2006 issue?

[Geordie582 18]

No.1

No.2

No.3

Can anyone explain these, quoted as "in hand"?

Edited December 18, 2005 by Geordie582

[mint_mark 9]

More frivolity from the royal mint... is it even worth trying to keep up? There are pictures on their web site.

Still, the more designs they have the lower each mintage will be. They only seem to publish the combined figures for a denomination though.

Maybe in the future they will have coins with names and dates on, then you can look out for one with your birthday

[kuhli 0]

Maybe in the future they will have coins with names and dates on, then you can look out for one with your birthday

The mint of Turkey actually did that a few years ago. The coins had the date of minting on them. Wierd situation, never really followed it much, so my details are somewhat sketchy.

[kuhli 0]

No.1

No.2

No.3

Can anyone explain these, quoted as "in hand"?

It seems that the Westminster Collection (sshhhhh, bad word), gets first crack at Mint folders, and are already selling the 2006 Mint sets on their web-site. Westminster

The eBay seller is obviously breaking up the sets, trying to catch the "eager fever" for those who just have to have the new issues first.

The coins in the set include 2 new £2 coins, commemorating the 200th anniversary of the birth of Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the £1 Egyptian Arch bridge in N.I., and 2 50p coins, commemorating the 150th anniversary of the first presentation of the Victorian Cross medal.

Edited December 20, 2005 by kuhli

[Sylvester 15]

And they wonder why people are put off collecting new stuff? Like the stamp hobby it boils down to three things;

1. There's so much stuff you can't keep up

2. They charge high prices for them in the first place

3. They are a poor 'investment' (dare i use the word), because they never do well on the secondhand market... due generally because there's that much different stuff out there the competition is spread out. Also alot of modern collectors give up because they can't keep up anyhow.

If you were saying trying to collect all cupronickel coins minted in the 1950s then you'd have all the circulation stuff and two commem crowns to get. Anyone else trying the same goal is after the same stuff. Make it all cupronickel stuff from the 2000-9 decade and well, where do you start? Proofs, UNC, specimens, Piedfort proofs, proofs in silver, commems, commems in differet packaging, commems in silver... You'd be there for years.

Pointless.

[Chris Perkins 228]

You're absolutely right. There's far too much of it, and most of it claims to commemorate things that shouldn't need to be commemorated with a coin! All it is, is a good revenue generator for the RM. As soon as the masses started collecting coins in the 60's, the mints of the world thought 'Hang on a min, we can cash in on this'.

So at first they made annual proof sets instead of just for coronations, jubilees and new coinages. That went ok through the 70's, and then they stepped things up a bit, a crown for 1977, fair enough it was a jubilee year (although it was made is huge numbers). Then another for '80 (not warranted), another for '81 (not warranted). Then they kept a steady pace until about the mid-late 90's when it all went barmy and they issue 1-5 new coins annually marking the most ridiculous things. And none of them are going to increase in value more than inflation (apart from errors like the '83 New 2p etc).

This is a copy of a rather sad email I got yesterday:

Hi

We have been purchasing the Battle of Trafalgar Bicentenary Collection from the Westminster Collection and on the initial leaflet it looked like there would be 12 in the set, although it wasn't indicated how many. I have recently contacted the Westminster to find out that there are 29 to collect of which I have 13 so far and in total this would equal a purchase cost of £1200 if completed. Obviously as this was marked as a limited edition set to 14,500 I am in two minds whether this set would be worth continuing to collect or whether to cut my losses now.

The coins are £5 denomination - 925 Silver Proof - please can you advise whether this would be a sound investment or whether I should invest in different coins?

If not a good investment - where can I go to sell my coins and would this be at a loss?

Additionally could I go back to Westminster to complain that they miss sold their product by not confirming how many coins would have to be purchased?

Many thanks

Rachel

---------------------------------------------

I asked her if she really thought that 14,500 people would really want the set of 29 coins in say 20 years. I told her that there would be very little demand and that she should cut her losses now.

I think something really needs to be done to inform the public about this modern crap that is promoted as 'limited edition' delibrately to get people to buy it imagining that somehow it'll be like a 1934 crown in 10-30 years! I think it's morally wrong, and I hate it! It's enough to put people off coin collecting for life before they really experience real coin collecting.

And I hope that as many people read this thread as possible.

[kuhli 0]

I think something really needs to be done to inform the public about this modern crap that is promoted as 'limited edition' delibrately to get people to buy it imagining that somehow it'll be like a 1934 crown in 10-30 years! I think it's morally wrong, and I hate it! It's enough to put people off coin collecting for life before they really experience real coin collecting.

You hit it spot on, Chris. We have had this problem in the US for 20+ years, with the likes of Franklin Mint and others.

And of course, being a dealer, as soon as you tell someone their Westminster "limited edition" collection of Tuvalu crowns has virtually no value, you become the sheister, not Westminster, who suckered them into the collection to begin with.

[Rob 3,152]

I totally concur. The problem with limited editions is there is no upper limit. Even 1967 pennies had a limited output. Personally I would only consider issues of less than 1000 to be limited if asked to put an arbitrary figure on it. Just think, Colin Cooke's repro pennies to commemorate the Nicholson sale being worth more than an official L.E. set.

[wybrit 2]

The phrase "limited edition" itself is a red flag which precludes me from collecting. The simple translation for it is "contrived refuse."

What chaps me most are these full page advertisements in newspapers and pressure sales tactics used on 24 hour shop at home television stations to convince retirees that coins (especially bullion) are a good investment. The email chris received is very typical of what is happening thousands of times over each day - legalised robbery.

[Chris Perkins 228]

So what we gonna do about it?

(without naming names and getting sued all the way to Westminster )

[Peter 615]

The "Argos" of Coin dealers...(sorry sellers)

[Geordie582 18]

The only modern coins I collect are the £5's on a price for price basis. Any other must come from change

[Sylvester 15]

The rule i use (and rarely break), "at the time of issue would you have recieved one in circulation?"

YES - Then it's in.

NO - Then forget it.

I bend the rules a little; e.g sovereigns were not in circulation much after the outbreak of WWI, but few would argue aginst them being a proper issue.

Stuff like 1980s BU coins, most came only in sets and never went into circulation, but should a 1982 2p coin happen to go into circulation then there'd not be much trouble involved in the coin passing through the tills.

Proofs i generally avoid but i accept that if they are of circulating coinage then it's perfectly alright.

[mint_mark 9]

The rule i use (and rarely break), "at the time of issue would you have recieved one in circulation?"

So, are the commemorative five pound coins in or out? I've never had one in change, but other people here have. If the rule leans towards "could you have received..." then you have to let in all sorts stuff with nominal legal tender values, so maybe the rule should lean towards the other extreme... so, a coin collection consisting entirely of coins that I personally received in change and could have spent!

... which is probably how most collections start anyway

[Geordie582 18]

That would be a bit difficult for me .... I'm a hammered collector!

Edited December 28, 2005 by Geordie582

[Peter 615]

Just a few early Charles 11 coins then Geordie.