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 Replies: 25 / Views: 3,856 |
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Valued Member
50 Posts |
Suppose you're building a set of some kind. Specifics doesn't matter, it could be a date/mm set, a type set, a world set, whatever. You start along, get a few quality pieces, and then stumble when you hit the harder-to-find stuff. You now have a partial (but very nice) set, with gaping holes. The stuff you need is not readily available, or not readily available in the price range you're seeking. Some pieces are available in lesser quality and/or higher prices than the rest of the set that you already have. What do you do? Option #1: buy whatever you can get your hands on. You go on with the set and keep the wheels spinning, completing as much of the set as possible. Later, if better pieces come along, you can upgrade and sell the lesser pieces. The downside is that selling is a hassle and you're probably not going to get your money back (especially if your fillers are lower quality overpriced items to begin with). Option #2: hold out and wait for the right pieces to come up for the right price. The downside is that you never know how long you're going to have to wait. The piece you're passing on right now might be the best one you'll see (for your price range) for years. Opportunities might never come back. And meanwhile, you've got an empty album, and cash in pocket, while you'd rather have the opposite problem of a full album and empty pockets  So - Buy now and upgrade later, even if at a loss? Or work slowly and only buy "good stuff"? The question is not about making money - I'm treating this purely as a hobby, not as an investment vehicle. I'm not asking how to maximize the collection's worth, I asking which approach do you think will be more enjoyable and more fun in the long term. Which tactic are you using? |
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Moderator
 United States
56855 Posts |
#1 is what I would do. Good luck to you. John1 |
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Bedrock of the Community
Australia
21786 Posts |
It partly depends on the time frame in which you wish to complete the set. If you want all MS65's, it could take you a lifetime. If all VF's is OK, you should not to need to worry about upgrades all that much. Think carefully before you pick which set to build. Some coins, irrespective of their condition, are nearly impossible to find. A nicely matched condition set looks better than a mixture of conditions. With a lesser grade set, you look for the hardest to find coins first. If you are collecting Roman coins, it has been estimated that there between 15,000 to 25,000 types, and you will NEVER complete the set, short of being the British Museum!  (That is one of many reasons why I collect Roman coins) |
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Pillar of the Community
2087 Posts |
I am going to ignore encapsulation for this comment. Your question is really dependant on what you are collecting. If it is a series for which all "members" are easy to find then hold out for the best grades. If the series includes significant rarities then you may well have to take what you first find. In my collection I have coins that are not particularly high grade but the known population( in the market not from grading reports) is less than 20! Waiting for a higher grade in the case of those coins is risking never seeing another example again.
Edited by austrokiwi
12/31/2014 09:42 am
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Moderator
United States
23522 Posts |
Either choice is a completely valid way to get where you want to go, depending only on your personal mindset. Me, I go with your first method, because I get to study more coins that way.  |
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Moderator
United States
188440 Posts |
Option #2 most closely resembles my procedure, since I do not play the upgrade game. I have "bought whatever I could get my hands on" in the past, but as I have matured, so has my patience. |
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
2781 Posts |
Quote:
The stuff you need is not readily available, or not readily available in the price range you're seeking. two VERY different questions. you can always save up for the key dates, but if they are scarce then get what you can, while you can. always buy (even if it means waiting for the budget to allow it) the best grade you can afford. replacing/upgrading is more expensive in the long run than spending good money on good examples. the money you save by not replacing/upgrading will allow you to spend more in the long run when you are purchasing grade rarities. |
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Rest in Peace
United States
7075 Posts |
Quote:
It partly depends on the time frame in which you wish to complete the set. I agree with sel. You have to ask yourself how long you're willing to wait to get that coin. Sometimes that key date coin is so expensive that I can only think of it as an 'investment' - though possibly not a good one for me. |
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Bedrock of the Community
Canada
10743 Posts |
It kind of depends on your age, if your old, grab what you can if you want to finish a set before you pass on.
If your younger, wait until you can find/get coins that will satisfy you.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2543 Posts |
I am with Jbuck on this. I have always said that there is a fine line between a collection and a hoard. Early on, I would buy anything and everything, thinking the opportunity may never present itself again, or if I didn't jump now, the price would go way up. But after too many times of having no cash when the right coin presented itself or came up for auction, because I had spent my budget " filling holes " with inferior coins, I too learned patience and healthy respect for a quality collection. A quality collection on a budget, especially if you have a family or several sets going at once.
Now I also try to acquire the key coins first, it is more satisfying to me to build the set from the inside out instead of from the outside in. Plus if I ever get bored or change direction, I can always sell thew keys for a good profit or at the very least, what I paid for them .
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
20753 Posts |
My way of being a coin collector is I do what I want regardless of anything and everything anyone tells me to do.
I start a set of a certain type and try to complete that set. IF I come across a coin that is better than the one in my set, I simply add it to that set and place the replaced coin in a 2x2. Eventually I acquire enough duplicates to start set #2. No not hoarding, just collecting. Naturally and eventually I end up with many duplicate sets. So what, I'm a coin collector. That's what I am and that is what I do.
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Valued Member
 50 Posts |
Thanks everyone, it's really interesting to hear the different opinions.
I deliberately left the question a bit vague because the topic is a general one and the question applies to every type of set one would build. But obviously the answers to the question are not so generic, and depend very much on the specific collection and the specific collector building it. Ah, and to those who mentioned old age as a decision factor, I myself am 40 years old, so hopefully I can expect quite a few collecting years yet to come.
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Rest in Peace
United States
18456 Posts |
I started my Lincoln Cent collection 1909-1940 about 50 years ago. believe it or not I'm still trying to upgrade it to EF-AU. I'm close but not quite there yet. I now have 3 of those sets going, because every time I upgrade I move coins over to the next set. the hardest part about putting the 1st.set together for me was the price of high grade keys. my opinion; go with option 2. Tony |
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Pillar of the Community
Russian Federation
5173 Posts |
Upgrade game? What upgrade game?
My way of thinking is basically option 1, minus the upgrade game; I might consider upgrading if I get a decent example for cheap and my previous one was ugly (yes, this really happened to me a few times, most recently less than two weeks ago), but that's about it to be honest.
It helps that I'm more of a type collector (and that my definition of "affordable" is rather on the low end), which means there isn't particularly much stuff I collect that's technically within my budget but doesn't come up commonly.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2815 Posts |
I'm an option #1 kind of guy. I hate waiting, but I am learning patience as I go along.
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
849 Posts |
This is a great philosophical question which I love as it has no right answer and chances for many opinions. I collected one cent and five cent Canadian coins as a kid and not until age 60 (last year) did I fill in the 1926 far nickel for two reasons. One was that I lost interest for some time but did not sell my collections. Second was the money priorities and had other needs to spend money on. I did not mind the few gaping holes.
As far as buying now or holding out, I think time might be a factor. If you feel you may never be able to afford higher grades maybe buy now and be content with what you get and enjoy - and if a cash windfall comes your way you could upgrade in 20 years. On the other hand, if you feel you can afford a grade or two higher in a couple of years I would wait and buy high quality slowly. To me it would seem dumb to buy a set of coins over a year period for say, $500 and then in two years sell them for $300 as you buy all coins a couple of grades higher.
I hear often the phrase "buy the best you can afford". I think for me I go with "buy the best for which you are willing to pay." There might be a coin that sells for $4000 in MS65 but if most of my collection is in MS60 I might be content to buy it in MS60 for $1600 even if I have the $4000 and the cost would not impact my other expenditures. Maybe I'd rather the MS60 and use the other $2400 for other coins, hobbies, or a trip. That would be the "best for which I was willing to pay".
Edited by punman
01/01/2015 10:47 pm
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Replies: 25 / Views: 3,856 |
Posted 12/31/2014 09:28 am
