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 Replies: 117 / Views: 15,934 |
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Valued Member
Canada
148 Posts |
I like to remember the mistake I almost made. A definite example if it's too good to be true it probably is. On a Belgian web site similar to e-bay there was listed a PCGS holdered 1948 Canadian specimen set, it was priced at 2000.00 and worth well over 15000.00. I drooled over it for weeks and tried contacting seller to find an arrangement for third party payment, I never got a response but had to really restrain myself.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1316 Posts |
A mistake I made as a newbie and continued for the next 20 years was buying stuff just because it was for sale, to fill some sort of addiction. My wife has intervened and helps me to ask questions like, how much do you really love it, why is this special to your collection, and how hard is it to find another one later? The result is I've spent my coin budget a lot more wisely over the past year and been able to add some really cool and scarce coins since I hadn't blown the funds earlier just cause.
Edited by Collects82
05/18/2016 1:55 pm
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2208 Posts |
Not exactly a newbie problem, but I think a lot of us fall for hyped-up advertising copy that gets us to buy coins. After I'd been collecting for about 5 years, I felt confident in my ability to recognize a good deal. I got a flyer from a very reputable coin firm touting some good investments in BU type coins. The one phrase they used that I'll always remember was "These coins are guaranteed to go up in value."
So I bought a few of them--I think they were somewhere around $125 each--and waited.
Five years later, I checked the value of the coins. None of them had gone up in value; in fact, a couple had gone down in value. I soon unloaded these dogs to a local dealer. Although he gave me a fair price for them, I lost money overall.
So since then I've realized that I'm more of a collector than an investor. If I did have more money to spend, I might invest, too. But for right now, I'm content just being a collector.
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
2362 Posts |
When the 1959 Memorial Lincoln was introduced I was 14 years old and a newbie collector using my Dad's pocket change. I figured that it would be great to collect all the new, great 1959 Lincolns I could find instead of those old outdated wheaties in circulation. Anyone interested in a few hundred 1959 Lincolns?  Member ANA and EAC "You got to lose to know how to win". Dream On by Aerosmith |
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Valued Member
United States
449 Posts |
When I started coin roll hunting cents I only looked for Wheaties for many years. just think of all the other stuff I passed up
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Valued Member
United States
79 Posts |
I am still a newbie, but what prompted this coin obsession of mine is, I took apart an old piano that came in the house we bought, and found Mercury dimes and wheat pennies inside it. Well I couldn't make out the date on a dime, it was either 41 or 42, so I took a magic eraser to it. Took it to a dealer and he gave me a pretty good tongue lashing because he explained to me the 41/42 dime error, and I possibly made a grave error with the magic eraser. I learned alot that day..specially about cleaning coins with a magic eraser lol |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4963 Posts |
 I feel bad for you... and the coin. At least you learned a valuable lesson. |
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Pillar of the Community
Norway
1358 Posts |
First mistake: being a latent coin collector for over two decades. It only changed to serious to coin collecting and numismatics just some time ago.
Second mistake: coin collecting and numismatics went serious some time ago... Turned out to be a more time consuming, money demanding and craving hobby than I imagined.
Third mistake: But oh, do I like it!
Apart from that, I have bought some silver coins that weren't silver, I made the classic online buying mistake (never buying online again from a dealer without tons of good feedback, I will never buying expensive coins online via trade platforms anyway), I bought some fake coins without being aware and I gave some commemorative coins I got in change back to circulation without noticing. Over the years, I even managed to put a silver coin that I got in change back into circulation (stupid me)... Nowadays a commemorative coin that I don't have yet gets in a special place in the wallet so it can't get lost by mistake. And fake coins nowadays end up in my fake coin collection (which is pretty cool, actually).
I don't clean coins (apart from polishing them a bit with a soft tissue to remove fingerprints and dirt and so, but absolutely no chemicals) so I don't have mistakes there.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1119 Posts |
Quote:
apart from polishing them a bit with a soft tissue to remove fingerprints and dirt and so, but absolutely no chemicals The damage from polishing (rubbing) can easily be worse than using "chemicals". I put that in quotations because literally everything is chemicals. including that tissue |
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Valued Member
United States
397 Posts |
Am a newbie again. Regret getting rid of my blue albums of pennies, nickels, and dimes I started as a kid almost 45 years ago! Don't know how many Buffalo nickels and Mercury dimes I would have today. At least I kept the 2 1909 VDB Lincoln cents from the collection. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1915 Posts |
Some newbie errors I made concerns PVC- what damage it can do and how to avoid it. Another error was the idea of "re-strikes". I actually thought a Maria Theresa Thaler I bought was an old coin. More errors include thinking I need a coin, then buying it, then identifying it, then finding I don't need it at all. I've made a lot of flubs- these are just a few. Oh here's a great one: I gave my collection of Buffalo nickels to a girl in my class hoping she'd like me, but then I got too chicken to ask. The coins are gone- I never did get lucky. |
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Valued Member
United States
344 Posts |
As a newbie now I can say that so far I haven't had any problems yet. The only minor thing is wanting something but someone else getting it before I make up my mind.
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Valued Member
United States
343 Posts |
I bought a re-strike Thaler. At least its silver.
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
693 Posts |
Haven't they been re-striking Thalers for about 200 years now? It's a nice coin.
I'm not a newb, but I still make mistakes. Apparently the edges of proof coins are sharp enough to cut right through the plastic on 2x2s. I've got a few weirdly toned proof dollars now.
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Valued Member
United Kingdom
367 Posts |
When I was 7 years old I cleaned coins by ash from the furnace. They were so shiny....  |
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Replies: 117 / Views: 15,934 |
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Posted 05/18/2016 1:53 pm
