Does anybody really collects coins?

I know on QvC they said some will pay alot of money for the coins if you pay more for them but if I pay more than say like a quarter for a quarter than is it worth it because no one would pay more for it from me!?! Also at least the quarters on QvC some were golden so maybe those ones would be worth somemore but not the other ones. I just dont want to get rip off. What is your advice?

 

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Not knowing what coin you talking about, I’d say don’t buy any coins from QvC or anyone seen on TV.

 

A good way to start is to get a few of the inexpensive coin folders that are available anywhere they sell coin supplies. They are also carried by Borders. Then start filling the holes from the coins you get in change. This is an inexpensive way to start, and you can't lose any money. Occasionally, you will discover something worth more than face value. You can probably find coin books at the library that will tell you which coins are worth more than the others. If you develop an interest, you can branch out from there. If you don't, you can always pull the coins out of the folders and spend them.

QVC has some neat stuff, like those flashlights without batteries that you crank to generate electricity! But it isn't a good place to shop for coins, particularly when you are just beginning to collect.

 

The gold and platinum plated coins are misleading. Most in the coin collecting community consider them to be altered/damaged coins and so don't want them. Also, the gold and platinum plating is SOOOOOO thin, that it doesn't really add any value to the coins.

As happycobra said, the best bet is to STAY AWAY from TV shopping networks and ignore their hype about investments and rising values and blah blah blah.

Hope this helps.

 

Yes people do collect coins. As for that querter it depends. If it's a quarter from 2005 then you'd probably get 25c for it. If it's one from 1796 then you'd need a few thousand dollars at the very least.

 

Buy a couple of magazines and/or books on coin collecting, and read through them before you start spending your money. That will give you an idea of what coin values are, and what to look for. And most important, you should visit this forum frequently.

 

the flashlites are junk. the second sentence is very correct.

 

I would have to agree about QVC being a poor deal as merchandise outlets go. I have given them three chances with small household appliances and what I have received has been of poor quality even for the rather low prices I paid. I don't see how you could save money by shopping there unless you had no concept of quality. Just my two Lincolns' worth.

 

Those Gold and Platinum plated "Editions" on QVC, HSN, and Shop@home TV networks have no collector value whatsoever. It is an outright scam directed at new/uninformed collectors. It is a way to sell 3 times the amount of coins at one shot (Regular,Gold,Platinum) to people that don`t know any better.
The inflated prices they charge for these and other coins are generally 2-3 times higher than you can find them for elsewhere, anyway. You would be laughed out of any coin shop (maybe politely, maybe not) if you wanted to resell any of the plated garbage you see on TV. Hang out in these forums awhile and you will learn a lot.

 

I look at Coin Vault and all of those guys as a good thing for the hobby. They are in fact promoting coin collecting and the more people collecting, the better it is for all us current collectors that own coins future collectors will want.

Now those that buy from these informercials are in for a surprise when they try to sell their new purchases, but keep in mind that many do not buy their coins, but now can't help to think about the loose change in their pocket.

So whether it be high or low leaf (which is a freakin' stalk) on the Wisconsin quarter to a couple of coin guys that shout on the television screen about how great their coins are, the more people thinking about coins and collecting, the better for us.

Sure they will learn a hard lesson, but I am not going to cast the first stone at somebody else who made a bad purchase of coins when I made some of those bonehead purchases too. A learning experience yes, but it is much cheaper than spending $1,000's on a coin that is NOT real, as with many counterfeit coins (i.e., Trade Dollars) that are making their way from China to eBay.

Those are the people to worry about. They may sour a "newbie" so bad that the numismatic community will loose people instead of gaining them.

 

Yes. There are really real collectors collecting real coins. People collect
real coins that were made in ancient times and they collect real coins be-
ing made today. There is nothing wrong with collecting counterfeit, fake,
alterred, copy, and machined coins but you should be aware of exactly
what you are doing if you do. Gold plated coins are alterred and are not
collected by real coin collectors. These should be avoided unless you have
interest in such pieces and you should go into it only with the knowledge
that such pieces probably can not be authenticated and are unlikely to ever
catch on.

Collect what you enjoy and generally avoid advice on this subject. Learn
what you can and avoid paying too much. Most coins are available much
cheaper on the net or at a coin shop so know proper pricing before buy-
ing a lot of coins. Sell something once in a while and you'll learn what
coins are really worth.

 

[Sell something once in a while and you'll learn what
coins are really worth.]

This is very good advice, which I have failed to follow in the past.

 

I must disagree about avoiding advice on this subject. Plated coins will never be anything other than souvenier type coins. No collecter value. Waste of money. When the newbies eventially discover that they spent a lot of money on near worthless coins, I can`t help but think the vast of them majority will be soured on the hobby. Collect plated coins???? You might as well collect pocket lint, or different colored stones you pick up off the ground.

I intentsly dislike the unethical TV hucksters. I know who they are. The guy on HSN and the main figure on Shop@H used to be on the same show. Along with another outright crook that the Shop@H network still deals with (hmmm, choo-choo merc dimes). Can you say Tennessee? These guys do massive damage to the hobby. I believe they are sucking so much certified material (as in NGC Silver and Gold Eagles, NGC Morgans, NGC Modern Commems) off the market at inflated buy/sell prices, that when the newbies realize that they have been beat and decide to unload, we may be in for a major market correction on at least these things. It may take a year or 3. These guys hawked Princess Diana Beanies for $299. You can buy them now for like 10 cents a pound. They helped ruin the sportscard market in the early 90`s, along with another certified crook from Cherry Hill NJ.

JMHO Bruce

 

I can name names, but these guys have bigger lawyers than I do.

 

Ouch, thanks for shooting down part of my collection in a big ball of flames. I have to intensely disagree with you there. It is absolutely NOT a waste of money, as long as you know what you are getting into and what you're buying. I have bought a couple coins from the National Collector's Mint (not the most loved place right now, I know, so let's not get into that!), and I bought them because I liked the designs and I wanted to add them to my collection.

I think that part of our job as numismatists is to educate "newbies" that buying coins from reputable sources (AKA ANA members, coin dealers with established backgrounds, etc.) is ESSENTIAL to the hobby, but it's perfectly okay to indulge and buy things you like from not-so-reputable places like the NCM, just so long as you realize that you'll be spending the money the same as when buying anything "as seen on TV." (By the way, the ones I got from NCM are the 9/11 Commem. with the "real silver plating from the Trade Center" and the "51st State Quarter Commem.")

I liked the designs of these two items, and wasn't particularly interested in the metal content or future resale potential simply because I don't intend to sell them any time soon. To me, the NCM 9/11 coin was a better representation of what happened that day than anything the US Mint has released.

I just hope that we can continue to educate as well as we have been while also not shutting out people's ideas that buying from these kind of places is still okay, because it is!

~AJ

 

A correction in silver, gold, morgans and commems? I can't wait! Let the unloading begin!

I agree about the damage they could potentially do to the hobby, but I'll have to think about the "unethical" part. The damage would most likely be temporary. Buyers always have to research their purchases, and not only with coins. Some will, some won't.

Last night they were selling MS69 silver eagles for $89.95 per pair. That's quite a spread over spot for a common bullion coin.

 

ajm, you know I love ya bro,

NCM is another can of worms. Another bunch of decieptful scammers as far as I am concerned. The US MINT website has pointed them out to be wary of.

We can collect anything we want to. See my profile to see what other things I collect. Some might say, are you serious? You collect fruit jars? 48 star flags?

If you seriously like hologram coins, plated coins, painted coins, replica coins, I would say go for it. My main point is: these TV guys target new and uninformed collectors with overpriced and generally worthless collectibles. The True Coins they offer are overpriced by a factor of 2X-3X.

Now that I think of it, a collection of the various replicas, plated coins, holograms etc, might be interesting......

 

And you don`t think that is deceiptful, or unethical? These people were taken advantage of. By the thousands. And they will come back to haunt us.

JMHO

Bruce

 

I made the mistake of buying coins from the TV hucksters not once but twice back when I was just getting into the hobby and didn't know any better.
Luckily they were low priced items because the resale value amounts to about 10% of the price I paid.
The coins i bought were a five coin set of V nickels for 25$, worth about 1-2 $ a piece and the other were the infamous gold plated state quarter’s (first year) worth 1.25(face value).
When I see these coins still sitting around in my collection it bugs me to think that I didn't do a little research before spending my hard earned money.
It's not really the 60$ I blew but the fact that I was duped that bothers me.
Oh well lesson learned
OK it's also the 60 bucks since that could have paid for a nice BU morgan, a couple of proof sets or one of the walkers i need to complete my set.

 

Always keep those coins, silver. I would. Just to remind myself. We have all made all kinds of mistakes. If we can help the newbie from making some of those same mistakes, we are all better for it. I hate to see these people ripped off.