How large is your dealer network ?

[CTcollector]

I have been collecting for the better part of 20 years. The first 10-15 years of my collecting endeavors I would buy coins from just about anyone anywhere. As I became more knowledgeable about the hobby and more specific about what I was doing, I narrowed down my dealer network to about 3 companies. I chose these 3 companies due to their fairness and honesty on both the buy and sell side, priceless advice (ie when NOT to buy a certain coin), quality inventory, and their sincere effort in educating me about coins and the coin business. I'm pretty happy as this arrangement is working very well for me.

 

My questions for those of you who do the bulk of your buying from dealers is - Are most of your coin purchases made through a select number of dealers or do you cast a wider net over the dealer community for prospective purhcases ? If the former, how/why did you chose these firms/individuals ? Do you see a benefit in doing one approach versus the other ?

[EZ_E]

My best coins have come from Pinnacle Rarities, Mark Feld and a personal friend and collector. Modern raw issues are more consistent and pose little risk even if purchased through the bulk dealers like Coast to Coast or John Paul Sarosi. My experience in obtaining quality, high-grade type coins has been very, very poor if I deviated from the above three, which results in additional time and S&H expenditures.

[michael]

EZ_E

The Post-man always rings twice. Uhm... ring ring?

 

 

Reged: Oct 15 2002

Posts: 1604

Loc: Nevada Re: How large is your dealer network ? [Re: CTcollector]

#839490 - Fri Jun 10 2005 01:57 PM Edit Reply Quote Quick Reply

 

 

 

My best coins have come from www.pinnacle-rarities.com www.markfeldcoins.com. Modern raw issues are more consistent and pose little risk even if purchased through the bulk dealers like Coast to Coast or John Paul Sarosi. My experience in obtaining quality, high-grade type coins has been very, very poor if I deviated from the above three, which results in additional time and S&H expenditures.

 

--------------------

The last of the human freedoms is to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances. Viktor E. Franki

 

 

[Hoot]

As I travel, I go to as many dealers as I can take the time to. I find that most are not productive to visit, but a few will consistently have nice coins. Those dealers who are able to obtain nice coins on a consistent basis see me as regularly as I'm in town. (Fortunately, my local dealer is one of the very best.) I also prefer dealers who move a lot of raw coins. This is vastly more fruitful ground for me than those who stock only slabs. (I do, however, look at slabbed material in search of exceptional coins, undergraded or misattributed stuff.) I would say that I cast a wide net but only fish regularly in a select few spots.

 

Hoot

[TomB]

There are a few major dealers whom I know fairly well and with whom I have done quite a bit of business. Some odd-ball items, like mid-grade, original Barber halves, will be bought from just about anyone on either ebay or on the bourse floor. Fortunately for me there is one pseudo-local dealer who is a very good guy and he runs a shop where I have purchased some very nice items.

[stinky-migration]

 

I have only been collecting since 1992 and here are some of my favoites.

David Harrison / K.M. Froseth Inc. /Harlan Berk / The Cheap Slab Store /

 

Harrison: has original items and great prices.

Froseth: has good items and is always willing to talk and help.

Berk:if you carefully check his web offerings you can find some great bargains in world coins.

Cheap Slab: Tons of stuff to look thru and bargain hunt.

[Here]

I've pretty well narrowed it down to 2 sources and auctions. But when I go to a coin show, then it's Fun time! I do know 2 people who go to shows just to see certain dealers and when they're done seeing them it's time to go. I'll buy from anybody at a show and usually do.

 

 

Jerry

[Elcontador]

Not very, but I keep an open mind. I cannot say enough good things about Mark Feld. I have a contact at both Heritage and ANR, and these guys are as candid as the day is long.

 

However, I'll walk the bourse floor at Long Beach and sometimes I'll be pleasantly surprised. In February, I bought a 1904 Liberty Nickel in MS PC 6 from Wayne Herndon. He had a number of this series in this grade - probably as many as I saw on the floor with other dealers that day - and I liked most of his material. Last week, I visited Wayne's table again, and I had the pleasure of selecting from three nice Barber Quarters he had in MS PC 6 slabs, and took awhile to pick one of the 8 Liberty Nickels in MS PC 6 was well.

 

Every now and then I'll buy from other dealers, once I 'pre-screen' them. As Forrest Gump said, "sometimes life is like a box of chocolates......"

[AlixTCat]

I had no choice, until now, but to buy from eBay. We have no shows near the city I live in and I have never been to a coin show. The closest we get is a few dealers come to our local mall to sell overpriced junk every 6 months or so. But, now, armed with www.pinnacle-rarities.com www.markfeldcoins.com, I will do some purchasing through them. I have gotten some nice coins from eBay, raw even. We'll see how nice they really are after I send them in to NGC. I am not qualified to grade any coins yet.

 

Thanks to all who gave info on their coin sources. The company websites helped me.

 

Jonathan

[CTcollector]

Thanks for everyones response. I just realized, unlike most of you, I neglected to put my favorite 3 dealer names down in the original thread.

 

Pinnacle Rarities: Very professional (buy and sell) to deal with. They have a huge inventory to chose from. Honest, even to the demise of selling me a coin.

 

Rare Coins of New Hampshire: Committed to originality and committed to education. No firm has done more to educate me from a technical perspective. Very "Old School".

 

Mike Printz @ Larry Whitlow: Mike seems to have this uncanny knack to find the perfect coins for my collection. Very discriminating on what he lists for inventory and offers a very strong buy back on his own coins. Mike has also done a great deal to educate me about the "business aspect" of the coin market.

 

Alot of you have mentioned Mark Feld. I have only had one or two dealings with Mark and they have been very pleasurable. I just wish he had a bigger inventory.

[EZ_E]

I've made one order from Rare Coins of New Hampshire for c. $500 once. It was certainly a square deal and they were honest.

 

My instincts about Wayne Herndon is that he's right on. I've never purchased anything from him before but we've e-mailed a couple of times and it appears that he has the right contacts and has quality coins.

 

I bought a couple of cheaper items from the Cheap Slab Store a couple of years ago and have pleasant recall of the transaction.

 

 

Alot of you have mentioned Mark Feld. I have only had one or two dealings with Mark and they have been very pleasurable. I just wish he had a bigger inventory.

 

That's only because he is so selective on all coins which he purchases.

[nwcs]

Most of my recent purchases (my more long term coins) have come from DLRC, Whitlow, Carl Wohlforth, Steve Twitty, and Wayne Herndon.