Starting Out

As with most things related to collecting, it all comes down to scarcity, desirability and condition. In general, I think most people consider ASEs to be purely bullion and therefore not really collectible in the first place. But for those who do collect them, the ones that are worth the most are the ones that were minted in the fewest number (either total amount for a year or total amount for a particular mint location) and are graded in MS70 ("perfect") condition by a reputable third-party grading company such as NGC or PCGS.

If you're just starting out, likely you won't be able to drop thousands of dollars on rare ASEs from past years that have already been graded. If you're buying with an eye toward striking it rich, I don't know what to tell you. Some people buy ASEs that are promoted as being made in limited quantities in the hopes that they will grade well, like the recent 2011 25th Anniversary set or the 2012 San Francisco set, but often as not the coins don't end up grading as high as people would like and don't end up being worth all that much even when they do grade high.

If you're buying with an eye simply toward collecting, I wouldn't worry about which ones could potentially be worth thousands down the road. Just work on trying to complete a set or buying the ones that catch your eye.

Which coins should I go for, proofs or uncirculated? Or what is the difference?

I bought a 2010 ASE for $50 when silver was at $48.80 an ounce and I thought I got a good deal then. Now, can't wait til silver gets back up so I can dump it and try to get my money back. Are you sure you want to collect these.
If I was you and you really want to collect silver, I would be looking at boxes of halves. But please collect them and not sell them for melt. Trade 'em if anything.

I ask myself that same question. I have been collecting for almost a year. I try to relate the coins I buy to high points in my life, example my birth year, the year I got married to my wife, and my sons birthday. I just bought a NGC MS64 1885 Morgan dollar online because I was born in 1985, and thought how cool would it be to own a Morgan dollar "my last name" that was 100 years old the year I was born. Call me nerdy I suppose, but thats why each collector is different. You will find what really interest you when you drop that first $100.00 bill on one coin, that is of course unless your loaded :)

i only have one for my type set. don't plan on ever buying another one

whoops sorry wrong thread, I suggest not buying this coin, unless you like the color :) usually you can get this for cheaper than the regular ASE

I personally do not collect the bullion coins b/c I am not sure if they will retain a numismatic value - just be worth silver. I personally think the proofs will retain their value and possibly increase b/c the Walking Liberty is often said to be one of the most popular/beautiful designs. I think this may be the case with any ASE that is not specifically a bullion coin but is made for collectors.

The 2008 REV of 2007 is also a highly sought after one b/c it was an error. A slabbed MS70 will got for 600-700.00 I believe. And this is the only error in the set. It is not a proof but a Burnished ASE made for collectors.
BTW - the difference in this one from a normal 2008 is the letter "U: in United. In 2008 it was the first year the "U" was not a "smile," but had a tail on it. They accidentally made some 2008s with the 2007 "smile" U.

I have gone through 3 collecting phases and you find your tastes become more refined after time. When I first started collecting back in like 1999-2000 I started with silver rounds (bullion)because I liked silver and they were a fun thing to start with and they ran just like $4 an ounce back then. I then got into doing a Franklin half set because it was again silver and a US coin and gorgeous MS63 examples could be had for $8-10. I complete an entire set in MS62 or higher. I also ended up doing Roosevelt dimes and Washington quarters because I liked silver and these were easy sets to do. But I found my true love was doing a US type set, I have started and sold that set like 3 times now but I love doing it and its always the set I go back to.

Now in my 3rd time starting over I am trying to limit the number of sets I am doing (I at one time was doing 7 sets) and am just doing a Type set and a Commemorative set (again my love for silver plus these dollar coins are very cool with fun designs) and going for nicer and high grade sets instead of just easy sets to do. When I finish those sets will I go back to a Franklin set yea maybe or a Mercury dime set possibly. The thing about the Silver Eagles is its all the same design and almost all can be found in really high grade for the same price because no one circulated them. The set is easy to do and has some value but to me would get very boring very quickly as all the coins are going to look the same and there is no real difficulty in putting it together.

You will find what you love if you love Silver Eagles sure do a set but don't just pick it because you think it might have more value, put together a set that you will love and take pride in when your done (if I ever finish a type set I will take so much pride in that set).