So....what Might It Cost.

I think I will start with one coin in each slot.

I'm really just looking to See an average that some or most people here have invested.

I guess this still might be an aggressive set to put together for me though.
I'm not exactly hip on spending the money on the album itself, let alone the content. (anybody know where I can get a really cheap 7070 album)
But once I get the book, look out, then by some freak law of nature, I will be required to complete it. (hopefully I never get the gold pages)

I would guess $3000 to $4000 is pretty typical, with many coins VF or better. Once you get the bug, it's very hard to put an AG or G into the album, especially for the common ones. So you end up buying BUs for the commons which further drives up the price.

I think you could build a low grade set for around $1500 (G/VG for the pricey coins) and a mid-grade set for around $3000-4000 (VF/XF for the pricey coins).

It's a great set I think. I am three coins away from completing mine in VF/XF or better grade.

Ken

It all comes back to what you are willing to spend and if you want a uniform set say all VF or all XF or if you want a wide range of grades. I would start from scratch and sell the coins that came in the book to fund your first purchase. From personal experience I would start going for the high end coins first.

I started work on my Dansco 7070 about a year and a half ago. I started out with a VF or better grade in mind. After looking at a few higher end classic coins, I decided nicely toned AU+ coins are what really tickled my fancy. The shimmering cartwheels of colorful luster on barber and Seated coins side by side gets me excited. Anyways, realisticly, a strict adherence of AU or better is a little beyond what I'm willing to pay in regards to some of the show stoppers, like early copper, bust coinage, and Seated dollars. Also, since I only buy certified coins of the more expensive type, I would be nervous about deslabbing a 2 or 3 thousand dollar coin. As a result, I've decided to make allowances for XF coins, though most of my set is AU or better. This is all in regards to non-gold. I also have the gold page, and I chose to separate it into a different album since I've done some expanding past the basic 7070 gold structure....ie $3 gold, classic head gold, type 2 gold dollar etc. At this point, I'm missing 3 coins in the non-gold album(2 Seated dollars, CH large cent). Those are the big ones.

Including all the expanded gold types, I've probably invested.....choke....sheesh, I've lost track. Probably around 12K+, I cringe to think. I do a lot of buying and selling on ebay, and the only reason my wife lets me get away with it is that she knows I can sell in a heartbeat if we get to the point where we need to sell. Though emotionally attached to my collection, I am willing to sell if need be. This is important, because there is more to life than coins. Anyways, that's my story.

Personally, I think ebay is a great source if you know what you are doing. It can be a death trap if you don't. Early on in my type set acquisition, I made a very costly blunder. It was a very humbling experience. Here is a photo of it as a reminder to myself and warning for everyone:


This is a counterfeit $3 gold coin, in which I paid over $600 for on ebay. It is made of 90% gold, which gives it some value(approx $120), but not nearly what I paid for it. It almost turned me away from collecting entirely...but instead, I decided to educate myself in Counterfeit Detection, as well as general numismatic knowlege. I still have a lot to learn, but I've also come a long ways since then. Basically, if you are going to buy anything of significant value on ebay, make sure that it is top TPG certified, good photos, good seller feedback and a good return policy. I've more than made up for the loss over the last couple of years with more educated purchases. I added the retail value of my type collection, and it is turned out to be around 21K. Even though I've only invested 12-13K; many of the coins I purchased well below retail. For example, my ANACS 1854 AU-55 $3 gold, I purchased for $1,300; though the RedBook retails it at $2400 in AU-55. The NGC 1854 $1 gold type 2 retails at $700 in AU-50, and I purchased it for $400. Now, of course, retail value is usually considered "high", and really isn't an accurate way of valuing your coins in my opinion; but it is a good general guide. I think this economy presents a good opportunity for purchasing coins well below retail, especially in auctions such as ebay. Most of the coin shops I've seen are still charging nearly full retail, but maybe others have different perspectives.

I agree ebay is a great place if you know what you are doing and if you don't it can be as well if you are patient. What I did if possible I bought the coins I was familiar with and could tell by the pictures raw and the ones I didn't know well enough I bought graded by one of the top 4 TPG's