What should i buy?

[Master Jmd 50]

What should i buy?

i have £40 left, and i would like to purchase one of the above, what would you say is best?

[Half Penny Jon 0]

You should buy the 1935 farthing because it is quite difficult to get in high grade. If I were you though, I would concentrate on collecting a small date range, then I would expand once I had completed the date range. Don't run before you can walk.

[william 0]

IMHO don't get the 1773, as it will probably get bought by someone else before you save enough money. Get either the 1935 or the 1953. I voted for the 1953 cos it's extremely rare, and you may not get another chance to get one for a while. The 1935 will probably appear in that grade more often than the 1953 won't it?

[Sylvester 15]

I voted for the oldest, cos they look nicer.

[Emperor Oli 0]

huh I thought you were doing Victorian.

[Master Jmd 50]

huh I thought you were doing Victorian.

yes, but then i had a better idea; i can get better victorian farthings with my B'day money ...

[Sylvester 15]

does it matter if he's doing Victorian or not?

He hasn't been collecting very long, my advice is don't specialise too soon, play the field a bit, buy a bit of what you like regardless of what it is...

Just make sure that...

a) it's worth the money

it's in good condition

If so what's to stop you selling it later when you have figured out what you like and don't like from first hand experience?

It took me 12 years to actually specialise in anything... I had tried before but they had all failed because i was not ready to specialise into doing a date set of any denomination... it just didn't entertain me as much as buying coins i liked the look of regardless of what they were. When i finally did decide to specialise i traded all my other aquisitions in for my date set. So as far as i'm concerned go for the one you feel you want most regardless of whether it fits in with your current aim or not. You need experience, and you can only get it by playing the numismatic field.

If you did fancy putting some kind of set together to give a bit of cohesion to the collection, like i did (but you can't figure out what denomination) why don't you try a year set? I had a near complete 1887 set, and a third of a 1912 set (Titanic year).

Perhaps you might like to try getting a year set for every monarch since George III? (Copper-Silver)

These are the best years, either because they are the cheapest, or because that's the only year a full set was minted (beaeing in mind i was just getting silver coins when i worked this one out); 1818, 1826, 1834, 1844, 1887, 1893, 1902, 1911 or 1912, 1936, 1937 and 1953. That way you can get one of each denomination and coins from all the modern monarchs and if you take your time at the end of it you'll have a set of coins that you can trade in for any date/denom sets you might take a fancy to in the future.

[Emperor Oli 0]

I was inspired by your 1887 set that it's convinced me to start on year sets when I'm done with farthings! I think I'll be stopping at the 20th century and may perhaps jump to some short-reign monarchs.

[Sylvester 15]

Oh and if you really take to the idea, you can go back further like i intended to do...

I did plan to get a short set of coins minted in these years, by that i mean smaller gold coins to silver coins...

So Guinea - Sixpence for; 1679, 1688, 1693, 1697 or 1700, 1711, 1723, 1739.

Sovereign - Sixpence for; 1818, 1826

Sovereign - Groat for; 1837, 1844

£5 - Threepence for; 1887, 1893, 1902

Sovereign - Threepence for; 1912, 1927 (just the silver), 1937, 1953 (obviously not the gold, and no threepence), 1970 (same as 1953).

Now i purchased a 1697 sixpence and that was it, the sixpences got me and it was unplanned, so the year sets were dropped and i shifted into sixpences. Give it a try and you'll eventually take to one denomination or other...

I went from a shilling collector, to a brass threepence collector, to a florin collector, to a shield reverse sovereign collector... and not one of them worked (well the sovereigns were coming along nicely... if i hadn't bought that sixpence this wouldn't have happened).

[Emperor Oli 0]

I'd probably have to flog a substantial part of my collection for a full date set (highest-lowest denominations) in a reasonable condition. Out of interest, what was the benchmark grade of your 1887, or any other date set?

[Master Jmd 50]

I do not like the idea of doing specific year sets, mostly because i would not have enough room to store them all...i think that i would like to specialise in Farthings, Half Pennies and/or Pennies when i am older, at the moment, as you said, i am just buying Farthings/Pennies from all years, but i suppose that eventually i would get a bit knotted up with the years that i have and havent aqquired.

I have a particular eye on Colin Cooke's 1862 BU Farthing, 1882 H BU Farthing and his 1873 BU Farthing, which i will probably try to get for my birthday...

Um, on the subject of farthings, are there any pictures of a 1875 H full broach Farthing?

[Sylvester 15]

I'd probably have to flog a substantial part of my collection for a full date set (highest-lowest denominations) in a reasonable condition. Out of interest, what was the benchmark grade of your 1887, or any other date set?

Well for the Early Milled stuff i was ideally looking at F or higher for the lower denominations, and the gold as cheap as i could get it, but if you miss the gold off you've only got 4 coins to get for all of the years... unless you want the copper too? (I have a feeling you might)

For the later stuff it varied, for 1818, 1826, 1837 and 1844 ideally VF or as near to, if anything better came up then i would get it, obviously with the gold or crowns i'd drop to F.

From 1887 onwards i got stricter, 1887 it was GVF (EF more than anything) or better, 1893 VF or better (EF preferable), 1902 VF or better, 1912 GVF or better, 1927 top grade (except for the crown), 1937 BU, 1953 BU, 1970 BU.

Although i expected i would be able to get quite a few of those post 1887 ones in UNC or betterfor the most part, but i was allowing for gold coins and crowns remember.

If you had no desire to get the gold or copper then i think a year set from all those years could be managable... (except the first three, 1679, 1688 and 1693).

Dunno you could go through the price guide and see the following;

Crown, Halfcrown, Shilling, Sixpence; 1697, 1711, 1723SSC, 1739 Roses, 1818, 1826 (cos it's cheaper than the earlier design!).

Crown, Halfcrown, Shilling, Sixpence, Groat; 1837, 1844

Crown - 3d; 1887 & 1893

(Won't go further cos you said not 20th century), you could add the copper/bronze if you wished, so it'd be halfpenny & farthings added on to the pre-1826 stuff for the most part, and pennies-farthings for the rest. Buit bear in mind having different heads on the Victorian ones makes them look slightly odd as a set.

[Master Jmd 50]

Ok then, unless there are 2 more votes on the 1953 and 1773, i will be purchasing the 1935 in approx. 1h

[Emperor Oli 0]

Not if I buy it first mwahahaha those are two gaps in my collection!

[Master Jmd 50]

Not if I buy it first mwahahaha those are two gaps in my collection!

knowing colin he will have more then one

[Emperor Oli 0]

Not in the same grade.

[Half Penny Jon 0]

Not if I buy it first mwahahaha those are two gaps in my collection!

Your collection is coming along very well then Oli! Well done!

[Master Jmd 50]

wowza...just found this (This) colin grades it as near EF/GEF, and its only £39!!!, what do you think?

[Half Penny Jon 0]

It is about it's money, GVF/AEF I would say. Trust me, you will not find any bargains on Colin's site!

[Sylvester 15]

I thought he overpriced if you ask me. I get my sixpences cheaper elsewhere from a very good dealer... but when it comes to my area of collecting you can't just stick with one trusted dealer otherwise it'd take forever, you have to go with as many as you can find, so i don't tend to be too loyal to any one.

[william 0]

It is about it's money, GVF/AEF I would say. Trust me, you will not find any bargains on Colin's site!

No, go to predecimal.com for bargains

[Half Penny Jon 0]

I must have bought my halfpennies from at least eight different dealers.............

[Sylvester 15]

i'm at about 9 dealers with my sixpence collection, i need to find more if i'm going to get it anyway near a quarter complete.

[Master Jmd 50]

I now have the following farthings on their way from colin cooke;

1935 BU - Very Rare

1950 BU

1951 BU

1952 BU

1953 1+A BU

1953 1+B BU - Rare

...i will cancel my order from chris, sorry ...the prooflike 1895 farthing can now be yours william

[Half Penny Jon 0]

So you have decided to move into farthings now...............?