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I'd not call it professional but for my three main obsessions, er, collections (shilling date run 1663-1970, Irish coins 1928-2000 & French 3rd through 5th Republics) I have a four ring binder and bunches of coin safe plastic sheets that hold anywhere from 42 (shilling sized) to 30 (half crown sized) or 12 (1870's 5 franc sized) and that suits me nicely. It's easy to show them to friends and easy to take it along when I go to coin shops or shows. Easy to find on Amazon, couldn't tell you elsewhere. Hope this is of some use.

As the label says. Good luck to all

Anything anyone finds at the first or second time of looking immediately becomes easy and not an issue in terms of acquisition, and immediately reduces the rarity in their eyes. Oh that life were that simple. The entire essence of collecting anything is serendipity. Right place, right time and you are on a roll. Miss out on something you could have bought with one more bid and you are forever cursing yourself. There are so many could have, should haves out there I've stopped counting. Don't forget every missed opportunity creates the funds for the next one. Win every one and your issue becomes funding, because you are likely to have overpaid at some point just to have it and I can confidently say you don't have unlimited funds. I wanted one of the the Henry VII sovereigns in Carrington recently, so made sure the money was on standby and placed a bid. I was one bid short, or rather David Guest was the person who outbid me on the day in the room. Dragon marked sovereigns aren't difficult to find, but the price makes them appear so. This one ticked the trade off boxes just right. Not buying that meant the remainder of the auction was now up for grabs. I bought the type 1 Mary Angel and the Triple Unite instead. Not what I wanted that day, but both ticked boxes and I was happy with that. And it left me with cash to spare.

I don't have a cabinet myself for several reasons. One being that I haven't collected in a systematic way, and don't have enough good pieces to justify having a cabinet. Another is that I like to look at both sides of my coins easily. Quandrum works well for the number of pieces I have and make handling easy. Like you, I do appreciate the craftsmanship of a good cabinet. BTW, I like your shilling album pages. The pockets are just the right size to reduce the amount of rotation. When I first started "collecting" as a teenager, I also focused on shillings.

Oh I know that and I won't be changing what I have. If I could afford that, I'd be a very different kind of collector than I am. I enjoy what I am doing though that doesn't mean I don't appreciate the aesthetic joy of that design.

Saving for a new front door is indeed practical 😀 Seriously, I think it depends very much on the number, grade and value of the coins you intend to collect. If it is say a date run collection of UNC-EF 18 /19 century halfcrowns, then they would look fantastic in a quality cabinet. But if the priority is to make date runs of lower grade or common coins, then an album / flips/ 2x2 coin holders /quadrums would be much more practical.

A 1754 4 over 0 is even rarer it took me years to find a decent one

Thanks Bill. Rob

Welcome to the forum! Storing a growing collection is always a headache and largely done to personal preference. I have a very similar target collection to yours and have kept mine in a growing number of the WH Smith's "Magpie" albums, which are reasonably cheap and secure. The double action ensures coins do not slip out, and the plastic is coin safe. They are not good for display and the folders gradually fail under the weight of coins. The range of Lindner coin trays are another alternative. They are good for display and very adaptable, but each tray is expensive. Many new collectors start with coin flips and long boxes, which is simple and practical, but viewing your coins becomes tedious. Traditionally the serious collector would use the custom made coin cabinets. Others may be able to point you to current suppliers, or you can keep an eye on the auctions. These are much better for display and the cabinets look appealing, but the coins are more open to the environment, and they can become inflexible as your collection expands. Of course if you are following the American trend towards graded and encapsulated coins, you need an entirely different approach and I have no idea how they tackle that. P

I have a rather nice 1736, 3 over 5. These are much harder to find.