JacktheLad

Hi everyone, I'm Jack, nice to meet you all - I've been collecting British pre-decimal coins since lockdown started last March, albeit with quite a large gap between then and now due to moving house, quitting my job (good timing mid-pandemic) and other minor impediments. I'd say I've been properly focussed on collecting coins now since September 2020, so in a word - newbie. Even as a kid I remember finding old coins around my grandparents' houses and being fascinated by how old they were (even the ones that weren't particularly old) and equally fascinated by the alien (to me and my generation) system of £/d. While I'd remark at how fascinating old coins are, I never actually got round to making a hobby of collecting them or delving deeper into numismatics. I found a old hot chocolate tin underneath the bed in the spare room of my step-mother's house when I was staying there for Christmas in 2019; in it there were loads of old, mostly British, coins so I decided to sift through them and see if I could find anything really interesting. In amongst the tonnes of decimal 1/2 p coins there would appear various George VI coins, the odd George V coin, a few Victoria pennies rubbed to oblivion over time. All of these were simply magical to me; tangible pieces of history passed from untold numbers of hands into untold numbers of pockets untold numbers of times - amazing! And each coin a work of art in its own right. I decided to cherry-pick the best ones (best one being a 1909 Edward VII Half Crown in not the best condition) and when I got home, I put them into an album I'd bought. That's when I did what I believe most new numismatists do - I went on eBay and bought garbage in order to bulk out my collection. I later read in some coin groups on Facebook that you ought to focus on something specific and avoid quantity over quality. People suggested date-runs, all coins for a certain monarch or a certain year, etc. My favourite piece is the shilling by a long chalk, so I've decided start trying to get a shilling of each pattern (is that the right word even?) for each monarch going back as far as I can, so: Elizabeth II Scottish + English omitting BRITT. OMN, Elizabeth II English + Scottish with BRITT. OMN, George VI English + Scottish CuNi IND:IMP. omitted, George VI English + Scottish CuNi with IND:IMP., GEORGE VI English + Scottish Ag .500, etc. Currently I've got a few (can provide pics if people would like to see where I'm at so far), notwithstanding some gaps in chronology and some necessary upgrades owing to my earlier less-informed eBay jaunts 🤦‍♂️ Does this sound like a good idea to you more experienced folks? Another thing, how best can I spend my time when not actually making purchases? I have a few books (Spink 2021, Collectors Coins GB 2020, Grading British Coins); are there any others that you would recommend? What would you recommend researching? Sorry this has ended up quite long, I can boil it down to: 1) What do you think of collecting each pattern of shilling for each monarch? 2) What would you recommend doing to learn more? Thank very much in advance. I'm really looking forward to engaging with everyone on this forum, which seems like a really nice place with some very informed folks 😊

The lack of any Welsh representation on British heraldry is due to the fact that it was a Princedom when it was conquered and not a Kingdom (unlike Scotland and Ireland) The UK dropped the ball on not including Wales in its heraldry; dragons and leeks (leeks less so) make for some pretty cool heraldic imagery imo

Thank you all for your suggestions chaps! I've gone and got the 1936 and the 1902, thanks for suggesting those @Peckris 2 - might as well treat myself I've also bid on the 1887 @UPINSMOKE, good find @Sword Here's my old head shilling - apparently (again according to dealer) UNC, but let's see what you gents think (I should add that the dealer's photographs look much nicer than mine - bit of camera trickery or just a better camera...who knows 🤷‍♂️)

Thank you very much; I've noted these down I posted my 1916 shilling the other day; @Rob mentioned that it looks like it had been cleaned: what gives off that impression? I do have an 1887 shilling in my collection; I bought it from a dealer who described it as VF: as I'm trying my hand at grading myself, I'd have said maybe gF or nVF as her hairline and the lace around the queen's head are quite flat, as is her cheek. The garter star and that little medallion on her shoulder have also lost a lot of detail. What do you reckon? Is there anything obvious I've missed? Thanks in advance

Hi Sword, Thanks for the welcome and for the solid advice I think you're right in looking at some higher grade more recent coins so I know what to expect from UNC or aUNC condition. I do have a George VI 1940 English shilling which is, according to the dealer I got it from, UNC. What do you reckon? (pictures attached) Just to make sure I'm understanding correctly when you say "the age of milled coins should not affect the grade". So, would an EF shilling from 1711 be just as EF as an EF shilling from 1966?

Thank you both @1949threepence and @copper123, the only ones I'd heard of were B'ham and London, good to know there are some closer to my neck of the woods - I'll definitely look at the York one and see if I can find any info out about the one in Bolton - cheers chaps!

Another thing, what would you recommend for storage - I have (what I think is) a nice folder; is it appropriate or would you recommend something else? I've seen a variety of storage options - are they all much of a muchness? This is what I'm rocking at the moment

Fantastic - I've just gone and got a magnifying glass off eBay - few different magnification powers, so that should help

Thanks all for your replies and grading, very much appreciated indeed - I might post a couple more here tomorrow as I have a couple more I'm not too sure of. For grading more accurately, would you recommend buying a loupe, or is that a bit overkill?

Thank you for the welcome and for pointing out what a "pattern" is! I think I'll hold off on making any more purchases for a while (even thought my buys have been a lot more targeted and informed recently) until I've done a bit more reading; especially when it comes to grading, I'm practically clueless on that front! I'll definitely be getting myself down to some fairs (hopefully) very soon Cheers for the tips

Last one for now (my personal favourite) - no idea how you'd grade it; moreover Grading British Coins doesn't cover pre George III.

Also no idea

Not sure if the grey toning on this one reduces the grade or affects it in any way

No idea on this one, I'd have said VF?

gVF?

In my mind this isn't in too bad condition; lustrous, legible, smoothing of hair and some features - I'd have said VF, maybe gVF?

HI UPINSMOKE, Thanks for the welcome Grading is definitely something I'll need help on, I'll post some coins about which I'm unsure of the grade - do excuse the quality; new phone coming at the end of the month with a better camera!

Hi Jerry, Re buying the best condition I can afford - something that I've recently been made aware of, so I might have a bit of upgrading to do! My "Grading British Coins" arrived today - It'll definitely come in handy; there have been times when someone posts a a picture of a coin and I think "that looks very nice", then someone will comment and say "I'd say aVF". My estimation of what constitutes a "good" coin is apparently way off! Would love to get down to a coin fair (when we're all allowed out again), not sure if there are any in my neck of the woods but B'ham and London are easy to get to Thanks for the tips!