Boomstick

Can anybody recommend a good lens for looking at me coins? I understand loupe is the technical term. Are the ones with lights on preferable? Any preferred magnification? I want to look the part next time I saunter into a coin fayre...

Hmm, I hope that wasn't how you arrived at the price of the coins I recently bought from you John!

Surely Unc is the easiest grade to classify? It'll have no wear at all, after which bag marks etc are just nitpicking in my opinion! As mentioned by Rob, it gets a bit tricky in the WW1 area when the strikes are weak - does anyone have any advice on how to tell a weak strike from normal wear?

Do you have to register to bid, or do you just email them your details and bids?

If we're playing with fantasy funds, I'd go for a Scarborough besieged piece. Grading irrelevant, a rough slab of currency melted from whatever was left in the castle has more embedded history than any number of UNC specimens.

That profile of Big Phil scares me...

Wow, looks like it's been thrown up onto by a tellytubby! I suppose we should be thankful he didn't do it to a high grade coin. The MONSTER TONE makes it look like a feature on Pimp My Coin...

It wasn't a fake Tom, it came up as a printing error and was subsequently withdrawn - think they're worth about 40 quid now. I digress - back to discussions relating to currency of the metallic kind!

Would that make it worth finding one in good condition at keeping it? I've still got one of the fivers that came out a few years ago where you could rub the serial number off.

Not that difficult to keep small really - each coin takes me months to save up for! It's a bit frustrating sometimes, but at least it gives me time to research (I'm relatively new to this). I only buy from reputable dealers to reduce the risk of getting ripped off - I have dabbled in eBay, but only for the smaller purchases. I want to see them myself for the eye appeal for the more pricey stuff.

Sorry I'm late to the party... £300 for an 1817 bull head half crown. Only my second ever purchase! Trying to keep my collection small and high quality - one of each monarch as a starting point. G4 and W4 going to take a while at these prices!

http://www.sixbid.com/nav.php?p=viewsale&sid=455&cid=&pg=1&search=&s=b

Ah, that takes me back! I did my work experience at the BofE printing works way back in '91. I got a full tour of the money making process and even got to hold £100k in cash! I think I've still got a little souvenir bag of shredded notes somewhere - gave up trying to piece it back together after a couple of hours...

I'm looking to purchase a Unc 1902 half crown - spink says £120 should get me one but there seem to be several floating about at the £170/180 mark. Are the sellers being optimistic or am I going to have to stretch my budget? What does anyone think is a fair price? I thought Spink was supposed to be heavy on the estimates?? Thanks in advance.

No, but I have now! Very nice. I'm happy to pay the going rate for a really nice coin - I'm just trying to get a handle on what that is.

Whilst watching the current silver values plummeting, a thought occurred to me - has anyone ever plotted out value against time for any particular denominations? Obviously the higher grade coins will be less tied to base values, but there must be other market forces that dictate rises and falls in perceived values. This exercise would be particularly useful if you're holding out for a big purchase - if there is a "bubble" in you particular area, you might want to wait for a correction, for instance. Just a thought. And no, I'm not volunteering!

The final sold price shows that the buyers aren't fooled. It just makes him look like a bit of a joker and makes it less likely that serious collectors will go anywhere near his stuff.

Dear all, I'm fairly new to the collecting game and have spent a while working out what to collect - I've settled on pre-1920 half crowns. The dilemma I'm having is that I have a modest budget and would like to buy the best possible examples. Any views on whether I should save my budget and buy, say, two pieces a year, or should I settle for lower grade coins more often?

Hmm, don't think I've got the patience for that. It's no fun being a collector with no coins! Maybe that can be one I buy with the inheritance from the wealthy-but-as-yet-unidentified distant relative...

Thanks for all the advice. I have the 1887 Jubilee, which got me interested in the first place. One of the main attractions of the half crown is the large range of designs. I'm aiming for one from each monarch first - got my eye on some nice 1816's and will look for a good G5 to start off with. Then I might lay off for 5 years and get me a pristine Cromwell!

Thanks for the heads up 1949. I'm a suspicious soul, and with the amount of money I'll have to shell out for decent coins of this type I'll only be going to reputable dealers. I'm aiming for EF and above - the post 1911, old Vicky and George 3 all look do-able; have to set a lower limit for the big guns though.

Thanks for the advice. I had a chuckle to myself about the "earn more money" comment - what with a new house and baby on the way, I think my missus has plenty of plans for any pay rises before my coin budget goes up! I'm a patient man, but it does get frustrating waiting for the pot to swell while the likes of asda have a weekly inundation of lovely new coins arriving!

So who are all these flush buyers? You chaps are the experts and aren't winning the lots for what you think (in your very learned opinions) they are worth. Are these new investors blindly taking a punt, or being guided by those in the industry??

Btw, could someone explain this plug business to me? It all seems very strange to have a funny little square thing in the middle of one's currency...

Not only that, but you can't get jellied eels anywhere - mystery to me how you've survived this long. A nice ham and pease pudding stottie, you Southeners divvnt knar wat ye missin! I'm sorry, what? That was just noise...