Coin Shop Etiquette

I'm also very new to the scene. My favorite new shop, because they paid me a fair price for junk silver, offers me a loupe everytime I want to see coins - so that is obviously fine etiquette-wise. After selling them a lot of silver, I have bought a few Walkers out of their "AU bin" and looked at some other coins. I made them a couple offers they didn't take but I don't think I'm being annoying YET. I do make sure not to ask a lot of questions when they are really busy - I've seen the owner "snap at" some people who pester him with stupid questions when he's measuring gold and working with a "hi dollar" client.

I've also bought "supplies" - even in small quantities - so as not to be window-shopping-only every trip.

IMO, it is the absurd customers ( ones that argue about worthless coins ) or annoying never-buy but ask a million question types they probably would get most tired of.

I hear ya on the etiquette tho. I do feel that is the right attitude - not wanting to be a pest/nuisance/"that guy" and it is such a missing element in a lot of walks of life these days - rudeness and mememe prevails! Excellent topic!

I used to work in a coin shop so I will throw my 2 cents in....

-Bringing a loupe of your own should be no problem
-Making a counter offer to the listed price is usually ok but don't be a jerk about or low ball them. Dealers are in the biz to make a profit and not to hold merchandise they purchased and then turn it over to you for the same price they paid for it. So use good judgement, and be respectful about it.
-Dont beat up dealers on pricing EVERY time you go in. We had a guy do that and he wore out his welcome very quickly.
-Dont take up a good chunk of their counterspace while you cherrypick through wheats or junk silver. That keeps other customers from looking at coins in that area.
-If you have kids, dont let them run amuck in your store. We had a few that did that including letting their kids leave candy wrappers all over the store.

I guess the common theme here is to be respectful and use some common sense. Treat the dealer how you would like to be treated. If they are grumpy time and time again, then it's time to find another store. Good luck!

Worse thing that can happen to a dealer is he/she not make a sale, the worse thing that can happen to you is you walk out the door.

It's nice being the buyer!

One thing never to do, and that's try to steal a customer. That's the fastest way I know to get thrown out of a shop or a show. I don't care if the dealer's offering $5 for Morgans or you were offered $20 for a coin that the dealer is showing a similar one for $100, either catch the guy before or after he sets foot on the dealer's property.

I was at my friend's pawn shop one day when a guy brought a station wagon full of DVDs and other goodies. I would have gladly paid more, but I'm not paying his six-figure overhead or carrying a million dollar inventory.

When they were done, my friend turned to me and said "we don't do toys, wanna see what he has?" I went to his car and bought almost everything at a few cents on the dollar.

This needs to be repeated as it is probably the most egregious offence you can commit in a coin shop(other than robbing the place...)

Don't feel privileged if you're not. There've been times where I had to bite my tongue because I wanted what a customer was trying to sell. I don't even bother nowadays. No one is above the rest. If I wanted to purchase from complete strangers I would take out an ad or start up my own store. Look at it this way. Those extra dollars you don't haggle for keep the place running and make the owner happy to take your business.

1) Introduce yourself, you should know each other by first name. Try to use his name a few times in conversation. Let him know a little about what you collect. If knows what you're looking for, he can help direct you to what he has.

2) Make it obvious that you're not a thief. If you have a coat, take it off so there's no pocket games. Keep the stuff you looking at right on the counter in plain view. Don't be reaching in your pockets or doing anything suspicious. Unfortunately coins are pretty easy to steal and dealers lose lots of money to scumbags. A good relationship comes with mutual trust. My favorite shop owner would often leave me all alone while he went to the bathroom or to the storage area to get stuff for me....complete and total TRUST is important.

3) Buy stuff! Everytime you go in if possible, buy something even if it's just supplies or a $5 coin. Make yourself a regular, paying customer and you'll get special deals and perks. Never buy anything big right away, it's best to become a customer first and pay asking prices. When you're ready to spend bigger $$$, then you can negotiate as a "regular".

4) Bring your own magnifier and price list. It's absolutely fine and shows you're savy collector and serious buyer. Don't expect to pay CDN bid prices! They have expenses and usually sell above CDN ask in my experience. Of course, a lot depends on the coin, some coins just command more $$$.

5) Don't fight his grade not matter how wrong it is. Of course, coin prices depend a lot on grade, but it's insulting to the dealer to question his grade. I've found 99% of them get mad when you try to downgrade them. It's just better to pass on a coin when you think the grade is wrong. The good thing, this works both ways! I've seen a good number of undergraded coins and snagged some awesome deals! Whatever you do, don't tell them they undergraded. LOLOLOLOL Just shutup and say you'll take it.

Most dealers try to be a "jack of all trades" and know every coin series....well....very few of them are experts in all series and they make mistakes in their haste to resell. So happens I'm pretty darn good with Lincolns and I can capitalize when they under grade/under price. It doens't bother me at all because I know for sure they won't sell a coin for less than they have in it. They're making money from me....just a little less than they could have if they knew Lincolns well enough. LOL

6) HAVE FUN! Looking at and buying coins shouldn't be all business. Once you establish a friendship with your dealer it can be fun to just go in the shop and hangout for an hour or two. I often bring my favorite guy a bottle of water and a candy bar or something. He works long hours and really appreciates when I bring him stuff for the stomach.

It's really amazing how much you can learn by hanging out at the shop, observing what's going on and looking at stuff.... even outside of what you collect. My dealer is partners with 4 other guys that visit often and they are a trove of experience and knowledge. Over the years I've learned SOOOOOO much from all of these guys just by hanging around the shop. It's like a free university of coin dealing/collecting! I consider every trip a learning experience.

I'm so close with my main guy he digs stuff out of the safe to show me, like a $100,000 Rolex or all the returned coins from NGC/PCGS that were bagged. That's actually by far my favorite part....we routinely discuss bagged coins and I look over them in detail to figure out why. It's also cool when he pulls out a big dollar key dates that he just got back from being slabbed. He lets me look at all those! VERY, VERY COOL!