Gollum

I didn't want to say it aloud because I would not want to insult anyone who does not deserve it, one of my main concerns is the person who owns a coin shop and sells some quality coins but mainly tat to the uninitiated or foreign visitor and does it knowingly, and should be avoided at all costs, there must be some around somewhere. My other reason is that I stumbled upon a dealer quite close to me that IS reputable yet who's site is only, as far as I can see, 2 pages. His site does him no justice from his reputation and I would of quite happily ignored him and moved to the bigger flashier shop with a perceived reputation to uphold, but who knows this and having got a reputaion then trades on it to sell rubbish with immunity, if it had not been for another member of the forum telling me that this seller was to be trusted. without that information I would have probably not only moved over him but also possibly have gone to Mr I can sing and dance with a flash site or such and been conned, we all know all that glitters may not be gold, yet without the knowledge many here have both of dealers to trust and the coin itself I could very easily be buying a lot of rubbish.

I have security lights all round my house, and a burglar alarm ( currently not working, but the box is there as are the sensors in the rooms clearly visible through windows so may deter ), and I suppose living in the country in a small village helps, although there have been warnings about thefts lately that worry. Rob, is there no way to save my pennies from the Verdigris, there are some nice dates on them, from 1860 ( inc) to 1938, I would hate to see them just waste away, if I cleaned them ( I know....heresy )just so I can see them and not for collectors items which they sadly will never be, would they be ok, or continue to deteriorate ?. I have to be honest, I am unemployed and have been medicaly for a while now and so every coin I get is precious to me, I rarely go out ( hence the times and amount of posts I make ) because of my health, lack of transport and other such things, so losing even one coin hurts, even if it was only saved just to look at or for comparison would be a bonus to me.

Hi Tom. My collection is erm Very Very small at present, but I have high hopes, both of lots of copper coins because their relatively cheap and easy to get in comparison to your choice, and to have some nice gold ( 1 or 2 perhaps )and silver coins. There have been a number of break in's around Newbury of late and so do get a bit worried in that respect. It's nice to have a little ambition but reality says I will never have a mega collection worth a fortune. As for a box, i don't know why my interest's are not showing in my name bar as yours does, but I used to be a carpenter and joiner until I had to give it up owing to severe heart Asthma back in the late 70's, I then took up Motor Mechanics and was certified as insane to work for peanuts by the proper authority ( C&G ) some many years past, sadly I had to give that up to, I suffer with Nickel dermatitis that leaves me with severe sores up both arms and it got to the point I could not take it any more !, unlike coin collecting you can't wear gloves all the time, I now only fix my own cars or my motorbike if I need to. I like the way you say drawer full of coins, I wish I had that many even. Maybe one day, as I said, I will perhaps have a shoe box full to gloat over. Even if as Rob who has cursed my collection would say, covered in Verdigris ( I think green is a nice cool colour, maybe the Americans will buy them as green rainbow tints at vast prices ).

What about those sellers who are not forum members but members of say a coin club your part of ?.

I will not be getting a box at those prices, rather dig a hole in my back garden and bury it all, or stick it under my greenhouse !.

Well for one thing Azda I don't know all the members websites etc, and sometimes it is easier for me to look on ebay, no other reason. Well maybe that they have things selling on ebay that are not on their web sites. Other than that I can't think of any other reasons.

Ok, but how many of these fine fellow are willing to pass their ebay ID's over so we can go look see. I am still waiting for Declan to find me a 1933 Penny.....

Didn't know this was here, so put this link elsewhere too. Lots of old books on coins etc, I like it but there arent many pics to look at. http://www.archive.org/search.php?query=coins%20AND%20mediatype%3Atexts&sort=-downloads if it gives a google link hit the http button underneath and then choose the .pdf file, right click and save as.

I found this interesting today. Some will already know of it but then again a lot of beginners may not, and whilst they are not full of pics and such they are still interesting. http://www.archive.org/search.php?query=coins%20AND%20mediatype%3Atexts&sort=-downloads I like the thomas simon one best.

25 Euros for a safe, do you mean safety deposit box ?, how much is it in the UK, I have never even thought of doing such so would be interested.

Would it be possible with all the fakes about and such to have a list of trusted sellers in your local area, my desire here is to ensure, as much as is possible, that beginners like myself who stroll into the forum can look at this and feel some measure of comfort that a seller ON the list is at least going to have some measure of trust by members and is therefore safe to purchase from, that the person on the list is not a Arthur Daley type who cares not what he does. I realise that some may think it has legal implications in so far as libel or slander etc but this would hold true ONLY if a person had a negative comment made against them, if they are merely ommitted from the list then it is up to the individual buying to make their own minds up as to why that seller is not on the list and no implication can be made against the poster etc. Maybe you as leaders in your field can do something to slow down, in some small way, the disreputable dealers who knowingly and deliberately take advantage of beginners and bring some measure of respect back. Good idea or bad idea ?.

Erm is it because the speed limit is 30 ? I am either not so old at 52 or going senile.

Farthing ¼d. 5⁄48p ≈ 0.104p Halfpenny ½d. 5⁄24p ≈ 0.208p Penny 1d. 5⁄12p ≈ 0.417p Threepence 3d. 1¼p Sixpence 6d. 2½p Shilling 1/- 5p Florin 2/- 10p Half crown 2/6 12½p Crown 5/- 25p Pound 20/- 100p Guinea 21/- 105p Best I could steal from wikipedia

I am showing my igorance here (and my age)but what's a tanner?! Hi Debbie It's a sixpence

Ooh ok. Well let me see about your requirements. 1. Thats good and I don't feel so "cheap" now as I have very little money usually. 2 & 3. Your forgiven. Upon receipt of a bag of gold sovereigns. 4. I have at least 2 of each of those cheap and tatty old coins. 5. Oh there wasnt a five was there. So how is membership paid ( ie.What form ) might not get to many if any meetings as i do not have a car etc and I live in a village with no real buses in or out. Happy to join though just to bump up numbers, give the club an extra few shekels and all that sort of thing . Thanks for the Email reply as well. Garry

Ooh I forgot, Today I also got my CCGB 2011 from amazon and my ebook of english striking history AND an infernal 1964 JFK silver half dollar in a case from someone who said it was ugly and I could have it, I tend to agree, those American coins are no where near as pretty as our English ones .

Ooh I forgot, Today I also got my CCGB 2011 from amazon and my ebook of english striking history AND an infernal 1964 JFK half dollar in case from someone who said it was ugly and I could have it, I tend to agree, those American coins are no where near as pretty as our English ones.

Cerbera100 I am NOT talking to you ! , you're one of them nasty people from that Reading Coin Club I asked for membership prices of some time back now and I NEVER got a reply, REALLY miffed now, in fact I am so miffed I may give them another chance. Seriously though I sent them an email a while back now and no response, which tells me either 1. Their too elite. 2. They are erm small and not watching their emails 3. Someone is not doing their job. 4. I just do not have a important collection and fell through the cracks. Go kick backside for me will you. If its not too expensive I may join it :D . I spent the grand total of £1.50 today on 2 coins from our Forum leader ( all hail Chris ) so I have now filled his xmas stocking this year.... Wait till this festive nonsense is over and the women stop moaning, then it's buy buy buy.

No one likes to consider giving money away or their collection being stolen, but. Can anyone tell me what type of insurance I would need to cover my coin collection once it gets bigger, and if possible which firm(s) and any contact details to go through.

Well I guess I could define myself as in sub 1, with a bit of luck I may even claim the lofty realm of 1 in a while. I am thinking of buying a couple of those coins that our sesteemed landlord Mr Perkins is offering, and I am thinking of getting some from a man in mortimer who appeals to my pocket. Those thruppences are really calling to me lately. Then again so do the Tanners sitting there too. I really wish as a kid I had put all those coins away I had "borrowed" from amusement arcades. I find it nice and comforting to see that a lot of you are happy to impart your expertise in your particular area of collecting unlike some forums where knowledge is hoarded and never imparted yet abuse at other peoples ignorance as begginers is freely given. Different class of people altogher you numismatists, think I may hang around permanently. IF you change the biscuits and T bags...... now't worse than cheap tea .

I just had a thought, yes, I know, unique for me as the wife says, but are those electrolysis kits any good for cleaning coins or just a gimmick.

Sorry Colin, I knew it had no silver content in it, I actually meant no silver look to it, it is all pink/brown and not very pretty , I guess it is a scrapper apart from reference in respect of the strike for others of the era,much annoyed !, people should look after their coins a lot better. All my 1800 pennies are in olive oil as per advice as well. Hopefully I can stop the verdigris spread. I may try posting some pics or scans later of my other coins, then one of you can tell me how awfull they are. Message to the rest of the world - their a finite resource, look after them...

Do you define a collector as someone who collects all world coins, a person who collects a specific type and date range or reign, someone who collects for their monetary value as investments or for their aesthetics, do you consider it someone who purchases en-bloc large sets or someone who goes and seeks them out for himself trudging around various shops and citys etc, or do you consider the true collector as the person who collects them having sought them out in person in shops and then writes all he can about them and shares that information. Just curious and please guys, no arguments. I would hate for someone to say x in here is merely a investment broker and not a collector. I would like to think I had fun / stress seeking mine out rather than merely just ordering them from a shop all the time, I guess one or two that are hard to find is ok, whistfully looking out of my window and imagining the find of a few hard to get ones at some boot sale or the likes, even in a coin shop because the seller did not look too hard gets me racing. I have a metal detector and often think about getting lucky. A frimed of mine picked up a gold angel the other day, made around £700 he said, never happens to me .

I am rather concerned about my 1950 shilling, it has no silver on it at all, it looks all copper and it is not fair, why would it be missing any traces of silver.