Today I found out my major coin submission is coming back (30 coins) and some ratings were surprising and some were what I expected.

Many of the coins were minted at the old Franklin Mint, along with some Perth Mint, Royal Mint and some dealers claiming to be a mint. But the Franklin Mint (FM) made me think of what others were thinking in the 80's.. There not worth the metal they are minted on! For some reason, I should have ignored those comments (In some cases I did).

I have a few FM coin sets and I'm actually happy I still have them, but in the worse packaging. Many I removed from the original packaging so they won't get damaged. As I'm finding out, I'm glad to remove some coins from packaging that has PVC from other mints. I have coins that have PVC related issues that it is hard NOT to drop them into acetone to remove and stop the destruction. But then would that be "cleaning"?!?

But what is funny is that I have FM stuff that is not coin related. It is Star Trek (ST) related stuff I have in the basement.... a 3D Chess Set..... An Insignia Board (missing one insignia)..... A Pewter NCC-1701D Enterprise.... and many others....all as gifts. Then there are those PLAYMATE items from ST that were also gifts..... actions figures and the like. All this was GIVEN to me because I was a Star Trek Fan!! 

What's funny.... I'm not that much of a "Hard Core" fan as I'm currently watching Deep Space 9 as I write this. Voyager is next on my list since I didn't watch half-end of the series.

So what am I getting at? Well.... my coin collection is based on what I experienced and enjoyed in my life. The way all collections should be! I have BVI coins, coins with Kennedy on them, Silver dollar coins and American coins of past because they excite and intrigue me to collect them, especially in good quality. My ST collection is the same way, but only a 1/3 of what I was given or purchased. That's because being a ST fan didn't measure up to be a coin fan! Coins to me are ART!! 

Collecting is what you should enjoy, not what you need to beat someone or make a profit. It is enjoying the overall item for what it is worth TO YOU!!