I debated whether to attend the FUN show in Ft. Lauderdale this year, but since it was "only" a four hour drive away, I thought I would make the trip. I even made a Coin Talk name badge with this web site's art work on a 2" by 4" avery label. "Tradernick" saw it and got a kick out of it. Steve (ND) was supposed to share the space with him, but couldn't make it.
When I walked into the show, I was just floored at the size of it. There were over 400 dealer tables set up and you could feel the heat from all of those light bulbs showcasing their goods. Now I had my want/wish list and a plan. First, I started at one end of the hall and zig-zagged my way through the
entire floor. I purposedly didn't buy anything, but I made notes of those dealers (booth numbers) that I wanted to come back and investigate more.
That browsing process took over 3 hours! Afterwards, I had a hard time lifting my head from that "down-looking-at-the-table" angle that occupied my neck muscles during my first go at the floor.
Afterwards, I went back to the dealers that had coins I wanted. I was looking for some nice AU to BU+ early Lincolns (before 1930) along with some books and supplies. Thank goodness I looked first and made notes before I bought, because I really felt good about my buys afterwards.
I immediately took some of these coins to the graders and they gave me some of their "at-show" opinions. Now before I even thought about attending the show, I should have told you that James Taylor (President of ICG) sent me a personal email inviting me to his booth and to bring any coins for grading (20% show discount). I showed up at his booth and he greeted me like a personal friend. He introduced me to his staff and stated, "This is the guy that reaaaaallllly likes our Intercept Shield protection and sent me all of those emails about our poor printing quality (which has been upgraded)." It really was nice to be treated like that...even for a novice collector like myself by the President of one of the top grading companies.
Afterwards I attended Don Bosner's seminar (other thread with notes) and enjoyed it. Actually it was great just to sit down and have a Diet Pepsi.
After the seminar, I spent another hour and a half looking for odds and ends for my boys and closed down FUN Show day #1.
Now...I never have seen so many Morgans in one room as this. I never seen as many slabs in one room as this show. I would bet that over 65% of all coins displayed were "slabbed" and after a while, they started to all to look alike.
All in all, this is one show that all should attend. You wouldn't find too many other shows with the quantity and quality as this show.
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