One Year Coin Collecting Anniversary! 2 2

[Woods020]

On 3/5/2022 at 7:52 PM, The Neophyte Numismatist said:

@Woods020 and @Modwriter... Looking back at this thread and my Coinaversary is your Coinaversary.  Hope you both have a great Coinaversary and are able to celebrate! 

Happy coinaversary. Is this the silver or gold year?

[The Neophyte Numismatist]

On 3/5/2022 at 9:48 PM, Woods020 said:

Happy coinaversary. Is this the silver or gold year?

Copper for me 

[Mr.Bill347]

On 3/5/2022 at 4:22 PM, USAuPzlBxBob said:

Interesting… with all this talk of From Mine to Mint, I started to think that the book was familiar to me.

Went downstairs to the library and searched for it, and there it was, on an upper shelf.  Pulled it down, paperback edition, and for some reason a slip of paper placeholder was on page 100… something about post civil war assessment of the New Orleans Mint, mention of maybe shipping the equipment to Carson City.  Looked at the front cover and there at the bottom was Roger's full name.  Made me feel good.

Inspected the book and I can tell I never read it.  No dog-eared pages, in fact all of the pages are in like-new condition.  Flipped through the pages, and knowing so much more about coins than when I bought it, it is a pleasure to see those old photographs of early mints.

Own two other coin books, a 2013 Red Book, spiral bound paperback, free of charge from ARCI when I purchased my first coin, and a hardcopy reproduction of the original 1947 Red Book. (but Whitman Publishing Company, copyright 1946; the only thing I don't like about it is there is an ISBN sticker on the back cover, which probably cannot be removed without a trace.)

Made me go to my paperwork folder for all of my coin purchases, and there's a nice showing of coin orders — and the beautiful letters from some of the dealers — NGC and NCS submissions, and dealer business cards.

So, advice I'll give to coin collecting, one and two year anniversary celebrants, is save all your paperwork.  In folders, ideally hanging folders in a desk, and "manilla" folders within them… forever.  You'll come back to them later and marvel at what you went through when you were just beginning.  They'll bring back the memories like they were just yesterday, and they're part of the history of your coins, too.

I just finished Roger’s book, from Mine to Mint, excellent I had no idea so MUCH went into coin making. I loved all 538 pages of it!

[Mr.Bill347]

LemE and Neophite, congratulations to both of you. I am just into my 2nd year and I am so impressed by both of your collections. I was proud of my 10,000 points in my registry until I looked at some of your coins. Wow Neo, that 1917 Standing Liberty is OUT standing! 3,500 points on that one alone! My collection jumped all over the place. In the last few months, I managed to get 42 proof sets from 55 on. I got the 2021 Morgan and Peace, and have two MS63 Morgan’s. I have bought wayyy more than I should have, I can’t imagine the amount of cash you guys gave out!

good luck in your collecting!

[The Neophyte Numismatist]

@RWB Roger - is it possible to find from Mine to Mint in Hardcover?

[The Neophyte Numismatist]

On 3/6/2022 at 5:27 PM, Mr.Bill347 said:

....Wow Neo, that 1917 Standing Liberty is OUT standing!...

Thanks so much Mr. Bill.  I really love that SLQ.  It is such a beautiful design.  I wish I had more of them, but... I can say the same for the proofs that you have been snapping up.  Proofs are darn near perfect, and pretty to look at in any collection.  Whether someone has the top registry collection, or is assembling a collection from circulation, collectors that put the time into the hobby have coins that are quite fascinating.  I love looking at and learning about coins.  That's the fun of the forum/registry... looking at everyones collection.  Unless you are Eliasberg, you cannot own it all (and even he could not do it today).

[RWB]

On 3/6/2022 at 9:32 PM, The Neophyte Numismatist said:

@RWB Roger - is it possible to find from Mine to Mint in Hardcover?

Sorry, it was printed only in soft cover to reduce both weight and cost.

[PS: It was sold only with a CD of fully searchable content - use it like an index.]

Edited March 7, 2022 by RWB

[Mr.Bill347]

I’m not giving up my copy! Haha

On 3/6/2022 at 10:20 PM, RWB said:

Sorry, it was printed only in soft cover to reduce both weight and cost.

😆 

[The Neophyte Numismatist]

On 3/6/2022 at 10:20 PM, RWB said:

Sorry, it was printed only in soft cover to reduce both weight and cost.

Thank you, sir.  

[GoldFinger1969]

On 3/6/2022 at 5:19 PM, Mr.Bill347 said:

I just finished Roger’s book, from Mine to Mint, excellent I had no idea so MUCH went into coin making. I loved all 538 pages of it!

If you like gold coins and/or Saints, his Saint-Gaudens Book is fantastic. 

[GoldFinger1969]

On 3/10/2021 at 8:00 PM, Woods020 said:

The timing is perfect. A nice 1933 double eagle is about to go to auction it seems. That would be one heck of a coinaversary gift!

I had that very idea, but Sotheby's would not take an out-of-town, 3rd-party check, postdated to 2026. 

On 3/10/2021 at 8:00 PM, Woods020 said:

Aside from that I’m in a similar position. I’m closing on a year and have bought way too much that is all over the board. But I’ve slowed down buying to almost nothing and reading everything I can get my hands on. I’ll tell you it’s worth the pause to educate yourself more. I’ve kicked myself several times for things I wish I had known before jumping in head first buying. Lots of great books that members can recommend if there is a certain area of focus you want to learn more about. 

Same thing here.  Have gone on some buying sprees (usually less-expensive stuff, except for FUN 2020) but get more enjoyment reading about coins....picking a target....waiting and finding the right one....and then buying 1 or 2 of the type.

[The Neophyte Numismatist]

On 3/12/2022 at 12:23 PM, GoldFinger1969 said:

I get more enjoyment reading about coins....picking a target....waiting and finding the right one....and then buying 1 or 2 of the type.

Informed, slow and deliberate is the best way to build a collection, regardless of collectible.

[GoldFinger1969]

On 3/12/2022 at 12:32 PM, The Neophyte Numismatist said:

Informed, slow and deliberate is the best way to build a collection, regardless of collectible.

What fun is collecting if you go out and buy the very collection you want to accumulate in a week ?  What fun is that ?

[USAuPzlBxBob]

One thing I've noticed about the coins I had collected, back around 2014, is that if I were to start from scratch, today, I would never have accomplished my objectives.

Other than David Lawrence, no one has gold inventory right now… they've all been "picked clean."

And when I look at just my main type set, I had a NGC Registry ranking for my 1834 — 1933 Gold Type Set of 48 late last year at some point… when I joined the Registry.

My rank is now 58.  There are a lot of new collectors out there, and they're well heeled.

[GoldFinger1969]

On 3/12/2022 at 10:38 PM, USAuPzlBxBob said:

One thing I've noticed about the coins I had collected, back around 2014, is that if I were to start from scratch, today, I would never have accomplished my objectives. Other than David Lawrence, no one has gold inventory right now… they've all been "picked clean."

I see quality on HA and GC all the time, do you look there ?

On 3/12/2022 at 10:38 PM, USAuPzlBxBob said:

And when I look at just my main type set, I had a NGC Registry ranking for my 1834 — 1933 Gold Type Set of 48 late last year at some point… when I joined the Registry. My rank is now 58.  There are a lot of new collectors out there, and they're well heeled.

That's something we have debated here for quite a while here:  the long-term demographic strength of the hobby and the influx (?) post-Covid with all the new Keyboard Collectors.  Your perspective is interesting and noted.

I'll check out your registry, thanks ! 

[FranklinHalfAddict]

How can you make this post and not show any of your coins?!

We would all love to see some of your favorites.

Im going on my 11th year as what I would consider serious collecting. If I were just coming up on my one year I think I’d take out and lay out my whole collection and admire what I’ve accomplished over the year. If I were going to buy something I know I’d want to buy a coin, but I think the better option would be to buy a reference book.

I think your best option is to do whatever makes you happy!

[FranklinHalfAddict]

On 3/10/2021 at 8:00 PM, Woods020 said:

The timing is perfect. A nice 1933 double eagle is about to go to auction it seems. That would be one heck of a coinaversary gift!

 

Aside from that I’m in a similar position. I’m closing on a year and have bought way too much that is all over the board. But I’ve slowed down buying to almost nothing and reading everything I can get my hands on. I’ll tell you it’s worth the pause to educate yourself more. I’ve kicked myself several times for things I wish I had known before jumping in head first buying. Lots of great books that members can recommend if there is a certain area of focus you want to learn more about. 

I was the same way in my first year or two. Luckily I never bought any problem coins or severely overpaid for anything. I accumulated a lot of what I thought at the time were great coins but as I learned more and viewed more coins I realized most of what I bought was pretty common stuff.

Over the years I’ve sold off all the stuff that never really wowed me and kept all the material that I really enjoyed looking at. I still have a lot of those original coins I bought and have thought about selling until I realize what I’d get in return is not much and I’d rather hold on to them to show my future kids and grandkids.

[The Neophyte Numismatist]

On 3/13/2022 at 8:08 AM, FranklinHalfAddict said:

How can you make this post and not show any of your coins?!

We would all love to see some of your favorites.

There is a link to my registry in the thread.  I don't have a ton of coins, and the majority of my coins are there.

My "Top 10" :

1. 1795 C-5a Capped Bust Half Cent
2. 1803 C-4 Draped Bust Half Cent
3. 1855 C-1 Braided Hair Half Cent
4. 1803 Draped Bust Large Cent
5. 1814 Classic Head Large Cent
6. 1911 Liberty Nickel
7. 1832 Capped Bust Dime
8. 1875-S Trade Dollar
9. 1917 T1 SLQ
10. 1915 Barber Dime

[USAuPzlBxBob]

On 3/13/2022 at 12:00 AM, GoldFinger1969 said:

I see quality on HA and GC all the time, do you look there ?

That's something we have debated here for quite a while here:  the long-term demographic strength of the hobby and the influx (?) post-Covid with all the new Keyboard Collectors.  Your perspective is interesting and noted.

I'll check out your registry, thanks ! 

When I was acquiring coins (I'm done now… accomplished my objectives.) I never knew how to navigate this website.  Its format was not like it is today… all of the branches were merged into one:  coins, comics, paper money… one Water Cooler.

At the very start for me, I didn't know what slabs were all about, and all I wanted to do was fit into a very small puzzle box as much value as possible, and gold seemed to afford that.  Sort of like you solve the puzzle box and get surprised by its contents of gold.  Then I imagined buying a gold bar, hammering it with a spoon after warming in on a stove burner, and getting it to perfectly fit the puzzle box's inner dimensions.  But that was way too much work, and I'd really be in over my head.  (However, that would be a cool solution because the heft of the puzzle box would be maximized for its size.)  Then, it seemed, rare gold coins would have more interest, and if the coins were worn, it didn't matter to me.  I've just uncovered some interesting aspects of my early efforts… from 2013.  Two small little Post Its in my "Red Book" on a GOLD DOLLARS page reveals how my focus was not nearly what it would later become.

My first coin was a Carson City $10 Coronet Eagle and I contacted the dealer after I received it and I asked how do you get the coin out of the holder.  I think he was shocked by my question, and replied that whatever I do, don't try to take the coin out of the holder.  So, I learned that much.  I'll see if I can snap a photo of the page and post it here.  It really shows how my interest evolved from day one to roughly one year later.

Half of the reason I never did a coin auction was because the hammer comes down, and you own the coin.  No returns.  Sight unseen, other than the online auction photos, and I was a complete newbie.  With dealers there was always a return grace period, for any reason, and I returned around 10 coins or so.