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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;satootoko, post: 18951, member: 669&quot;]I have been patiently waiting for someone to post useful information regarding world coins, but even the darksiders among those who have posted are concentrating on liteside stuff.</p><p><br /></p><p>Unless there are reliable English language guides, or the collector is fluent in the language of the country of interest and has access to guides in that language, the basic starting point is generally considered to be Krause.&nbsp;&nbsp; But, and this is an important &quot;but&quot;, Krause is only useful as a starting point, and not as a final arbiter.&nbsp; Just as with U.S. coins, auction prices realized are key, but because of the smaller bidder base, the fluctuations can be pretty extreme.</p><p><br /></p><p>The annual Japanese Numismatic Dealers Association catalog gives retail values for the Japanese home market, which are generally quite a bit higher than Krause.&nbsp; At last year&#039;s Osaka Coin Show many of the dealers were pretty rigidly pricing their coins at JNDA catalog. <img src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie3" alt=":(" unselectable="on" unselectable="on" />&nbsp;&nbsp; I saw a similar tendency at the few coin stores I visited in the Tokyo area on that same trip.&nbsp; At the Long Beach Show, on the other hand, although there were few dealers with any significant amount of Japanese material, most of them seemed to be basing their prices on Krause.</p><p><br /></p><p>In my experience Krause is more accurate on common and mid-grade material, overly high on lower grade material, and sometimes quite low on the rare or really good stuff.</p><p><br /></p><p>In the end, it boils down to an individualized decision - which do I want more, a particular coin, or the amount of money it will cost me to add it to my collection; but familiarity with the market is like chicken soup - it can&#039;t hurt. <img src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie8" alt=":D" unselectable="on" unselectable="on" /> </p><p><br /></p><p>One thing that should never be forgotten in buying on eBay, or any other venue where you aren&#039;t there to pay for and pick up the coin, is that the &quot;cost&quot; of a coin includes not only its price, but all the associated costs of getting it into your hands - shipping/handling/insurance, and sometimes sales tax.&nbsp; For instance, in California coin sales of less than $1,000 for delivery in the State are taxable at 7 to 8-1/4%, depending on the county of the seller&#039;s location.&nbsp; </p><p><br /></p><p>When I am bidding on-line my first step is to set a maximum I&#039;m willing to go for the coin.&nbsp; I then subtract shipping/handling charges and sales tax, if any, to come up with the top bid I am willing to place, either directly in the auction, or through a sniping program.&nbsp; I always remember two things:&nbsp; 1) There is no shame in being back bidder; and 2) Back bidder actually sets the price, as the winner buys for one increment more than the back bidder&#039;s limit even if he/she is willing to pay much more.&nbsp; (I once won an eBay item at the 99¢ opening bid, because no one else saw what I spotted in the picture, even though I had entered a max bid of a couple of hundred dollars. <img src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie8" alt=":D" unselectable="on" unselectable="on" /> )[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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