TomGoodheart

says poor cleaning, but surely it couldn't have been that abrasive :/ Looks to me as if it was engraved at some point and someone has taken a while to erase whatever message was put there. As Rob says, it grades as Dire. I think you'd have to pay someone £5 to take it off you. As to the Morgan, it's not clear from the reverse photos but it looks as if it might have been abrasively wiped in the fields to me. With the scratches to the obv I can't see it as an attractive buy myself. But if you can get it for close to the silver value ... Personally I've always found better grade coins are less likely to cause me to regret my purchases later, but I know everyone is different.

Oh, for the high life of some of you fellows! I'm working until 14.30 then off to Mum-in-Law's for Christmas lunch and present opening with the family.

Tell you what Peter. I can let you have a very nice little red box that says 'Spink' on it for well under a Grand! Apparently they used to deal in coins a long time ago, so it's Historical (and therefore worth every penny I shall charge!)

OOOOOOOh! Those do annoy me! How Bloody Lazy is my response. Do you want to sell or just waste my time? Because I'm giving away Pissed Me Off for free with the latter. :angry:

Brilliant. Thanks again Rob. Still trying to pin down my elusive sceptre shilling to an actual listing!

OK, here's another odd request! Anyone have a copy of Seaby's Coin & Medal Bulletin from June 1949? (No 373, 1949 vol, No 6.) I bought a bound copy for the year only to find that one is missing! I'm curious about what is mentioned concerning Raymond Carlyon-Britton's coins. I'm assuming those listed are from Edward II to Henry IV but wanted to check there's no RC-B coins of Charles I in that particular issue. Thanks!

Does this link work? (Does for me) http://www.dnw.co.uk/auction-archive/prices-realised/results.php?auction_id=288

Sorted, thanks to Rob!

2649 £210 2654 £360 Hammer prices of course .. http://www.dnw.co.uk/auction-archive/prices-realised/results.php?auction_id=288

Not too surprised to be honest. Half crowns aren't particularly my thing, so I don't have a handle on prices to really comment, but this one (#2113) is nice full and round and reasonably struck. An attractive example. #2115 I was following. (P) shillings are generally particularly poorly struck, so finding one that has most of the legends with a clear mint mark (albeit just on one side) is tricky. Not a great strike, but I suspect there's very little wear, so a better-than-average example. £450 is that after the additions? Mmmm .. last year's example (DNW 107 Mar 13 Lot #311) went higher than expected. Maybe someone (not me!) lost out then and didn't want to miss the boat this time around?

I think £425 for Lot 761 (Charles I shilling) is just daft. It must have looked much more impressive in the hand to realise that much.

Sounds perfect! Only need 20 of varying denominations and ideally spendable, so post 1998. Then they can have a small handful each. I'll pm you when I get back from work Rob. Thanks guys!

eBay? Yeah, but they're like £2 each plus postage for a coin that's worth about 20p. I'd prefer to get them a bit closer to face value! Plus they ship from Lithuania or somewhere, so there's a risk they won't arrive in time. Daughter bought a couple of Russian doll money boxes for her Grandma and Aunt who are visiting Moscow next Spring and we though it would be fun to pop a few coins in each .. hence the desire to keep it cheap!

OK. And today I am after ... some Russian Roubles! Preferably current ones (1998-) and cheap. I only need them for a whimsical Christmas gift for some of the family, so grade is unimportant! Hus? Dave? Anyone? Thanks!

Just received this email. Might be a better bet with the coin 'in the hand'? Baldwin's - The Name For Numismatics Meet our specialists at the Irish Numismatic Society 50th Anniversary Exhibition Table Letter S Our experts will be on hand to provide a free valuation of any items you may wish to have appraised for direct purchase, or submission to one of our global auctions. 30 November 2013 Hastings Europa Hotel, Great Victoria Street, Belfast, BT2 7AP

GO to the Beginners Forum READ the Stickie there on the subject of posting pictures. You CAN post pictures here. http://www.predecimal.com/forum/topic/7880-posting-pics/

Yes. It feels as if it used to be a chain. (Or a pyramid or whatever ..) where people collected a few coins off ebay, saw that dealers had nicer examples and bought a few. Then a coin with provenance turned up at an auction and they maybe push the boat out .. funding their purchase from coins of perfectly acceptable mid-range collectable condition that they sold on or back to the dealers? Nowadays it's as if auction houses expect unknown buyers to pop up and buy half of Lockett's finest coins. And for all I know, maybe that is what's been happening. But that causes two problems in that it leaves nothing for the collector who wishes to gradually improve their collection. And I can't help but think that anyone that buys heavily into 'prestige' coins with no background interest, could just as easily dump it all and turn to wines or classic cars or whatever the next investible turns out to be at the drop of a hat .. Though of course, all the sorts of coins that used to be in the Circular can't have just disappeared .. they must be somewhere ..

I have been thinking about this and wonder if .. we're just all A Bunch of Old Fogeys! But seriously, I think, for me at least, there's a lack of perspective. For example, I occasionally work at a local Food Bank, sorting out items by best by dates to ensure stock gets used most efficiently. All good stuff, but I've noticed it affects my idea of what is current. As a consequence, I've been at home and looked at something and thought "Jan 2015?!?! Gosh, I'd better use that as it runs out soon!" And the reverse is true of coin dealers. I spend so much time looking at old books and auction catalogues, I forget times-they-have-a-chang-ed! I think of Spink and Seaby, but CNG bought out Seaby back in 2001. And when I think of staff .. Stephen Mitchell left Seaby in 1987, Mark Rasmussen left Spink in 2001, Antony Wilson set up Studio a year later ... well, you get the idea. Coin dealing has changed and I'm not sure I'm not stuck in an illusory golden age where Dolphin Coins has some wonderful stock just waiting for when I next visit! Nostalgia just isn't what it used to be ...

I hope it won't be to Long before we're no longer a part of Westminster. Part of Westminster? Goodness, then why did I have to drive all the way through blasted Northumbria to get there? Silly me! Next time I'm shopping at Fortnums I'll pop over and see you then Dave. What's the nearest tube stop again?

So one catalogue, not split in two as discussed a while back? Have you had a chance to look through it yet Alan and get a feel for how prices have moved since the last edition?

As we're discussing Dave maybe it should be Minnie the Minx ... I seem to remember she's a hot heeded Scot!

Does that make me part of the 10% that normally agrees with a bit of what you say, Dave? Or the 10% that from time to time agrees with much of what you say? Or am I part of the 90% that occasionally doesn't agree with much of what you say? Or the 90% that normally doesn't agree with a bit of what you say ... ? :lol:P Sorry Peck. Could you put that all into PowerPoint pie chart for me, because I'm lost otherwise! Maybe bagpipes in the background and a Venn diagram would help too ... or maybe I just need a glass of Scotch.

Well, I'm very clearly not in the Spink market then! My top budget is closer to £500. In 2013 I have bought seven coins, two off eBay, two from a dealer and the other three auction purchases. 8 or 9 years ago all of those coins (respectable examples, two with a bit of traceable provenance) could have come from the SNC. Sure, I didn't pay £000s for them, but they are what I consider decent bread and butter coins that few dealers would be unwilling to list. As far as I can see, that market remains, just without Spink. Sure, concentrating on rarities brings in the big money. But rarities, by their nature, are not frequently encountered. Spink may not want to be Tesco. But even Harrods sells run-of-the-mill items as well as the diamond encrusted iPhone cases.

Happy Thanksgiving guys!

Good strategy Sword. Take time to learn what's average condition and what's not. Then when you spot something particularly pleasing .. go for it. Unless it's a Chas I shilling of course!