This is a thread about a person who has alot of coins

Hello.

I have recently become interested in collecting coins, so I managed to come across this site, and I figured this would probably be the best section to ask this, but please correct me if i'm wrong.

Now for the backstory. (Feel free to skip this) I am, although reluctant to admit it, 15 years old, and since I was born, my grandfather has been sending me US Mint Proof sets every year. Every year, I had put them away, and not thought much of it. Recently, I decided to look through them, and i'm becoming more and more interested in coin collecting.

What I have so far is:
'95-'98 Mint Proof Set, San Fransisco
'95-'00 Uncirculated Coin Sets, Denver and Philadelphia
'99-'09 Mint Proof Set, which includes the State Quarters, San Fransisco
'07 and '09 Presidential $1 Coin Proof Sets
'09 Lincoln Mint Proof Penny set
'01-'09 Uncirculated Coin Sets, Denver and Philadelphia
2002, 1 oz. Fine Silver Dollar Coin, albeit a bit tarnished, due to lack of a proper case
Cheerios "One of the 10,000,000 First-Minted Year 2000 Pennies", according to the packaging

I'm not sure EXACTLY what i'm asking here, but, as someone just starting to collect coins, i'm wondering where I should go from here.

 

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You might think about getting Coin Collecting for Dummies (by Neil Berman and Ron Guth). This book is for people that are just discovering coin collecting as it serves in teaching the basics of the hobby. It teaches you how to get started and helps you decide what to collect, as well as teaching you about protecting the coins, grading, buying, and selling the coins. You can see the different types of coins throughout this book; the pictures are in black in white (if that matters to you). This is a wonderful beginner book.

If you want to learn about their prices you could also get The Official Red Book : A Guide Book of United States Coins (by R.S. Yeoman). This also contains the history of United States coins, but this contains values of coins. You can also view the types of US Coins as this book contains color pictures throughout.

Hope this helps.. Goodluck in whatever you may decide to do.

 

I suggest that you start reading. Coin collecting is a complex hobby. I think a good place to start is, "The Experts Guide to COLLECTING & INVESTING in RARE COINS", BY Q. David Bowers. Mr. Bowers is a well known and widely respected expert in the coin industry..... After that you might want to check out Scott Travers book, " The seventeen most closely guarded secrets in coin collecting". Mr Travers is a consumer advocate. Welcome to coin talk, good luck, and have fun. Bone Head

 

Oh yes and... Welcome to CoinTalk!!

 

I suggest you hang around here an read the many threads that address what it is our hobby is all about. You'll read threads on errors, on bullion, on rarities, on moderns, on classics. Commemorative, foreign, ancient. Big hobby, quite a bit to absorb, but you know what? Before long you'll find out what interests you most and then will begin to concentrate in that area. Have fun, gather knowledge, and above all, enjoy collecting......:smile

 

You might even want to invest in some grading guides. ANA Grading Guide and Photograde are a couple I have and like. Take your time on deciding what you might want to start collecting.

 

Great suggestions! I'm a big fan of Scott Travers, also.

His "How to Make Money in Coins Right Now" and "88 Coins to Buy & Sell" (both available on Amazon.com) provide interesting perspectives on coin investment.

 

I don't know if a 15 year old kid would want to learn about coin investing..
To spark his interest he should start out with more kid-friendly books, or buy a variety of types of US coins to enjoy before deciding which type he wants to learn more about.
Just a thought.

 

Perhaps...but I wish I had read Scott Travers books when I was 15. I may have spent my money more wisely.

 

Very, very good point.
I'll look into the book.
I'm still young; maybe it isn't too late for me! :goofer:

I was just thinking that it seemed as if his collecting spark hasn't hit just yet. Either way TheLaughingMan, you should look into all of the books that have been mentioned. I recommend getting them all!

 

Hi TLM. I'll take a shot at this question. Realize that there are many different types of collectors out there.

• The art collector. They look at a coin as a little piece of art. A new silver eagle many be more desirable than a old crusty seated dime for these guys.
• The history collector. They love that they can hold and see little pieces of history that existed before they were born and will be around after they are gone.
• The investor collector. Figuring out which coin will appreciate takes a lot of effort and is a challenge and when done successfully is very rewarding.
• The collectors collector (for lack of a better term). These are the guys that fill whitman albums. They build series and sets and find setting goals to assemble a collection then completing it is very satisfying.
• The expert collector. These people enjoy learning and studying anything and everything about a particular coin until they are an expert on the subject.
• The competitive collector. These guys spend a lot of time and money finding the finest examples they can and that obviously can be fun.

There are more types of collectors and more reasons for collecting than I have listed but I think I got most of the big ones. I doubt any collector falls into one category exclusively, instead they are a mix of the different types. I am probably 80% art collector, 10% history and a mix of the rest.

As to where you should go to from here, think about what it is that sparked your recent interest in your collection. Once you understand what aspect(s) of collecting appeals to you most choosing which path to take will be easy. If it's not clear yet don't worry. Just read what interest you on the forum. Soon you will gravitate toward the type of collecting that you enjoy.

Everything I wrote here you will see repeated around the board by many different people in a much more clear and succinct manner when they say collect what you like and like what you collect. It really is that simple but starting out it's not always easy to understand what it is that you like.

My .02, hope it helps.

 

Yep, do some reading. The Redbook is a must have for a collector of U.S. coins. Stick around here too, and learn. And then after you get some knowledge, try to choose an area to focus on, like a certain type of coin. Then learn as much as you can on that subject. And most importantly, collect what you like and have fun.

 

Sounds like you have a good start with what collectors refer to as modern coins. If they interest you, as they do many collectors, I'd be sure to acquire the new issues from the mint or your grandfather. All though you'll hear diverse opinions, I believe you have some coins with good potential for appreciation in price. Are the '99-'09 Mint Proof Sets the silver ones (red box/holder) or the clad ones (blue box/holder)?

As for going into other areas of coin collecting, there has already been some good ideas mention here.

 

Welcome to the neighborhood!

I'm going to suggest an alternative to answering all of your questions, here. You said that your grandfather has been sending you the sets, so I guess I can assume that he doesn't live nearby. I'm wondering if your grandfather collects coins, too. If he does, it might be a nice thing if you were to ask him some of the questions. After all, he is the one who has endowed you with these wonderful gifts for so many years, and I think it would give him great satisfaction to know that you are now taking an interest in the hobby and including him in it, too.

I'm not asking you to respond to my comments, but I just thought you might want to give this some thought. I would think that your grandfather would be tickled pink. Now, if there are any questions that your grandfather can't answer, this is a great place to be. As was suggested, it would be a good idea to get a copy of the Red Book because it conains a world of information.

Chris