And The Survey Says # 2

I'm a generalized collector, though lately I have been working on completing two series Morgan silver dollars in MS-63 and above and Bust Half Dollars. I believe that I have a good reference library, but there are still books that I'm lacking ie RIC for my ancient Roman collection and several others.

I would tend to say I am a general collector. I do focus on Lincoln Cents and Franklin halves but I also have a wide collection of nickels, quarters, dollars and so forth. I guess you could say the Lincoln's and the Franklin's are the passion inside the passion.

I believe I do have the right materials to get the most out of collecting and that it is important to have it. If you are passionate about something you should do everything you can to learn about that passion to enjoy it to the fullest. Reference materials are just that in my mind.

No, I've never stopped because of lack of materials.

Clinton

As I said in the other thread, I'm a generalist. A very, very general generalist. I collect "coins" - no qualifications. Or rather, all the qualifications - ancient, mediaeval, modern, local, foreign, any metal, any condition, any scarcity, errors, banknotes, tokens, medals - I'll take it all, if I can afford it.

Being a generalist is a pain, because I need to buy all the books. I have about thirty catalogues and books that I refer to more-or-less constantly, another thirty that I refer to only occasionally, and I could really use another thirty, if I could find them (or if they existed).

Having enough reference material is core to building and sustaining a collection, whether ye be specialist or generalist. Coin collecting never really took off until the first reference works began to be published. Without references to give you some kind of idea of what you're supposed to be doing, you're just accumulating or (even worse) hoarding - not truly collecting.

Have I ever stopped collecting because of a lack of references? No. I've been reluctant to start, yes, but more often than not, I've gone and started collecting the things anyway. I find I'm reluctant to buy a big expensive reference book for a series in which I own no coins whatsoever. "First the book, then the coins" is the old coin club member's mantra, but I confess that it's not quite so simple for me. My usual timeline is "first one or two (or five) coins, then the book, then lots more coins".

Same with me.

A. a specialized collector ?( collect maybe one or two types or denominations,countries).

A. Do you have all or most of the right reference material ( books, price guides etc.)for your chosen type of collecting?

U.S. gold coins and Lincoln cents are all I collect at this time with few Morgans tossed in.

I have about a dozen numismatic reference books as well the online info available to all for free.

I love reading about coins and trying to grade coins posted on CCF versus reference materials and experience.

I collect.. everything. I have a couple small mini branches - anything related to the 1893 Columbus Exposition (ticket stubs, ads) and Red Books. Other than that, all coins of every size, shape, color and orientation are welcome here.

I'll never have enough books. But as Sap sez:




That's me all over!

survey question 1.

A. a specialized collector ?...YES

B. a generalized collector?...NO

survey question 2.

A. Do you have all or most of the right reference material ...YES

B. Do you believe that having the right reference material would make collecting more enjoyable?...YES

C. Have you ever stopped collecting a series because of the lack of reference material?...NO