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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Paul M., post: 2111627, member: 73165&quot;]I haven&#039;t been a YN for 20+ years, so this is for contest #2. <img src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie1" alt=":)" unselectable="on" unselectable="on" /></p><p><br /></p><p>IMHO, those new to coin collecting just need to have a way to feed their interests without making terrible mistakes.&nbsp; So, I&#039;d design my course around that principle.</p><p><br /></p><p>First, I would point out some of the obvious and easy to avoid missteps a newbie to our hobby can make.&nbsp; A beginner&nbsp; should not buy:</p><ul> <li>Coins from HSN and similar.</li> <li>Coins from &quot;subscription&quot; programs.</li> <li>Rounds that look like, but are not coins.</li> <li>Coins &quot;certified&quot; by companies other than PCGS and NGC.</li> </ul><p>A beginner should be wary of:</p><ul> <li>Coin sellers that advertise in national venues.&nbsp; Some of these will sell you exactly what they are advertising, but at a large premium to cover the advertising cost.&nbsp; Some will sell you cleaned and overgraded coins.</li> <li>Uncertified coins from people who are not coin dealers.</li> <li>Anything that sounds too good to be true.</li> </ul><p>Next, I&#039;d include a list of recommended books to get started.&nbsp; This list would be US-centric because it&#039;s what I know the most about, and because coin collecting is too broad a subject to cover in its entirety with a few books.&nbsp; The list would include:</p><ul> <li>A new-ish Redbook and a couple of older Redbooks.&nbsp; These would come with a special warning to ignore all the pricing information, but use them as resources to see what coins have been popular over the years, and as a catalog of US coins.</li> <li><b>The Coin Collector&#039;s Survival Manual</b>.&nbsp; Read it cover to cover, especially the sections about working with dealers.</li> <li>Several books on grading, including the <b>ANA Grading Standards for United States Coins</b>, and <b>The Official Guide to Coin Grading and Counterfeit Detection</b>.&nbsp; </li> </ul><p>Next, I&#039;d introduce supplies other than books, the most basic being a good magnifier.&nbsp; Basics of storage methods and how to handle coins would be covered here, as well.</p><p><br /></p><p>I&#039;d have a special section on problem coins (including cleaned, damaged, and doctored), and how to detect them.</p><p><br /></p><p>For the next section, I&#039;d look at methods of collecting.&nbsp; The most basic method would be collecting coins from change.&nbsp; You can probably complete most of a Jefferson nickel set, Lincoln cents from 1959 onward, clad quarters and dimes, solely from change.&nbsp; This is how I got my start as a YN, filling in a Whitman Jefferson nickel folder.&nbsp; If going this route, I would mention the book <b>Strike It Rich With Pocket Change</b> aka Cherrypickers&#039; lite.</p><p><br /></p><p>For collectors with more means and less interest in current circulating coins, I would recommend silver Roosevelt dimes, or Jefferson nickels, along with suitable reference books for these series.&nbsp; Since these coins would almost certainly need to be purchased from a coin dealer, I would emphasize learning to grade and finding a good, reputable dealer.</p><p><br /></p><p>For collectors with even more means who want to collect coins that don&#039;t look like the ones in circulation today, I would recommend 20th century type coins, or classic commemorative halves.&nbsp; Because some of these coins can be expensive purchases, I re-emphasize the points about learning to grade and finding a dealer, along with purchasing certified coins or having expensive coins certified to at least guarantee authenticity.&nbsp; Again, I would mention suitable reference books, such as Swiatek&#039;s commemorative book.</p><p><br /></p><p>Above all, I would emphasize that collecting should be fun!&nbsp; Go to shows, join a coin club, and learn from your fellow collectors!&nbsp; Look at a lot of coins and develop grading skill and an eye for coins.&nbsp; With all these tools available to you, this can be a gratifying lifelong hobby![/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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