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JacktheLad

New to collecting - my story so far

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The only problem I find with that style of folder is that you have to keep it upright or all the coins start sliding out. I use the Magpie brand albums, which you can get from WH Smiths - they have a double sliding action so the coins can't escape. Last time I looked they had a 2 for 1 offer for online orders.

 

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8 hours ago, 1949threepence said:

That's a really useful addition, and if you're interested in shillings, I'd also recommend David Groom's book "The identification of British 20th Century silver coin varieties". Obviously as the name suggests, it's only 20th century, but it's very good and served me well when I collected 20th century shillings.

As far as coin fairs, if you're in Manchester, then maybe the York coin fair might be a great option for you. What would it be? about 70 odd miles straight along the M62. They're normally held every January and July, and are one of the principal annual coin fairs. In addition to the two you mention.

Anyway welcome to the forum and good luck with the collecting.  

 

I think york is arround 85 miles from manchester , its a great hunting ground , there is a collectors fair at horwich parkway at the bolton stadium in the spring summer and autumn

The birmingham fair is only 100 miles away

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Welcome to the forum. I too started with collecting shillings when I first took up the hobby as a teenager. It's a very good series for the type collector. Books are very helpful to learn grading but there is no substitute for experience. It is all too easy for beginners to overgrade. My suggestion is to start off with cheaper coins (like George VI) but in UNC condition. Once you have seen a few coins in top condition, you will know what UNC truly means: absolutely no wear and no loss of luster on high points. Some George V unc shillings are economical too. Edward VII, Victoria old head and Victoria Jubilee Head are still affordable but things will get expensive before that. Also bear in mind that the age of milled coins should not affect the grade. 

One mistake I made in my early days of collecting was thinking that better grade = better details. But the loss of detail could be due to weak striking (which doesn't technically affect the grade). The lion's noise on the reverse of Edward VII and earlier George V shillings are usually rather flat due to weak striking. 

Happy collecting.

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To follow on from Sword's excellent post:

There are earlier shillings which are (relatively) cheap in high grade, especially in comparison to others of the same type:

  • 1936
  • 1916 and 1918
  • 1902
  • 1887 Jubilee Head

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21 hours ago, copper123 said:

I think york is arround 85 miles from manchester , its a great hunting ground , there is a collectors fair at horwich parkway at the bolton stadium in the spring summer and autumn

The birmingham fair is only 100 miles away

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!

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20 hours ago, Sword said:

Welcome to the forum. I too started with collecting shillings when I first took up the hobby as a teenager. It's a very good series for the type collector. Books are very helpful to learn grading but there is no substitute for experience. It is all too easy for beginners to overgrade. My suggestion is to start off with cheaper coins (like George VI) but in UNC condition. Once you have seen a few coins in top condition, you will know what UNC truly means: absolutely no wear and no loss of luster on high points. Some George V unc shillings are economical too. Edward VII, Victoria old head and Victoria Jubilee Head are still affordable but things will get expensive before that. Also bear in mind that the age of milled coins should not affect the grade. 

One mistake I made in my early days of collecting was thinking that better grade = better details. But the loss of detail could be due to weak striking (which doesn't technically affect the grade). The lion's noise on the reverse of Edward VII and earlier George V shillings are usually rather flat due to weak striking. 

Happy collecting.

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? 

 

1615571201139.JPEG

1615571201879.JPEG

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20 hours ago, Peckris 2 said:

To follow on from Sword's excellent post:

There are earlier shillings which are (relatively) cheap in high grade, especially in comparison to others of the same type:

  • 1936
  • 1916 and 1918
  • 1902
  • 1887 Jubilee Head

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

1887 obv..jpeg

1887 rev..jpeg

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50 minutes ago, JacktheLad said:

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!

Over the years I have bought many coins from the horwich parkway collectors fair , there is usually one a month .

In the last two years or so nice finds have gone lower and lower as the old dealers die and are not replaced with younger ones but I still go every so often hopeing to find something nice

Coin collectors are like rotweilers they never give up .

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42 minutes ago, JacktheLad said:

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? 

Yes, exactly that. There's no such thing as "EF for age", for example. :)

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35 minutes ago, JacktheLad said:

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?

Looks to be F or gF.

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1 hour ago, JacktheLad said:

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?

Yes, I think that's fair - can't see any signs of wear.

An early milled EF should meet the same requirements for wear as very late coins. However, they weren't struck with machines so you may find them off centre, or weaknesses in the legend for example. They're still EF but with extra things to describe.

45 minutes ago, JacktheLad said:

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

VF is too strong I think. Half a grade less, or not even quite that.

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1 hour ago, JacktheLad said:

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!

Wakefield as well is a good one , which when we get back to normal is once a month.

Edited by PWA 1967

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1 hour ago, JacktheLad said:

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? 

Your English shilling could well be UNC but it is best to avoid coins with this type of discolouration. The grade is not the only consideration and eye appeal is also very important. 

I think my Scottish shilling is UNC (completely lustrous). Likewise, the 1936 shilling is also UNC in my view.

1282959672_1937scottishshillingobv-Copy-Copy.jpg.2f72a3f43536dbbec7cb80e4f57ab072.jpg

1450634983_1937scottishshilling-rev-Copy-Copy.jpg.8fe6a91c1bf6f0ef0a3f94ece5ca3280.jpg

1611941819_1936-shilling-r-Copy-Copy-Copy.jpg.136c8aff457d56878b8eaf1146ba2f2e.jpg

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"The age of milled coins should not affect the grade". This mean that you shouldn't relax your grading standard just because a milled coin is older. (Things are different when you are dealing with hammered coins).

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I agree with the others, the 1887 is definitely not VF in my view. Grading is subjective and you will end up buying a lot more from dealers you agree with.

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And you have made a good informed start to collecting. Your coins are "honest" collectible examples without serious issues like harsh cleaning, holes, soldering, gilding etc. Grading skills will develop with time.  Will be interesting to see how your collection will develop.

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On 3/12/2021 at 7:27 PM, PWA 1967 said:

Wakefield as well is a good one , which when we get back to normal is once a month.

A bit hard to get to unless you have a car - you can get there by rail wakefield - manchester but its quite a walk from the station and busses are less frequent on sundays - taxi is best

And sorry I cannot grade that JH shilling much better than fine - a dealer should be shot for selling that as VF - at that grade is pretty much scrap silver . You could pick an EF up for £8 - £10

Edited by copper123
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3 hours ago, copper123 said:

You could pick an EF up for £8 - £10

Here is one that may appeal to you https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Victoria-1887-silver-shilling/143975712750?hash=item21859f07ee:g:ewUAAOSwTSlgSzMZ

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19 minutes ago, Peckris 2 said:

Here's a very reasonable 1902 shilling ... but if buying, I'd ask the seller for the reverse picture.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/GB-1902-SHILLING/154318675080?hash=item23ee1c1c88:g:6eAAAOSw1x9gHBQw

It shows the reverse of the shilling further down the listing😀

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Good suggestions gents! 

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For some reason 1887 shillings and sixpences are very common in high grades I really wish edward and old head shillings sixpences and florins were as easy to find they are still missing from my type set - prob 'because i'm a mean ****er

Edited by copper123

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Agreed that 1887 is very common in high grades. Many must have been saved that as it was the first year of a design and the Golden Jubilee was a significant event with people wanting a memento. I am missing Old Head and Edward VII shilling from my type set too. I think there is no urgency to get one if you know they turn up fairly frequently. And you would also be more picky. 

Edited by Sword
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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 🤷‍♂️)

rev 1893.JPEG

obv 1893.JPEG

03052020_14_1024x1024.jpg

03052020_13_1024x1024.jpg

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