Coin Collecting
Collecting coins, paper money and learning coin values.
The first thing you should know about coin collecting is how to handle your coins.You always want to handle coins from the edges and try to never touch the Obverse (front) or the Reverse (back) of the coin.
Many people feel that before you bring your coins to a coin dealer you must make them shiny and new to make them worth more.
This is incorrect as with all true collectibles the value will diminish if the item is not in it's original condition.
You MUST NEVER Clean your coins.
Doing so will reduce the value of your coins substantially and will make it very hard for you to sell your coins.
A true collector or dealer will be able to tell that your coin has a fake shine to it and it does not have it's natural luster so make sure you never clean your coins as it will not bring more value to them but actually less value.
If you have paper money it is always best to keep it flat in a currency holder or in a book.
Many people bring paper money into our store and pull it out of their pockets all folded up.
Reducing the amount of creases in your paper money will keep the value of the item from being reduced.
Just Starting out Collecting Coins ?
The best thing to do purchase a Red Book Coin Value Guide.
The Red Book has been around for years and is an excellent reference guide to coin collecting.
There is lots of information in the book such as
- grading coins
- coin prices
- mintage quantity of each coin
- and much more !
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2006 Red Book The 2006 red book is a valuable guide for learning the history of us coins, how to grade a US coin, and to find the value of a US coin. The Red Book comes in two different styles, Soft cover with spiral bound and a Hard cover. |
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How to find a Coin Dealer ?
One of the best ways to locate a coin dealer is in the yellow pages or doing a search on the web to find one in your area.
Many new coin collectors are always leary on who they should deal with in regards to coin grading.
New coin collectors are worried they cannot grade coins well and grading a coin correctly will change the value of the coin substantially.
99% of coin dealers are reputable but if you have any concerns try to ask other collectors in your area about the grading of the dealer in your area.
If the coin dealer has been in business for many years he has built a reputation in your area and other collectors will know.
Determining Coin Values:
Although coin collecting is a fun and exciting hobby it does take quite a bit of time to learn how to grade coins. The coins value is made up of two main components.- 1) The year & mint mark
- 2) The condition.
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Photograde Coin Grading guide It is a soft cover guide for beginners and advanced coin graders. This book is a great guide to learn how to grade coins and how to distinguish between a counterfeit and real coin. |
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Storing your Coin Collection:
There are many ways to preserve your coin collection. Always keep your coins in a cool dry place so moisture will not affect the coins or coins holders. The best way to keep your coins is in a 2x2 cardboard holder. These holders can be written on and stored into 1 row or 2 row boxes.
Buying Slabbed Coins:
A slabbed coin is a coin which has been sent to an independent coin grading service such as PCGS or NGC.
These companies are paid a fee to have their experts grade and then encase the coins into a holder.
The holder will have the grade of the coin on it so collectors know what the experts believe the grade to be on that specific coin.
The coins are encased in hard plastic so the coins cannot be switched.
Many new collectors like to purchase slabbed coins as they know the coin has been graded by an independent expert.
The fees normally range about $20-$25 per coin so you usually won't see coins slabbed unless they are higher in value.
Also as there are many coin grading companies the grade is only as good as the company that graded it.
NGC, PCGS and ANACS are the top 3 companies in the coin grading industry.
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