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 Replies: 15 / Views: 2,412 |
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New Member
United States
3 Posts |
New member here too and a complete newbie at coin collecting.
I recently received my father-in-law's collection of about 25k coins and am looking for suggestions on how to break this daunting task down into manageable groups for detailed investigation.
I know that 90% of the collection is just pocket change to take to the bank's sorting machine.
Is this a good plan?
Denomination
Year
Mint
?
While sorting, are there any general tips to immediately identify non-collector worthy coins?
Based on my readings today, I will be purchasing a couple of books and a magnifying glass. I have a Harbor Freight nearby and will check their options. Littleton Coin Club has a free checklist that I just downloaded.
That said, any, any assistance and/or advice is welcomed.
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Rest in Peace
10197 Posts |
Wyokid2009  to the forum! Just notified moderators to break out your post into it's own thread for individual attention. You're on the right track, stick around, be getting back to ya  |
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New Member
 United States
3 Posts |
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Moderator
 United States
188747 Posts |
to the Community! I split this out of the other thread and moved it to the appropriate forum for the proper attention.  |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4211 Posts |
to the CCF! Wow, 25k coins is a daunting task! Yes, I would start by denomination first and once that was done I would for example.... Lincoln cents: If there are wheat cents I would sort those by decades. 1909 - 1919 1920 - 1929 etc. There is a wealth of information on the left hand side of this page under US coin facts. Dimes, quarters and halves 1964 and before are all 90% silver so separate that if he had any. Keep us posted and research, research, research! |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
6130 Posts |
Unless your father in law's "collection" is just large buckets of loose, mixed change, a good bit is probably worth at least a little over face value. I don't want to ramble on about coins he might not have... can you post a few pictures of how he had it organized? Do you recognize every coin from pocket change, or are there US Classics as well? World coins? I wouldn't mix up the coins unless it's clear there is no method to the madness. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1314 Posts |
In all likelihood your Father-in-Law has the collection already sorted, and you just don't recognize it.
A few pictures will help us help you.
Are they in boxes, flips, albums, mint sets etc.
Are they copper, silver or gold?
Foreign or US?
It is sometimes easier going through a tray while flipping pages in a book, than to go through a book from start to finish while sorting through an entire collection.
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
20753 Posts |
1. Look up a hobby or coin shop and go there and buy a copy of what is called the Red Book by Whitman Publishing. 2. Do not attempt to clean any of the coins. 3. To start I suggest sorting out coins by denominations. One pile for Cents, one for Nickels, etc. 4. Note the coins have dates on them so sort them out by dates next. Then using the Red Book find the Mint Marks on the coins and sort them out by that. 5. Now you should have a decent assortment by types, denominations, dates, Mint Marks. 6. Now again using the Red Book as a guide, look for what may be so called Mint errors. After all that you should now be aware of what you have. |
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New Member
United States
3 Posts |
Thank you all. I will pick up a Red Book. Some of the coins were sorted. But in my lack of knowledge and need to quickly pack-up the apartment, all got thrown into 5 gallon buckets. So now I start an adventure in Numimatics. Again, thank you for confirming an action plan. |
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Bedrock of the Community
Canada
24885 Posts |
To the Forum .  |
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Valued Member
United States
179 Posts |
I think for us to give you the best answer and helpful insight would be if we knew a bit more of the general makeup of the collection.
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New Member
United States
3 Posts |
It has been a few months, but I would like to thank you all for getting me started. It has been an interesting learning experience.
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New Member
United States
3 Posts |
This is probably the wrong post, but going for it. I have about $300 in face value in 1999-2008 State Quarters and national park quarters. I cherry picked the best for 5 state coin collection booklets. The rest of the coins are in good condition. Is it worth trying to save them for 20 years, sell them as a Lot or just cash them in? Curious for your opinions.  |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3540 Posts |
Cash them in....unfortunately.
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Bedrock of the Community
13014 Posts |
Quote:This is probably the wrong post, but going for it. I have about $300 in face value in 1999-2008 State Quarters and national park quarters. I cherry picked the best for 5 state coin collection booklets. The rest of the coins are in good condition. Is it worth trying to save them for 20 years, sell them as a Lot or just cash them in? Curious for your opinions. You can try and sell them as a full set or as a roll but more than likely your best bet is to spend them |
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Rest in Peace
10197 Posts |
Too many have put together the sets already and stacked the actual original rolls in Mint State condition. Any coin not in their prime condition is spendable now, there were just too many minted and the interest wasn't that high as anticipated. Put a few sets together for your own benefit and cash in the rest. Do make sure you don't have any of the silver coins tho, (no copper seen on edge and weight is different.)
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Replies: 15 / Views: 2,412 |
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Posted 07/02/2017 5:33 pm
