greatgoldcoins.net » Treasure Hunting

Where to Buy Coins

keith — Sat, 17 Apr 2010 10:54:09 +0000

While everyone seem to be in the middle of a Gold Rush Silver has been steadily growing in worth .
Although Silver is still growing in value it will probably never reach the dizzy heights of gold.
One investor tried to corner the market in silver but was eventually thwarted.

Where to buy Coins

What is the best place to buy Coins ?

Many people just look on Coin collecting as a hobby.

There are however lots of newspaper and magazine articles about folks who have found a rare or valuable coin and subsequently sold it for thousands !

This is a great encouragement for anyone who collects coins.
It is rather like winning the Lotto but without the likelihood of losing the initial investment.

(I speak as someone who played the daily lotto for six consecutive days only to see his numbers appear (in order) on the seventh day !)

The difference is that coin collecting involves skill and judgment too.

What your aim is – To find a rare coin or coins that someone has either mis-catalogued, under graded or otherwise undervalued.

RockAmerica Urban March 2006
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10 LOT ★ 1920 AUSTRALIA GOLD SOVEREIGN REPLICA COIN ★ WIN NOW ★ COLLECT
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1911 canada SOVEREIGN GOLD COIN
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SILVER 1 10TH TROY OZ 999 Fine INDIAN
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You will be pitting your knowledge against people in the following fields :

Coin Dealers in Retail Stores:
(I exclude companies selling coins on TV since they usually sell to people easily influenced by advertising and hype)

Retail Store Owners usually know a LOT about coins and may have been in business for a number of years.
They will have excellent knowledge about the retail prices of popular coins like Silver Dollars, Proof Coins, Gold Coins and similar easily saleable coins.
It is unlikely that you will find great bargains in these stores.
The exception is for SPECIALIST COINS –coins from unusual countries and very early coins may offer hope for the bargain shopper.

Many dealers specialise in a specific range of coins apart from what I term their bread and butter coins.(easy to sell popular coins on which they make a smaller profit)

Dealers with specialist knowledge are very much worth cultivating not only for their knowledge of their field but to find out what THEY in turn are looking for.

By talking with them and looking at their coins you will learn a great deal. You may then be able to find some of the coins that dealer A is looking fo at dealer B who you will visit next

This is particularly common in dealers in small antiques arcades and people who go from dealer to dealer buying and selling coins that they know they will be able to resell quickly are known as RUNNERS (the other definition of a runner is someone who grabs a handful of coins and runs off without paying !(This varies from Country to Country)

Dealers and collectors in Flea markets (my favourite hunting ground)
Flea Markets:
You might think that a Flea Market is an unusual place to find a rare coin ..
But you would be wrong. I have found many rare coins from the most unlikely people at flea Markets.

You will see MANY over –priced coins (especially silver dollars and silver crowns) as these vendors are usually amateurs who do not realise the price difference to be found in grading.
It is always very worthwhile to go through cabinets or books of coins from dealers at Flea Markets.

Pay particular attention to coins from foreign countries (research is essential)
Many dealers who show coins will also sell stamps or Medals (examine he medals closely as these can be worth much more than coins.
If there is an antiques dealer who also sells coins or medals then he/she should have some bargains among their stock.

All flea market sellers eventually have a cash crisis of some kind – and if they are doing really badly may give you a chance to buy coins at a substantial discount.

They will almost certainly give hefty discounts for bulk buys or buying other objects plus the coins you really want.Ask how business is – and remember EVERYTHING IS NEGOTIABLE.

How about a local Coin Show ?
Sometimes coin shows have displays from local or nearby dealers and then you can compare prices from several different dealers on the same day.

It’s a great place to see new coins and what is currently available (maybe at a discount
A coin show is also a superb place to sell your bargain coins - all dealers have to have new stocks every week to keep their regular customers happy and interested.
You may even have the chance to collect some unexpected rare coins as well.

The Internet and Mail Order.:

Coin dealers love he Internet- there are thousands of dealers on the net.
There is really no reason why you should restrict your buying and selling to just your own country
The huge advantage as far as you are concerned is that you can see the coin before you buy on an online catalogue website and pay for it by PAYPAL.

There are of course exceptions – for some reason there are are fraudsters in a group of countries – Nigeria, Malaysia and The Philippines are notorious for online scams. Either you get a different or poorer grade of coin or in extreme circumstances just a registered empty envelope.

I would personally avoid either buying or selling in those countries currently.
Always read the dealers terms and conditions carefully – some dealers NEVER give refunds. Make very sure you can get a refund if you are not satisfied with the coin.

Before buying online try to contact existing customers for feedback (see the auction section for details.
There are MANY fake coin websites…it may well be safer to use a local version or branch of eBay.
NEVER part with any passwords or pin numbers to online websites.

I’m Shy about using an Auction !

Everyone feels like that at first.Its normal.
With online auctions there are normally two choices –
A BUY IT NOW option (which is the same as going ino a shop and buying at the marked price.

The Auction Option – this is much more fun.
Really rare coins often turn up at auctions.

There is a theory that an auction that starts off with a low starting price generates lots of bids.
Well that is sometimes true – but sometimes it lets crafty folk like you and I get coins at bargain prices.

Do Not ever make the first bid on a coin you want –Why ? Because if there are other bids you will have already made the price higher !

Wait until the last minute before the auction ends and if the coin looks great value, type in your bid (the top amount you think you can get the coin for and make a profit on it when you resell it)

Many people sell their whole collections at auction and this really does give you the chance to grab some bargains.

Here are regrettably fraudsters on every auction site and you have to investigate the sellers FEEDBACK before making a bid.

Click on the feebdback button and you will see what other buyers experiences are with that seller –
Avoid sellers who over grade their coins or take weeks to deliver them
Some buyer however are never satisfied and what you are looking for is sellers with feedback of 98% or higher.
Check out the other people who have bought as well to see what they have bought.
It can be a fun and interesting game.

Avoid sellers with less than 10 feedbacks (hese are often gained by buying ebooks and other low value items which build up the seller feedback (you want feedback from people on coins – not other goodies !

Friends and other Coin Collectors:

Other coin collectors often have duplicate coins that they will sell for price less than market value. (A Coin dealer always buys at less than market value and sells at market value – that is how he/she makes a profit)

SWEDEN 5 Krona 19551971 26 g SILVER high grade Lot x 2
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Excellent 1923 Liberty Silver Dollar
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2010 CELEBRATE AUSTRALIA SILVER 1 OZ OUNCE PROOF QUEENSLAND ANDA BRISBANE 1 2500
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UNCLEANED Ancient Roman Imperial Coin F VF Radiate Crown Type 20mm
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Four world silver coins nice 1899A German Mark George V Canada 25c George VI
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2011 CANADA $20 TULIP SILVER PROOF COIN MURANO GLASS LADYBUG SOLD OUT ONLY 5000
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To find friends who will sell to you look on online groups, forums and (if you have one) local groups. Then you can all learn from each other and swap information and possibly coins.

You can learn a great deal from forums and on-line groups (Yahoo and Google have many coin groups and so do Facebook and Myspace)From them you might find dealers who will give discounts, tips on coin collecting and maybe even acquire some of their coins too !

No matter what anyone will tell you, you will never ALWAYS make a profit on coins – sometimes you will win and sometimes you may lose.
The way to win is to be knowledgeable and well informed.

You will eventually meet dealers who will help you – and some who will try to fleece you. You will learn by experience – and experience has no price.

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Iceni Gold Hoard in Suffolk England

keith — Sat, 17 Apr 2010 10:08:14 +0000

While most folks seem to be mad for gold Silver has been steadily growing in worth .
Although Silver has not grown at the same rate as gold it will probably continue growing in value.
One investor tried to corner the market in silver but was eventually thwarted.

Nothing ever happens in Wickham Market
Well thats not quite true anymore.
This sleepy Suffolk town is the centre of a huge find of GOLD COINS
A Metal detectorist found these and did the honest British stiff upper-lip thing -(as would we all of course..)
He reported them to the Authorities (all 824 of them - the coins not the authorities !)
These are ICENI coins with celtic style symbols.
It is rumoured that they may even be Boadecias (boudicca if you want to be exact) but experts date them a little earlier.
and the hoard was buried in a plain pottery vessel.
Boudicca was the Iceni leader who beat heck out of the Romans - even razing the city of London
(much to the distress of the Romans)
The Romans thought that by kidnapping and assaulting her daughters they would teach her a lesson - they obviously had never had dealings with a British Mother before.
There is a statue of Boudicca (Boadecia) driving a chariot on the steps near the Houses of Parliament in London. She is a British Heroine.
There are several sites nearby in Sufffolk where other hoards have been found including Snettisham..

CE JFTD CELTIC ICENI EARLY FRECKENHAM Gold Stater
US $1,150.00

NERO Jerusalem PORCIUS FESTUS Rare Genuine Ancient Roman Coin 58AD Palm branch
US $90.00

The History of England From the Earliest Times to the
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NERO Porcius Festus 58AD Jerusalem Authentic Ancient Rare Biblical Roman Coin
US $72.00

Celtic Pannonian Danube Bronze Proto “Ring” Money 500BC
US $89.99

Celtic British Iceni Silver Unit Coin
US $119.00

The site was excavated by Archaeologists from Suffolk County Council funded by the August British Museum.
The hoard is currently in the care of the British Museum in London

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How to use a Metal Detector

keith — Sat, 17 Apr 2010 10:00:06 +0000

While everyone seem to be in the middle of a Gold Rush Silver has been steadily growing in value .
Although Silver is still growing in value it will probably continue growing in value.
One investor tried to corner the market in silver but was eventually thwarted.

Before you actually buy a metal detector, I suggest you join a metal detecting/Treasure hunting Club near your home
There are to great advantages to this.
First the social side where you will be able to go to sites where you have a much greater chance of finding coins and other hidden treasures and the camaraderie of other people with a similar interest.
The second advantage is advice.
This is not just advice on which metal detector to buy (you will be flooded with suggestions – most of which come from owners of that specific metal detector) but also on likely locations to search and hints and tips on using your new detector.
There are three types of metal detector:
Motion Detectors
If you plan to hunt for treasure on land in in fresh water then this may be your best first detector choice.
Pulse Detectors
This is the kind you need for detecting in salt water estuaries or in the sea.
Mullti Frequency Detectors
These can detect in either fresh or salt water or on land but they do tend to be more expensive.
Good names in metal detectors are Bouny Hunter,Garret and National Geographic but there are other good makes.

Basically - in Metal Detectors you get what you pay for.

A cheap metal detector will pick up lots of metal … like ring –pulls off soda cans or secret hoards of beer cans !
It will usually only find coins and rings if they are near the surface.
If you swing your detect around fast then you will probably miss the faint signals.
The Technique I use is to mark out the area I am going to search with string and nylon knitting needles (so they will not affect the detector) I make little alleyways like this.
I then move slowly down each alleyway slowly swinging about ½ an inch from the surface from side to side. I then double up to sear the same area the opposite way (I’m not sure why but my metal detector seems to work better in one direction than the other. I have a medium price range detector .

When I get a good sounding Ping/Beep then I probe the earth with a plastic knife and if I do not find the signal source I try again over the material I have excavated. I then dig again with the knife until I find my little piece of treasure.

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Be sure you are on Public land which does not have restrictions on metal detecting or get the landowners written permission (promise him in writing to share any treasure/coins you find.

Some metal detectors are purpose built for underwater hunting of for specific metals like Gold or silver.
Most will detect easily up to a foot deep so be prepared for some digging !

Things you can expect to find :
Beside roads or on footpaths and on the site of racecourses/fairs : coins,jewelry
Look particularly on sloping areas where people may have fallen.

Under hedges (the older the better)
Hoards of coins, single coins and jewelry where peopl may have fallen from a horse

Local not famous) Battle Sites – weapons,buttons,medals

Beaches : Sandhills – coins, keys ,jewelry
In Surf : gold or silver from shipwrecks
Jewelry from swimmers
Please avoid archaeological sites or you will get into trouble with the law.

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Ancient Coin Collecting

keith — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 09:32:11 +0000

While everyone seem to be mad for gold Silver has been steadily growing in worth .
Although Silver has not grown at the same rate as gold it will probably continue growing in value.
One investor tried to corner the market in silver but was eventually thwarted.

Ancient Coin Collecting

This can be both a business and a fascinating hobby.
All coin collecting is fun and some areas may be very profitable.
One interesting area to collect is Ancient Coins.
This is not always the easiest area to identify but it cna be very satisfying.
If you have been put off by high price in the past then you might like to reconsider as the world of Roman Coins particularly has recently expanded following huge discoveries of Roman Coins in the former Yugoslav republics

Many of these coins are quite unique and you stand an excellent chance of finding an unrecorded variety.

Ancient Coin Buying Tips :
A few things to consider when buying ancient coins:
* Which area to specialise in – the way to enjoy and make money from ancients coin collecting is to become an expert in a specific area.
* There are dozens of areas to specialise in – Ancient Rome and Republican Rome are popular and easily obtained. They also have more valuable silver and Gold Coins which are very attractive to collectors.

ANCIENT GREEK COIN WITH APPLE COUNTERMARK 19MM 4 GRAMS
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Tater Roman Imperial ar Antoninianus Coin of Trebonianus Gallus VICTORIA AVG
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Tater Roman Provincial ae16 Coele Syria Heliopolis Philip II as Caesar EAGLES
US $47.23

Tater Roman Imperial ae AS Coin of Titus SPES 79 to 81 AD Very choice
US $66.65

AFRICAN OCEAN JASPER 45mm HEART FROM MADAGASCAR REIKI
US $12.99

GREAT BRITAIN EDWARD 1307 1327
US $5.50

* Greek and Indian coins can be fascinating as can coins from Persia (Iran), Israel and China.
* Research is foremost in identifying Ancient coins. You have to be able to identify not just the country of origin but also the ruler or typea of the coins of that country. You can do this in a library or on the internet
* Coin Magazines and Reference Books are indispensable when identifying coins and these can be purchase quite cheaply ( ebay or car boot sales are best)
* Organisation is the key to success in coin collecting or dealing and you should from the outset have separate folders for the coins of each country and a database on Excel of Open Office to track purchases, sales and lists of coins either for your own collection or for individual customer.
* You could also list your own wants list with the amount you are willing to pay for each coin. This will help you budget properly.
* You may at first be tempted with offers of uncleaned coins and if these are fairly cheap it will give you some experience in identifying and cleaning (with an ultrasonic cleaner only) Old coins. Ads for uncleaned and unsorted coins are common on ebay but the chance of getting silver or gold coins is minimal (in my opinion).
But it is good fun and will keep you amused for hours.

Tater Roman Silver Denarius Coin of Hadrian VICTORY AVG 117 TO 138AD
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Acrylic Stars Dangling Tassels Chandilier Earrings
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CONFEDERATE MINING Co 2012 TYPE 3 999 SILVER 38 GRAM HAND STRUCK COIN
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silver palmetto 1 gram coin hand struck by The Confederate Mining Co 2012
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Unsearched Wheat Indianhead Roll w 1866 3 cent Nickel 1898 Barber Dime L44H
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UNCLEANED Roman Imperial Coin SILVER SILVERED FEMALE BUSTDomna18mm
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* An ultrasonic Cleaner is quite cheap (around $30)and will make an amazing difference t some coins. You should not be surprised though to receive very worn coins in such an auction lot. Despite what vendors say, any superb example will already have probably been removed.
* To start with, choose an affordable range of different coins and compare them for wear and condition. This will give you experience in grading older coins.
* A good place to find ancient coins is (surprisingly) at local flea markets or car boot/house sales. Private individuals seldom know the vale of ancient coins so you may get some great deals.
* Auctions – are the best places to buy and to sell. Buying is best in smaller countries like Belgium or Italy where ancient coins are not so interesting to local people. When selling then choose the USA,Canada or Great Britain where there is a coin-hungry market.
* A word of warning – there are fake gold and expensive silver coins so check those out carefully.
* Always check feedback on any vendor before buying.
One thing is certain - you will get a lot of satisfaction from Ancient Coin Collecting

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10 Tips for Coin Auctions

keith — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 09:07:16 +0000

While the world seem to be mad for gold Silver has been steadily growing in worth .
Although Silver has not grown at the same rate as gold it will probably never reach the dizzy heights of gold.
One investor tried to corner the market in silver but was eventually foiled .

Coin Auctions can be good places to buy or sell coins.
Here are some tips you may not have thought of.

1 * Live Auctions are likely to be the best places to buy.
This is because many such auctions are usually aimed at the US Market and the rest of the coin buying world will be asleep because of geographical location.
Best ones of all are local auctions which do not advertise on the internet. You will have far less competition bidding at these.

2 * Auctions are great places to buy rare coins. Sellers want the best prices they can get and t is usually at auction.

3 * Auctions by mail – possibly good since many people prefer to bid on eBay and get the excitement of a current auction.

Mail Coin Auctions mean you have to sign up for a catalogue and sometimes give the auction credit card details ot ensure that you are a genuine buyer. If you buy from a mail auction you will usually get a free subscription to new auctions or sales (often with illustrated catalogues)

4 * Phone Auctions – these can be auctions by coin companies or (better still) auctions by general antiques auctioneers
These are just like regular auctions where you go along in person and bid. You can usually leave a bid with the auctioneer (the maximimum you will pay for each lot)

5 * Internet Auctions .

Ebay is the best known of these but a number of other companies do hold similar auctions. With any internet auction you must have an internet identity under which you make bids. You can make individual bids or maximum bids for each item and the software at the auction company handles the bidding for you.

6 * With an Internet Auction you will usually be able to contact the vendor with questions and receive an answer the same day.

7 * Internet Auctions last between 1 day (same day) and 30 days depending on the internet auction company.

8 * Fraud is rife on the internet. It is easy for instance for a deceptive vendor to place a listing of a coin or coins that they do not hold or to use a picture of a higher grade coin than the actual one they are selling. Look for the following words in the listing : copy, repro, reproduction, facsimile as all of these mean copy !
Copies are not as valuable as real coins.

9 * To protect yourself as a buyer make sure you ONLY pay by a genuine company such as PAYPAL as you will usually then have an ability to claim against them and the vendor for misleading or false sales.Please avoid paying by company like Western Union as this company and other instant transfer companies are often used by fraudsters at coin auctions

10 * To check a coin out just ask the vendor for a photo of the other side of the coin. If there is no answer then avoid that vendor.The coin may not actually exist.

11* ALWAYS check out a vendors feedback (feedback is the result of previous sales by that vendor) Pay particular attention to NEGATIVE FEEDBACK.
To bid on eBay you need to be registered:

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