair amount in attendance so I would say yes, the coin collecting market is still strong. |
My hobby: collecting real money 1 copper cent or nickel at a time.
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dakota1955
1000+ Penny Miser Member
2212 Posts |
Posted - 08/02/2009 : 16:20:40
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| I started with coin collecting but now I am in more bullion now.I still have a few holes in completing set which I am still working at. |
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just carl
Penny Hoarding Member
USA
601 Posts |
Posted - 08/03/2009 : 09:18:53
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quote:
Today, I just bought a complete set of lincoln cents (from 1909 to 1980, minus the 1909 S VDB)... I was once only looking at the metal value of stuff, but today I just spent $525 on $1.95 face value of copper cents! I've never been so happy getting a 1931 S in XF, a 1914 D in F, and 1909 S in VG... Now I just need the elusive 09 S VDB
WOW, great deal. What grade is the 55 and 72 Double Dies? What grade is the 22 plain? 70S? Just think that the 10S, 11S, 12S, 13S alone are worth more than what you paid. What grades are those? Sounds like you purchased a multi thousand dollar value for that price. |
Carl |
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just carl
Penny Hoarding Member
USA
601 Posts |
Posted - 08/03/2009 : 09:21:34
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| OOOppps forgot the question. Around me there has been 3 coin shows a Month now for some time. Those have been getting so large there is now a 4th one each Month. We now have coin shows on the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Sundays of each Month. With coin stores and coin dealers at flea markets in abundance there is no need to even look at ebay. |
Carl |
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Market Harmony
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
1274 Posts |
Posted - 08/03/2009 : 15:02:04
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quote:
Originally posted by just carl
WOW, great deal. What grade is the 55 and 72 Double Dies? What grade is the 22 plain? 70S? Just think that the 10S, 11S, 12S, 13S alone are worth more than what you paid. What grades are those? Sounds like you purchased a multi thousand dollar value for that price.
The collection did not contain the plain 22 or 70S small date... I guess those were too rare to be included. There also were no error varieties. The 10, 11, 12, and 13 S's are in the following grades: VF, VF+, F, VF. Overall, I gave a conservative value on the collection around $900. I was willing to go as high as $650 on the bidding, but the other guy gave up when I bid the $525
Getting back to the original question: I have seen a considerable increase in coin auctions near Pittsburgh. I don't know if this is due to collecting, or lack of coin shows, but the attendance is fair. I'm going to this one tomorrow You must be logged in to see this link. I'm looking for some good deals
Also, here's a shameless plug for the cents from the collection that I did not need. I'm auctioning them You must be logged in to see this link.. No bidders, yet, so I guess this might be an indication of how hot coin collecting is for the membership. The grades that I listed for the keys and semi-keys are conservative, plus the value on the rest, and the collectible value is well over the starting bid price.
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goto the new and improved realcent: http://realcent.org |
Edited by - Market Harmony on 08/03/2009 15:12:44 |
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just carl
Penny Hoarding Member
USA
601 Posts |
Posted - 08/22/2009 : 12:46:02
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| Be real carefull at auctions. They are on the increase everywhere. This is due to people realizing you can make money by auctioning off items than having a garage/yard/estate sale. The reall problem with many auctions are what is known as a ringer. This is person in the audiance that bids on numerous items that are not doing well. They are paid by the auctioneers for just that purpose. If they should win an item, so what, it just goes back up for sale at the next auction. |
Carl |
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Kurr
1000+ Penny Miser Member
2906 Posts |
Posted - 08/22/2009 : 13:20:39
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shill bidding and bid rigging are illegal and will result in the loss of liscense of the auctioneer under U.C.C. ... I forget which, but live auctions are HIGHLY regulated now.
I know a few and they can't even say anything about another auctioneer in conversation, because their liscense would get pulled if it got mentioned to the auction commitee that oversees them for the state. |
The silver [is] mine, and the gold [is] mine, saith the LORD of hosts. Hag 2:8 [/b]
He created it. He controls it. He gave it to us for His use. Why did we turn from sound scriptural currency that PROTECTS us?
KJV Bible w/ Strong's Concordance: http://www.blueletterbible.org/
The book of The Hundreds: http://www.land.netonecom.net/tlp/ref/boh/bookOfTheHundreds_v4.1.pdf
The Two Republics: http://www.whitehorsemedia.com/docs/THE_TWO_REPUBLICS.pdf
Good reading: http://ecclesia.org/truth/government.html
A number of people are educated beyond, sometimes way beyond, their intelligence. - Tenbears
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How hot is coin collecting right now?
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