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 Replies: 30 / Views: 3,848 |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1554 Posts |
Well, I'm not sure exactly when I started but I do remember we would get the occasional Buffalo nickel or Indian penny in change(circa 1959-1968)and I'm sure I liked to try to hold onto these as long as I could before I needed the money for gum, candy, etc. Silver coins were also circulating when I was in Grade School. My Dad collected and had large jars full of all issues. But, in 1968 when I was in 8th grade I suppose I got the "bug", my gym teacher who I consider my mentor was also a coin dealer and held weekly auctions after school hours and you could pick up all kinds of stuff for a buck or two that nowadays would be worth hundreds. Anyways, I used to caddy at the local Country Club every summer and the Summer of 1968 I had somehow saved over $500. I got together with my gym teacher/mentor and told him I wanted him to sell me a large quantity of Morgan dollars and a few weeks later he did just that. He sold me 75 Morgans for $500 with most of the Key Dates including almost all of the CC's and Frisco's including the 1893-S. Hence my MO, 1893-S. Haven't looked back. I've been buying and selling since. I worked my 1st coin show with him in Rochester MN in 1968. |
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
3540 Posts |
1893S - WOW! Now THAT is a cool coin story. Please tell me you still have the 93 S?
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1554 Posts |
Yes, I still have it. It's still raw in a 2x2 cardboard flip. It's Grade is Fine.
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Valued Member
United States
272 Posts |
I started collecting back in the late 70s when I was a kid. I had a stack of Ikes and a few SBAs when our house was broken into and they were stolen. I didn't collect anything again until the late 80s / early 90s when I got into PCGS graded Franklin halves and a few odds and ends. I had a decent collection until I moved from Germany back to the US (I'm in the Army) and my coins were stolen again. I didn't do anything else with coins until a few years ago when I started collecting with my kids, mostly roll hunting. I have been thinking of getting more active in coins lately, but everytime I do I just think of everything I lost. Roll hunting is mostly free :) |
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Bedrock of the Community
Australia
21788 Posts |
Fortunately, I think the Mints around the World are indirectly doing their bit to keep public interest in coin collecting alive. Directly, they have their own business interests to tend to with the issue of collector series. The RCM initiated a states Quarters program, where the whole public would be involved, even if a lot of them had no interest in coins. The fact remains. A lot of the public did pay at least some attention to the array of new designs in circulation. A new generation of collectors amongst the younger members of the public came into being. The exercise was repeated in the U.S. and Australia, with significant success. Most other Mints around the world have their collector programs. That was not the case 50 years ago. With the higher prices of bullion these days, there is a healthy and growing interest in bullion numismatics. ASE's are an example. |
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Valued Member
United States
301 Posts |
I always liked coins, bit never considered myself a collector. That all changed a few years ago when my wife's Mother passed away. My wife inherited her mom and dad's coin collection. So I've been "adding" this collection quite a bit. Especially here lately. I like and collect ASE's, Eisenhowers, and Kennedys. |
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Valued Member
United States
126 Posts |
I started collecting about 6 years ago, when I was 7. I love history, so I was fascinated by wheat pennies I found in circulation. It really got a hold of me when I found a Mercury dime in pocket change. |
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Valued Member
United States
89 Posts |
i started out mainly collecting Bullions' got bored of stacking Eagles and Pandas. Start buying up commemorative and other world PM coins. Built up pretty decent collection maybe on day if I get more $$$ I will start grabbing older gold & silver coins  |
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New Member
United States
12 Posts |
My father collected and when his father died, he passed down quite a few coins and books down to me. This was around the age of 8-10. It also helped that my family would occasionally give me coins as gifts such as a jar of Morgan dollars, random 1oz bars of silver, anything funky. Heck my aunt gave me a giant grab bag of foreign currency last year which was brilliant. |
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New Member
United States
46 Posts |
I've always liked odd coins that I had found in circulation, and for the past couple years I have been looking for silver quarters and dimes in the till at work. I would find a quarter or dime here and there, and then give it to my older brother because he seemed to dig them. It wasn't until this past christmas that I really got into it for myself, kind of by accident. My mom's boyfriend Jack is great guy and treats her well, so I figured I would get him a gift for christmas (in their 12 years of marriage, I never once bought my stepdad a christmas gift, to show you where I'm coming from with gifts for mom's beaus). My mom told me in the past that Jack spends over $1000 a month on silver US coins. I knew I had found some in the past at work and in change so I figured I would do some coin roll hunting and find him some coins. Couldn't be too hard right? I had a month till christmas and I could easily find 10 or 20 silver coins in rolls no problem right?. I soon realized how difficult this was and I wasn't having any luck at all. I bought rolls and rolls from the bank only to find not one piece of silver. Finally after a month of searching and three days before christmas, I found a '64 rosie and a silver '43P nickel in the till at work. Then about an hour later a customer spent a '62 Washington quarter. I felt vindicated after coming up empty for 4 weeks in a row and now finding three pieces in a matter of a couple hours. I spent the next three days obssessing over the coins and looking at them constantly. By christmas, I didn't even want to give them away, lol. I did anyways because Jack is still a nice guy, but from that moment on I knew I needed my own collection. I got $120 from my mom and aunt that night for christmas and I blew (well, wisely spent) it all two days later at the coin shop. I've been hooked ever since. Now the hard part in convincing my wife that I need money for coins, not actually finding them lol. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
526 Posts |
I started this hobby about two years ago. I was 50 on December 18th last year. It all started when a good friend of mine was talking about his collection..  I asked collection of what..  He went on to tell me that he has been collecting coins since he was a teenager. For my 48th birthday he game me a 1961 US Proof set as a present. Swallowed hook line and sinker. Since then I have been able to put together quite a few sets of coins. My complete collections include: Barber half dollar - Complete in Dansco. ASE Raw - Complete in Dansco except the raw 2012. ASE NGC Graded MS-69 To Date including 2012 W & S issues. Peace dollar - Complete in Dansco including the 28 in NGC AU58. Silver Maple Leaf - Complete in Dansco. Roosevelt dime - Complete in Dansco including PDPS. State Quarters - Complete in Dansco including PDPS. Several Slabbed Morgan dollars and a start on the Dansco. Couple tubes of Proof Franklins and Kennedys(all 64). Type Set - Need five coins to complete the Dansco 7070 (Non-Gold). Slabbed PR-70 Presidential coins - Goal is for a complete set, DO NOT ASK ME WHY... Bullion Silver. Couple of Double Eagles. Couple Half Eagles. $1.00 Gold Eagle (Smallest coin I have ever seen). 2010, 2011 and 2012 Silver ATB Quarters sets waiting to go into a Dansco. Several Washington Silver Commemoratives in original box with COA. (14) Wife said stop it for awhile, I said ok and started buying 5OZ SilverTowne bars..... Guess I got bit pretty bad. It gets expensive having to rent Safe Deposit Boxes to keep everything in, (She doesn't know about that) and I would like to keep it that way..  Edited by Freedom
01/20/2012 08:47 am
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4897 Posts |
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Guess I got bit pretty bad The first step is to admit we have a problem  Sounds like a great collection especially for only being at it for 2 years! Cheers! |
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
20753 Posts |
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Regardless of what you collect, please plant the seed by giving the gift of collectible coins for special occasions....you just never know what may happen. Yes I guess that is the responsibility of the older generation. However, on the downside of creating more and more new collectors, remember that is one thing about coins. There are only so many minted so the more people that collect them, the less chances you have acquiring the ones you need or want. As an example if you and the rest of us create 4,000 new collectors and those all collect 3 Cent pieces, none of us will ever be able to get a 1867 3 Cent peice. Worse yet for every 5 new collectors of Liberty Head Nickels, our chances of finding one in change gets more and more difficult. Always good stories on how we got started in all this though. |
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Valued Member
United States
318 Posts |
I too started buying silver as a hard asset in case things go bad. I have Morgans, junk 90%, shiny ASE's, even silver gaming tokens with the brass around the outside. Nothing with too much of a premium over spot. Then I read that sometimes people find silver coins circulating. I went through my change bucket and found 2 silver dimes, I was hooked. |
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Valued Member
United States
266 Posts |
My grandfather gave each of us kids a whitman folder with Wheaties. When I was in about 6th grade, I found it, and it intrigued me. I went from all of the Whitman folders, and checking all of my change, to 2x2's, to Danscos.
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Replies: 30 / Views: 3,848 |
First Page
Posted 12/27/2011 9:42 pm
