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Alternative coin storage

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I just wanted to share an idea I had recently, that an old machinist tool chest might be a good fit for coin storage. Many of them (built back in the day) were very well made and nicely finished. The one I ended up buying had unique patterning on the front panel that I have not seen often. The panel is held in by brass pins on the bottom, and pins on the top which are depressed by the top lid so that it can end up locking the entire box. Ended up that the drawers are the perfect size for slabs, and the top is deep enough to accommodate some tubes and small boxes. I thought the variable size drawers are also neat. I suppose me thinking 'outside the box'... results in a box. I was wondering if others had alternative ideas for storage of collections? If so I would be curios to see!

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Great idea for slabbed coins in particular. 

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Here's a story:

A few years ago an English friend living in LA was applying for American citizenship.

He had a long process involving a mountain of paperwork, culminating in him renouncing UK citizenship,

and starting to apply for US citizenship. To safeguard the paperwork, he bought a small safe.

One afternoon an opportunist theif noticed he had left a window open, climbed in and ran off with the safe.

My friend was completely screwed, was officially stateless, and it took a year to sort it out, while not being able to go anywhere outside the US.

 

He naïvely assumed that because it was a safe, so was he....he didn't realise it had  'STEAL ME' written across the front....

 

Moral?

Buy a REALLY BIG safe, or hide your valuables, maybe leaving less valuable items in a nice wooden display box as a distraction.....

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22 hours ago, blakeyboy said:

Here's a story:

A few years ago an English friend living in LA was applying for American citizenship.

He had a long process involving a mountain of paperwork, culminating in him renouncing UK citizenship,

and starting to apply for US citizenship. To safeguard the paperwork, he bought a small safe.

One afternoon an opportunist theif noticed he had left a window open, climbed in and ran off with the safe.

My friend was completely screwed, was officially stateless, and it took a year to sort it out, while not being able to go anywhere outside the US.

 

He naïvely assumed that because it was a safe, so was he....he didn't realise it had  'STEAL ME' written across the front....

 

Moral?

Buy a REALLY BIG safe, or hide your valuables, maybe leaving less valuable items in a nice wooden display box as a distraction.....

I've heard that one of the best places to leave valuables is the loft, as thieves don't want to get caught stranded up there if the owner returns, as they're in just about the most vulnerable spot escape wise. Especially if there's no ladder attached.  

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The loft maybe good for thwarting thieves, but it is generally a lousy place to keep coins (or most other valuables). Too hot in the summer, too cold in the winter.

Other places to avoid include the sock drawer and the fridge - both places the thieves will go to first. I won't suggest the good places to store your valuables in case I give away any secrets!

 

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1 minute ago, Paddy said:

The loft maybe good for thwarting thieves, but it is generally a lousy place to keep coins (or most other valuables). Too hot in the summer, too cold in the winter.

 

 

 

Absolutely- huge temperature swings.

All sorts of hiding places are available if you think laterally - my father always had keys in pouches sewn into curtains,

and a key to a door was in a hollow on top of a door nearby....

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1 hour ago, blakeyboy said:

Absolutely- huge temperature swings.

All sorts of hiding places are available if you think laterally - my father always had keys in pouches sewn into curtains,

and a key to a door was in a hollow on top of a door nearby....

There are indeed. One of the best I saw was inside a dummy radiator. Same design as the rest of the house, but with a secret opening. Although that wouldn't be a suitable solution for coins. 

Another was a specially upholstered sofa, again with a secret entrance to a hollowed out section.

Most thieves are opportunists and they're not going to be long inside any property. They'll go for the obvious. It wouldn't include such things as an opening in the floor midway underneath a living room carpet.   

The loft idea was only ever meant as a very short term means of storage if you were going to be away from the house for a couple of nights. Not really time to do any damage. especially if well protected.    

It's definitely a factor for strong consideration with regard to your collection. After all, you wouldn't leave £50k in notes in a briefcase on the sideboard.    

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Personally, I think having adequate insurance is the only way to get peace of mind. Some people even use security boxes in banks. However, it is not much fun collecting if your items are not easily accessible. I would probably go for something serious like a floor safe in the unlikely event of ever having a decent collection one day.

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On 3/26/2021 at 6:15 PM, blakeyboy said:

He naïvely assumed that because it was a safe, so was he....

I forgot to mention that everything is glued to the floor! (just kidding)

I am still relatively new to collecting coins, so my collection is not equivalent to 50k on a table, but the point is well taken. I like the thought of accessing my collection without digging under the sofa or radiator, so eventually will probably go with a big safe that cant be walked off with, or a strong-locked closet door. Although, I must say the sofa and radiator are cool ideas. I have the notion (hopefully not naïvely) that B&E thieves are generally opportunistic, so things like cameras and home security alarms may be enough of a deterrent should they try. I also agree about adequate insurance. 

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Also, the gorgeous sideboard was artfully crafted by yours truly 😁 white oak with red oak inserts (*pats self on back)

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On 3/27/2021 at 11:52 PM, Sword said:

Personally, I think having adequate insurance is the only way to get peace of mind. Some people even use security boxes in banks. However, it is not much fun collecting if your items are not easily accessible. I would probably go for something serious like a floor safe in the unlikely event of ever having a decent collection one day.

You can get quite reasonable rates on insurance - say 0.4-0.5% of sum insured, and that figure will halve if you use a bank for storage. In reality, you will never look at the collection in its entirety more than a handful of times, but a policy that will give you cover for a smaller amount outside the bank/home allows you to study groups of coins of interest or gives the opportunity to show a couple pieces if giving a talk. You can set the lower limit at what you feel you will need.

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I'll admit when I started this topic I thought I may see posts possibly about map cabinets converted, or flat files or maybe old letterpress cabinets. The avenue of anti-theft didn't really cross my mind, but has definitely brought to light some considerations. I will definitely be keeping this machinist tool chest, it may just eventually get secured in some fashion behind locked doors. Insurance seems like a no-brainer on my to-do list. 

I suppose we could learn a few things about collection security from the good folks at Gringotts... but likely not how to care for a pet.
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Back in the day when I handled more coins than medals I put everything into 2 x 2s. Storage was easy. Even today most charity shops will have slide boxes for 35 mm slides, or even better the cartridges used in 35 mm slide projectors. They fit beautifully.

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