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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;ziggy29, post: 13024, member: 1113&quot;]Welcome to the hobby!</p><p><br /></p><p>I&#039;d recommend a few things before you start buying coins.&nbsp; First, I&#039;d learn how to grade and learn where to find some of the best sources for price data.&nbsp; As others have said, there&#039;s a certain amount of overhead built into the cost of each coin that a dealer has to recover -- the legwork in buying it, putting it in a holder, making space for it in their inventory (which can sometimes take away from a space that a more valuable coin with more profit potential would occupy), and all that.&nbsp; Thus it wouldn&#039;t be unusual to pay 50 cents to a dollar for a coin you might be able to find in change or in a roll somewhere. </p><p><br /></p><p>For that reason, you might want to check with the bank where you do business and start going through rolls.&nbsp; Unless you happen to get a roll of new coins, you will have to wade through many of them to find an occasional gem in there.&nbsp; But that&#039;s part of the fun of collecting for many of us -- the &quot;thrill of the hunt.&quot;</p><p><br /></p><p>And if you can find a few really nice ones for your collection, your cost for that coin is...one cent.&nbsp; If you find duplicates of really nice ones, see if you can network with other like-minded collectors and arrange a swap.&nbsp; This is especially important when you live in an area where you usually only receive P-mint change or only D-mint change; collectors can really help each other out that way.&nbsp; </p><p><br /></p><p>The most important thing is to learn a little about grading and about the market before diving in &quot;head first&quot; and buying from dealers, from eBay or anywhere else.&nbsp; For the modern stuff with little numismatic value, it&#039;s not cost-effective for dealers to carry these coins at or near the printed prices -- but when you can&#039;t find that one elusive piece anywhere in change, through swap networks or anywhere else -- it&#039;s nice to have the option to pay a bit more and get that hole filled.</p><p><br /></p><p>And most importantly -- have fun!&nbsp; If you educate yourself, your chances of having fun are greatly increased, especially since you&#039;ll reduce your chances of getting ripped off.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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