| Author |
 Replies: 28 / Views: 3,341 |
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
2202 Posts |
I began to collect type coins seriously about two years ago (read: 7070). For the first time in my life, I had a few extra bucks to spend on coins and would scour ebay regularly. But I wasn't looking to spend a lot of money--I still wanted to feel like I was getting a deal. So I had a self-imposed limit of $150 per coin. That amount has inched slowly upward recently, as I'm now trying to fill the more expensive holes with decent-looking coins, and not just fillers. The last 7070 coin I bought was a seated liberty half for $250. Ouch. Here's the thing: even if I had a ton of money, I don't think I could justify spending a ton of money on a single coin. Something about it just doesn't feel right to me. So, while I look longingly at nice coins online and think about having a completed 7070 some day filled with clean, bright and appealing coins, I don't know how that's going to happen. Going any higher than $250 for a small, round piece of metal doesn't agree with me. How do you feel about this in terms of how you buy? |
|
|
|
Valued Member
United States
154 Posts |
I'm on a tight budget, so spending more than $10 always feels like, "Do I really need to be spending so much on this?". I usually think about it in terms of my Walking Liberty half. It's one of the crown jewels in my collection, and I wouldn't want anything to outshine it. I also love trading coins, because it doesn't feel like I'm spending much, but I'm getting a lot. It helps that I'm more interested in commonly circulating, non-precious metal coins! |
|
Moderator
 United States
16679 Posts |
If I see it, like it, and have the disposable income, I'll buy it.
I also consider resale factors down the road; short and long term.
swcoin.ecrater.com
|
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
1195 Posts |
I've set for myself about a $55 limit per coin, though I know decent examples of certain coins I want will cost three times that, so I'll save those till last
|
|
Pillar of the Community
Canada
2805 Posts |
I've got a weekly allowance (unfortunately I'm one of those young jerks), so I have a rule: I can only spend over that limit if I save up in the weeks prior. So if something costs 3x and my allowance is x, I can't buy anything for three weeks if I want to buy that thing. It works pretty well but obviously I'm locked out of collecting expensive things.
|
|
Bedrock of the Community
United States
20753 Posts |
Never really think about a limit. I'm to cheap. I really have to want, like, need a coin or anything before I'd spend anything on it.
|
|
Valued Member
United States
71 Posts |
I am wanting to "graduate" to bigger and better coins ... having trouble!
|
|
Valued Member
Australia
491 Posts |
Bulk buying for noodling is for me.
Face value current coin currency from the Bank is more about weight, than money as being the limit.
Older Australia bulk buys about 5c per penny. On a big spending day 8c per penny.
|
|
Pillar of the Community
United Kingdom
1682 Posts |
Setting a budget/allowance for buying anything, be it a coin or car, is always a good idea.
Yes, by doing this, I have missed out on many times on coins that I would like to have since at those moments in time since the time was not correct for my budget/allowance.
Many years ago, I have accepted the fact that there are coins that I will never own and I am fine with that.
Ken
|
|
Pillar of the Community
United Kingdom
548 Posts |
There's no hard cap as far as I'm concerned. It depends entirely on how much I want the coin, how much it's worth and whether I actually have the money to spare.
Edited by Demarco Bishopp
04/01/2013 06:20 am
|
|
Pillar of the Community
Russian Federation
5172 Posts |
No hard cap, technically. I would, however, think like 50 times before buying a $100+ coin unless it's a gold or platinum piece (or a ridiculously large silver, presumably, but I've never heard of such huge silvers so I kind of doubt this will ever happen); in fact, so far the most I've ever paid for a single coin was just under $70 (an 1818 ruble). ...In practice, I think several times before buying even a $25 coin, and usually don't ultimately buy it anyway (which happens to mean that my collection doesn't have a Barber quarter, a US-Philippine half centavo, a Nicholas II 1/4 kopek, or an 1943 Morgan dollar; I might eventually find another affordable version of the quarter and the 1/4 kopek though, and the coins still remain on my mental want list). I did, however, occasionally get temporarily broke (as in, spending all or almost all of my allowance) by buying dozens of $5, $2, or $1 coins  |
|
Pillar of the Community
Australia
2180 Posts |
No. Unfortunately some coins are expensive but I enjoy the hobby so I don't feel bad spending any amount on coins (as long as I'm paying a fair price).
|
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
7840 Posts |
Nice range of answers. Most of my 7070 was obtained through my "allowance", although I have bent that rule several times. If it was a large item I would put it on "lay-a-way" and pay for it over time. Then there are upgrades. I only want one of each type of coin ( bent that rule again when it comes to my Morgan dollar Mint Mark - VAM stlye - collection) and when I upgrade the "old" one gets sold shortly after the "new" arrival comes in. If I want it bad enough, I will find a way to obtain it! Edited by oih82w8
04/01/2013 08:57 am
|
|
Pillar of the Community
United Kingdom
856 Posts |
I have a budget which is made up of money from coins I've sold (duplicates, or ones that I don't like as much) and birthday and Christmas gifts (I always ask for cash!)
But the sort of thing I collect there are some coins that, if I want them, then the fact that they will cost me 8 times any of the other coins in the collection has to be accepted. If that opportunity is lost .. well, the gap might not be permanent, but I'm not going to get the chance to fill it in the forsesble future.
Do I have a spending limit? Yes. In theory whatever spare coin cash I have! Though of course, I always try not to spend it all as I like to have a reserve in case another coin I want comes up. But I have to admit, I have on occasions pretty much blown it all and had to wait months before I had enough to feel comfortable looking through the dealers' lists again!
|
|
Pillar of the Community
Australia
3831 Posts |
My partial coin collection http://www.omnicoin.com/collection/gxseriesMy numismatics articles and collection: http://www.gxseries.com/numis/numis_index.htmRegularly updated at least once a month. |
|
Pillar of the Community
Sweden
729 Posts |
My spending limit increases over time because I buy coins for two specific reasons:
1. To resell for a profit.
2. To keep in my own collection.
So if I find something I want in category 2, I just repeat category 1 until I can afford it. even if I start out low in the beginning of cat 1, the limit there increases quite fast. So right now, I'm in the $200 range of my cat 1 buys. I keep on doing that until I find something I want as a cat 2 coin.
The only problem is that if I buy a cat 1 coin, and starting to like it, then it turns into a cat 2...
|
| |
Replies: 28 / Views: 3,341 |
Posted 03/31/2013 10:36 pm
