Coin Shop Etiquette

Take it with you in pride and use it the same way. It may give a warning that you are new or experienced, depends on the dealer. I have a very honest dealer and they have no problems with you doing this, in fact they will give you their copy to go around the store and help you out where needed.

Over the holidays I was visiting family and they told me about a local coin store that has a bid board and that now and then you can get some great deals so I went and checked it out. The first thing I did was take my personal list in case there were main items I really needed (no luck) and a price guide to get an idea on prices. The price guide was actually half of everyone's tool of choice and saved me a lot of money because I did not bid on the wrong coins (no one has them all memorized).

True there is nothing wrong with that but it is rather a heavy item to take along if not of much usage. Maybe it's because I'm old but I just don't like to carry excessive weight. I personally know many coin dealers and they all agree that their prices are based a lot on the appearance of the customer. Maybe shouldn't be that way but that is life. To produce a Red Book is just a symbol to a dealer that you may not know what your doing with prices. Yes you could walk away, but you might be missing out on great deals due to something simple.
Going to coin shows, coin shops, hobby stores for many, many years makes me just want to play the same game most people play.
Yes some dealers may loose a customer due to their ideas of what you can afford because your have a Red Book in your hands. But then too, why not get the best deal from everyone. As I've said I've only seen one Red Book being used at a coin show in many, many years.

Since alot of collectors are more focused on one series, it would be easier to just photocopy the pages you need and take them with you. or you could hand write the prices on a piece of paper, but that takes too long for me.

When I go to a show, I usually write down what I am looking for and look up current prices for what I am looking for. Don't forget to set a maximum price you are willing to pay for any particular coin. Though since I have no main focus on the world coins I collect, I would need a bookcase in a wagon to lookup prices of everything I like.