When I Was 7 Or 8

I'm 48 and started collecting when I was about 7 years old too.

I am 14 now, and I caught the collecting bug when I was 7. My grandma gave me her partially complete Lincoln Cent collection, and since I got it, I have added over 100 coins, including all of the key and semi key dates except for the 1909-S VDB and the 1912-S. I am working on the proofs now, and saving for the S-VDB. (it'll be a while...) My great aunt also gave me some wheaties for my collection, including the 1909-S, my first key date, and many others. I now am working on a Standing Liberty quarter collection, with a dateless 1916 found in my grandfathers hoard. That was an exciting moment for me. I look through his coins to find the rare ones for him, and he pays me in coins, so it all works out. I have found him a possible 1901-S (S is too hard to tell, I'm sending it to ANACS because I don't want to join PCGS or NGC) and I'll update you guys on that soon. So back to my story. He paid me in the coins I wanted, and I was starting a SLQ collection at the time, so I got a bunch of dateless variety 1s. I found some article on the Internet somehow about how you can tell the difference between the die varieties, so I looked in my trusty microscope, and when I looked closely enough, I had gotten a lucky break. It was the 1916 die. I told him it was rare, expecting him to want it back, but when I said I wanted it for my collection, he said he had given it to me, so it was mine. I have found or discovered in my ownership the following rare coins: a 1914-D Lincoln Cent, a 1924-S Peace dollar (which was stolen from me), a 1916 SLQ, a 1917-S SLQ, and a 1922 weak D Lincoln Cent. I now collect Barber quarters and halves, Buffalo nickels, Standing Liberty quarters, Roosevelt dimes, Washington quarters, Mercury dimes, Lincoln cents, U.S. currency, silver certificates, and Peace dollars. A lot of kids my age are always playing video games or that kind of junk, but if there's a rainy day, I'll be with my coins.

9-12 and havn't stopped ever since.

I'm 57 or 58 and really just started collecting 2 years ago. Metal detecting got me started, I pulled a 1918 Lincoln Cent out of the ground and a 1944 Mercury dime. That started the ball rolling.

Now my desk is a mess, I look thru internet coin forums constantly, and I'm putting money back to buy some of the coins I like. (flying eagle, and a couple of others), yesterday I bought my first 2 center, two weeks ago, my first 1/2 cent. and it goes on and on.

I bought my first coin at 9 years old and I was hooked! By 15, I already had a sizable collection. I am now 38 and just as hooked as I was back then

Started coin collecting with the introduction of the 1943 Steel Cent back in 1943. I too am now just turning 39 like Jack Benny.

I started when I was 10 thanks to my father. He bribed me to play Pop Warner football as a way to meet new friends before 5th grade since we had just moved from the midwest to upstate NY. My prize? An 1885 Morgan dollar! I thought it was the coolest thing ever. I did some on again off again for many years and just got serious again 3 years ago. Coincidentally, I just turned 39 too (no really I did!).