Observations after returning to coin collecting.

I inherited the family coin collection a short while ago.

In 1964, my Mom and Dad plus an occasional younger brother would search rolls around the kitchen table. I was 9. The removal of silver from coins put a damper on the whole thing, the move to college and a career left the coins in a SDB or the attic.

We collected up to quarters and kept a few halves, maybe 30 Walkers and 15 Franklins.

Bought proof and mint sets until about 1972 and had sporadic additions over the years.


Well I just started collecting silver a few months ago, right before the coincidental inheritance of the collection and it all fit together.

I was surprised at the following:

New grading system!

Proof sets and mint sets are available now for one half to one third issue price for many years. Some silver sets can be had for issue price or below and a few did increase. The 1950’s sets did increase modestly. I just picked up 30+ sets, nearly sequential from 1966 forward till 92’ or so for under $5 a pop. Only the early sets were silver. Silver sets are about $12 for the dual release years and I will get those for about 10 bucks when I get the cash.

Pennies and other change have returned to the collecting world from all the time capsules people are now dumping in coin counters, some without fee. I find plenty of pennies back to the teens in rolls today.

The counters remove the steel pennies but they can be had and I have found a dozen in the last month. (my secret but I gave you the clue)

Silver is indeed rare with the exception of halves. Since halves are basically not used but still available and since kids today will spend the silver they know little/nothing about , they get spent and machine rolled. I have picked up 4 Franklins, 2 Walkers and 65+ Kennedy’s from 1964-69 along with 87’ and 88’ proof coins from roll searches.

Slabs and professional grading! Not sure I like it and it’s darn expensive but it was needed since coins are not sold face to face as often.

Coin shows attended by mainly men my age and older as a rule. A dying hobby. Stamp collecting died earlier.

Ebay! Both good and horrific IMO.

I am back to roll searching and it's all good.

Happy hunting!


0CD

 

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It's a great hobby. There is always something to do and it don't have to cost a lot.

Getting the young folks to join in is really tough.
Thanks for the nice read.

 

Welcome back!

 

not true young people collect coins all the time well me anyways im 17 and I just finished my liberty gold type set, well anyways welcome back to the hobby

 

Nice to see young people in the hobby. When I was your age I think I was about the only one who collected coins.

 

yeah im about the only kid in school I know who seriously collects, oh well more for me

 

I don't think coin collecting is anywhere remotely close to dying. Look at the number of coins for sale each week on the internet and tv. Someone is buying all those coins. I will say coin investing IMHO is declining due the average Joe and Josephine, which certainly includes me. I think to really invest in coins (unless you just get lucky once in awhile) it is only the very high grade and very rare coins. The people that post here stating only buy what you like and what you want to keep and collect are correct.

 

Welcome to the forum!!! Your story brings back memories for me as we (my brother and I) used to go to the local bank and they'd let us sit at a table behind the tellers and go through their half dollars. We found alot of silver halves back then!!

 

I'm 25 and there are quite a few people around here from my generation or younger.

 

Ditto.
We have a fair amount of YNs here though, me included.

 

Can you imagine in today's world that being done? Was this in a small town? Did you and your brother buy the silver half dollars?

 

Everyone always says that Coin collecting is dying because if you go to a show and loot around you see a lot of old white guys a relatively few young people.

Well as someone who has been around a long time I'll clue you in. . . it's always been like that. When i joined my first coin club back in 1975 there were around 100 members and the average age was 55 years old. Most everyone who was a member back when I joined is now dead, the club still has about 100 members, and the average age is still 55 years old.

In 1989 I moved and joined two other local clubs which each had around 100 members (different cities). One of these clubs recently had it's 50th anniversary and the other is approaching it's 60th. They recently compared their demographics from their early years to the current ones. Back when they stated the average age in each was 56. Today in one it's 56 and the other is 57.

The reason Coins looks like an "Old white guys" hobby is because most people who come in as young people get exposed, are around a year or two and then drop out as school, cars, girls, starting a career, and raising a family intervene. Then as the kids go off to college or to their own family and career, the bug bies again and they return to coins as "old white guys" and then stay for decades. So in their early years (saya 20 year period) there may never be more than one of them around at a time, but in the later years they all gather in and all twenty will be there at the same time and for many years as old white guys. It tends to skew the viewpoint.

 

Yes, it was in a very small town, Ft. Loudon, PA as a matter of fact. They probably had a population of a whopping 700-800 people back then. The bank was also very small. My brother and I saved our allowance ($2 dollars a week) until we had enough to buy a few rolls worth if we had to. We were prepared!! LOL We did end up buying quite a few.

 

Great replies and this heartens me. I guess it does work that many young have the seed planted and later the hobby blossoms.

I can say that thirty years ago, having 2-3 thousand dollars a week that allow roll searching for halves would have been impossible!

I just found a 1992 half that is a double die or double strike. It has a shelf or second line on the front of the face.

Significant or common?

0CD

 

Yes, it's mostly older folks... but that doesn't mean it's a dying hobby. It means there are deep-running reasons why it disproportionately appeals to older folks.

Here are a few :

• Coin collecting requires disposable income
• Is not physically active or challenging
• Requires time

Sure, younger folks are always welcome. I did it when I was young. But post-puberty, no way would I be involved. Now that the kids are grown and I have more $$$ and time, I've picked up the old childhood obsession.

Clearly, all are welcome. But the demographic is not shifting significantly. It will always be mostly older men, with all welcome.

We were told 35 years ago that women were taking over auto racing (when Janet Guthrie raced at Indy). Now, 35 years later, car racing is still almost all men. It will be almost all men 35 years from now.

So will coin collecting.

 

There is a certain personality type that fits with the hobby. In general, it can be said that most coin collectors have always been socially awkward and loners. Many would prefer spending hours looking through rolls of cents and halves as opposed to participating in outdoor social activities with friends and family.

Very few coin collectors that I know are jocks, soccer moms or kids in organized sports. These activities take up the time that would otherwise be dedicated to looking at round pieces of metal.

So when you go to coin shows, you see middle age or older guys who are more than likely out of shape but are well read on the finer points of cherrypicking a wide AM cent. Ever group has it's stereotypes and this happens to be the proclivity of coin collectors.

God love'm

 

I guess I am a rare child

 

I am 18 and i have almost no friends that collect but that just helps me b/c they might not collect but i have them all looking. lol

 

You said it! Most guys spend their teen years chasing girls. Then their 20's to 40's paying the bills and raising a family. Younger people don't normally use their disposable income to buy up change.