TomGoodheart

Hmm .. there is that aspect isn't there? The buyer might need to dig deep to keep the standard of the rest of the collection on a par. After all, it would be sad to have one coin that outshines all the others, no?

Hi Arthur and welcome! I think the best idea is to have a look around for coins that appeal. Look at threads here for ideas and maybe buy a few cheap ones? I myself have just recently started collecting coins by a theme more info in this thread But I have encountered a slight problem, as I suspect you might, in that postage for a single coin can be as much or more than the coin itself! So I wonder if maybe buying a few would help you? eBay items can sometimes be combined but a dealer might be better. You may not have noticed but predecimal is also a sales site for Chris Perkins! I had a quick look and see you can pick up a BU 1965 shilling for £1.50 or a '53 halfpenny for £2.60. I do find that, even though I can find weight and dimensions of a coin online, it's always more interesting to actually have one in my hand to examine. I know there are lots of other dealers (some on here too) but maybe PM Chris and see how much postage will cost you. I spent £30 on five coins from France and I have to say, it was fun and I think a good way to start my collection. You'll most always get better grades for the money from the country of origin. And then when you have an idea of what coins you like the look of, just ask and we'll recommend books to go with them too! Just an idea!

Let us know how you get on Nicholas! Well .. when are you going to get a chance for another?

They just remind me of trips to Pizza Hut and their ice cream factory. Stick your Smarties into the ice cream and as the coatings melt off you get a very similar effect! And of course NGC is now awarding stars for such .. er, details. It just highlights how different some (particularly US) collectors' likes and dislikes can be. Which is fine. So long as they don't start trying to tell me what I should like in a coin!

LOL I haven't actually bought any books yet. Krause is a bit pricey for a side-line, whereas the web is already paid for. I did see there's an entire book devoted to local issue coins of the Spanish Civil War. No! I had to tell myself, no! After all, I've only just embarked on a collection of literature related to the Charles I shillings. I can't afford to go crazy on Marianne of I'll not have the £50 (or possibly even more!) I'll need for that key shilling when it turns up. I wish!

To be honest, since I'm collecting quite widely (country and date wise) there's no one source and a lot of it has been general image searches. Though there are specialist reference materials (such as leFranc for French coins) I've tended to stick to Krause (imperfect though it is) for general classification. For collecting itself, when I started I found the cgb.fr site (which is French based, but does sell World coins too) helpful. That's where I bought the first five coins. I also refer to a site called colnect.com which allows you to search by country and period, though it can be hit and miss on mintages or even basic details like diameter and weight! Coinfacts Wiki (which often shows images of sold coins and prices) and ngc's World Coin Price Guide have been helpful too. But a lot of it is chance. Searches for republican coins brought up the Spanish Civil War issues which I had never heard of. eBay of course can be handy, though annoyingly in line with US policy Cuba doesn't exist, a bit of an awkward quirk. But it's been interesting. I never knew anything about Liberia for example (even where it was!) (Did you know that Liberia is the only country in Africa founded by United States colonization while occupied by native Africans. Beginning in 1820, the region was colonized by black people from the United States, most of whom were freed slaves. These immigrants established a new country with the help of the American Colonization Society, a private organization whose leaders thought former slaves would have greater opportunity in Africa. African captives freed from slave ships by the British and Americans were sent there instead of being repatriated to their countries of origin for example? Thanks Wikipedia!) And I've had to struggle with descriptions in Spanish, Dutch, German and Portuguese! But on the plus side, apart from one big purchase, it's worked out less than £8 a coin, with many bought for under a fiver! Of course, as I've gotten into it I've started to spot scarcer coins, which are pricier in the better grades I'd prefer. I've had to compromise (such as the Liberian Cent, which would be £70+ in nicer condition). There are also some pattern coins (often struck by the Heaton mint) which I suspect are out of my budget. As I think will be a US Barber half-dollar or Quarter, American coins being relatively expensive and again, I'd prefer not to drop my standards too far in terms of grade. However the old principle that the further from 'home' you get, the less interest there seems to be in a particular series can sometimes help. I've currently got a bid in a Spanish auction for a coin that goes for $100s in the US. I'm hoping for rather less, obviously! But then for things like the Spanish Civil War coins, eBay.es seems to be the place as they are easy to pick up there and relatively unknown anywhere else. Who knew there was a local issue from near Alicante, or even the Basque one I showed earlier? So it's taught me a bit of history and geography in the process! All part of the adventure, eh?

Aluminium Bronze 20 Centavos of Argentina. 21.2mm 4.2g

Chris has said he'll work on it later, so that should help Rob.

As far as I can see the Predecimal currently only allows 50 messages. I think Chris would have to tweak things to change this which might have a knock on effect on the site hosting charges if everyone used their full quota. But I'll copy him in on this in case it's a simple thing.

Good thinking!!

1 Peseta issued by the Basque government during the Spanish civil war. Nickel, 22mm, 4.2g. Struck in Belgium and only circulated briefly until Franco's Nationalists occupied the Biscay region.

Iron 5 cents from during the Spanish civil war. 20mm, 3.75g:

I know! And that one has a Smurfette on it! Admittedly one engraved by WJ Taylor, who I believe was associated with Heaton for a while, before unsuccessfully trying to make his fortune in Australia.

Ermagherd. Who ever thought I'd end up here? But .. times change and all that. And as I've just vastly overpaid for this, I might as well show it off ... Not to Brandon's standards and it might need a toothpick to tidy it a bit but .. it is made of copper! And no, it's not a cartwheel. At only 28.3mm - the size of an old 10p/ florin - more of a pramwheel.

THe coin was originally lot 153 in the Crocker Collection auction. Although I can still see the jpg I can't seem to open it. Perhaps Neil can help us. Here is a link http://www.colincooke.com/coinpages/the_crocker_collection_of_pennies.html From the CC site:

This is perhaps why I don't feel inclined to rush out and buy the latest edition every year. In fact mine is from 2006. I know from experience that with rare varieties that have their own reference number the price is adjusted when an example sells and then just sits there until next time. The main reason I keep my own records based on coins that have sold. However, with over 1300 records of just the Tower shillings of Chas I, I can see that might just not be a practical option for those who collect more widely ... As for pricing, well we all know that, for particularly nice examples of even common coins, guide prices just go out the window. I presume you use sites like coinarchives.com and mcsearch.info Stuart?

Nice! I've still to pick an example of the Dupuis bust for my little collection. Of course, I have lots of other gaps too!

Arrived today. KM 571 Portugal 20 Centavos 1920 CuNi 6g, 23 mm :

To be honest Demon, it isn't compulsory to specialise. Nor is it necessary to actually "finish" a collection! It's whatever gives you the most pleasure. If you prefer a structure and pattern when you look at your coins, fine. But as for example Rob says, sometimes it's fun just to break your own rules and buy something because it's nice! So long as you keep up the grades/ upgrading it sounds like you're on the right track. Anyway, welcome again and keep us updated on what you decide!

And they seem to have used pretty much the same bust only in reverse for coins of Angola! It's been fun just looking for variations!

Hi Lee. I started collecting shillings. Partly because I remember spending them, so had a connection to them. Partly I liked the size of coin. And partly because I found a book about them (James Mays 'The Splendid Shilling') so I had a reference for what was available. A year or so down the line I realised that I was never going to be able to afford an example of every different bust/reverse. Things like my Charles II and 'Northumberland' shillings bit into my budget and I had lot more to go. So in the end I specialise in hammered shillings made at the Tower of London Mint during the reign of Charles I. That might not sound like much but there are around 30 portraits and 20 reverse types. Recently it's been difficult to find new coins too add. Prices have gone up, I now prefer better condition coins and I have a fair few of the key ones. Plus good quality coins of most reigns have been scarce recently. So I started a side-line collection of coins with Marianne/ Liberty / The Republic pictured on them (see here for thread, post 143 on-) I've never tried collecting by 'theme' before and I'm finding it an inexpensive and fun way to keep the collecting interest going!

And I got this. Yes, I see the spot and dint on the cheek, but to me it's sharper than most. Particularly the obverse which just seems to be softly struck on other examples I've seen. Yes, I could have got better. But for £30 more which, as I'm trying to stick to lower cost coins, I decided I couldn't justify to get an example of this design. Shrink it to the size of a shilling (23mm) and I'm hoping it will look quite nice.

You forgot the most important bit Rob.. Pop Report: 001 Woohooo! This is just like being PCGS! Only without the shedloads of money people pay us. And the slabs.

LOL And of course I meant T Humphrey Paget. It was late last night! And see, this is where my lack of grading skills for modern stuff let me down.. It looks nice to me. Seems shiny (as in lustre, as opposed to polished). But it's not amazingly crisp, so .. does it still count as BU? It's just under half-crown size at 30.5mm. I know that doesn't affect the grade, but the size of a coin can sometimes affect what we expect in terms of detail, no? I should have bought Derek's book when I had the chance. Though of course, modern stuff is a very recent interest .. so buying it made no sense at the time!

Early days for me, David, I haven't got a single 20p...3 x 5p's and 2 x 1p's and 1 x 10p just doesn't make a collection! I'm sure I'll calm down once the bottomless pocket of the boat chills out a bit? You know .. it's nice to have a sideline that we can pursue when material or money is in short supply. And picking shiny coins out and comparing them to see if you can spot one that really doesn't have bagmarks or blemishes (and that's pretty difficult with the standard of coinage today!) is a pretty good one, I reckon. Teaches you to look carefully. How to compare one coin with another and see which you prefer. And if you have to spend them at the end, well, it hasn't really cost you anything other than time, eh?