My wife Wendy and I took our son, David, to his first EAC last week. He's ten and a half months old, so perhaps a bit young, but we really wanted to go. We haven't been since 2007, and that was an amazing trip. So we set out at David's bedtime on Wednesday and got to Kentucky at about 12:30 A.M. This was the beginning of Dave's trouble sleeping which continued until we got home (and then some). But that's a topic for another message board. Bright and early Thursday we were up and at the restaurant next to the convention room having breakfast. The Drawbridge where the convention was held is a confusing labyrinth of a place, but they put together a fine little breakfast. After a pleasant time warming up we swung back by the registration table and I signed in then left Wen and Dave to their own devices while I went to the Grading and Counterfeit Detection seminar. Very educational, very helpful, and very humbling. After that it was a trip with the family to the local aquarium where David enjoyed himself thoroughly and had his picture taken repeatedly. We headed back to the hotel, got Dave to bed, and I hit the Reception. Dave's nap was cut short so my family joined me at the reception. We had a very nice dinner with some old friends and new ones, chatted at length, and put Dave to bed. After that, the Half Cent Happening. Amazing copper. The 1832s were stunning. The 1849s, beautiful, especially the proofs. I saw half the known population of 1797 C3c (the Gripped Edge). Chatted with more experienced half cent specialists about my collection and showed off pictures of a few of my more unusual pieces. When they kicked us out of the room I headed back to the reception room, hit the cranberry juice hard, and saw some recent cherries. Don't think there's nothing good on eBay, I saw in the neighborhood of 30k worth of coins that came off there for low BINs and minimal bids (three coins). Friday the show proper began. Before the day was half over I'd already spent or allocated half my budget. By the end, 80%. I also spent some quality time with my favorite numismatic literature dealer, John Burns. He did some serious damage to my pocketbook as well, but it could have been worse - he sold one of the books I was looking for between when I stopped by to say "hi" first thing in the morning and when I hit his table later on for some downtime. Saved me $200. Lunch with the family, then brought a burger back for John, then back on the bourse. More browsing, more amazing pieces, and some amazing deals on fantastic pieces that I had to pass on. I also ran into a gentleman I had a previous arrangement with and picked up 5 bank boxes full of periodicals and catalogs which I'd need to mail to myself back home. Dinner at the Chinese restaurant across the street (which was excellent, and I have very high standards) with the family, John Burns, and Pierre Fricke, then putting Dave to bed, then off to the Reception. On the way there I ran into a fellow half cent collector, one with a much more advanced collection than mine, who asked if I needed a very rare variety of 1795, which I did. After some negotiations we sealed the deal shortly before the presentations. If you've ever thought about joining EAC and coming to the convention but passed, you made the wrong choice. The presentation was amazing. Beth Deisher spoke at length about the Chinese counterfeits - some very alarming information is coming down the line in the near future. Watch Coin World for it. The president of EAC is a gentleman named Dan Holmes. Dan was diagnosed last year with ALS and is selling his collection this year with the Goldbergs courtesy of McCawley & Grellman. He won't likely make it to the end of his term. The stories he had to tell were amazing and poignant and ended with a standing ovation for Dan. A nice, quiet end to the evening was copper chat in the hotel restaurant. Saturday was a busy, busy day. We had to pack up, mail those five boxes back home, load the car, check out, and hit lunch. We found a Skyline Chili down the street. My first time at one of those, and I see what Wendy likes about them. It's pretty good food, and filling, and very different from what we have back home. Plus they cover everything in cheese. We got some for John since he has a hard time getting away from his table for very long, dropped it off, and I cruised around the bourse for a few last passes. It turns out that Gene Braig (a well-known collector of 1804 C6 die states) had some coins on consignment with a dealer there. I tried, desperately, to find one that fit my collection, but I couldn't do it so I pulled the trigger on one last coin I'd been eyeing all weekend. That brought my total up to 6. There's so much more I could share. Many tiny stories, but excellent stuff. However, it's late, and I'm sure I'd duff up some details or overlook something so I'll just post some pics. If I have the time I'll try to come back with a few more tidbits tomorrow. 1794 C4a (R3) 1794 C5a (R4+) 1794 C8 (R5) 1795 C3 (R5+) 1795 C6b (R6) 1797 C2 (R3)
I'm terrible with names (better with online handles for some reason) but I think I met Fish at the show. Not too many men with their wives and a youngster hanging around John Burns table. I'm glad you had a good time. The pictured coins, new purchares? Nice and if so you did better than me. All I came home with were three new Conder tokens and an 1803 NC-1 large cent. Tried for but just couldn't quite reach the win for a S-1 chain cent in the auction.
Yes, Mike, we've met before a few times, though usually at the Michigan State show. According to Breen (which I bought from John at EAC), '03 NC-1 is R5+, which CQR agrees with - so certainly nothing to sneeze at! And as you can see, every piece I bought with the exception of the '97 C2 has issues, which made them affordable. What ended up happening with the S-1? Where'd it end up hammering?
The S-1 was very worn with just the outline of the head ad four links of the chain on the reverse. No real problems just wear. That heavily worn and with no proper identification in the catalog I hoped to get it at around $1100. It opened at $850 and I competed with the book up to my bid of $1250. Next increment was $1350 but the book topped out at $1300. If I had gone the $1350 I'd have bought it. I'm still unsure of whether or not I should have done it. Yes the 03 NC-1 is still an R-5+ but I already have over 40 pieces in my collection at that level or higher, and R-5+ is rather low for an NC. The NC is easier to come by than the S-198 I could have won if I had gone the last bid of $700. But I passed on it because I already have one. That one would have been an upgrade.
I really enjoyed reading this thread Fish. Small cents are not strictly my area, as i tend to concentrate on large cents, but i found this a very interesting recount of the EAC Convention. Someday i will attend too. Some pretty rare 1795's you posted there! That 1795 C-3 specially caught my eye. It is a nice specimen. I was a bidder on B & M's sale of the Norweb Half Cents in 1988. Lot 17, a 1795 C-3 in VG+ was a lot i bid on. Not because it was rare, as i knew nothing about rarity ratings back then, but because it was relatively cheap.... the lot sold for $660. I just missed it. I think your coin is overall finer than that speciment by the way. Regards, Eduard
Yes, yes, yes. This is so "you", Eduard. You would have a great time. And don't forget... it's not just the copper, but the silver too. The John Reich Collector's Society has their convention same time, same place ! Ya think there might be a little eye candy there for ya, huh ? But really... it's not about buying and selling. That's for coin shows. EAC / JRCS is more. Much, much more. See you peeps in Annapolis 2010 !!!!
