How did you start coin collecting?

I started when I was 12, (1966) when my grandmother gave me a 1923 Peace Dollar for working chores around her house all day one time. A few times after she paid me in Walking Liberty Halves, Mercury Dimes, etc. I had the bug. I then proceeded to the local Drug Store which sold folders and picked up the essential Lincoln, Jefferson, Mercury Dime, Roosevelt Dime and Washington Quarter folders to get started. It's all history after that.

 

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My dad took me to a coin shop when i was about 8( i'm 57 ) yrs.old,He bought me a Booker T.Washington commen. And we would go every month,Sometime's twice getting a coin each time.I had the BTW it for yrs.until a very bad time in my life came along.I sold everything i had! I have regrouped some BUT it was a childhood friend of mine that remembered my story&got me this...Now i buy what i like,Nothing carved in stone!!! HAPPY HUNTING!!!

 

Two of my favorite playing cues......

Joss West - One of a kind with ebony, ivory, mother of pearl and sterling silver inlays.

Mike Sigel - One of a kind with ivory and sterling silver inlays on an ebony butt.


Chris

 

Very nice and I know they can get quite expensive too ..

 

What did you use for a stick to break with ?

 

I don't have a photo of my break cue, but it was a Schon that cost $1200. The Joss West is worth about $5000 and the Mike Sigel is worth about $4000.

Chris

 

Thoses are some amazing sticks Chris .
I'm going to show my son them tomorrow, hes going to flip out, thats for sure . I can see it now, dad, sell some of your coins and buy me one .........

 

In my village, Clayton, we had Norman Stalker, who used to hand make cues and sold them all over the world. String wraps, leather wraps, MOP inlays, Swarvorski crystals, precious gems, removable/interchangeable weights, etc. He could do just about anything you wanted for a price. I think it was called Berkshire Cue Products. Yours are beautiful.

 

For me it started way back in 1985. I was nine and went on a family vacation to Gettysburg, Niagara Falls, and Canada. My dad had some spare change left from Canada so he divided it out and gave my brother, sister and me two pennies, one dime, one nickel, and one quarter. I thought Canadian money was so cool and as a result got the collecting bug which has not left my body since.

 

When I was about 8 - late 1960's - I dug up an 1861 IHC out in the front yard playing Matchboxes. It started there.

 

Thats Awesome, it seems that everyone that starts coin collecting started because of some sort of moment that they saw a coin that they had not seen before. A moment of impulse instead of intention.

 

The old man got me started when he gave me some proof sets (1954-1963)......The next year I got a paper route. Folks would pay mostly with fifty cent pieces back then. Hog heaven......walkers and Franklins.........I was hooked.

 

No, I got started because of coins that I did see before.......

 

When just a mere tyke (somewhere in the single digits) a man named C.W. Johnson ran a small coin shop behind his much larger sewing machine store. He was always immensely friendly and helpful. My parents must have shopped there because I recall making repeated visits to buy extremely worn liberty nickels. I remember being amazed that I was holding something from the 1800s, though I didn't yet have a fully developed concept of time. I still have that block of sliders. When I learned that a "grand" relative of mine was born in 1913, I began looking for a 1913 Liberty Nickel and ran smack into one of the hobby's greatest rarities. Surprise! My coin folder had a little plug over the 1913 slot that simply said "rare." I soon found out how rare. Instead of simply buying a readily available 1913 Buffalo Nickel, I gave up. I have no idea why. Around the same time my family traveled to Winnipeg and they bought me my first Canadian mint set, which I still have. Thus began a lifelong obsession with beaver nickels.

I took a long break from numismatics until, some time later when I actually had money of my own, I discovered a different small coin shop. The owner really showed me the ropes, offered me advice, asked me why I was buying a particular coin over another and challenged me to consider alternatives. It was life-changing. I bought my first gold coin from him (a very cheap but awesome Mexico 2 peso) and I can still hear him saying, with some pride in his voice, "Oh oh! You're getting into gold!" Sadly, he died rather young and the shop and his stock were liquidated by his family. That was an absolutely awesome coin shop. I will never forget him.

 

Interesting many collectors here got started via the paper route.

 

Fifty one years ago, my uncle had me sorting wheat cents. I was only seven at the time. When I was about eight my dad started taking me to work on weekends. I worked in the cash room at a large S&H Kress store. I got to count and roll all the change. Dad paid me with wheat cents. I never lost the passion for the hobby. It did get tough when I started liking pretty girls. I didn't get to buy as many pretty coins. Dad was never a collector but he left me a Morgan dollar. It's priceless. Great times.

 

A paper route didn't start me but it sure helped me. I thought I was rich.

 

more that 50 years ago, younger than 8 but not exactly sure how old, someone gave me a penny albumk for Christmas. not long after, my grandfather gave me 3 silver dollars (which I still have)
Still have my record book from 1971 where I marked all the coins I had with their grade.
Still enjoy looking through pocket change

 

I started by finding the very rare Mercury dime or buffalo nickel in circulation (1977 or so?). I loved the designs and somehow ended up going to a show. I still have a crappy 3c nickel from that time. I put it down for a long time then came back to it and got serious when my kids were old enough that I had to cut back on golf.

 

How did you start collecting?
About the age of 11 while in the Boy Scouts while on a camping trip. We found a large number of coins in a creek. That was about 1954. Cents/pennies were the passion then, because of not have much money to buy, just out of circulation then.