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TomGoodheart

Beginners Luck

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A little story for new members (and Gollum!)

I see people’s enthusiasm for collecting coins. Their questions about what dates and what kinds and value and grade. And thought maybe a few observations from *ahem* more .. experienced members, might help. So I’ll start.

I have always collected. Seashells, stamps, pebbles, fossils, paperback books. But coins weren’t really an interest until my Dad died. He left his ‘collection’, cigar and sweet boxes full of coins picked from change and lovingly wrapped in little pieces of paper. A half-sovereign at the bottom or an otherwise anonymous envelope. A brief case with £55 in those 50p pieces with hands on them. 2 Geo VI crowns (red boxes). And, most importantly, a copy of the Coincraft guide from 1995.

Of course, at first I was looking for value. Picked put the silver and sold it. Cashed in the 50ps. Kept the nicer bits. I went to the library and looked at coin books. I found May’s The Splendid Shilling. Now shillings were coins that meant something to me. I’d grown up with them. Spent them. And they had been ‘continued’ as 5p. I liked shillings. I decided shillings would be what I collected. Along with coins with George and the Dragon (covered the Geo crowns).

I phoned a few dealers for catalogues, looked in Coin News, visited a dealer I’d seen and used the money from what I’d spent to buy a few modern shillings and was persuaded to buy two cheap Charles I hammered ones too.

I got some bargains. A couple of VF shillings from a guy in Bolton were really EF. But I spent some serious money in Stevenage on a 1663 Chas II and a Northumberland shilling.

And then my wife found out what I’d spent. She was .. Unhappy. But accepted it was Dad’s money. She asked how much I reckoned I would need to fund a collection. I gave her a figure and she halved it and said there you go! A one-off fund to spend as I wished.

After a while I realised that to get a decent example shilling for the first year of reign and every major bust/reverse style change was going to be tricky. James II and W&M prices alone would make serious dents in my money. I’d already dropped the George and dragon idea. I also started to get bored with the later milled and started to wonder about collecting shilling equivalents that circulated in the 17th century; Scottish Merks, French coins, that sort of thing. I bought a copy of the Brooker Collection syllogue.

I subscribed to Spink’s circular, set up an ebay account. And that’s where luck stepped in. I bid up the price of a shilling I’d not seen before and the buyer emailed me. Shortly after I bid on another coin and found myself in correspondence with a second serious Charles I shilling collector. I bought a few duplicate coins from one, but really the important thing was the advice and knowledge I gained. The articles they referred me to that outlined more varieties I’d never seen or heard of.

Since then I’ve only collected (or only spent money to acquire!) shillings produced by the Tower of London mint during the reign of Charles I. I have learned that, most times beginners like me pay too much! I’ve run out of money on several occasions and had to sell coins to buy new ones - often at a loss! I know that better examples usually exist, even of the scarcest coins. That new examples do turn up (like the four known that became six with the Prestbury hoard). That patience and buying the best you can afford are worthwhile. And that only a handful of people are interested in scrappy coins, however rare they may be. The value of a common coin in uncommon condition will usually far outshine that of one-of-a-kind in F.

Anyone else like to share?

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I started in the late 60's by collecting every Victorian penny there was.One Grandfather gave me a George 11 1/2d which as a 7 year old I dated 1727 :) My other grandfather gave me a William and Mary 1/4d.

At primary school I did a talk on coins.

Come the advent of spotty youthdom I was drawn into bikes,football,rugby and fishing...girls,2 stroke jap bikes followed. ;)

I then grew up and still had albums of PVC clad coins including the key dates...by now I was subscribing to Coin Monthly and getting 10 dealers lists per month and buying.

The slippery slope of reading coin publications was becoming obvious...my father collected stamps...boring.

I also amassed fossils....which I still love(my wife likes jet & amber).

I now buy & sell what I want within reason although I haven't breached the big sums.I have concentrated on early copper....pre 1800

back to 1672...you can DO modern farthings for pence...vastly undervalued.I was a former customer of the Farthing Specialist and then Colin Cooke.

I now just enjoy the hobby and picking a few choice examples.

I still fish,imbibe a beer and love eating out although girls are strictly out of bounds...my daughters have inherited their mothers looks and I have a big stick to keep today's spotty youth off them...although if one turned up with some nice early copper ;)

Over the years I have bought some wrong uns...we all do...I've also hesitated on a few and lost them.

Just spend what you can afford...a few £ maybe you can always sell it but in the mean time enjoy it.

Get your Kew Gardens 50p's now...Coin News have just stated only 10,000 were minted (250,000 undated 20p,s)...soon as they reach £200 mine will buy me a nice George 1 1/4d :)

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BSA and Triumpsh, with Aj's, remember them silent police velocettes !..... a mans heart can melt very easily !!. I had a suzuki GT250 two stroke, and liked it strangely, then a kawasaki Z400 twin and few other bikes, you had to bring up bikes Peter, now the mind wanders to better days.

Good looking daughters, spotty kids with copper... Pimp daddy, shame on you Peter, you could of at least asked around your forum friends first :lol::ph34r:

I think I am going to collect everything in general and as I said before threepences and sixpences most.Oh and the odd 1933 penny now and again just to make it interesting, you have to have a dream don't you. If you know everything else is attainable it must be boring to a degree, it is the seemingly unnattainable that makes the hunt pulse racing.

If you have a line to god or santa, ask him to leave me an A7SS or A10 in my garage. Better still an old series c or d vinnie shadow maker please.

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excuse my comment on the vinnie black shadow as a shadowmaker, I was also thinking of the Kwack 750 widowmaker at the same time !.

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A little story for new members (and Gollum!)

I see people’s enthusiasm for collecting coins. Their questions about what dates and what kinds and value and grade. And thought maybe a few observations from *ahem* more .. experienced members, might help. So I’ll start.

I have always collected. Seashells, stamps, pebbles, fossils, paperback books. But coins weren’t really an interest until my Dad died. He left his ‘collection’, cigar and sweet boxes full of coins picked from change and lovingly wrapped in little pieces of paper. A half-sovereign at the bottom or an otherwise anonymous envelope. A brief case with £55 in those 50p pieces with hands on them. 2 Geo VI crowns (red boxes). And, most importantly, a copy of the Coincraft guide from 1995.

Of course, at first I was looking for value. Picked put the silver and sold it. Cashed in the 50ps. Kept the nicer bits. I went to the library and looked at coin books. I found May’s The Splendid Shilling. Now shillings were coins that meant something to me. I’d grown up with them. Spent them. And they had been ‘continued’ as 5p. I liked shillings. I decided shillings would be what I collected. Along with coins with George and the Dragon (covered the Geo crowns).

I phoned a few dealers for catalogues, looked in Coin News, visited a dealer I’d seen and used the money from what I’d spent to buy a few modern shillings and was persuaded to buy two cheap Charles I hammered ones too.

I got some bargains. A couple of VF shillings from a guy in Bolton were really EF. But I spent some serious money in Stevenage on a 1663 Chas II and a Northumberland shilling.

And then my wife found out what I’d spent. She was .. Unhappy. But accepted it was Dad’s money. She asked how much I reckoned I would need to fund a collection. I gave her a figure and she halved it and said there you go! A one-off fund to spend as I wished.

After a while I realised that to get a decent example shilling for the first year of reign and every major bust/reverse style change was going to be tricky. James II and W&M prices alone would make serious dents in my money. I’d already dropped the George and dragon idea. I also started to get bored with the later milled and started to wonder about collecting shilling equivalents that circulated in the 17th century; Scottish Merks, French coins, that sort of thing. I bought a copy of the Brooker Collection syllogue.

I subscribed to Spink’s circular, set up an ebay account. And that’s where luck stepped in. I bid up the price of a shilling I’d not seen before and the buyer emailed me. Shortly after I bid on another coin and found myself in correspondence with a second serious Charles I shilling collector. I bought a few duplicate coins from one, but really the important thing was the advice and knowledge I gained. The articles they referred me to that outlined more varieties I’d never seen or heard of.

Since then I’ve only collected (or only spent money to acquire!) shillings produced by the Tower of London mint during the reign of Charles I. I have learned that, most times beginners like me pay too much! I’ve run out of money on several occasions and had to sell coins to buy new ones - often at a loss! I know that better examples usually exist, even of the scarcest coins. That new examples do turn up (like the four known that became six with the Prestbury hoard). That patience and buying the best you can afford are worthwhile. And that only a handful of people are interested in scrappy coins, however rare they may be. The value of a common coin in uncommon condition will usually far outshine that of one-of-a-kind in F.

Anyone else like to share?

That was a great read...I feel rather inadequate just asking you this simple question, but what are/is the best reference literature you use for your Charles I shilling collection? I've got North but obviously need something much more involved to take things to the next level. Incidently, have you got, or looked at, The Hammered Silver Coins Produced at the Tower Mint During the Reign of Elizabeth I by Brown et al.? Does this book go into the finest detail, would you or any other recommend it?

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My RD 250 ate those old GT'S and Kwakers my buddy retuned his and put on expansions but I still whammed him RD'S RULE B)

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My RD 250 ate those old GT'S and Kwakers my buddy retuned his and put on expansions but I still whammed him RD'S RULE B)

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That was a great read...I feel rather inadequate just asking you this simple question, but what are/is the best reference literature you use for your Charles I shilling collection? I've got North but obviously need something much more involved to take things to the next level. Incidently, have you got, or looked at, The Hammered Silver Coins Produced at the Tower Mint During the Reign of Elizabeth I by Brown et al.? Does this book go into the finest detail, would you or any other recommend it?

For Charles I shillings you want Michael Sharp's article in the BNJ 1977. BCW is the best reference for Elizabeth I silver as it differentiates the dies with reference to the punches used for the various components. What it does not do is list all the individual dies within a type, so different legend readings such as ELIZAB, LEIZAB, ELIZB for the samemark and issue are not noted - and there are a lot of different readings. Still worth getting, though I would recommend a hardback copy as the paperback cover soon becomes a bit distressed with use, certainly if it gets as much use as mine has.

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I too started accumulating coins as a boy in the late 60s, along with stamps and other bits and pieces. The stamps actually took precedence but just don’t excite me any more. I may sell them one day but stamp prices are so low that I’ll probably just leave them in cupboard.

I’ve always held a special affection for pennies and am presently working on a way of displaying the collection on-line. I do have other denominations (but mostly unsorted for variations, other than by date). It’s always been milled coins for me but I’m sure that one day, when time allows, I’ll venture into hammered. I especially love the gold triple unites, angels, ryals etc. But who doesn’t? :D

Many years passed without the coins being touched, but they always remained in the background. One interest sometimes fuels another so I also have a collection of vintage slot machines and many thousands of pennies bought for those. Amongst those pennies I have found some great rarities… so not quite beginner’s luck, but something like that!

My other interests are nothing to do with coins and mainly family or business related.

I’ve never been a motorcycle fan but I do have a classic sports car!

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For me it started about 2 years ago, at first I was an investor, trying to get silver bars/rounds. Then I realized something, the US minted 90% silver coins for circulation, I started with the low premium ones then moved into getting older coins, Walking Liberty dollars, Mercury Dimes, and Standing Liberty quarters. As time went on I started becoming more comfortable with paying higher premiums over intrinsic value for the coins, but realized that US coins came with a big price tag as the dates went older even culls went for $$$. On the other hand, most European coins allowed you to get older coins for not much more over intrinsic value if you wanted lower grades and only a few bucks in decent grades. Because of this, I switched my focus away from US coins, since I like British history and since the coins are easily readable/findable. I've also gotten a few ancient coins, but don't really collect them as the ones I want are $$$$ and being a student I don't have that high of a budget. Lately though I've been trying to find older US coins in circulation (as the silver intrinsic value is about 22x face value) and found quite a few silver ones and plenty of older coppers which has helped me build my collection up some, although when silver gets higher I'll sell some off and get some collector coins.

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I think like a lot of new “collectors†I became interested in acquiring coins because it seemed a relatively easy and inexpensive means of having a little piece of history. As my sons were learning about different monarchies and historical events in their history lessons I thought it might be a means of helping them appreciate this by giving them a coin that might have been in someone’s pocket at that time. (I remember that there was a mention of a shilling in the film the “Kings Speechâ€)

I chose shillings because I liked the size, consistent uniform shape (1816-1990), and the fact that they were once a precious metal. As it seems with many, I have started with the idea of a date run with no real knowledge of mintages, varieties, rarities etc. I never really intended to collect for investment purposes other than the romantic notion that I might have something to remind my boys of and to perhaps one day pass down. And in any case I like collecting beautiful shiny objects

I hear your message loud and clear about quality not quantity. I haven’t yet decided if spending a three figure sum on a single coin is something I would want to pursue. Getting the best value for money is something I am mindful of, and of course buying something that’s authentic is very important.

I find it quite amazing that through this forum one is able to access such a wealth of knowledge imparted with such willingness and warmth from what I realise to be some highly regarded experts in the field. Its becoming a hobby in itself just learning all about numismatics – even without buying any coins! :rolleyes:

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I think like a lot of new “collectors†I became interested in acquiring coins because it seemed a relatively easy and inexpensive means of having a little piece of history. As my sons were learning about different monarchies and historical events in their history lessons I thought it might be a means of helping them appreciate this by giving them a coin that might have been in someone’s pocket at that time. (I remember that there was a mention of a shilling in the film the “Kings Speechâ€)

I chose shillings because I liked the size, consistent uniform shape (1816-1990), and the fact that they were once a precious metal. As it seems with many, I have started with the idea of a date run with no real knowledge of mintages, varieties, rarities etc. I never really intended to collect for investment purposes other than the romantic notion that I might have something to remind my boys of and to perhaps one day pass down. And in any case I like collecting beautiful shiny objects

I hear your message loud and clear about quality not quantity. I haven’t yet decided if spending a three figure sum on a single coin is something I would want to pursue. Getting the best value for money is something I am mindful of, and of course buying something that’s authentic is very important.

I find it quite amazing that through this forum one is able to access such a wealth of knowledge imparted with such willingness and warmth from what I realise to be some highly regarded experts in the field. Its becoming a hobby in itself just learning all about numismatics – even without buying any coins! :rolleyes:

Awww, you really shouldn't have.

Oh. You weren't.. :D

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That was a great read...I feel rather inadequate just asking you this simple question, but what are/is the best reference literature you use for your Charles I shilling collection? I've got North but obviously need something much more involved to take things to the next level. Incidently, have you got, or looked at, The Hammered Silver Coins Produced at the Tower Mint During the Reign of Elizabeth I by Brown et al.? Does this book go into the finest detail, would you or any other recommend it?

For Charles I shillings you want Michael Sharp's article in the BNJ 1977. BCW is the best reference for Elizabeth I silver as it differentiates the dies with reference to the punches used for the various components. What it does not do is list all the individual dies within a type, so different legend readings such as ELIZAB, LEIZAB, ELIZB for the samemark and issue are not noted - and there are a lot of different readings. Still worth getting, though I would recommend a hardback copy as the paperback cover soon becomes a bit distressed with use, certainly if it gets as much use as mine has.

Brilliant, thanks, Rob, HB BCW it is! Are all the known dies catalogued somewhere? Would this be another BNJ undertaking?

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My collecting habits were first stimulated around the age of 4 when my father asked me if I wanted a New Zealand 8d red export NZ lamb stamp – I still have it. Like many collectors, my first foray into coins was the jar of worn pennies given by my parents or grandmother to keep me quiet on a rainy day - no internet or games consoles in those days, in fact we didn't even have a TV. Date runs followed with the obligatory spaces left in the rows for dates that nobody thought to tell me didn’t exist, though I remember being told that a 1933 was very rare and that only 6 existed. Like every other person, I checked each penny carefully in case I found one. Some hope. Nobody told me they were all accounted for and that I was wasting my time looking!! Herein lies a useful lesson because novices pick up information, but usually only half the story, hence the rare 20p undated mule, or the Queen's necklace, or the unbelievably rare £2 coins that can only be found on eBay. All mythical "facts" that can be easily disproved with a modicum of research, but no kid of 6 or 7 does research.

Collecting stamps and coins ran in parallel throughout my time at school. The first coin I actually bought was a high grade 1946 sixpence. I hesitate to say uncirculated, as I still have it and it certainly isn't, but was described at the time as such. Stamps took up much time because I had a neighbour who had the best collection of British and Australian stamps I have seen to this day with less than half a dozen gaps for both countries. He also had sufficient duplicates to run a business had he wanted and so one or two visits every month to look at the collection were rewarded with industrial quantities of cast-offs. This rather favourable arrangement was pursued with enthusiasm because there was no way I could afford the quantities given to me. :)

When I left home, I donated my coins to my father as he was in a better position to do something with them and the stamps were far more significant due to the above, but I got them all back with interest when he died 20 years ago. Indecision reigned for a short time, but knew I had to make a decision and so knowing a good friend of mine had a serious collection of halfcrowns and pennies in high grade, decided to expand my collection (which now lagged the stamps by an even wider margin) and I settled on shillings and halfpennies as denominations. At the same time I made the conscious decision not to collect low grade material without a very good reason because I liked proofs and patterns as well as currency pieces and clearly there was no point having near uniformly FDC proofs alongside uniformly worn currency pieces. Trays of legible high grade material had considerably more eye-appeal than the grotty pennies of my youth. By this time I also appreciated the question of provenance because the best pieces are frequently well documented and so the library was born. The stamps went into hibernation.

About 3 years ago I became disillusioned with the denomination collections because it was proving difficult to add pieces in a suitable grade, particularly hammered halfpennies, and the fact that full flan examples are difficult to find, let alone read, made me reconsider my aims. The serried ranks of full lustre or nearly so halfpennies and shillings also began to look monotonous and so I decided to expand the sundries department of the collection and go for a completely new set of targets encompassing the entire history of British coins with an example in the name of each monarch or (arch)bishop, every denomination produced, an example in each metal used, of every minting technique, from every mint location, by all the attributed designers and with every initial mark used. This eclectic list should ensure that there is always something available to add to the collection. More than a few coins are unaffordable, but there is sufficient scope to add to the collection for many years to come as the above list gives upwards of a thousand boxes to tick. By avoiding type duplication wherever possible, it means that I should end up with a broadly representative sample of British numismatics. I guess that makes me a mad, sad eccentric. :)

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Brilliant, thanks, Rob, HB BCW it is! Are all the known dies catalogued somewhere? Would this be another BNJ undertaking?

No, or at least not to my knowledge. I suspect that the authors almost certainly have a database of the dies, but I'm not aware of a list that has been published. As far as the BNJ is concerned, most articles on Elizabeth I have been written by either B, C or W. The most useful is probably that in the 1957 issue by I D Brown,(vol.28, pt.3) as there is a large section on hoard finds with references to each article given, which presumably means there is otherwise unpublished info to be extracted. There are later papers by the same authors in the 1983, 1988 & 1989 BNJs.

Edited by Rob

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Now that all you Pro collectors have informed us beginners that you have all collected the good coins and catalogued them, and told me that my dreams of a 1933 penny is pointless, I suppose I may as well give up now :lol: , seriously if they are a finite number and all whereabouts known what joy does it leave us. My only hope of undiscovered coins is looking more and more like getting my laser B1 detector out of mothballs and running up and down the field next to me in the hope of finding something none of you have..... :( . Are we relegated to waiting for one you poor beggars to kick the bucket before your collection becomes remotely available to us so we can say "gotcha". :D

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Now that all you Pro collectors have informed us beginners that you have all collected the good coins and catalogued them, and told me that my dreams of a 1933 penny is pointless, I suppose I may as well give up now :lol: , seriously if they are a finite number and all whereabouts known what joy does it leave us. My only hope of undiscovered coins is looking more and more like getting my laser B1 detector out of mothballs and running up and down the field next to me in the hope of finding something none of you have..... :( . Are we relegated to waiting for one you poor beggars to kick the bucket before your collection becomes remotely available to us so we can say "gotcha". :D

If you want a 1933 penny, let it be known to the main dealers and, depending on who else has said they are looking for one, you may find that one is offered to you when it becomes available. You will have demonstrate a capability and willingness to spend the amounts required by building up a reputation with other purchases, but there is no reason why you should be excluded. Life always works this way. The choicest pieces will first be offered to the most likely buyer(s). Time is money and it works well for both parties. Experienced collectors have relatively short wants lists, expensive coins have relatively few homes to go to in reality compared to the whole market, so anything that avoids the time and effort of marketing a coin is preferable. There are always a few coins that are more desirable than others, the 1933 penny being one of them.

But if you consider the whole coinage, there are many rarities that slip under the radar. The market for the series may be very small and so the demand negligible, but that doesn't make a choice or rare piece any less desirable. There are many unique or nearly so pieces out there if you care to look and do the research for very little money. Within both hammered and milled are types known only from a handful of examples that can be bought for peanuts or a couple thousand at the most. Not everything has to be too costly or permanently unavailable if you do your homework.

When the time comes for coins to be sold post-mortem, you will still get caught up in the stampede. The choicest of the choice will go for a stellar amount, but every collection has its dogs, some of which may not even sell. Best advice is to stop worrying about whether you will ever get a 1933 penny, do some (or even a lot of) reading and give yourself that edge enabling you to buy that rarity on the cheap.

Another thing worth remembering is that all the money in the world can not force a poorer collector to sell that unique item. We all get opportunities that are unrelated to physical wealth, and where the only correlation is between knowledge and hard work.

Edited by Rob

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the best reference literature you use for your Charles I shilling collection?

As Rob says, Michael Sharp's article is excellent, being both comprehensive and introducing a useful means of notation for the various types and varieties that is much handier than Spink (Seaby) or North numbers. Just remember that he misses out at least one bust/privy mark combination and a bust type unknown at the time the articla was written.

And while not exactly a reference, I still enjoy looking through the Brooker Collection book (Sylloge of Coins of the British Isles 33) and comparing my purchases with Brooker's. Only B&W illustrations but covers a fair chunk of Chas I coinage and the coins are pictured actual size which is nice. You should be able to track a copy through the library or about £25, though I've seen copies for as low as £10 (£5 + p&p) on ebay.

872303545.jpg

I hear your message loud and clear about quality not quantity. I haven’t yet decided if spending a three figure sum on a single coin is something I would want to pursue.

I think we all face the choice at some point of buying a coin that costs/is worth far more than the other coins in our collection. If it's because it's a rarity and the collection is more 'complete' as a result, it's maybe justifiable that it 'stands out'. But if it's because of grade then you (or at least I have!) end up comparing your other coins and wondering about further upgrades ..

I guess if I'd had patience I might have managed to wait until I knew more and bought better grade coins throughout. But I suspect my collection would be smaller as a result (and at 67 coins, it's not very big anyway!). Plus I'd likely have lost interest, because, as originally suggested, I feel a kindred spirit with Gollum who seems to want to rush out and get as many coins as he can!

The problem is, when I look back at coins that I've passed by over the last 7 years, while there are many (many!) I'm glad I didn't buy (or regret that I did!), there are also a few I wish I'd grabbed at the time that still shine as gems, even now!

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I can't remember where I read it as I have been reading so many forum members web sites and books of late, but somewhere I read that if the fun goes out of collecting and it becomes more of a finance thing or for a coins value then its time to give up. Something like that anyway, I got my 2 coins from Chris our landlord today, and as i opened the packet I was thrilled, I had 2 coins that were the best I own, and then my mind turned to the thought... If everyone else considered that low grade poor as scrap and did just that, then one day my poor scrap coin would be the only one left, and as poor as it is, it is going to be worth a fortune.

Shiny things make me happy, I am Gollum, I want as many coins as I can get, even if you think they are junk, too me they are history, they are saying something, even if i do not quite know what.

Edited by Gollum

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I too started accumulating coins as a boy in the late 60s

Me three... oh wait - 60s?! Umm... more like early naughties :P

I was given a 2002 Unc set for a birthday present (in retrospect - 18th... hadn't realised that before - too busy enjoying the couple of bottles of vodka I also got I guess!)

It was mentioned in passing 'ooo that might be worth something one day' which tweaked my imagination. Sadly, I dont think it will ever be worth much more than the £3.88 in contains, but the comment did push me to reveal the whole predecimal world! I was captivated by the artistry of the viccy silver in particular, as well as anything earlier than that.

I subsequently had the opportunity to do 6months(!) work experience at DNW under the wing of Michael Sharp and PPM - during which I handled the Bamford Collection, most of the Mass Collection and the James Hall Collection... All I can say is WOW! The medals side was quite fun as well!

As for now, I pretty much collect anything that takes my fancy, with a leaning towards oddities, mis-stikes and errors!

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Work experience at DNW...easier exams...you whippersnappers don't know how lucky you are.

My work experience was a butcher boy after school on Friday to make the sausages and Saturday morning dawn to noon and scrubbing up....yep £2 :)

(I still can't stand shoddy sausage's)

This together with summer fruit picking got me a Carlton Cobra racing cycle which in turn I traded up to a brand spanking new FSIE sports moped.

I never did accomplish living next to a nymphomanic's refuge on one side and a home for battered fish on the other with a good real ale pub accross the road....but 2 outa 3 ain't bad B)

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I too started accumulating coins as a boy in the late 60s

Me three... oh wait - 60s?! Umm... more like early naughties :P

I was given a 2002 Unc set for a birthday present (in retrospect - 18th... hadn't realised that before - too busy enjoying the couple of bottles of vodka I also got I guess!)

It was mentioned in passing 'ooo that might be worth something one day' which tweaked my imagination. Sadly, I dont think it will ever be worth much more than the £3.88 in contains, but the comment did push me to reveal the whole predecimal world! I was captivated by the artistry of the viccy silver in particular, as well as anything earlier than that.

I subsequently had the opportunity to do 6months(!) work experience at DNW under the wing of Michael Sharp and PPM - during which I handled the Bamford Collection, most of the Mass Collection and the James Hall Collection... All I can say is WOW! The medals side was quite fun as well!

As for now, I pretty much collect anything that takes my fancy, with a leaning towards oddities, mis-stikes and errors!

Now Mr Cerbera, what was a person like you doing bidding £99 on the coin below in August 2006? :ph34r: Rather a change from 2002 unc sets, non? For some bizarre reason, only myself, the shill bidder (who bought it in the Baldwins sale with me as underbidder) and another forum member(?) who reads a lot but never posts, bid over £100 on it that day. This probably after I mentioned on the forum I was playing around with a shill bidder and would happily bid to just under what it sold for in Baldwins given his bid was above what I went to previously. ;) Ex Hoblyn 196, Bousfield 414, Parsons 668, Peck, Noble 59 and Baldwins 44 lot 516 for the record and the subject of a typo error in Peck.

post-381-002810200 1325187817_thumb.jpg

Edited by Rob

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Work experience at DNW...easier exams...you whippersnappers don't know how lucky you are.

My work experience was a butcher boy after school on Friday to make the sausages and Saturday morning dawn to noon and scrubbing up....yep £2 :)

(I still can't stand shoddy sausage's)

This together with summer fruit picking got me a Carlton Cobra racing cycle which in turn I traded up to a brand spanking new FSIE sports moped.

I never did accomplish living next to a nymphomanic's refuge on one side and a home for battered fish on the other with a good real ale pub accross the road....but 2 outa 3 ain't bad B):lol::lol::lol::lol::lol:

Never mind Peter - battered fish ain't all it's cracked up to be :lol:

My apprenticeship came at 5/- a go courtesy of the National Bank, the Westminster Bank, Barclays, Lloyds, and the Midland. Mind you, they got their 5/- back, though sometimes 4/11d, but on a good day, only 4/7d :P

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Work experience at DNW...easier exams...you whippersnappers don't know how lucky you are.

It was Michael's idea! I got chatting to him at Coinex, and he mentioned that the idea of an apprentice/work experience person had been discussed and called me the following Monday morning. Being as I was recently graduated and working for peanuts at Norwich Union, I bit his hand off! As for easier exams, you should see them today!

Now Mr Cerbera, what was a person like you doing bidding £99 on the coin below in August 2006? :ph34r: Rather a change from 2002 unc sets, non? For some bizarre reason, only myself, the shill bidder (who bought it in the Baldwins sale with me as underbidder) and another forum member(?) who reads a lot but never posts, bid over £100 on it that day. This probably after I mentioned on the forum I was playing around with a shill bidder and would happily bid to just under what it sold for in Baldwins given his bid was above what I went to previously. ;) Ex Hoblyn 196, Bousfield 414, Parsons 668, Peck, Noble 59 and Baldwins 44 lot 516 for the record and the subject of a typo error in Peck.

I dont remember bidding on that one :blink: although the words 'silver' and 'halfpenny' in a description would have tickled my fancy had I seen it! Aug 2006... just after I finished at Bolton Street... probably could have afforded £100 then as well! However, I assume this isnt what it went for?!

Still, having recently purchased a 1983 Unc set with the 2p mule (unfortunately the seller did know what they had :angry:), perhaps my budget limits aren't as tight as I thought they were!

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Now Mr Cerbera, what was a person like you doing bidding £99 on the coin below in August 2006? :ph34r: Rather a change from 2002 unc sets, non? For some bizarre reason, only myself, the shill bidder (who bought it in the Baldwins sale with me as underbidder) and another forum member(?) who reads a lot but never posts, bid over £100 on it that day. This probably after I mentioned on the forum I was playing around with a shill bidder and would happily bid to just under what it sold for in Baldwins given his bid was above what I went to previously. ;) Ex Hoblyn 196, Bousfield 414, Parsons 668, Peck, Noble 59 and Baldwins 44 lot 516 for the record and the subject of a typo error in Peck.

I dont remember bidding on that one :blink: although the words 'silver' and 'halfpenny' in a description would have tickled my fancy had I seen it! Aug 2006... just after I finished at Bolton Street... probably could have afforded £100 then as well! However, I assume this isnt what it went for?!

Still, having recently purchased a 1983 Unc set with the 2p mule (unfortunately the seller did know what they had :angry:), perhaps my budget limits aren't as tight as I thought they were!

Well, you pushed the boat out for the second listing. The first time it was listed and shilled, you bid £75 and the shill won it for £365. In the second listing I bought it for £370 which was a bit under what I would have paid at Baldwins. First time round on ebay I bid £355, which makes me wonder whether the other bidder had noted my statement that I was going to bid the same again as this person bid £360 and the shill bid £356. :ph34r: Questions, questions. So many unknowns.

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