CoinTalk - Blogs http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/ Coin Talk Forum: Where Numismatists, Collectors, Dealers, and Novices Gather to Discuss Coins en Sun, 08 Nov 2009 02:58:31 GMT vBulletin 60 http://www.cointalk.com/images/misc/rss.jpg CoinTalk - Blogs http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/ Eating the elephant http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/chip/eating-elephant-132/ Sun, 25 Oct 2009 18:04:55 GMT When faced with a daunting task, it can be overwhelming. It does not matter what sort of task or goal it is. In my nature there is that part of me that wants what I want and I want it now, not later BUT NOW. This is the essence of immaturity, the babe that cries for a suck, the toddler wailing... When faced with a daunting task, it can be overwhelming. It does not matter what sort of task or goal it is. In my nature there is that part of me that wants what I want and I want it now, not later BUT NOW.

This is the essence of immaturity, the babe that cries for a suck, the toddler wailing for a piece of candy. It is in most all of us, that are human, and in most all societies it is just a part of human nature, raw and UNformed, UNinformed, UNdisciplined.

Advertising caters to that urge, buy now, pay later, but they neglect to tell you that when you are paying later for what you enjoyed yesterday, or yesteryear, you have that much less to apply to what you want now.

This applies to collecting coins also. Though I have not yet totally been able to forego a purchase here and there, I have been able to limit them somewhat, As I have seen more coins, the thrill of an indian head cent is now muted, but the thrill of an uncirculated one tends to grow.

A good easy way to satisfy the urge, while still engaging in the hobby is to roll search, thanks to all the roll searchers on coin talk who speak of their finds.

I have found that I am starting to find a pattern, I buy a few low end purchases in one week, some silver eagles perhaps, nice mintstate coins for not much over spot, then the next week I can indulge in a capped bust half, or I can purchase a bunch of cent rolls and go through them, seperating out the copper from the zinc, and the wheats from the memorials, and the canadian from the us, and the next week I can get a good upgrade on an indian head cent.

The coin talk site, with its wealth of experience and opinions has added to my experience, I am able to spot the more harshly cleaned coins now, and I have found that the great deal I thought I had made in pulling some peace dollars and morgans from the cull lot were actually not great but fair deals.

I have been able to spot some capped bust halves that were harshly cleaned, and tho I am enamored of the series have been able to see the cleaning and not try to fool myself into thinking that when they circulated everybody who handled them, handled them in exactly the same way causing all the marks to be uniformly in the same direction.

So that brings me back to my first goal, and I think it will keep me busy and engaged for quite a while and that is to be able to join the capped bust half nuts club.

This is like eating the elephant, I understand that one must have 100 varieties in order to join the club, many dealers I have visited do not have even one capped bust half, they are not as popular as morgans and peace dollars.

How do you eat the elephant? one bite at a time, eventually the elephant is eaten.

Each one is only a drop in the bucket, but every river is made of all the drops of water that have fallen from the sky.

MY dad left me two capped bust halves, both pretty good pieces, the 1820/19 O-101a, and the 1825 0-110. a couple drops in the bucket, a couple bites of the elephant, but a good start.

Part of my job sometimes entails making close measurements, involving thousandths of an inch or hundredths of a millimeter, I have worked at jobs where measurements were actually done in millionths of an inch, now I respect the work that overton did, it is a grand opus, but I have found that many of his measurements leave much to be desired, and the way he details them is also lacking.

For instance The example shown of measuring the date has the rule lined up from the straight area of the 1 to the straight area of the four, ignoring the crossbar on the four or the base of the 1, but the principle does not seem to apply in other date measures, so I find I cannot just rely on the date.

also many of the capped bust halves have extremely weak milling, add wear to that and the diagnostic of the stars becomes less informative.

Another problem, not with the book is that I have come across some examples that appear to be made of a different material, I heard that contemporary counterfeiters used a material called german silver, so that elephant seems to get bigger at times.

The goal is secondary to me, it would be nice to someday become a member of the club, but there is also worth in the attempt to achieve the goal, there is some fun in looking at some examples, to know some things about the series that can enhance the fun in the act of finding and buying the coin.

And in the end, that is what the hobby is about, fun and enjoying it, my learning curve is to resist just making a pile of coins, it is to savor every bite, to not just try to quickly finish the meal but to find the pleasure in the preperation, the presentation, and the eating of it. ]]> chip http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/chip/eating-elephant-132/ My oldest coins http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/billy-kingsley/my-oldest-coins-125/ Fri, 16 Oct 2009 01:48:49 GMT I thought I would add this post to my blog as I recount my 10 oldest coins, and 5 oldest US coins, as of 10/15/09. It might be interesting to see how that changes throughout the years!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Billy Kingsley View Post
Here we go...
#1 Circa 300 BC Greek, possibly Sicily/Syracuse
(seller's pic)


#2 121-122 AD Rome, Hadrian, As. It looks a lot better in person!




#3 158. Rome, Antoninus Pius. Denarius




#4 267 Rome. Gallenius, Antoninianus


#5 Rome. 324-325. Constantine I (The Great). Follis. This was my first ancient coin, I got it in August 2008. These 5 coins are also the entirety of my ancient collection...I've got nothing on Ardatirion :bigeyes:


For me #6 is:
Poland 1623 3 polker (Just got at CoinFest from Allan G. Berman)
#7: Papal States 1721-1724, Innocent XIII Quattrino (also bought from Mr. Berman)
#8: Austrian Netherlands 1797 Kronenthaler
#9: Austria 1800A 3 Kreuzer
#10: (Tie) Austria 1816 A and 1816 S Quarter Kreuzer, 1816 A Half Kreuzer and 1816 A Kreuzer (I got them all togther, however, the date was frozen and they could have been made any time between 1816 to 1852)
My oldest US coin is next on the list, #11, a slightly bent 1832 half dime which was my oldest coin for a few months last year, until I bought the 1797 Austrian Netherlands issue.

My Five oldest US Coins:
#1 said half dime
#2 1835 dime, highly worn but still clearly a US dime
#3 1852 cent, my only large cent, also damaged
#4 1852 three cent silver, bent
#5 1857 cent, which had been the most I've ever spent for a coin until this past weekend when I doubled it for the Roman Silver posted above, even so it was only $50!

The majority of my collection is from the second half of the 1900s but lately I've gotten some more older issues, although they are pretty much all recounted here...lol.
]]> Billy Kingsley http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/billy-kingsley/my-oldest-coins-125/ Silver Dollars http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/chip/silver-dollars-122/ Sun, 11 Oct 2009 22:08:46 GMT As I have posted before, my interest in coins has arisen out of settling my late dads estate. My father was 79 when he passed last february. He had lived in the same house for almost 60 years. Living in one place like that for all that time, things tend to accumulate, when people move often... As I have posted before, my interest in coins has arisen out of settling my late dads estate. My father was 79 when he passed last february. He had lived in the same house for almost 60 years.

Living in one place like that for all that time, things tend to accumulate, when people move often some of their stuff does not move with them, it is given away, it is sold off at a rummage sale, or it is just left behind. My dad was divorced from his second wife back in the early 80s, so it was not as accumulated as it could have been, his wife moved out and took what she wanted, including his large cent collection, which I was told she sold for a lot less than it was worth.

One of the things when I was researching how to be an executor was that you had to treat things as if they were your own, that means not that you can do anything you like with those things, but that you have to take as good of care with those things as if they were yours. So I had to go through all the things that dad had, and at least know what was there.

Not only did dad save coins, he also saved papers, I found cards from christmas, fathers day, birthdays, check reciepts, mailings from his union, from social security, old loans that he had paid years before. But stuck in all the papers was something that I still do not have a good handle on, it is a reciept from the local police for 28.00 dollars in silver dollars that he turned over to them.

It reads; I Fred W Horton of the (towns) Police Dept. Recieved from (my dads name) of (my dads address), 28.00 in Silver Dollars he got from (name witheld), on sunday, april 4th 1965 at 12.00 pm. (my dads name) turned them over to me on april 6th at 610 pm at my house on west pearl avenue.

It is then signed by the officer along with his badge number.

At that date my father had divorced and remarried, so I have no recollection of the incident, I have asked my half bros and sisses about it, and they do not remember either. His exwife is estranged from the family so there is no help in figuring out what happened there and as he told me a short while before he passed, all his friends had already died.

So I am left with some conjectures, knowing my father and how he lived his life, here is what I think happened.

My dad had become interested in coins when they took the silver out of them in 65, that is when he bought his redbook and blue book, and I can remember him showing me the new kennedy half and trying to see if there was a hammer and sickle at the base of the bust on the coin. So at that time word had gone out that he would buy coins that people came to him with. The guy named in the reciept heard about that, and took 28 silver dollars, wether from a friend or stole them or from his parents but there must have been something not on the up and up because why else would my father have turned them into the police?

It was about that same time, when I would visit my father on weekends that he took me up to a nearby village one sunday that served beer, our local town was dry on sunday. I did not like sitting in a dark tavern when the sun was shining so my father gave me some money to buy a comic and a treat and left the keys to the car with me so I could listen to the ballgame on the car radio.

I went down the street to the drugstore as I was walking there a few people were walking out of the drugstore with sacks, one had one of those new instamatic cameras in it. the magazines and comic books were close by the window so I did not notice at first that the stores lights were out.

I looked for a while, quite a while, as I recall and picked out some comics and a magazine, ( cracked? ), and then went to pay for my purchases, I waited at the counter for a few minutes and then saw there was a bell to ring, so I rang it, nothing happened.

I called out to the back room, hello I want to check out, no answer. I started to wonder if the man who ran the drugstore was in the back room so I went back and peeked, nobody was there. I put back the stuff I was going to get and started to walk back out, when I got to the door I noticed that the store had closed at noon but that the pharmacists name and phone number was there on the door, probably for emergency prescriptions. I went back in and looked at the local phone book and found the address was only a few blocks away, so I walked over to the address and knocked on the door, the man who answered it went immediately with me back to the store.

There he let me buy my stuff, and I went back to the car and listened to the game, my dad came out a bit later and I told him what had happened, I was a little bit chafing that here I had went to all that trouble to find the guy and he did not just give me the book and ice cream that I had bought as a reward for being so honest. My father told me that doing what was right was its own reward.

Now I can see the truth in what he told me about doing what was right was a reward in itself, but at the time I would have preferred if the pharmacist had made a fuss about my being honest and had let me get all the funny books I could carry.

I would not be surprised to learn someday after I go to where my father is, that he had been tempted to keep those silver dollars, evidently they must have been ill got or why would he have turned them over to the cops?

One scenario I have imagined goes like this, It being pretty well known that my father bought old coins, that one guy being in need of money for something or other, there is always some need for money, (for either the wealthy or the poor), was doing some work for some old crank at his house and took those silver dollars, then sold them to my father. My dad might have taken the man at his word that they were his, or he might not have even asked since my dad generally was very good hearted and did not think evil of people.

The theft was discovered and the man knew who had access to his home and went to the man who sold them to my dad and let him know that he was going to the police if they were not returned, the man who took them became alarmed and told them he sold them to my dad.

While my dad was good hearted and trusting of people he also was considered something of a terror, in his younger days he liked to fight, so the man probably did not want to confront dad. He told me in later years how one time he asked a friend of his for a loan, the man was a part owner of a service station and he opened the register and said take what you need. My dads eyes were opened, he saw that his friend was afraid of him, he told me about that one time, how it changed his life, he had not til then been conscious of how other people felt, and he did not like that people were afraid of him.

So the word got out to him that there had been a theft, and he went to the house of the local cop and turned them over, but why the receipt? I think it might be that the man who had missed them might have went to my father and told him that they were his silver dollars, my dad probably told him I paid 28 dollars for them, so you can have them for what I paid for them, the man refused probably thinking why should I pay for what is rightfully mine? My dad was also right, why should I give this guy the coins I bought for the right price, remember back in 65 circulated silver dollars were sold for a dollar all the time.

So thats what I think happened, the coins were returned, the man who took them I am not so sure ended up with the money, if I know my father he might have turned the man upside down and shook out the money. But it would have been nice if I had heard the story from my father, we talked quite a bit, but he never mentioned this incident, and it seems that everyone else is gone now, I know the cop who took the receipt has passed, it is over 40 years, the chances that in some little evidence locker at the police station there are 28 silver dollars is pretty slim.

But sometimes it is fun to phantasize. ]]> chip http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/chip/silver-dollars-122/ I did something crazy. http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/billy-kingsley/i-did-something-crazy-117/ Sat, 03 Oct 2009 16:35:24 GMT Well, I went and did something crazy. Totally out of character for me.

I joined the NGC registry.

Now, if anybody has been following my posts for the past 15 months, it should be fairly obvious that I'm not a big fan of graded coins. That hasn't, and likely won't, change. And, in fact, the only coin that I have that is graded is a coin from a company that doesn't even rate onto NGC's registry!

But...Odds are, I WILL end up with a graded coin or note at some point. With so many people getting their items graded, either for security reasons or just to jump on the bandwagon, eventually I am going to find something graded that I want to add to my collection.

So I decided not to wait. I joined up the NGC/PMG registry today, 10/03/09. Before I visited the site, I had not even KNOWN that PMG and NGC was the same company. It really tells you how much attention I pay to that kind of stuff.

I chose the NGC registry for two reasons, although one ranked well above the other. I've spent more then a year on the PCGS forums, and I know that the PCGS registry accepts PCGS coins only. The NGC registry accepts NGC, PCGS and NCS coins (though I think the latter is another branch of NGC). That was the biggest draw for me. Since I will truly be buying the coin, and not the holder, I liked that leeway.

The other reason was a factor but not as large a factor. It was FREE. Free is good. I have no intention of ever paying to get any of my coins graded myself, so it would be foolish to pay for a membership with submittal fees. Likewise, the population reports mean nothing to me. They are heavily skewed by all the crackouts, but also, there are lots more coins that are not graded. So the population report doesn't really tell you how many coins are out there, which WOULD be interesting, it would just tell you how many times that specific coin (meaning date/style) has been graded, and could even including multiple points of data for the same coin. So, it's nothing to me.

I am hoping not to be deleted for inactivity, LOL. If I update it, it will be rarely. Maybe I will buy the cheapest graded coin I can find at CoinFest next week just to put something in my registry :) In fact, I probably will do just that, provided I can find something that is cheap enough to fit my standards, and I actually need for my collection. I'm not going to buy a duplicate for the heck of it.





Who knows, I have not seen top tier graded coins in person yet. I will next week at CoinFest. Maybe I will see them and fall in love, and decide, hey, this isn't so bad, and then proceed to submit all my good coins. Not likely, (I'm too cheap to pay for grading fees!) but it MAY happen.

Now I just need to learn how to read a slab...from the pictures I have seen there are lots of numbers that don't seem to have anything to do with the coins... ]]> Billy Kingsley http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/billy-kingsley/i-did-something-crazy-117/ <![CDATA[NCLTs: Sorry, I just can't get into them.]]> http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/billy-kingsley/nclts-sorry-i-just-cant-get-into-them-116/ Fri, 02 Oct 2009 09:29:11 GMT Here's a topic that I've been thinking about for a while. NCLTs, or, Non-Circulating Legal Tender. For some reason, I just can't get all that interested in them. I don't really know why...they are perfectly viable options for collecting. It's not like I dislike the designs.

When I think about coins, which is often, as I have a lot of time on my hands :) it's not NCLT's. I'm thinking about the coins that actually circulated and it is those I want to add to my collection!

I am, and have always been, a proponent of more is better. I fully supported the State quarters, I support the parks quarters, and any other series they come up with. Even the Presidential dollars, although they have been uniformly all boring and dissapointing. So "There are too many of them" is not why I can't get into them. I just can't!

I do have a few. I have three of the Silver Eagles. Two are 2001s and one is a 1999, that was colorized. I got holders for them, and that is it, I look at them from time to time and then it's like, OK, now what?

I think part of the problem with them is that they are treated as just bullion. I, personally, don't care what a coin is made out. You want to make it out of the cheapest metal around, what would that be, tin? Aluminum? I don't know, and I really don't care. Metal content means less then nothing to me. I think the NCLTs that have the metal weight and content put right on the coin is tacky, ugly and ruins the design, at best. That is a big issue I have with them.
I think another thing is that there is no real chance you will ever get them in circulation. I know it has rarely happened where one comes up in circulation, but it's rare. Part of the fun for me is the thrill of the hunt. I've done very well completing sets from circulation, that is just not possible with NCLTs.

I was looking through my Krause Standard Catalog of World Coins 20th Century edition. Dang, there are a lot of NCLTs! Some are very cool designs, I like the issues where they are doing something historic with them, like showing the lineage of past Kings and Queens or the history of something. I happened to randomly open to a page with a whole series of NCLT's for pokeman. Yuch! I have always said that I have never seen a coin that I would not welcome into my collection. Well, I can't say that any more.

I am wondering what the first NCLT was. I suppose some could say that the Morgan Dollar was the first NCLT, as I have heard that it was not meant for circulation, although it wasn't made specifically to sell to collectors either. So, I would not categorize it as an NCLT, neither would I put the post 2002 half dollars as NCLT either. Despite the fact they are not released to circulation, they are still a circulating coin, at least, the design and series are anyway.

Proofs fall into what I call a gray area. They don't circulate, they aren't meant to ever circulate, yet they are legal tender and could circulate if you wanted to...I view them however like the best possible examples of the circulating coinage...even though they are made differently. It's the same designs as the circulating coinage, and you just can't argue with how cool they are!

Well, that's my thoughts...maybe I have just not seen the right NCLT's. I have seen a few that I thought to myself, WOW, that is cool, I need me one of those! But...it hasn't happened yet. There are enough actual circulating coins that I still want for my collection that I am not going to get an NCLT instead. I know that is a tough call to make, as most of these are limited and will probably cost more to get in the long run. Perhaps I am making a mistake. ]]> Billy Kingsley http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/billy-kingsley/nclts-sorry-i-just-cant-get-into-them-116/ <![CDATA[Why I'm not a big fan of grading.]]> http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/billy-kingsley/why-im-not-big-fan-grading-115/ Wed, 30 Sep 2009 10:12:50 GMT If anybody ever actually reads this, perhaps this will be a little controversial. That is not my intent, but it might be...so please bear with me (that is, IF anybody ever reads this! :) )

Now obviously, grading does have some big advantages, especially in this day and age, with counterfits so prevalent. A graded coin is, most of the time, sure to be genuine. Sure, some may slip through the cracks, and there are even fake slabs out there now, but that is by far not the norm. So that, in my opinion, is the #1 best reason for having a coin graded. To be sure it's really what it's supposed to be.

Another big draw for grading/graded coins is that they have a higer degree of protection then raw coins. You need not have to worry about leaving a fingerprint, or holding a coin by the edges, if you can't hold the actual coin at all. So that is another big draw.

Now, here's where I have the problem. Most of the people, that is not why they have their coins graded. Most of them, or at least a good portion of them, from what I can tell- only care about how much they can sell the coin for. In higher grades, that can be lots of money...into the 4 digits for some coins, perhaps even higher. But therein lies the rub...when the grade looks the exact same, who's to say what makes one coin better then the next? Grading is notoriously subjective. A coin I might think looks great, but the next guy down the line thinks there is an issue with it.

To me, that goes against pretty much everything I collect for. I make no bones about the fact that grades mean little to me. I collect coins for what they ARE...not what metal they are made out of or what somebody I have never met, on that particular day, says they are worth!

The only possible scenario that could bring me in line with the grading scheme is if ONE person did EVERY coin, at least that particular coin design. Then, OK, it would truly be acceptible because this one person has seen them all, and they would know if it really is better then others of it's design. But, as we all know, that doesn't happen.

Another thing I think is pretty lousy is that you have to pay for the coin even if it is rejected. That isn't fair, and it's down right crazy to do that....I don't like throwing away my money, thank you. And, from what I have gathered, the rate you pay goes up with the rate of what "they" (being the grading company or the marketplace) say it is worth. Well...that's not very subjective. Obviously, the grading companies are going to be more leniant on a big dollar coin, because it means they get more money in their pocket. If it was truly subjective, one flat fee for all coins, regardless or type, grade, age, whatnot, and you didn't have to pay for coins that they decided that day didn't meet their standards, I would not have such a big issue. But...that's not how it is, and so...I have the issue.

Now as to graded coins themselves. I have one, that was given to me. It's not in a top tier company, in fact I had never heard of the company until I was given the coin, but, since that was my first graded coin...it is, in fact, special to me. (The fact that it was a gift though weighs more heavily then the fact that it was graded).
I have not yet purchased a coin that was graded. I don't think it's intelligent to have to pay more for the fact that the coin is in plastic, so I have basically ignored them. However, as I start going to shows, and start seeing more coins, I am bound to come across a slabbed coin that I want in my collection. A Dilemma. What shall I do? Will I pass it over, and then wonder forever if I should have gotten it, or will I move on to raw coins, just the way I like them? And, if I do buy the slabbed coin, will I crack it out? I have no intention of ever selling my collection, but, will I leave it in the slab for protection or bring it in line with the rest of my collection? The biggest threat from cracking a coin, is not the "threat" of "loosing money", that means nothing, less then nothing to me. The threat is, I know plastic, I've been working with various forms of plastic for a decade. The kind slabs are made of can crack, easily, splinter, and shatter. I am afraid it will damage the coin. THAT is the biggest drawback to cracking out a coin!

What to do, what to do... ]]> Billy Kingsley http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/billy-kingsley/why-im-not-big-fan-grading-115/ Currency, Part two. http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/billy-kingsley/currency-part-two-114/ Mon, 28 Sep 2009 11:41:02 GMT Wow, I filled the 10,000 character limit in the first post! I could write a book, if anyone actually wanted to read what I posted!

On another currency topic, *Star Notes*! These fascinate me. I don't know why, but they do, and based on the following they have, I am not the only one. Maybe it's because they are different from the norm. Maybe because another of my many interests is astronomy. Maybe, subliminally, it's interesting to have something that the government clearly admits making a mistake on? Who can tell, but I would bet it's more the first two then the last ;). The majority of my stars have been pulled from circulation. Oddly enough, I find more $20 stars then anything else. I've found three so far. I've found a grand total of 1 $1 and 1 $5 stars in circulation, and have not found a $10 yet. I've only been looking for about a year, however.

I'll always remember getting my first star. I used to travel to Toledo, Ohio every year for a convention. While there, I went into the Hobby Town USA, likely to purchase some paint or supplies, for my other hobby of model car building. I ended up buying something, I am sure, but what, I don't know. When the lady handed me back my change, I spotted instantly that the bill was a Star! It's a 1999 $1, and it was pretty badly beat up, but wow, my first star note! I was so excited to get it, and I am still excited that I got it! In fact, despite the fact that it was less then a year ago, I can't remember what exactly it was that I bought! All I can remember is that star note being handed to me. It was a thrill, for sure. (That was a good trip for another reason, one of my models was photographed and appeared in Scale Auto Magazine, not the first time I had one of my models published but the first time in the main Scale Auto book) I also remember in the take a penny tray I spotted two wheat cents. I decided that I must have them, so I rooted around in my pocket, and all I could come up with was a dime. So, as I left the store, the take a penny jar had two less cents but a dime in it :) As it turned out, they were nothing special, but I didn't know that at the time.

I find it weird how I find more stars in $20s then anything else. Actually, my mom has found two, where I found one. I also found my $5 star. I've taught my mom a little bit about currency and she looks through them all now for star notes.

Now, there is only ONE thing I don't like about currency. I don't like how it's NOT dated the year it was issued. I think it would be much better to have various years on the notes instead of 2004-A. (just an example) I know there is a reason for this, and I am sure I was told at one point, but I can't remember the reason. No matter what it was, I don't feel that it is sufficient. That is my only complaint about currency.
On the other hand, it makes my collection goal above a little easier-if I had to chase each year dating back to the 1920s, it may not be possible, and it would certainly cost me more in volume of things to purchase alone!

Ok, well, that is my thoughts on currency. Perhaps I will think of some more at some point, and post another entry or comment to this one.

PS. Most of my currency has been posted in the Currency forum here, scans both front and back :) ]]> Billy Kingsley http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/billy-kingsley/currency-part-two-114/ Currency...my thoughts and plans http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/billy-kingsley/currency-my-thoughts-plans-113/ Mon, 28 Sep 2009 11:39:50 GMT While my previous postings have been about coinage, I think I will change subjects somewhat and talk about currency.

Let's start out right away:
I Love currency!

In fact, when I am thinking about my hobbies, which is what I am doing pretty much any time I am awake, I find that I am thinking about currency more then anything else. While the number of coins in my collection far, far outweighs currency, I find that I am beginning to enjoy currency a bit more. I will never collect only one...I will always collect both...but I can easily see spending more of my money to get currency.

When I started into this hobby last year, I had a small collection of coins and a smaller (8 notes- coins were about 500 total, much less different dates IE my mom and dad had pulled over 100 1944 cents from circulation and that wasn't the only date they did that with) and since I had more of them, or perhaps because I knew more about them going in, I tended to focus more on coins and less on currency.

But recently, that's begun to change. I've been spending more time on the currency sections of the boards, more time researching currency, and more time thinking about, like I said above. In fact, I've looked through my currency collection in it's entirety three times since the last time I looked at ANY of my coins. Granted, this is all in a span of about a month, and I was away from home for more then one week of that time.

Now, I am not going to try and deny that our Federal Reserve Notes, aka FRNs, were pretty darn boring, all monochromatic and the same style. They have, in my opinion, changed for the better in the past few years, although when they were introduced I thought it was pretty stupid. Actually handling them though I guess got me to like them. I grew up on these notes, and now that, aside from the $1, you never see them in circulation anymore, I am actually getting kind of nostalgic for them! In my life, the 1990s were a great time. I won't really go into why- it has nothing whatsoever to do with numismatics, although I will say that a big part of it is the fact that my dad was still alive then. I would in fact say that is 75% of why I like the 1990s so much and consider that the best of times, for me. Don't remember much of the 80s, being born in 84. Anyway....these notes are another thing that reminds me of the 1990s. So there is that factor. And another thing, even though they were somewhat on the boring side, I have realized I actually miss that. You wouldn't think that, but the old adage says: "You don't know what you've got till it's gone" is about the most true thing ever. And as I learn more about notes...the single color designs are actually fairly unique...Most notes have a lot of color on them. That's not a bad thing by any means, but in the grand scheme of things, it sets them apart somewhat. I like that.

And then you have to factor in the fact, that I just like them and think they are pretty darn cool. :) And for me, that's a good enough reason to collect them.

Now, it's funny, with coinage I tend to favor the world coins area a bit more then the US. A big part of that is the HUGE collector base for US coinage, which pushes the prices up, way way up in some cases. I find the prices to be outrageous on many items, and I know that once I get into even the early 1900s, I am either not going to be able to afford US coinage, or they will be so worn that you will have a hard time IDing them. With world coinage, while there are some that are pretty pricey, there is a far bigger field of more reasonably priced items I can chase after.

Yet, with currency, I clearly, Very clearly, favor US currency. I have 51 notes in my collection. Not a very large collection. Of those notes, 8 were inherited, 10 were purchased, 8 were gifts, and the rest were pulled from circulation. Of those 51 notes, 37 of them are from the USA. That's a huge percentage. Part of it is due to the fact that, yes, I see these practically every day. Hopefully every time I go in my wallet :) So they are easily obtainable. But a part of that is, I just like them and will purchase them over anything else.
World notes are interesting, don't get me wrong. You can really learn a lot about a country, state, what/who ever issued a note by looking at them. (of cource, it helps to be able to read the language on the note). The range of colors on world notes is spectacular. I enjoy that aspect of them. But for some reason, I find it hard for me to focus much of my attention on them. When I think about currency, even when I am making an active effort to learn about world currency, I find my thoughts drifting back to the USA's currency in a usually short amount of time.

So, I've been doing some studying of American currency. I've come to find out that most of the modern FRNs sell for very, very little over the face value, even some of the older issues of FRNs you can get for not much more then face value. (double or less) When you live on a very limited income like I do, that is a BIG deal, as it means I can build a pretty nice set of them.

And, as I was doing further research, I discovered that pre-small size notes, are almost all uniformly out of my price range. There are some...a very, very select few...large size notes that I would be able to get at the top end of my price range, and I plan to in time. But some of them...I know I will be lucky to SEE in person, let alone purchase for my own collection. Even the small size Nationals are on the higher end of my price range, but luckily for me, it appears some of them, must be the ones that a lot survive on, are fairly reasonable and hopefully will one day make their way into my collection.

So, I've formulated a plan. I am going to work on sets of FRNs. Basically, I am going to try and get one example of each denomination from each series. IF I am able, I will go for each district, but that will not be my goal. For example, say there are two different districts of one note, and the same district but a different note. I will get two of the same district, but different series. Of cource, if the price is right, I will get all three notes :) This task should not be too hard to complete, I forsee that I will be able to finish the $1s in 2010 and make inroads on the $5s, 10s and perhaps even 20s. I don't expect to go higher then the $20s for the most part, after that, while I COULD afford it, at least most of the time, I would rather use that money spent on other things. After all, I am dividing the small amount of money I get into 4 hobbies, as well as bills, food, gas, etc. But I will have more to spend in 2010.

After I finish the Series Set, I then may work on districts for each series, and star notes. I know I won't be able to get a complete set of stars, but I will get as many as I can. I've already found a few in circulation. Like my coins, as mentioned in the last entry I made, I plan to collect forever, so it won't take me too long in the grand scheme of things to finish my Series Set. After that, I don't know what I will work on activly. Maybe I will just cruise the various currency sources I am aware of and just buy whatever looks good to me....which is pretty much what I do when I have the $$ to spend.

Now, my project only covers the $1, 2, 5, 10 and 20 denominations. FRNs have been issued in higher denominations, but like I said above, I can't forsee that I will ever try to complete them, unless I win the lottery or something like that. With that said, however, I do plan to get a handfull of them. I already have two $50s, one of the new colorized versions, and one of the new design non-colorized versions. To that I would like to add one of the traditional FRN styles as well. For the $100, that will be a tough sell. I plan to only ever get 4 of them. I know eventually I will get a red seal USN, I particularly like them. Besides that, I will get eventually one of the classic FRN styles. I will have to get one of the current new-style non-colorized issues for my collection, and I hear that a colorized version is in the works, though has been for some time. When they do issue that, I will get one of those as well. But that will be it, right now the most I have spent on a note is $25, and it will be a hard sell for me to spend more then $100 on a note, but I know I will have to, unless I can get lucky and nab one from my local banks. I have not actually seen a $100 note in person in more then 5 years. I know that I will never own a $500, $1000 or $10000 note....it'll never happen, so while I can dream about it...that's all it will ever be, a dream. (is it odd that I have dreampt of currency?)

One other thing that is high on my priority list is my red seal set. I don't know why but I am really drawn to them. I inherited a $1, and I've since aquired a 1953-B $2, a 1963 $5* and a 1963-A $2. I will work on getting the other series and stars of the $2 and $5. Like I said above, I will eventually get one of the $100s. I can't see ever getting a $1 or $100 star note, though.

For the small size silver certificates, while they are very cool, I don't know how many of them I will be able to get...some of them are likely permanently out of my price range. I should be able to get a complete, non-star Series set of the $1s, however, and I will work on that.

Who's to say, though, I might go somewhere and see a bunch of world currency, and be totally "taken" by them, and forget my FRN goals :) one never knows!
I also really like obsolete notes and I expect to get more of them for my collection as well, at least by this time next year. ]]> Billy Kingsley http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/billy-kingsley/currency-my-thoughts-plans-113/ First Coin Show http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/chip/first-coin-show-109/ Sun, 20 Sep 2009 20:35:22 GMT Today I attended my first coin show. The show was held in Rockford which is not too far from home base, so I decided to attend if possible. I mentioned the show to my wife during the week, and she decided to attend with me, since we are both so busy during the week it made the anticipation more... Today I attended my first coin show. The show was held in Rockford which is not too far from home base, so I decided to attend if possible.

I mentioned the show to my wife during the week, and she decided to attend with me, since we are both so busy during the week it made the anticipation more exciting to me.

One of the strongest pieces of advice mentioned many times by the experienced collectors was to not buy at your first show, instead to walk around, talk to dealers, look at prices, look at grading, get the lay of the land, watch the crowd, listen to the dealing, in other words walk before you run off and max your credit card.

My wife sleeps late on sundays, when she gets up she does her toilet and then makes brunch, usually around noon, I was up at half past six and went back to bed, I got up again to stay at half past seven, went to the putor, checked to see if the book I ordered was listed as out of stock now, it was not, I also checked the prices of some other books to check them at the coin show.

I took my wallet and took out the cards, and all the cash except for 20 dollars, I was determined to follow the advice, do not spend money the first time you attend a coin show, it was now almost nine, when the show would open, I took the cell phone and drove to the hotel where it was being held.

Sweet, I found a spot in the first row right in front of the door, I went in and there was a table with boxes, books, and tickets manned by some pleasent people, they gave me a free ticket to enter for a door prize, and I bought a raffle ticket for a dollar, I think the idea was to help support the local coin club, and if I won a mint set or a gold bullion eagle, that was fine.

Going in I was overwhelmed, so many tables, so many dealers, tons of coins, I took a walk around and watched the people, I saw some dealers had attractive displays, other dealers had bargain bins, there were coin books, I checked the price, oh oh, the one I wanted I could buy for twenty five less at the place one of the coin talk members posted a link to. All the dealers seemed really busy, talking to each other, showing things to customers, I wandered through the bourse and in one less crowded corner was looking at rows and rows of slabbed coins, the dealer was a pleasent young man who asked me if I saw anything I would like to take a closer look at.

I told him this was my first coin show, and I was just looking for now, his slabs were generally marked with such things, as cleaned, genuine, hairlines and similar descriptions of damaged coins. I mentioned that he had a lot of coins in plastic cases, he told me that those plastic cases guarenteed the value of a coin, He showed me a hawaiin dime and quarter that were both marked cleaned.

They looked very nice to me, they were marked nowhere near the 19 dollars I had left to me, then I saw an Isabella quarter, I almost had a mint state one a few months back, missed it by less than an hour, the dealer had offered it to me for 425 dollars, I had saved up for it, and when I had the cash, I was told that it had been sold just before I got there. This one was marked au-50 cleaned, I asked to see it, since I was not planning on buying anything I had not brought my peeper. When I turned it over to look at the back I saw that a price of 700 had been marked, I asked the dealer on the off chance it was some sort of code or stock number if it was the price, he told me yes.

I saw one dealer with lots of world silver coins, he was very busy, I saw no price marked as I was standing there my cell phone rang.

It was my sweetheart calling, she had woke up and saw I was not in bed, she had checked the putor room and then saw my car was gone, she wanted to know if I was going to have our breakfast together, as I was talking to her I made my way out of the show into the parking lot, I told her I was coming right home.

Poor girl, she had thought I had forgotten that we were going to go together, I got home, and we had a nice breakfast and she went to get ready to go, while she was making ready, I put some more cash back in my wallet, I got my list out, we went back to the show together.

She was very impressed by the coins, she asked me some questions that I was able to answer, we were looking at capped bust halves and she asked me why that one that was newer was listed as more expensive than that other one that was older, I explained mintages, demand, and conditions to her at least as I understand them.

I saw one bin that had a jumble of indian head cents with a sign that said, half off marked price, I went through them and set aside a bunch, to look at, she took the list and sorted through them while I seperated them into possibles, and not possibles, I ended up with 7 that I liked.

Now I know that technically I was still at my first coin show, but this was not the first time I was there, so I felt that I had followed the sage advice of my fellow cointtalk members, and now I could be free to buy.

I talked to the man selling the coins, and found that he buys them for 75 cents, heck I didnt bring my doubles, so I paid the man, and he told me of the next coin show in the area that he will be at.

We walked around some more and my gal had her eye drawn to some bullion gold coins, she told me she didnt know that the Us still minted gold coins, I told her that they were not meant for circulation, the coin was a 1/10 th onza of oro, she asked the lad behind the counter if she could see it, it was marked 5 dollars on the back, I told her that if gold ever fell to less than 50 dollars an ounce that you could still spend it, I told her I see them all around for 140 so if it was less than that I would buy it for her, she asked the price, and was told that it would be 130, so my wife got a gold coin, we were looking at some more capped bust halves and when I expressed admiration for one she asked me if I wanted an early birthday present, I told her that I wanted to wait until I got my book and was more coinfident, she thought that was a clever pun, love is forgiving of even the worst puns.

One dealer had a large bin of world coins marked at 25 cents each, or 6 for a dollar, I found a sad little mexican 20 centavos, with the liberty cap floating amid rays, some dings and such, but I bought it and some others for a dollar, my mexican friends at work always seem interested in any mexican coins, the silver libertad I had been looking at earlier was being sold for 28 dollars, I hope to get a better deal than that some time so I did not purchase one.

Then it happened, as we were looking at one dealers wares I saw a capped bust half like I had never seen before, I asked the dealer if I could see it, he showed it to me, it had the funkiest set of 8s in the date 1808 that I had ever seen, it was marked for 75 and I was about to hand it back when the dealer said he would go it for 65, I bought it.

Red flags abounding, my wife immediately said we have to go now, I think my eyes might have been starting to glaze over, she must of saw that my self control had crumbled in front of her, she led me out of the show to our car, in the car she asked me why I had bought such a doubtful coin.

A great question, we talked about it, I have a bust half attribution book on order, when I looked at the coin there were no striations or signs of cleaning, though in about a vg at best condition, it seemed to me to be one that MIGHT be some rare variety. Plus it was the earliest one I had seen, plus even if it is not anything at all except a counterfeit it might be a contemporary counterfeit, which is something I think bears looking into, some others I have talked to all seem to have a counterfeit. If it is a counterfeit I might punch a large copy into the field on the obverse.

We talked about the hobby, my brothers hobby is golf, he will travel to a place simply to play golf, I think that a coin hobby is fun, I do not care for golf, and my brother can never take his score card that he spent over 500 on playing golf and hope to resell it for a tenth of what he paid for.

So anyway, total spent first time I went to a coin show, 1 dollar, the second time I went to a coin show, 246. I know I will probably not keep upping my spending at that rate, I enjoyed it, I think my wife did also, and the next time they have a show I think I will try to look and talk more and spend a little less. ]]> chip http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/chip/first-coin-show-109/ george and dragon sailors charm(silver) http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/coinbrian/george-dragon-sailors-charm-silver-107/ Thu, 17 Sep 2009 13:03:30 GMT Hi checking out old collection,found this coin,i think its a Hungarian Kremnitz,dont know year or value,anybody any idea or seen one before.It weighs 8 gramms width 34mm,i think its silver.any info would be usefull,Yours Brian Hi checking out old collection,found this coin,i think its a Hungarian Kremnitz,dont know year or value,anybody any idea or seen one before.It weighs 8 gramms width 34mm,i think its silver.any info would be usefull,Yours Brian
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]]> coinbrian http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/coinbrian/george-dragon-sailors-charm-silver-107/ Words and Pictures http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/chip/words-pictures-104/ Sun, 06 Sep 2009 20:35:02 GMT Thomas Nast was a famous 19th century political cartoonist, he is generally credited with symbolizing the republican party giving them the elephant as their parties totem. One of the leaders of the corrupt Tammany Hall political combine remarked that he was unconcerned about editorials and... Thomas Nast was a famous 19th century political cartoonist, he is generally credited with symbolizing the republican party giving them the elephant as their parties totem. One of the leaders of the corrupt Tammany Hall political combine remarked that he was unconcerned about editorials and newspaper articles that blasted the ins of the great metropolis, because their voters did not read anyway, but that Nasts cartoons hurt them, because he was able to, using pictures, to convey ideas to the illiterate and semi-literate.

Coins depend on words and pictures, the designs, the legends, the mottos, are all parts of the coin, and coins show a viewpoint, they make an argument, they represent a world outlook.

The first coin minted was the half disme, the obverse featured a flowing hair design, this set a standard that would last over a century, a woman featured on the coin, representing the ideal of liberty, an eagle on the reverse, the date and denomination, the motto was "liberty, parent of science and industry" the wordy motto would soon be shortened to "liberty".

This was not done by acclamation, there were many in the house and senate who wanted to follow the europeon pattern of the monarchs portrait on the coinage. When Washington expressed his disapproval of featuring his portrait on the coins, those who wanted to idealize leadership as was done throughout the world lost the battle.

The first flowing hair designs remind me of someone looking into a strong wind, and in those days strong political winds were blowing, the revolution in France, that ended in a bloody orgy of politically sanctioned murder was current news. Soon Frances republicanism would be coopted by a dictator styled emperor, and military adventures that would not end until the conqueror was defeated at waterloo.

The use of the eagle as the national totem represented a bit of distancing themselves from the monarchical powers in europe, england represented as a lion, france represented as a rooster, The american bald eagle won out over Franklins choice of the turkey, which would have been even more of a departure from world norms, choosing a bird that does not inspire awe as much as it inspires appetites.

The first eagles are unrecognizable as such, typified as scrawny, they were soon replaced with an eagle with more attitude. The first eagles fit with the new nation, we were thin, occupying a short slice of the eastern seaboard of a great continent, bound on the west by the domains of france. To the north were the hated British, and to the south the domains of Spain. By the time of the Loisiana purchase the eagle had become more fierce, the eagles of the capped bust halves and the capped bust dimes and silver is an eagle in action.

Wreathes were also used early in us coinage, the symbolism of the wreath goes all the way back to ancient times when the victors at the olympics were awarded wreathes for their excellence in the sports of the day. Rome had continued the tradition in their peculiar form of republicanism, instead of a hero becoming king or emperor he was awarded a triumph where he would be crowned with a wreath, unlike the monarchical crowns of gold and precious jewels.

The wreathes proclaimed the victory of the revolution, at the same time upholding the calvinist protestant ethos of the time which were ubiquitous.

The liberty cap also made some appearances in early coinage, this also had a long history, stretching back to ancient times, but in that time it was similar to a proclamation in support of the French revolution, this before the excesses of that political upheaval were manifest, along with its soon descent into the tyranny of the revolution.

For a brief time in 1793 the large cent featured the symbolism of chains, meant to represent the unity of the states, there were 15 links representing 15 states, this design was met with anger, the chains of unity represented to many people the chains of slavery, a forerunner of the conflict that was to come in the future, this design was soon replaced with a wreath.

It might be a good idea to remember here that sometimes a symbol can be represented in different ways, the chains of unity to one person were the chains of slavery to another. In those days before "imperial presidents" congress was much more sensitive to the opinions and prejudices of the people, and the checks and balances of the constitution were still strong.

Stars have also long been a staple of our coin designs, stars represent light, knowledge, seperateness, yet a part of the sky, the stars started out as a representation of each state as they came in but the element was soon changed to a simple field of thirteen stars, to represent the thirteen original colonies, many of the early coins have 15 stars, the early stars are 6 pointed stars, formed of two intersecting right triangles, These were the prevailing representations of stars until the 1879 4$ gold "stella" featured a five pointed star.

The differences between a 5 pointed star and a 6 pointed one in symbolism are rooted in arcane astrology and such societies as the free masons who have given much to the design elements of american coinage and paper currency.

The first regularly circulating coins with the 5 pointed stars were the barber quarters and half dollars introduced in 1892.

There are many more design elements of coins that contain symbols that impart meaning, almost by osmosis, the hairdressing of the morgan dollar, the buffalo representing the wide plains and the strength of roaming those wide areas, the indian representing the original inhabitants who though gravely injured in their contact with the Europeon settlers have now risen above, recent censuses show more americans claiming native american descent than the census of native americans at the birth of the nation in 1787.

The shield became a prominent element of american coinage before the time of the civil war, its symbolism is unmistakable, the defense of the people, with the elements of stars and stripes it was also used in many tokens of the period. Would there have been such fierce resistance to breaking up the union if the coinage had not wordlessly linked the idea of union and defense?

I had intended to also include the mottoes and legends but will only skim the surface of mottos. The main mottos and legends are the United States of America, E pluribus unum (out of many one), Liberty, and In God We Trust.

The designs and mottos of our coins represent a nation, and not only reflect our hopes and aspirations but also help mold the same. ]]> chip http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/chip/words-pictures-104/ <![CDATA[Focus, focus, who needs focus? (and I'm not talking about Fords!)]]> http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/billy-kingsley/focus-focus-who-needs-focus-im-not-talking-about-fords-100/ Wed, 26 Aug 2009 07:56:39 GMT In my short time in the world of online coin collecting (June 1st, 2008-August 26th, 2009, as I type this) I have seen many different people say that you need a focus, or that you will just have a bunch of random items. And that "when it comes time to sell", you will get less.

To that, I say...so what?

Is there something wrong with not choosing to collect one thing and one thing alone? I think not!

Yes, while doing this approach to collecting, the odds are that you will not end up being the greatest knowlegded (my own word, I believe) person on a particular subject. (Maybe some estoric subject that has a very limited amount of knowlegde possible...but I digress) but if that is your main goal...perhaps you are missing the point of numismatics completely.

For me, I collect for the history. Coins are small, tangible pieces of history I can hold in my hands and study at my leasure. They are not something I purchase with the intent to resell for profit. I have loved history since before I loved coinage and currency. In fact, it is that selfsame love of history that makes up 100% of my reasons for being a numismatist in the first place!

While I do have specific areas I focus on and enjoy, all pieces of history have a place in my collection. Why should I include or exclude things arbitrarily? I can't see a good reason. Having a haphazard mixture of items in my collection is NOT a valid reason!

Say, for instance, that I decided I would collect only British coins. That would be a logical step, for one, because I am well versed in English history, I speak English (though the coins are Latin) and have English heritage - among many other things that make up my background.

Now, with my hypothetical British only approach, say I am at a coin shop, show, or online browsing, and see a coin from France that, were I collecting everything, I would jump all over. But, since I Only collect British coins...I pass on it. In the future, after I've finished my British set...then what? I decide to tackle France. Well, by now French coins have taken off in popularity. And of cource, the popularity means the prices are up, up up. Now I can no longer afford the coin I passed on previously. That's a big, major oops.

And even on a baser level then that...Why should I, or anybody else, deprive me of the simple joy of owning any particular coin, just because it does not fit my series?
The idea is preposterous! I again see no reason that is valid for this.

Here's what I do...I collect. I'm a collector by nature, and I've been a collector since I was 2 years old. The first thing I collected was 1/64 cars. I began in 1986, at least...possibly sooner. (I don't remember this, but I have some issues from Hot Wheels that I have had since new, and they were issued in 1987; I know they are not anywhere near my first cars in my collection so I am making an educated guess that it is 1986...that and my family says so, so I am sure) While that has nothing to do with coins, it shows my collector's background. I still collect a whole list of things. Coins and Currency (I consider them as one, they go hand in hand) is my 3rd hobby, based on priority, behind the staple 1/64 NASCAR cars, and NASCAR trading cards.

Anyway, getting back to my point. I collect all coins and currency. I basically am only limited by my funds available that is not going to something more important. (Let me say, if I didn't have to eat every single day, I would have a lot more coins!) I know that, yes it's true I may never complete a set, by spreading my collection so wide. But, you know what? I don't care! I am having fun with it, and that is very important to me. There are other venues to study history, I find numismatics to be the most fun. And on top of that, I probably WILL complete series in time. They just won't be expensive series. I know that gold is currently out of reach, and probably always will be. I know that high grade silver is likely going to be out of reach, even some low-grade silver is too. (A topic I will address in a future entry) But I do not have this hatred of clads or other non-silver coinage. In fact, I don't care about a coin's metal content. It means nothing to me. The only time it plays a role is when I have to pay more for it when a compative issue is much less clad. (Think US coinage here; while most of this entry is on more world-wide topics, the majority of my collection is still US coinage) So series, especially more modern series are in fact very possible! I am actually very close to completing my first series, and that is clad dimes of the USA, my home country. I am two older issues away, 1972D and 1978D, and I have yet to find either 2009 issue yet. What's even more special about this set, is that they have ALL been pulled from circulation! (Some were traded for) The two 1970s issues I have examples of, but the 72 is bent, and the 78 has some unknown scuzz on it. So, I need to replace it. However, when I get those two, and the new 2009 issues, I will have a complete collection of circulating clad dimes. I have only been looking since mid 2008! I will also continue to work on my silver Roosevelt dime set. It is likely the only US silver collection I can or will ever complete for a few reasons- #1 is that I had more of them then any other going in and #2 is that there are no excessive rarity/key date issues, that would prevent me from buying the holes I need.

Anyway, that IS a set I can finish, with no real focus. It just kind of happened; I am working on sets of all circulating US coinage; it just so happened that dimes are the closest to completion. It is helped along greatly by the fact that I have lived and will always live my entire life in the USA...it's not hard to get a roll of dimes to look through and I've even got some of the issues in my collection as change!

Other issues are not that easy, mainly because of lack of accessibility. Were I to live in, say, El Salvidor, my collection would probably be heavily El Salvidor based, instead of just having the one coin in my collection from El Salvidor that I pulled from a 10 cent a coin bin.

I am doing ok on Canada's various sets (excluding all those quarters they've issued) because I have a friend in Canada who saves them for me and gives them to me when I see him, once a year or so.

Now to get back to a line I addressed early in this post. That line about "when it comes time to sell". I have heard this from several people. I don't understand this. (I do...bear with me) While this is a topic I want to delve deeper into in the future...for me, there will never be a time to sell. I don't care about making a profit on my collection. I can't study them if somebody else has them. Therefore, they will not be sold. My descendants can worry about that, provided I have any. If not, some future archeologist will find them ;)

That is not to say I won't sell duplicates. I have already sold duplicates. I only need one (and of cource a couple extras, just in case!) But mostly I use my duplicates as a trade stash. As I am just starting out collecting, I don't have a large trade stash. In time, I will, but not yet.

When I think about my coin collecting, it is just the beginning of my numismatic career. I have been collecting coins and currency for a grand total of 19 months. I am only 24 years old. I plan to collect for the rest of my life....so I have all the time in the world to collect, study and learn from my coin collection. By my theory, I will just continue to add coins to my collection 'till the end of time...or at least, then end of MY time. I don't know how many coins I will have when I am done...I doubt I will ever truly be done collecting, mind you...but it's almost staggering to think about.

By the way, I chose French and English coins in my example above because I already have quite a few of them. In my country collection totals, they rank third and 5th. England/(Great Britian) currently has 27 issues in my collection, while France has 22. Germany ranks between them with 23.

Well, that is my thoughts on focus...or more accuratly titled, my arguments for the lack of focus... ]]> Billy Kingsley http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/billy-kingsley/focus-focus-who-needs-focus-im-not-talking-about-fords-100/ A blog, you say? Eh, why not? http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/billy-kingsley/blog-you-say-eh-why-not-99/ Tue, 25 Aug 2009 22:57:43 GMT I have not had good luck with blogs in the past. I've tried to create one on two different messages boards, (neither numismatic) and one board got rid of their blog feature for lack of interest, and one changed to a different board style and deleted all blogs when they did. Hopefully this board will not do that!

I have no idea what I will talk about here. I have some pretty strong-and unpopular-thoughts about coin collecting, but I believe them to be valid thoughts. I will share some of them on here, but not right now...I'm off to have dinner and mentally compose my first topic, which will be about "Focus"...stay tuned...it'll come after some of my mom's famous grilled cheese! :) ]]> Billy Kingsley http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/billy-kingsley/blog-you-say-eh-why-not-99/ 10,000 posts Contest - Lets start a Journal! http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/mrbrklyn/10-000-posts-contest-lets-start-journal-93/ Thu, 20 Aug 2009 16:38:47 GMT
Quote:
Originally Posted by mrbrklyn View Post
OK - Let's start the official Coin Talk Journal! Put your writing and editing skills to the test and see if you have what it takes to be a published author.

Contest Contest Contest:

Object of the game: To Win!

Object of the game number 2: To Learn!

Object of the game number 3: To Educate!

Object of the game number 4: to have FUN!

Background: All fields worth of study have Journals where research and commentary is shared among the college of learned experts. We're all experts, or on our way to being such, so contribute your knowledge to the human race by publishing your article in our NEW Journal

The Task: Choose a coin or paper money type, such as Eisenhower Dollars, or China Pandas, and write an original research article on the history, artistry, and significance of that coin type. Include annotation, images as necessary, and, of course, your write up. Write for your target audience, Coin Talk readers and Coin Collectors world wide.

The top 10 Articles will be selected by our crack committee, which I haven't chosen yet, and the top article will be featured on the cover of the Journal, and receive the Grand Prize - 5 beautifully printed framed photo's from the award winning coin photographer... ME, and win a FREE copy of the Journal, AND, as if that wasn't enough, one of my two Proof multicolored Perth Mint Octopuses, or another coin in substitution of similar value if you really hate colored coins.

Requirements:
Each Article is to be submitted in its own new thread!!!! with an original title that must start with the words: "COINTALK JOURNAL SUBMISSION:"

Each Article should be at least 1,000 words... - I have a tool to count the words (that should be about 4 pages?? in US Letter print?)

Each Article's copyright is default shared by Cointalk, You and I. I aint getting into any copyright wars.

No multimedia...that is for another contest (20,000 posts ?? )

All the articles MUST be on topic: Coins, Tokens and Paper Money

ALL ARTICLES MUST BE IN TEXT or HTML FORMAT. Don't post a darn pdf or image.

Judging Articles:

Articles will be judged as follows:

A) Scholarship - 10 points
B) Presentation - 10 points
C) Original Research - 10 point (this can be tough to score points in)
D) Annotation and Documentation - 10 points...

Write everything with Free Software (OpenOffice, the GIMP et al) get a free 5 points.


The resulting Journal will either be published on my printer or on LULU.com, depending on the demand. ( http://www.lulu.com/publish/books/?cid=publish_portal)

Everything will be put together and edited into a single magazine.

Hard Copies will be made available to for $20.00 each to the rest of the public and cointalk community with any profits going to the Cointalk Kitty to help keep this wonderful venue running.

Ebook versions will be available at some yet to be determined price -- again, profits going to cointalk.

OK - that is it! Let's get to work.

Ruben
Lets hope this puts us on a path of deiscovery ]]> mrbrklyn http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/mrbrklyn/10-000-posts-contest-lets-start-journal-93/ Redfield Cases http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/fosterscove/redfield-cases-92/ Tue, 18 Aug 2009 11:23:28 GMT Could someone tell me the exact size of the Redfield slab. I need to make a case to hold them. Thanks Could someone tell me the exact size of the Redfield slab. I need to make a case to hold them.
Thanks ]]> Fosterscove http://www.cointalk.com/blogs/fosterscove/redfield-cases-92/