I just wanted to share with you my experience at my first coin club meeting. I went to the basement of the local bank where the meeting is held and as soon as you walk through the door theres a guy sitting there selling tickets for a chance to win a few of his coins, so I bought one. One guy was sitting in the back beside a table selling Morgan, Peace and P and D Washington Dollars so I bought a Denver Washington Dollar. The meeting started out with a report of last months minutes and the treasurers report on account balances. Then it was time for show and tell. An example of a bleached $1 dollar bill and a cent planchet. They had a presentation of "hand painted coins" and explained how the paint ruins the coin and suggested that everyone should stay away from wasting their money on these. Then there was a "just for fun" quiz of about 10 questions. I thought it was fun. The club consists of about 15-20 people out of which I was (at 42 yrs old) the youngest there. The rest of the members there were at least in the 65-80 age range and have been collecting for most of their lives, which I consider a benefit. You can learn alot from the old timers that have been involved in Numismatics for that long. I really enjoyed it and plan on attending every monthly meeting. Sorry for being long-winded.
Sounds like the club I belong to, except that it's more family oriented. I'm the youngest real collector there though at age 18.
It is alot of fun, I feel that I'll learn alot from those older guys. One of them had a very worn dateless Standing Liberty Quarter, type 1, that he was sure was a 1916. I know there are certain ways to tell the difference between a 1916 type 1 and a 1917 type 1 but I dont know the difference. It was mentioned in one of the coin magazines I get but didnt go into detail. I guess you have to buy the book to find out, which I plan on doing.
every hobby i have been involved with since i was 8 years old meant i was hanging out with those from the generation before me: trains, ham radio, and now coins. the end result of 26 years of hanging with the grey hairs has been a greater understanding of the world around me and has allowed me to position myself for what is truely important in life - my family. not sure i'm going to join a coin club, but i might. i'm going to a bee keepers club meeting next week and suspect at 34, i'll be one of the few youngsters in the group. i'd like to think those on this forum are club enough for now. -Steve
Kevin,did you win any of that old guy's coins? It is good to attend a meeting of a local club.I was a member of 2 local numismatic societies,of which one is now no longer in existence.I am a member of 2 out of town numismatic societies,& 1 international numismatic society. Aidan.
No, I didnt win anything that night. The guy that did win gave his prize to a younger girl who must have been there with her grandfather, which I thought was very nice.
I wish there was a club in my area. Nobody I know around my area even collects coins. My friends youngest boy started collecting so I gave hims lots of wheaties, buffalo's and even a couple of walking liberty halves. One year later he now shows no intrest in the hobby. Trying to get my son (age 6) into the hobby but so far no luck. I guess I'm second fiddle to the playstation games. Not going to give up on my son yet but have a 23 month old girl who I feel is ready to start her numismatic adventure, with a lot of help from daddy. Chuck
A hand full of collectors and a couple of dealers in my area started a coin club a few years ago and it has turned into a great thing. The club supports the community in the way of charitable donations and numismatic education. Our main focus, according to our by-laws is on the youth. Encouraging and educating the youths of our community on numismatics is important in our eyes and hearts. We have many interesting and knowledgeable members. If you have a coin dealer in your area, he or she might be able to help you find other collectors that might want to start your own club. It takes some organizing and a little hard work, but it is worth it when you see you membership grow quickly and your treasury as well. Good luck!
I have one dealer I know within a 50 mile area and he told me he was not intrested in trying to start one. He deals in other things also. Starting a club right now from the bottom is out of the question for me as my plate is already full with a restoration job of my 1890's house, my real job of 8-10 hrs a day, 5-6 days a week and my two young children who demand the rest of my waking hours. It's very hard to find time just to keep up with my collection. A few more years and my home will be done, My kids a little older and then I will get down to the task of helping to form a club in this area. Chuck
Sounds like you had a fun time! You can really learn a lot from those that have been collecting for awhile. Glad to hear you had fun. Are you going to go back? Just wondering. Phoenix
It was a fun time. Im looking forward to learning from the older and more experienced collectors, same as in here. Although I've been collecting for the most part of 30 years theres still alot to learn. I plan on going back for every meeting, the second Thursday of every month and I plan on taking something for the show and tell session they have next month, Im just not sure yet what to take.
