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Barnzy

Total beginner coin collector

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Hi everyone, 

I am brand new to coin collecting and this forum. I was trying to figure out where to start with coin collecting by just using Google, but the information is over whelming and I can't seem to get any of the answers I'm really looking for. I then stumbled across this forum and thought what better place to ask, I'm hoping people can guide me in the right direction.

I was thinking of starting my collection with the coins during queen victoria's rein, would this be an ideal place to start? I have always  been interested in the Victorian era so I thought that helps too.

I would like to eventually have every type coin from the Victorian era if possible, i like the fact of having all the farthings etc where the head changes as she gets older, are dates important or not really?

Is there a kind of 'cheap coin to get my collection started off with? 

Lastly I'm mainly into this hobby in the sense I would like to have something that say is over 100years old and it has changed hands millions of times and has a story too it all be it unknown, but at the same time wouldn't mind them as a kind of investment too, so my last question is should I look for a half decent grade rather than a top top money grade?

 

Thank you in advance I hope you can put me in the right direction ☺

 

 

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Welcome to the forum Barnzy. I am a fellow newbie; you have asked some really good questions. There is a lot of very helpful people on here, I am sure they will help you soon. 

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Hi Barnzy welcome to the forum. Where do I start, well firstly do not do what I did when I first started  buy anything that you first see. I did this and a lot of those early coins I bought I am struggling to get rid off. Take the advice from members on here who know their stuff as I did. Perhaps choose an era that means something too you. Once I had calmed down and stopped buying rubbish I decided to try and collect date runs from my grandmother birth date to my birth date from 1899 to 1951, it started off well and then I realised I just could not afford to buy every single coin of each denomination without a lottery win.

I then decided to perhaps get each coin from a particular year which is where I started again with 1899 so collected the Crown coin through to the Farthing. I then moved on to 1951 and did the same. But in the end it is your choice. One bit of advice given to me from members of the forum and I stick to it, is to buy the best quality of coin you can afford at the time. 

With help from other members on here my collecting practices have improved and I am now happy with what I collect. Bet yourself a coin price Guide and a book on Grading coins will help also. 

Don't worry about asking stupid questions on the forum we all had to start somewhere, good luck with your collecting.

Edited by UPINSMOKE

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Welcome to the forum. 

I second that advice. Buy the best you can afford or you'll end up with coins your embarrassed to show in the future and which you'll regret purchasing. I started off with short cross coins as they were cheap and abundant back in the day. 

Just enjoy what ever you choose to start with and best of luck finding good examples . If you need any tips or help just post. 

Stu. 

 

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Hi Barnzy.  Welcome.  While I agree, in the long run it's better from a resale (and more satisfying, I think, from an aesthetic) perspective in buying the best grades you can, there's also something to be said for handling a bit of history!  So why not buy a cheap 'pocket' piece' you can carry about and show people and a few other better grade coins to start with?

Coins were produced in huge numbers for the Jubilee (1887) and are generally inexpensive.  Something like a half crown is fairly chunky to carry about and researching prices will give you a bit of a feel for coin grades.

Jut remember, you can always post pictures or links here before buying and ask for people's opinions.  It might save some mistakes, although it has to be said we all make them and it's part of the learning to collect process.  The idea is to keep your mistakes cheap (or at least within budget!)

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Thank you all for your advice! I know I am bound to make a few 'mistake' purchases but like you say it's all a learning curve. 

How about this for a jubilee coin as you mentioned tomgoodheart. 

Look at this on eBay http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/253153652397

 

Also is there a link anyone could possibly share of all the coins needed for the Victorian era from lowest dominating to highest? I have searched a bit on Google but there seems to be years when certain coins change and again no definitive answer to my question.

 

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46 minutes ago, Barnzy said:

Hi everyone, 

I am brand new to coin collecting and this forum. I was trying to figure out where to start with coin collecting by just using Google, but the information is over whelming and I can't seem to get any of the answers I'm really looking for. I then stumbled across this forum and thought what better place to ask, I'm hoping people can guide me in the right direction.

I was thinking of starting my collection with the coins during queen victoria's rein, would this be an ideal place to start? I have always  been interested in the Victorian era so I thought that helps too.

I would like to eventually have every type coin from the Victorian era if possible, i like the fact of having all the farthings etc where the head changes as she gets older, are dates important or not really?

Is there a kind of 'cheap coin to get my collection started off with? 

Lastly I'm mainly into this hobby in the sense I would like to have something that say is over 100years old and it has changed hands millions of times and has a story too it all be it unknown, but at the same time wouldn't mind them as a kind of investment too, so my last question is should I look for a half decent grade rather than a top top money grade?

 

Thank you in advance I hope you can put me in the right direction ☺

 

 

Hi Barnzy , Welcome to the forum, It seems to me that most collectors stick to year sets of just say, Bronze or Silver or in all the denominations, but restrict their sets overall parameters to say, Victorian or 20th c or Hammered , milled, Pre Decimal , Decimal  etc .  Or, as I do, to mostly one or two denominations , in my case mostly Pre. Decimal Pennies which seems to have the most diverse number of varieties , with 1860 alone having over 80 known types .  Some are caused by the mint experimenting with different dies , some caused by human error , such as over stamping, and there are also errors caused by die deterioration.  New undiscovered types are still turning up today, and its possible for anyone with a sharp eye to come up with another. If though you decide to collect modern decimal coins , most of the differing types are deliberately made by the mint to be scarce, so as to encourage people to collect them.  What ever you go for it can be an addictive hobby, and you my find that an increasing amount of money has to be spent to obtain that elusive sought after coin .  Terry

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5 minutes ago, Barnzy said:

Thank you all for your advice! I know I am bound to make a few 'mistake' purchases but like you say it's all a learning curve. 

How about this for a jubilee coin as you mentioned tomgoodheart. 

Look at this on eBay http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/253153652397

 

Also is there a link anyone could possibly share of all the coins needed for the Victorian era from lowest dominating to highest? I have searched a bit on Google but there seems to be years when certain coins change and again no definitive answer to my question.

 

Try this link for a full list and values it may help. http://www.coins-of-the-uk.co.uk/values/index.html

Also I think you could do better than that coin 1887 Jubilee coins are quite easy to find in really nice condition. This one is better http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/ALMOST-UNCIRCULATED-1887-Threepence-Coin-Silver-925-Victoria-/232490219024?hash=item36217f3610:g:ap8AAOSwOS1ZvPaI

and this http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1887-QUEEN-VICTORIA-GREAT-BRITAIN-SILVER-THREEPENCE-THREE-PENCE-3D-COIN-/362091777048?hash=item544e5a0c18:g:iYwAAOSwCY9ZrPcS

 

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I like the look of the second one but it's already attracted a few bidders so be careful if you decide to place a bid you do not get drawn into a bidding war and ending up paying more than it's worth. 

It might be better to take your time and do some research on prices before buying, don't worry if you miss a coin there is always another one that will come along. The books that Upinsmoke has recommended will help you make some good choices.

Also be careful of sellers overgading their coins, they are not all uncirculated like they would like us to believe.

Having said that the urge to buy is strong, so go ahead but remember eBay is only one place to buy. There are some members of the forum who are dealers and I am sure will point you in the right direction.

 

 

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My advice would be read as much as you can choose something you really like the look of and just try to build a collection - don't expect to have the best collection in the world after a short time collecting  set reasonable goals and just enjoy yourself .

popular coins are

farthings

crowns

Halfcrowns

pennies

shillings

And dont forget type sets

A great help is living near wakefield/ brum or london for the fairs , otherwise its gonna be the internet or a friendly local dealer

Buy numismatic books they are a great investment as well - you usually get your money back selling them

charles.jpg

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6 hours ago, UPINSMOKE said:

Once I had calmed down and stopped buying rubbish

I can definitively relate to that! After upgrading the rubbish, I am trying to sell that stuff now and it just doesn't shift. But it's part of the learning curve!

You have chosen a good series to start. The good thing of collecting milled coins like those from the Victorian era is that these are coins produced in industrial quantities, nearly identical with very high standards of quality, their wear and deterioration follows clear and well studied patterns, so it is possible to determine their grade accurately. And as it's also a popular series to collect, their prices are transparent and normally relate clearly to their quality - less so with rare specimens and key dates.

There are very good advices on the posts above

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Again thank you all for your advice I really appreciate it. 

 

Upinsmoke - thank you for them links you are right they are a lot better than the one I was looking at, just need to spend a bit of time searching rather than just jumping on what I first see i guess. I have found a few farthings now that look pretty good grade and are a reasonable price. 

 

Ianb - yes I have found this book which seems to have really good reviews https://www.amazon.co.uk/Standard-Guide-Grading-British-Coins/dp/0948964561# am I right in thinking a book like this will help me to grade a coin say from a photo on eBay and work out what It's roughly worth? Therefore knowing the right price to bid upto?

 

 

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4 minutes ago, Barnzy said:

Ianb - yes I have found this book which seems to have really good reviews https://www.amazon.co.uk/Standard-Guide-Grading-British-Coins/dp/0948964561# am I right in thinking a book like this will help me to grade a coin say from a photo on eBay and work out what It's roughly worth? Therefore knowing the right price to bid upto?

That will give you half the story. Your next task will be to establish what fair value would be for a particular coin. Hint - the various coin value volumes give different figures for the same coin, so you can't rely on them. You have to do your homework from past sales, and ebay is too inconsistent to give an indication. ;)

Edited by Rob

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Welcome to the forum.

My advice would be to collect a specific denomination of coin, not try and collect one of every date and denomination from the Victorian era.That would be a mind bogglingly long project. Pennies are very popular, as there are many varieties, and you can set your own specific parameters as to how far you go in variety specialisation.

I 100% agree with the remarks made above about buying higher grade coins - in fact the highest you can afford. You will not regret it, as they are a good investment, and you can always re-sell. Whereas you can't always with lower grade coins. That said, you may well have to take a hit on grade with very rare types, as not only are they extremely expensive in high grade, but in some cases, not ever to be found.

Good luck.

       

  

Edited by 1949threepence

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As a complete beginner, I would go for a type set of as many monarchs as you can fund. You have five or six to go for with Elizabeth II, 3 coinages for George VI, 4 for George V, 1 for Edward VII, 3 types for Victoria, one for William IV, 2/3 for George IV, loads for George III etc. You can always choose the cheapest option in this case, whereas a denomination collection will inevitably result in some fairly unaffordable pieces, and in some cases, unavailable.

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Hi Barnzy.

If you have a show nearby i would go and have a look as soon as you get the opportunity.

The dealer will be able to answer the questions you may wish to ask.

Lots of coins of different years and denominations to view and have a look at (in hand) of which the grades will be alot more on the mark than the pictures and descriptions on ebay.

Also type in the search button top right on this forum , anything you may be interested in has probably been discussed before.

Welcome to the forum and happy collecting 

Pete.

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On 9/22/2017 at 0:06 PM, Rob said:

As a complete beginner, I would go for a type set of as many monarchs as you can fund. You have five or six to go for with Elizabeth II, 3 coinages for George VI, 4 for George V, 1 for Edward VII, 3 types for Victoria, one for William IV, 2/3 for George IV, loads for George III etc. You can always choose the cheapest option in this case, whereas a denomination collection will inevitably result in some fairly unaffordable pieces, and in some cases, unavailable.

Excuse my ignorance but what do you mean by type set? Am I right in thinking say farthings from every monarch? Or shillings? Etc 

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A type set is an example of each denomination for a particular coinage, so fractional farthing up to the gold £5 if you can afford it. By collecting in this manner you can see a range of coins which differ in both size and design. After a while you may decide that you like a particular denomination, but until you do it keeps all your options open. Personally, I find a date run boring as it comprises a number of similar coins which differ only in the date which may be too small to see easily, but there is no right or wrong and it is each to their own.

You can start with a single type set for a monarch, but this can be expanded to include type sets of the different coinages of that reign.

For example, George VI's initial coinage was in 500 silver and had the full titles on the obverse. Following India's independence the IND IMP was dropped on the 3rd coinage, so you have a different obverse design, though the portrait was unchanged. You have 3 distinct portrait types for Victoria, the Young head, Jubilee head and Veiled head. Elizabeth II has half a dozen portraits and she isn't finished yet!

The beauty of a type set is that it allows you to find the cheapest year for any denomination/type of coin. Go for a date run and you will end up with a gap for the key date that you feel reluctant to fill. Edward VII silver for example is relatively cheap for some years, but 1905 is way more expensive than the rest. If you got a 1902 set then you would have all the denominations issued during the reign at the cheapest price for any grade. 1902 is quite common in all denominations.

Aesthetically speaking, it is better to have coins with a similar grade and tone.

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That's great Rob thank you for that information that's helped a lot. 

 

With regards to buying coins is it better to buy un circulated coins or should i jist try And go for high grade circulation coins? 

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It depends on how much you want to spend and what sort of things you like. Do you appreciate quality, or are you just looking to tick boxes? This might be a little unfair at present, but the question will raise its head again. All collections are a trade-off between desire/ambition and funds. You collect what you feel comfortable with. Just the simple exercise of buying a book or two will give you knowledge. A book with prices means you can add up the numbers and see what the book says it will cost you to assemble your chosen collection.

Prices at the top end can get a little scary if you are used to bottom fishing, but it is always worth remembering that even if you are normally paying £10/coin, a £100 coin doesn't suddenly become a £10 coin just because you bought it. More important is the need to understand the market you are playing in, which means a lot of reading and minimal collecting to begin with. Get a few books and visit coin fairs, speak to people. Wakefield is tomorrow at the Cedar Court Hotel (off Jcn 39 of the M1) starting at 9:30 if you are within range. The Midland fair is at the Motorcycle Museum (near Birmingham Airport on the M42) on the second Sunday of each month, again doors open at 9:30. People with a genuine desire or need for knowledge are welcome to talk to dealers - we don't want to frighten people away as they are our future customers.

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