I've always been buying on Ebay but I do alot more buying at my local coin shop and at shows. I also buy from people in my area that know I collect and more times than not they want to sell what they have. There has also been a few people (friends) that will find something in circulation and just give it to me. I buy mostly silver but I'm open minded to anything that comes along.
I'm with you on this one. I have tons of mercs and walkers, from G to AU that are just bullion coins, but I will look at 'em every day. It's a beautiful coin that to me is worth much more than bullion rate.
It's an interesting question - for coin investors. It's a hobby. Why would you change your spending habits if you still have your income? My coin spending habits are not a blip on anyone's radar, but I'm spending as much, if not more than 3 months ago. What am I buying? 40% Kennedy Halves. Why? Because when silver drops below $3.35, the face value of those halves is now more than the silver content and I stop losing money! Too bad for you guys with 90% silver coins........
I can't keep silver in stock no matter what I charge for it. No one in town can. 90% is being sold at 10.5 or higher and pure is atleast 3 dollars over. Eagles are 6 over. Of course this is all if you can find it. I just purchased a half a bag of silver and 2 100 oz engels today that but I am sure they will be gone soon.
I just sold $655 worth of 40% halves . . . . well I traded them at $6.75 oz. or for $1 each. 2 times face. I traded them in part with other pure silver and misc. coins for some property in the Big Island.
My $ amounts haven't changed although the types of coins I've been picking up lately have. I'm kind of in between sets right now as I've just got a couple of 90's date proofs to go until my Roosie set is finished. I haven't decided what set I'm going to start on next, BUT when I go to local shops I find that I'm buying lots of wheats, Jeffersons, and Barber Halves. I've already completed my Lincoln set so I don't know why I continue to pick those up. I'm sure it's due to a combination of having a fairly good understanding of the early part of the series and undergraded coins being liquidated at a local dealer. I very well might start a "nice" Jefferson set. I've completed a circulated set that averages EF-AU through the 60's and UNC on the 70's onward. That set is in folders though and I like having albums. So an UNC Jefferson set is a real possibility. Then again having finished Roosies I kind of want to start on something other than a modern. I've got a fairly good start on the Barbers and with the price of silver it might be a good time to work on that set. Anyway, long story short, I'm spending the same amount of money now as I have been for the last several years.
I think you are off base. The central banks of the world are flooding the world with trillions in new currency. This has never happened before without causing severe inflation after a lag period. Metals are down because of portfolio liquidation by leveraged participants. Once this selling clears, there is every reason to believe that gold, silver and the coins made from them will become more expensive than they are now.
