New to collecting and Wanting to know Where I can buy bulk old coins or old Collections? 0

[Teachercollector]

I am new to coins but already love it!!!

Wondering if any of you pros at this have any advice on where I could buy large lots of coins to search?

Also where could I possibly find old coin collections?

Thank you for all your help everyone  

[James Zyskowski]

Welcome. That’s a well thought out question. Carefully.  Continue doing this posting. Get a feel for eBay. Buy a redbook   Etsy no no   Nothing like them. There’s buy sell trade area in the forum on NGC. PCGS has one.   Beware of the too good to be true. Ask us before you buy. Quick pictures can save a mistake. 

Edited September 24, 2021 by James Zyskowski

[Teachercollector]

Thanks James,

Yeah I checked those spots out but most are adding stupid gold flakes and fake pearls which seems dumb haha.  Others seem like they are only selling the junk coins they already searched like pounds of wheats but only dates from 1945 and up.

I am really looking for coins I can search through and have the fun myself as we all are I am sure  

[Woods020]

Welcome to the forum. What kinds of coins are you interested in (world, US, ancient,etc.)? Also when you say bulk lots to search what do you mean exactly? Are you trying to find varieties, errors, or just better condition coins?Once we know some more we can give you better advice. If nothing else just to learn and get the feel for evaluating coins you can start by getting rolls from your bank and looking through them. Chances are slim you find anything of much significance, but it is a good learning experience that is little to no cost depending on how many you keep. 
 

Also before you jump into buying or searching focus on learning the basics. You can’t know what to look for until you learn what you are looking at. Once you tell us your focus we can offer suggestions on learning aids. 

[Mr.Bill347]

Welcome, I have purchased entire sets, partial sets and quarters on ebay. Got an entire set 1964-2020 Kennedy’s all mints in books for $200. Got a set of almost complete Roosevelt Dimes and a set of MS and Proof zlincons in books for a reasonable amount. Kinda like a kick start. Watch for sellers which have sold lots of items and mostly positive feedback. Also check against already sold items to insure you are paying the right price. For individual coins use the NGC coin explorer and finally two words of advice, never clean a coin, use gloves when handling and submit good focused, cropped photos here and you will save your self a lot of money and aggravation. As James stated, you can always get an opinion before you buy. And there are real experts here (not me by a long shot).

good luck.

Edited September 24, 2021 by Mr.Bill347
Typo again sigh!

[Teachercollector]

Thanks Bill and Woods!!

So I am really into US coins Wheat cents and older.  I really don't have any care to look for or buy random error coins. I think the joy for me comes from filling sets and then when you find better condition coins you can change them out.  I started coin collecting recently because my GF bought an antique dresser set that had a drawer FULL of old coins and then I started going through them and found that they were silver and even just old pennies from the 1800's!

It definitely fired me up to research more and I want to find where to get more coins ha

[Woods020]

Ok that helps. I personally would avoid buying in bulk. They will be lower quality coins that have already been searched almost always. You will learn in this hobby buying less, and focusing on quality, will pay dividends in the end. Don’t be in a hurry. Buy coins individually in as good of quality as you can afford to fill the albums. 
 

Here is my advice, and I’m sure you will get a lot from others. 
 

1. Step one buy a red book for US coins.
 https://www.amazon.com/Guide-Book-United-States-Coins/dp/0794848907/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?crid=36YD4CXO1OKH8&dchild=1&keywords=red+book+of+us+coins+2021%2C+74th+edition&qid=1632507980&sprefix=redbook+of+us+&sr=8-4

2. If you want to focus on a certain series buy a guidebook specific to that series as well. For example you mentioned wheat cents. 
 

https://www.amazon.com/Guide-Book-Lincoln-Cents/dp/0794846343/ref=mp_s_a_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=wheat+cent+guide+book&qid=1632508067&sr=8-2

3. Familiarize yourself with grading standards for coins. This is where most new collectors get burned is they buy cleaned, damaged, etc. coins. A few resources would be to download the PCGS photo grade app on your phone. It’s free and a good starting point. Also consider getting a copy of ANA grading standards. 
https://www.amazon.com/Official-Standards-American-Numismatic-Association/dp/0794838243/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?crid=368YJJB6A0JEM&dchild=1&keywords=ana+grading+standards+for+united+states+coins&qid=1632508519&sprefix=ana+gra&sr=8-3

4. Learn to use pricing information to see what a fair price to pay is. The major pricing guides are often directional at best  some good resources for now are sold listings on eBay, or sold listings for similar coins in similar grades on heritage or great collections auctions  

5. For now focus on where you can view coins in hand. Pictures of coins are rarely descriptive. Slight changes in lighting for example can make the same coin look 100 different ways. Until you get adept at looking for warning signs buy either locally or buy already graded coins from a reputable grading service (NGC, PCGS, ANACS)

6. Look for coin shops in your local area. Built a rapport with them and they can be a big help. Admittedly there are some crooked coin dealers just like anything else, but you will find much better dealers in local shops than online generally. 

7. Look for coin shows in your local area. These can be a great way to view a lot of coins. 

8.  Look for a local coin club. Depending on where you live there may be a good one. Unfortunately where I live none are close. But these are groups of like minded hobbyist who will be more than happy to help you. And they offer learning experiences and often have club sales. 

[Teachercollector]

Thank you so much Woods!!!

I have a red book ordered and will take it a little slower from here on haha!

I cant wait to be a part of this community!!

[Woods020]

On 9/24/2021 at 1:41 PM, Teachercollector said:

Thank you so much Woods!!!

I have a red book ordered and will take it a little slower from here on haha!

I cant wait to be a part of this community!!

We are all happy to help. Don’t be shy to ask questions. We have all been exactly where you are right now. 

[Teachercollector]

Ha I figured everyone had to start somewhere and i am glad there is a community like this!

[Woods020]

Oh and if you are serious you may want to consider a membership to ANA. They aren’t that expensive (I honestly forget what the basic membership cost is now) and it will provide a lot of free learning opportunities. You can have access to rent books from their library, watch educational seminars they have recorded, and they even have live learning sessions you can log in to. 

[l.cutler]

Actual unsearched rolls or bulk wheat cents are virtually non existent.  Somewhere, sometime, somebody searched them.  If you can get them cheap though it would still be a fun way to fill the common date holes in your collection.  When you get to the tougher ones though, you are really just going to have to buy them.  As everyone else has stated, knowledge is key, get that red book, ask questions here, and go back through old posts and read everything that you can!  Welcome to a great hobby!

[James Zyskowski]

On 9/24/2021 at 11:51 AM, Teachercollector said:

I am new to coins but already love it!!!

Wondering if any of you pros at this have any advice on where I could buy large lots of coins to search?

Also where could I possibly find old coin collections?

Thank you for all your help everyone  

Hey howdy I see you checked in with pcgs. Thanks good. I like to say this is called newbie for a reason. Over there I suit up in my armor and prepare to jump in the deep end.   Deep and esoteric conversation. 
 I have found both forums very useful. I am at home here😉. I have friends there.   We do kid around here so enjoy and you are part of the forum.  Congratulations 

[Rummy13]

Another place I found a lot of coins is at estate sells. Most of the time you have to ask about coins from the seller, But if you make a fair offer a lot of times they will take it. Some have taken my name and number so they could take them to a coin dealer first. Then they call me because the dealer pay a lot less.

[Coinbuf]

Welcome to the forum and the hobby.  I will start by echoing what many here and on the PCGS forum have said.

1) Starting out by buying a ton of "stuff" seems fun and in some ways it can be.   There is a bit of magic in searching thru a lot of coins and filling folders, many older coin collectors started out that way.   But what we found was that at some point we wanted to specialize and then we had to dump all that "stuff" (usually for very little money) and start again.   I will not discourage you from doing some of that but I would encourage you to not go overboard.

2) Keep an eye out in the local paper or media for estate sales, this is one of the best places to find random lots of coins.  Do take care as many do not know what they have and may be asking far more than the coins are worth.

3) Get a redbook, the pricing will be out of date very quickly but it will give you an idea of what dates and mintmarks are worth more than the very common ones and allow you to see if the coins you are looking to buy are reasonably price or not.

4) My last and in my opinion the most important point is to take your time and have fun, this is a hobby so enjoy it.

Edited September 25, 2021 by Coinbuf

[Jason Abshier]

Most bulk Wheat cent been searched in the past , normally worn down coins what we call “culls” the stuff a serious collector doesn’t want to waste time with that stuff you can get them super cheap ! But when it comes times to sell nobody wants to buy an old collection full of culls. Us serious collectors will buy a single coin at a time to build our collection to way it pleases our eyes and selling stand point something that is a little easier to sell in future to another collector . Just Something to keep in mind , but since your starting out buying a bulk bag of Wheat cents won’t hurt you until you get the taste you’ll want more serious coins that appreciate in value and collector’s interest . 

[124Spider]

I would like to add to the excellent advice you've already been given.

There are may different "goals" one can have for one's collection, and we each have a different budget.  The trick, I think, is in figuring out what makes it fun for you, in a way that will still be fun next year and next decade, all within your budget.

I don't think it's a bad idea to buy a bunch of low-grade coins (or "BU" modern coins), to fill the slots in an album/folder.  That's not expensive, it's fun to see the slots fill, and you can find out if that's good enough for you, or do you want to upgrade.  And you can find out, fairly inexpensively, which coins (type/series/era) appeal to you.

Mark