Weekend Coin Show Observations

I went to a local show today after church. By the time I got there, 12:30, most dealers were packing it in. It was about the fastest I've been through this show. If you ask for lowball commems most don't understand what you're talking about. At one table the guy asked if I was trying to put together the worst one and I told him I did have the worst one. I did find an AU 53-55 1935-D Arkansas (he had $90 marked on it and said give me $65 and it's yours) and a Gold plated 1893 Columbian in BU before dipping for $13. Also found a XF+ holed 1888 IHC for a buck. So I did come away with a few things. If the Arkansas will grade below MS then I will be a lot happier. The last one that I thought would be low AU came back as MS63. Even with all of the dealers packing up there were alot of people looking and trying to buy.

This is a thought inspiring post commems ... my views as a collector FWIW ... apologize in advance if I get too long winded with the reply.

Quick background ... I live outside Baltimore, MD and have available in the local area multiple small and large coin show opportunities.

I attend perhaps 4 to 6 small shows (<30 dealers) every year ... and try to make all three Baltimore Whitman shows (>300 dealers) plus one major national show every year.

My collector strategies are different for each type of show ....

Small Shows

I agree with the wise comments you posted above. Everything you stated matches with my boots-on-the-ground reality.

My general attitude for these small shows is a relaxed day with minimal advance preparation, nothing to sell and no pressure at all. Fun in other words.

Most of these small show dealers are interested for survival reasons to sell items more popular than the commemorative series. I find few commemorative and, in general, they are as you stated ... high AU through low MS of the common coins.

That said ... IMHO these small shows are the very best opportunity to develop honest relationships with the same local dealers that you will see over and over again ... and over time those relationships will hopefully lead you to a great coin they come across.

On my 'small show' circuit I continue to see about 80% of the same faces every time ... and all of them recognize me now ... I've purchased a few things from most of them, and all of them know of my interest in MS and circulated classic commemorative (as well as the many other sets I am pursuing).

This personal connection developed over time with small show dealers has led to several of my most satisfying coin purchases ... thrilling when the local dealer says "Hey Dave, Great to see you again ... I found this for you and know you need it".

Small Shows ... casual day of fun and develop long term relationships.

Large Shows

Large shows are where I go to sell and politely prowl the stock of numerous unknown (to me) national dealers. Large shows are also the very best opportunity to view in hand and purchase coins that meet your exact needs.

This can be an intimidating place for a newer collector ... the sharks are in the water and they are looking for meat.

My strategy here is significant advance preparation ... I'm bringing coins to sell and expecting as well to buy ... and have done the homework to recognize current market prices buy/sell on everything.

I have with me all my Want Lists with current CDN Bid/Ask prices ... and have looked in advance at the show web page to identify the most likely dealers to approach.

Fortunately, over time relationships also come into play in this large venue ... and there are some national dealers (3 to 4) who specialize in commemorative who I have become acquainted with on a first name basis ... but in general the bourse is filled with folks who do not know me.

I visit my known dealers first ... complete the buy/sell ... and then make a very quick trip through the bourse stopping to inquire at each likely table about the coins I am interested in ... always polite ... never interrupting another sale ... but somewhat aggressive in my approach.

No doubt I have had the greatest success at adding new coins to my humble collection at large shows.

Large Shows ... Advance Prep ... Work not as much Fun

Geepers ... reading above ... much more than anyone wanted. Tempted to just delete this reply ... but hoping you accept my views as an interested fellow collector sharing my experience.

David

Very good info. I have yet to go to a large show and have stuck with local shows. I tend to get overwhelmed and since I only bring what ever I can spend in cash, I am working on sticking to my strategy of filling holes and not getting caught up in the wow.

Saw this thread and had to respond... I was at a larger show last week, have gone to shows like that one for the last 10-12 years, and I was about as disappointed and frustrated as I have ever been.

I decided several years ago that I was sticking only to slabbed MS64 commems with great eye appeal. I took a raw Stone Mtn I had to see about its slabability. The consensus of people I talked to was that the coin which was sold as BU was in fact about 55 or 58. But it was the scarcity of the type of commems I was looking for that really struck me.

EVERYTHING fell into 2 categories:

1. was either 65+, or a tough date... all out of my price range

2. plenty of junk and plenty of "details" disclaimers, yada yada, but NO good clean solid type coins w/o problems

I wound up buying Sac proof singles (for the reverses the last 2 years which I loved), a 2009 Quarters proof set (territories) I missed on originally, and novelties. Spent less than $40. Did not get a thing I wanted.

I am afraid great type-set commems are being gobbled up by speculators, or are just picked over and are in the hands of lifetime owners and out of the game.

There are 2 shops in town where I have found a nice assortment of classic commemoratives. Another dealer told me, "you're the first person in 6 months to ask about them, so we ship them off as soon as we buy them."

Last coin show I went to, I felt very frustrated looking for classic commemms. There were 5 or 6 dealers who had some, but they were all overgraded raw pieces and they were asking well above market value.

You're right that it's an unpopular series. I'm surprised how many long time coin collectors aren't familiar with classic commemms at all!