Should I continue???

silvers the better deal right now.

 

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the great thing about collecting coins is that if you lose interest you can put them in a drawer and forget about them for 5 years until you have time, money, and interest to continue the hobby. so what if you start getting into games for the next couple years, just don't sell you collection. and then when your ready to continue the hobby, you can. i have done this more than once, i am just coming back from a 2 or 3 year hiatus now.

 

I don't know if this has been said but there is and old saying " If I only knew then what I know now. " When I see coins I always get that feeling. (EG: When I was 13 I could have gotten that coin for $ .xx but now it costs $$ XXX.) I'm sure that there are a few others here that get that feeling too. I say do what you like and what your budget dictates and don't let peer pressure dictate it for you. My "then" is your "now". Whatever you decide, Good Luck.. John

 

I would say that there is no need to stop collecting. But if collecting is somehow interfering with the relationship with your friends, something might be wrong. Perhaps you are just a little too dedicated to collecting to the neglect of other aspects of your life. The key is balance. It isn't an either-or decision. Actually, there is no reason why anyone else should even know you are a collector except in a very general way. In the long run, relationships with people are more important than coins, but you should be able to do both.

 

I stopped collecting when I was about 17 years old. Sure I always checked my change when I was inactive. That never stopped. But I did stop going out of my way in search of a coin. I'm 54 now and just started actively again a little over a year ago. Wish I never stopped because I missed so much in collecting and learning. I am very glad that I never did get rid on one single coin in all that time. As so many have said, it's up to you and what you feel comfortable with.
Mike

 

Okay, I have decided to either

1. Collect every single standard type coin ever minted by us
2. Finish completing my sets that I have already started.

Both of these are going to take quite a while. But I don't know what one sounds more appealing saying, "I have every type of coin minted by u.s", or saying "I have the complete set of X type of coins". What one do you think I should do first? I am really stuck and I really don't know. Thanks

 

what do you like Ryan? Pick your favorite series and go for it! We are both young and can pick a series and have the rest of our lives to complete it.

 

Well, sets are a little harder because you run into those key dates, and they cost a fortune. So I really don't know what to do??? Any suggestions?

EDIT: I think I will go for the sets, because they will be worth a lot more money, and they are VERY nice to have. After I do 3 or 4 complete sets, (or maybe even along the way), I will get every standard silver type coin minted by U.S. Thank you all!
(please tell me if I am making a bad decision.)

 

Keep your hobby of coining. It's a lifelong hobby and interest that will bring you much joy year by year.
:smile

 

I can remember getting into collecting coins and I was your age when I did. My best friend at school was into it and got me hooked (hint-hint). All those rolls of pennies and nickels and dimes I went through trying to complete my little collections, buying pounds of wheatbacks at the local coin shop, all the while dreaming of expanding into older coins like the buffalo nickels, or mercury dimes, etc. I vividly remember eyeballing that 1916-D Mercury at the coin shop, but $150.00 was more than I could afford, yet now that little sucker is worth well over $1,000.00. Someone said earlier - "If I knew then what I know now" - is a statement everyone makes as they get older and we say it more often as the years go by. That’s life!

What you need to ask yourself is: How much will a Gameboy be worth in 20 years? How much will that movie ticket stub be worth in 20 years? How much knowledge comes from the normal teenager activities? The knowledge you learn from coin collecting, especially today with the internet, is invaluable and will stay with you your entire lifetime but you should do some of the teenager things too. Remember the old saying about - too much of a good thing – and mix it up.

You talked about peer pressure and I too I’m catching flack from friends, saying I spend way too much time on the computer with my coins but I will spot a coin I know nothing about and neither does the seller, the current bid will be lower than I think it should be, and I will run off on the internet and investigate that coin and sometimes I get lucky and find out it is worth quite a bit more than it’s currently going for and I’ll stick my bid in. Most times it isn’t a “find” so I’ll message the seller and tell them what they have that way I can share what I've just learned - Sharing is caring! Then there is my favorite “game” of cat-and-mouse or, in our case, coin-and-mint mark. I look for coin listings that don’t have a mint mark on them, then peek at the coin to see if it might have one and the person selling it doesn’t know about mint marks and when it does have one, off I run to the price guide to see how much it’s worth. That happens all the time but every once in a while, I get that special one, like a couple of weeks ago when I ran across a beautiful fully horned 1917 buffalo nickel with poor pictures but at least there was an obverse & reverse pic. The current bid was low so I put my bid in, lower than it would probably go for, but what the heck. I’ve seen many good coins not sell and the starting bid was way below what it was worth, including that gorgeous 1787 New Jersey Copper I let get away because I got busy when the auction was closing and never placed my bid and no one else bid on it. I’m still mad about that one! I even messaged the seller and let them know I wanted it but he had already given it to his son. Darnit! Anyways, getting back to that Buffalo, after I placed my bid I looked a little closer and there it was, that beautiful mint mark and off to the price guide I went. I gave it an F-40, even though it could go higher, and the 17-P was $18, the D was $175, which made me giddy, and the S was $225, which made me tingle. It didn’t matter if it was a D or S, I was going to make out either way so I upped my bid to the full book value for the P and I ended up getting it for $14 which included shipping which was still below book for the P coin. When it came in, I was like a kid at Christmas and the package was as reluctant to be exposed as a Christmas present, but there it was, a 1917 fully horned San Francisco minted Buffalo nickel. WOW!

I too, like someone else said, got out of collecting for quite a while and just got back into it a short bit ago when I realized I should do something with my money and have something better to do than watch TV. Now I’m having lots of fun trying to find those hidden treasures online (Ebay & elsewhere’s). What else can you do that can give as much pleasure as coin collect, without wasting your money and having nothing to show for it, besides collecting something else? The only problem I see, is you need to figure out how to “pull a Tom Sawyer” on your friends that are giving you a hard time. What I mean by that is give them the bug, like my friend did so long ago. One way to do this is incorporating coin collecting into school assignments: History class report; that dreaded English class essay; and storytelling, like I just did. Show them just how kewl coin collecting is and see if you can’t get them to watch out for that elusive wheatback or buffalo in their pocket change, and pay them something more than face value for it, if it’s worth it, and that will help to show them coin collecting is more than just a hobby. I’d even recommend getting into buying & selling (Ebay?) to make a few extra bucks to go towards your collection, but always grade the coin on the low side and never bid more than half the book value for that grade (include shipping in your bid). You'll lose more auctions than you’ll win but the ones you win you can make money off selling them during prime-time on Ebay (Friday night thru Sunday evening). That’s how you develop great business sense for your future. Movies? They have great popcorn and a short time later, you don’t even remember half of it but the knowledge you gain from coin collecting, stays with you a lifetime but a good movie now-and-then is good for you too. Remember to mix it up.

Coin on!

Ribbit,
Toad :smile

 

Thank you "Toad", you have encouraged me a whole lot.
I too am a huge ebay fan, and once in a while you will see me on this forum asking if I got a good deal or not. In fact, eBay is my only choice because there are aboslutely no coin shops, or not even pawn shops in my area.
Well, now I am off to complete my sets, and thank you again everyone!

 

Hey Ryan. A lot of good advice here. When I was your age, I was really into collecting baseball cards. Unfortunately, they don't hold much value today. The advantage of coin collecting the way you are doing it, is you are investing in not only the numismatic value, but also the precious metal value. So you have several markets working in the investment side of it, as well as your own enjoyment. If I was aware of this concept at a younger age, I probably would have been more into coin collecting. I continue to kick myself, but hey, that is life.

I've only been seriously collecting coins now for several months9I'm 27 years old), though I fortunately had collected on and off enough over the years to have a reasonable collection to start with. Another purchase to consider if you want to invest in gold for a reasonable price is a midgrade 2.5 dollar liberty or indian. I purchased my 2.5 gold liberty for $128(F/VF) and my 2.5 dollar gold indian coin for $150(XF/AU)...and you are not too far out of range for either of these. Since they are old and out of production, they still carry a lot of numismatic value even if gold were to suddenly go down the toilet. I also have a 1/10 ounce eagle, but I get a lot more enjoyment out of the old circulated gold coinage. It's a great feeling to actually hold it in your hand knowing that it has a rich history as currency back when the US was on the gold standard.

But when it comes down to it, collect what you like within your means.....but you will be very wise to continue this hobby at your age.

John

 

If you have any missing holes in your collection, send me a list and I will forward "finds" to you when I run across them. I'm all over Ebay and find lots of good stuff but I usually leave it alone unless I want it. I have several peeps that like certain thigs and when I run across their items of interest, I forward the links to them so they can check it out. They message me now-and-then and let me know some of the great buys they got but I don't have a clue as to their stuff, which most is foreign but not all.

I believe in your case, you collect certain things that I don't, so I'll be happy to help you fill holes in your collection and maybe for less than you thought. I just bought a nice 1831 CBH for $20, just because I put a small bid in and nobody overbid me. I love those little items I get cause they are the ones I'll resell to help me finance even more coins for my collection, although I still haven't figured out what I'm going to actually collect but I will have to soon or I'll be broke if I don't. :mouth:

Ribbit,
Toad :smile

 

Toad: I sent a "pm"

Johnny: I have seen that gold coin a lot, how big is it? How much gold odes it contain?

 

I think your making the right decision. And I beleive alot of silver coins are better than one or two gold ones, for folks like us who have to save a little for most if not all purchases. With gold you won't be able to add to your collection very often, therefore, in my opinion, silver is alot more fun. And I'm in the hobby because I enjoy it, not because I'm counting on turning a profit at some point in the future.

 

Here are several pics from the PCGS website.

http://www.coinfacts.com/quarter_eagles/liberty_head_quarter_eagles/1898_quarter_eagle.htm

http://www.coinfacts.com/quarter_eagles/indian_head_quarter_eagles/1929_quarter_eagle.htm

The indian design is absolutely gorgeous. It is the only coin type with an "incuse" design(both for 2.50 and 5.00 gold). They are usually a little more expensive than the common libertys, but if you look hard enough, you can find a good one for 150-200.

The 2.50 gold coins are slightly larger than the 1/10 ounce....I believe they contain about .120 ounces of gold and slightly larger than a dime. Its fun to hold one in your hand along with a dime, because although the size is about the same, you feel a significant difference in weight.

Silver is also a great investment, but its fun and rewarding to at least have 1 good gold coin in your collection to complement the silver. This is just my opinion though. If you want something cheaper, you can look into the 1/20 ounce bullion coins, or a worn $1 liberty gold coin; but I would save up and try to get a nice $2.50 coin.

 

Thank you Johnny, but I will think I will stick to Silver unless I win the lottery. Thanks though! The gold coins are just way to small.

 

Hey Johnny,

What about Ryan getting a little Dos Peso for his first gold coin? They aren't that much and it is gold. I have one, just to have one and since he can't afford a lot, it can be within his budget.

Ribbit,
Toad :smile