What's The Use..

I think it has to do with the fun of the actual acquisition of new pieces vs looking at them as a means to invest or to make money. I view my hobbies as fun, educational, and research opportunities. Some of them have made me money - but that is a side issue with me b/c I have always enjoyed hobbies as a way to escape the everyday grind.

I view error coins as the one/few in the production run. Wrong planchets, broadstruck, indents, incomplete planchets, capped dies, double denominations, low pressure strikes and so forth.

What many are calling errors are die cracks, die chips, die breaks, Struck Through Grease, Machine Doubling, die abrasion, die wear, clashes and so forth. These are common and unless they are sever they may not be worth collecting. Die cracks that extend from rim to rim throught the center, Cuds very strong die clashes can warant a premium. But when something is very common to find, who would want to pay to obtain something like that?

Varieties are real collectable, but sometimes also hard to find a buyer for these.

So it depends on what you are calling errors?

Some do have a value placed on them but there is no book published on values or some type of a guideline to go by. Like everything in life beauty (or value) is in the eye of the beholder. Anything that is odd or different is valued by those who desire them.

Wasn't there a quarter error some years ago, maybe it was a quarter with a heads on both sides, I don't recall the specifics. I do remember the guy was on the news, and paid like $25,000 for it, said it was a good investment for his kids' college fund. Not sure how that turned out either, but certainly piqued curiosity about error coins!

Coop is right. It all comes down to semantics. Unfortunately even the experts disagree sometimes. So that leaves me as a collector to have only one option...collect whatever I like.

One thing I learned back when I was a kid, about collecting anything, is that "any collectible is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it"; no matter what any price guide says. Don't remember where I heard it but as a collector it has always stuck with me.

Collect what you like. If you actually make money on anything it's a bonus.

Love error coins, they are unique, almost like artwork, individualistic. One of the high valued coins in the world is the SA mint induced error in my Avatar, the 1898 single 9 pound, which was an punch error. Also belonged to King Farouk of Egypt.
According to NGC it was last sold on 11 may 2010 for an undisclosed amount.
According to experts this coin is today worth about US$3 million.
The value is probably based on the fact that it is so unique (Mintage of 1).
I can say with certainty that the hole in my collection will be there for always

I like finding error coins, I believe that I have a couple of unique ones because I haven't seen any listed or spoken about. I will keep these until I retire, then offer them for sale to boost my monthly income. It is interesting and fun for me. Collecting is a hobby for me, I work on it every day to relax. To each his own.