I was outside smoking a cigarette Friday afternoon and had some fellow show me his Twelve Caesars set in a nice wooden box. Was that you?
@Randy Abercrombie and @lordmarcovan, I've been telling you both how much I'd like to tag along with you guys at FUN. Unfortunately, this little picture montage has opened my eyes quite a bit. Where you guys shop the dealers that require you to plop down all the Benjamin's, his family and his heirs on a single purchase, I'd be shopping the kiddie pool. Make no mistake about it, I love your champagne taste, but my Asti Spumonte pocketbook just doesn't stack up. Keep the pix coming. I'm sooooo enjoying your bourse escapades. Thanks for taking the time to photograph the dealers wares, and certainly the postings here.
I wanted to- there were a couple in there that were reverse-side-up, which looked promising. But alas, the dealer was away from the table, and I was in a hurry to go catch @messydesk for his photography services. He had a plane to catch. Maybe if that dealer is still there tomorrow, I’ll have a look through those $20 large cents. I believe the booth holder was Col. Steven Ellsworth or someone affiliated with him. Update: alas, he was gone on Sunday, so I didn’t get the chance.
Don’t feel bad, Russ. Until three years ago I played only in the lower-price end of the spectrum. Many a FUN show in the early 2000s saw me with a <$500 budget for the whole show, and I had to scratch for that! Paradoxically, I think I had more fun at the shows in my small-budget days, bargain-hunting and buying World coins, holey coins, love tokens, and exonumia, than I do these days on an increased budget. But I do still have fun with the cheaper stuff. Despite my more “champagne” tastes these days, I still love a good cheap coin. And besides, there’s the giveaways to shop for now, right?
I’m sure the dealer who has those is totally hip to all the varieties, so I wouldn’t expect to find stuff like that in his cheapo pick bin material.
Don’t be fooled. There was some shrewd planning at play here. This trip was funded through previous purchases and holdings. I am going home with more cash than I came with.
I went to the hotel bar Yesterday after the show. Wanted a quick drink before going to the room. Ordered a Scotch and water just for fun. The nice lady brought me a small glass with about a shot and a half, no ice or water but it was just right for the end of the day. I learned to ask the price in the future. Don't know what Scotch they gave me but they charged me $20 plus tax. I just had to laugh and pay the tab. Fun times. I'll post a short show report the next day or so.
Ah, I don’t put too much thought into that aspect of it, Russ. The last show I went to was in Fargo, ND in November. I had a whopping $100 to spend and walked out of there with not a single coin. The bulk of the fun for me is just being there. To Randy’s point, planning is huge. When I hit the NWCC shows in Minneapolis, it is truly like planning for a vacation. I won a fantasy football league this year and took home $600 for my efforts. That money is squirreled away waiting for the show in March. Other financial pieces will fall into place and add to my show budget. If we have other big trips planned already for the year, then my show budget takes that hit. As stated above, it doesn’t matter how much I have in my pocket for a show as I’m going to have a blast just being there!
This was the table of a friend of mine. Not only was it a lot of bust dollars, it was every die stage of every die marriage through 1803, except for 1794. There was 1 1/2 cases of 1798 alone. I bought one of them. Picture forthcoming.
I haven't been to a coin show since about 2010. I found some really neat coins, though, most of which came from Jon Kern.
Yes, that was his table dba "Butternut Coins". I saw several people over three days searching that pile with a loupe.
Ditto. I got some nice stuff, including three purchases that crossed into four-figure territory (more on that in a moment), but thanks to cashing in most of my bullion I stashed last summer, I’m still going home with over $4K worth of cash more than I arrived with. I just don’t have as much of a bullion stack anymore, having just converted most of it into coins for the collection.
At the sister property of the hotel where I work, you could at one time have gotten a shot of 1939 Glenlivet.