Red Riley

Personally I don't subscribe to the view that insurance is a waste of time and money - for coins and other valuable items at any rate. Frankly, the days when insurers could hide behind Clause 13b(vi) on page 5 of the small print have long gone. Much legislation has been passed in recent years ensuring that this won't happen. If you answer all the questions on the proposal form truthfully then you should be OK. In the event that you file a claim and are not getting satisfaction from your insurer, then you have recourse to the Financial Ombudsman Service. I am a bit of an insider here as I spent a couple of years working for the ombudsman, and far from feeling that they did not uphold sufficient complaints, my main frustration was undeserving individuals filing dubious claims, having them upheld by a lenient ombudsman on scanty evidence and effectively raping the system. Where the ombudsman did get a slightly dubious reputation was on the time-barring of complaints in such as the Pensions Mis-selling or Mortgage Endowment Reviews, but this was outside the ombudsman's control, the time-frames being set by parliament. On a slightly different tack, you are asking for trouble if you don't have decent home security. If you have a collection worth say, £50k, isn't it reasonable to invest £3-4k in a decent safe and intruder alarm? Of course, most collections won't be worth this much, and where you draw the line is entirely up to you, but it certainly gives you peace of mind. Additionally, good security will make your insurance cheaper. It is easy to be cynical about all these safeguards, but in my view that is misplaced and for your own benefit, you really should think hard about protecting what is a substantial investment.

You'd need to be a cockney to understand that one.

Couldn't agree more. One of the worst I think. Frankly, very little from 1937 onwards (bar the farthings) really cut the mustard. Am I just a grumpy old man monotonously saying, 'things aren't as good as they used to be...'? Anyway, back to the subject, I did dabble in both types of collection, eventually having a complete penny run from 1797 to 1970, as well as more than three-quarters of the milled types. In the end, I also went in for European and USA coins, but then the money ran out...

The big issue for me is that what had once been a coin is now a lump of ugly plastic with a sterile, untouchable coin in it.

Happy birthday Bob. Don't strain yourself blowing out all the candles!

No colon dots after F:D. Peck 1623a, Gouby 1860 Type T. Took me ages to realise though.

Most 1934s were still in GF-VF condition in 1971 whereas 12Hs were generally pretty grim by that stage, although unlike 18 and 19 H/KN (especially KNs) were still fairly common in circulation.

This is a go and hide in the air-raid shelter moment. I have a copy of Peck, not because it looks nice but because it is useful. I paid a three figure sum for it and as things stand, consider that good value. Frankly however, I would be just as happy with a loose life binder full of photocopied sheets (now there's a thought...). I am not an antiquarian and in my view a book is there to convey information. In the unlikely event that pressure from those of us who have 'invested' in copies of Peck on the secondhand books market prevented Spink or whoever from re-printing the book at a reasonable price, then surely we would be guilty of denying information to those who might need it, purely to protect our investment. Call me old-fashioned but that just don't seem right to me.

Wasn't Chris involved in some project to re-issue Peck? Might be worth trawling through the old postings.

Not for me. A number struck over a different number e.g. 1865 over 3 is fine but a 9 over another 9 just doesn't float my boat.

The only post 1936 penny varieties even approaching collectability are the 1940 single/double line. IMHO!

Probably true, and being in possession of each of the business types, I would say that these are the kind of variety that cure my insomnia! The differences are minute and consist of nothing more than letters pointing to teeth or gaps and not much else. I'm sorry if it's anybody's 'thing' but if all varieties were like this I'd collect bottle tops.

and a picture that no one could see...

I have crossed the divide as it were, so sell rather than buy, but I always found it worthwhile to keep a number of dealers websites in my favourites list. Even if they don't have the exact same coin that you are interested in, what they do have should often be enough to point you in the right direction. Then check in Spink (or CCGB, which I find more accurate for 'our' type of coins) to see that the item you have in mind is roughly equal to one on a dealer's list, and make your assessment from there. Does that make sense? Also bear in mind that coins are all individuals and a nicely toned EF say, may have a higher value than you might expect - it all comes down to demand and how easy it will be to re-sell the piece. And as someone on the forum, John I think, says, 'buy the coin and not the grade'.

I frequently find Spink to be the most far out of the major guides, some of their prices are quite baffling and bear no relationship to what coins are going for in the real world. I also think their Unc. price in this case (£50) is pushing twice as much as its actual value even with 95% plus lustre. Spink is fine as a wide ranging guide to what is available, and for all I know, may be reasonably accurate for those really top end coins which none of us can afford. But for the bread and butter stuff that us mere mortals dabble in, it can be quite hopeless. You may say that as the CCGB price is only £5, then you have paid 50p over the top, but what has to be remembered is that between EF (£5) and BU (£35) is a great chasm into which real, rather than theoretical coins will fit. The vast bulk of coins aren't exactly EF or Unc. but somewhere between the two, so on that basis I would consider the £5.50 you paid for a pleasing EF, pretty good value.

It's probably about the going rate. Common date and the commoner of two varieties, EF but no lustre. Looks quite a tidy coin, so no, you weren't ripped off.

I want to know what 'NEMATUT' means.

I'm not an Arsenal supporter but I would much rather see the menacing scowl and steam coming out of Roy Keane's ears. I have nothing special against the Tractor Boys, just their manager.

If you really have a 1968 British penny then go and put a deposit on a Ferrari! For the 1919, have a look to the left of the date; what you hope to see are the letters either 'H' or 'KN'. Still no guarantee that they are of much value but the presence of these letters (indicating that they were made in Birmingham by either Ralph Heaton & Son or the King's Norton Metal Company) make it worth enquiring further. Of the others, they would need to appear virtually unused, and preferrably with mint lustre (the shine you get on new coins) to be worth much more than their metal content.

First of all, DON'T CLEAN THEM!!! Secondly, valuations can often be disappointing. Comparatively modern issues (and anything from 1910 would fall into that category) need to be in tip-top condition to have much value. There are of course exceptions, rare dates, varieties etc. which have a reasonable value even in normal circulated condition.* Bank notes and Irish coinage are largely outside my experience, so can't comment individually but the same comment would certainly apply to them. What I suggest you do next is give us some idea of what you've got (i.e. denominations, dates etc.) and post photographs of what you think are your best coins, and with a bit of luck we should be able to point you in the right direction. *There are scarce penny varieties to look out for dated 1918, 1919, 1926 and all pennies dated 1950 and 1951 are scarce.

Thanks guys. The way you use it, RobJ is exactly as I envisaged - it is a learning aid and not a bible.

Wow! A Thermal printer? Now you are just showing off. lol Whooshing sound as this entire thread flies way above my head...

I think it was, but misguided in my view.

Snap! I'm not very far into this so take everything I say with a pinch of salt. Other more experienced dealers' views may be of more help. 1)What insurance would you recommend for operating stock of this value from home? I use these people: info@stampinsurance.co.uk. Recommended by somebody on the forum. They seem to know what they're doing but only operate in the mornings. A major difference between insuring as a dealer and a collector is that the sum insured is based on the total purchase price of the coins rather than the replacement value. Do you use your home address of set up a PO Box? I set up a P.O.Box No. Safer. I don't mind regular forum members knowing my home address but can get a bit dicey with Joe Public. I put a paragraph on my website to say why I use a P.O. Box no. Do you have much family time left if you are doing this as well as your day job? (Wifes concern) I'm not currently otherwise gainfully employed, but I think once you have set up the website (my wife actually set up mine!) you could probably get away with it. Don't underestimate how long it will take to photograph and catalogue everything. How do you combat customs charges when you are buying in if the seller declares the full value? I haven't bought from abroad so really can't comment. Would you advise to voluntarily register for VAT if your under the threshold? I haven't even looked at this, bur buying and selling coins (which are not subject to VAT) or books (ditto) your involvement with VAT should be minimal. Any other useful hints and tips? Due to the charges British banks make (they charge a teener every time you have to go and get one out), for most dealers it is not feasible to keep your coins at the bank, so invest in a bloody great safe! If I think of anything else, I will let you know.

We tend to look at l.s.d. with rose tinted spectacles. Frankly it was a bloody awful system to use and getting shot of it was arguably 100+ years late. So much school time was wasted teaching kids an unnecessarily complicated coinage structure as opposed to simply counting on their fingers which in effect is what we and virtually every other nation does now. It was only resiatance to change and official inertia which prevented its replacement in the 1850s. In purely monetary terms the related decision to re-introduce the halfcrown in 1874 really does take the biscuit.