ANA Question Join Or Don't Join

djluster:

I have been a member since 1961.

Let me give you the benefits as they have applied to me.

1. The monthly publication is a great magazine. I always read most of the articles, and then save the magazine for future reference.

2. The ANA Library is an excellent resource. I haven't used it very much in recent times, but when I was younger I was always borrowing books. A lot cheaper than buying them.

3. Visiting the ANA Museum in Colorado Springs, and attending the yearly Convention is something anybody can do -- for free. However, if you are a member you receive VIP treatment, which is nice.

4. I have saved quite a few dollars over the years by buying items from the ANA, or from dealers who give a discount to ANA members.

5. From time to time, there is a special "members only" event. Once my youngest son and I were in Colorado Springs at the time the new Bass Gold Coin section of the Museum was inaugurated. It was nice to be in the audience and meet dignitaries. I met the ANA President, several authors of numismatic books, and we got our picture taken with the girl who posed for the Sacagawea dollar.

So, there it is. You have to decide if those sort of benefits are worth $30 plus dollars.

ANA members can submit directly to NGC without having a NGC membership. Also, Steve Contursi and Rare Coin Wholesalers are still offering a sponsored ANA membership of buy one year, get one free

http://www.rcw1.com/m/ANA.php

I think the magazine alone is a great deal. Every issue has great articles, and I keep learning about various subjects. Last year, I visited the museum and the library in Colorado Springs and I enjoyed it a lot. I sat there and read for 3 hours, and then borrowed a few more books and mailed them back to them two weeks later.

I am a member of the ANA and I'm going to completely honest with you all about my feelings about that organization.

I think the ANA is in a position to do great things with our hobby. I don't think they are doing anywhere near as much as they should be. The ANA should be the authority in the numismatic field in the US, and quite frankly they are not.

For instance, the " ANA Grading Standards" are published in the Whitman Red Book Guide every year. These standards have become more and more lax to the point where a coin that was VG8 10 years ago can now be considered VF20. This is not true in all series, but it is true of enough coins that I cannot trust the ANA guide. Sorry, but I find it hard to believe that my coins have improved with age. This is all as a result of market grading which is all the rage right now with the TPG's. According to the ANA, they are not setting the standards, the Red Book Guide shows the trends according to the TPG's. This is hardly helpful to us now, is it?

IF the ANA would take a stance and declare themselves to a specific grading standard and stick to it, I believe that market grading could be reduced. Also, this means that all of the TPG's would be forced to grade according to the same scale.

The ANA partnered with ebay a couple of years ago. It was originally felt that this would improve the fraud situation on ebay. It has not really helped at all. If you contact the ANA, they say that the problems are up to ebay to fix. If you complain to ebay that nothing is being done, they say that they are waiting for a response from the ANA. As far as I can see, the ANA sold themselves to ebay and ebay benefits for the added credibility it gives them. As far as I know, the ANA has not stepped up and made any demands on ebay. Though I did hear a rumor that they were considering severing the partnership with ebay if the fraud wasn't dealt with more consistently. I only heard that once and I don't know whatever came of it.

There are definite benefits to membership, especially if you are a dealer. It lends credibility to sellers because they will terminate ANA membership if a seller is not scrupulous. This is very laudable in my opinion, but the ANA lost some credibility with their ebay partnership, so there are some dealers that are finding that it simply isn't worth the membership fee to remain a member. To be honest, the main reason I maintain my membership is because we sell coins. It does still give a stamp of credibility to our sales, and though we are honest anyway, I think it makes our customers feel more secure.

From what I have been told, the library resource is great. I have never used it because it is necessary for me to have so many reference books readily at hand that I purchase mine outright.

The Numismatist is a very nice membership perk and there are often some interesting articles in there. However, I wouldn't say it's better than Coin World or CoinAge, so I wouldn't join just for the magazine.

I would like to the ANA take a stronger stand in numismatics and start setting the pace rather than following it. They have some good youth programs, but they are terrible at making these programs visible to the public in general. This is something I believe they need to work on.

Sorry for the long post, but I obviously have some very strong feelings where the ANA is concerned.

I'm a member, and I like being able to submit to NGC and the Numismatist magazine. However, I managed to get my membership for $10 a year, so it was basically a no-brainer (I'm a YN, and used the RCW deal).

Life Member #6704. I agree that the ANA isn't doing all it can but that's a strong reason to join, and to let your voice be heard. The magazine is good and the library is great.
But as a dealer they make us jump through hoops to set up at their shows. I don't do many ANA shows just because of the extra stuff they put us through lol.
Nick

Gonefishin, I had no idea that they charged anything to file a complaint. That is absolutely horrid! Given the way they also sold themselves to the highest bidder to choose the TPG that they would back, I guess they'll do anything for money.

AuldeFartte, don't beat yourself up over it. It's been happening gradually until either 2005 or 2006 (I wish I could remember which). At this point, the grading standards changed drastically. One of the best examples I can think of is that at least 3 letters of LIBERTY used to have to be clear in order to get a VG grade for Barber coinage and Indian Head cents and had to be complete for an F12 grade. The new standards state that on an F12 coin, LIBERTY is MOSTLY visible. VF has "slight but even wear" on LIBERTY. LIBERTY used to have to be complete with even wear for F12, now that same standard is used as VF.

I did exaggerate VG to VF. Sorry about that. If you look at the standards in the old Red Books (1970s), they're much stricter.

I am also a member and do enjoy the Numismatist.

Like a few other members, I feel that the ANA is not doing what they are chartered to do, serve the coin collecting community. I believe that the current leaders are the main problem, and I look forward to hopefully voting them out at the next elections.

If you subscribe to Coin World, there have been a number of articles, letters to the editor and commentaries by the newspaper and guests about the situation.