This goes for shows and dealers in general. If the dealer at the show is higher than Grey Sheet are you not likely to buy? I don't have years of experience at shows but I do notice that many dealers are at Grey Sheet for the 15+ shows I have gone to.
Hmm. I am NOT a Grey Sheet aficionado. It's a habit I never acquired. Much of what I buy at shows isn't in the grey sheet. That stuff I buy almost exclusively at local PA country auctions. My show purchases are very heavy on world coins and I use various guides. It's also hard with world coins to anticipate exactly what you'll encounter ahead of time. You can't really say, "I'm going looking for a BU early Victoria florin" and expect to see one. It's more a game of "surprise me". Now NYINC in January is another matter.
The stuff I collect isn't in the graysheet. I haven't used a graysheet in over 20 years. If I see something I need, and the price is affordable, I'll probably buy it. Of course I'm a collector, I don't care what I could sell it for, so I don't care what a price guide says it is worth. Never made NYINC, but the CICF in Chicago was about the same way. Unfortunately CICF is no more and I won't go into downtown Chicago for Harlan Burks new international show.
What does it say that I'll consider a downtown Chicago show, coming from eastern PA, while you won't? I don't have much of a view on Harlan per se one way or the other. The CCCers seem to like him, and that's a strong reco.
I have no problem with Harlan (and I'm a member of CCC), but I grew up in one of those large cities and then moved out into a rural area 40 miles from anything. I like it and I've come to hate trying to navigate the traffic in the downtown area of a large city and I won't do it anymore. When CICF moved from downtown Chicago out to Rosemont by O'hare it was great even though further to travel. Now that CICF is gone (2016 was the last year) and Harlan has started his show back downtown I dropped it and I go to Central States instead even further out in Schaumburg.
I guess for me, downtown Chicago is no hassle. If I'm coming from PA, it's an Amtrak thing - convenience on stilts. If I'm flying, it's Midway. Chicago is my favorite big city, bar none.
But I'm driving, no Amtrak, no flying. That means fighting the traffic and having to find and pay for parking.
Well, my son and I thoroughly enjoyed our two nights in a redone grand Michigan Ave. hotel last month, on our way back from Denver. Kid nearly broke my budget at Charles Tyrwhitt, the British menswear place. At least I know he's looking sharp.
