Two Shops, Two Prices
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In Somewhere, USA, a nice and smart lady had some coins for sale. Of particular interest were a couple of early dollars.
She went first to the coin shop down the road and presented the dealer with one of the dollars. Being a savvy individual, the dealer asked her, “Is this a test?” She replied, “Yes. I want to see how you compare to the people on the radio who claim to be the highest buyers.”
The test coin happened to be an 1893 dollar for which he offered her $1700. She thanked him and turned to leave. With a smile in his voice, the dealer called out to her, “I’ll see you in twenty minutes.”
Turning back, she looked at him with an eyebrow raised in question. He said, “You are going to visit the coin shop up the road that claims to be the high buyer to see what they offer, right?”
“Yes, I am,” the lady said. To which the dealer responded, “Then if you are serious in selling your coins, I will see you back here. I am the highest buyer.”
A short time later, the lady returned to the first shop with her coins. The gentleman asked what his competition had offered her for the 1893 dollar.
With a frown on her face and anger in her voice, the lady replied, “They offered me $12. In addition to the 1893 dollar, I have a bust dollar for sale. They offered me $18 for it. They are not the high buyer!”
She wanted to know if he was interested in the coins and what he would pay for the bust dollar.
The dealer looked at the bust dollar and determined it was a fine specimen. He and the lady discussed options for the coins. They agreed upon the price for the 1893 dollar at his earlier offer of $1700.
For the bust dollar, the dealer is not sure if he can find an interested buyer quickly, and he does not want to offer her a lower amount because of the time he might have to hold the coin. Instead, he presented her a special deal on the bust dollar. He proposed to take the coin on consignment to find the highest buyer and split the profits with her on the coin. She agreed.
Time passes and the dealer finds an interested buyer for $4500.
What a difference a little research can make to the prices the nice – and smart – lady achieved for her coins. Both she and the coin dealer won in their sales relationship. She obtained higher prices, and he, with his fair offer, gained the business and enjoyed a profit on the coins as well.
Though not local, this happens to be a true story with a few details changed to protect the parties involved. With a little effort, you, too, can get the best prices for your coins.
Remember, coin shows offer more dealers in one place for comparison shopping.
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Coin Show – BRNA This Week
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For those interested, the Blue Ridge Numismatic Association’s coin show information is:
51st BRNA ANNUAL CONVENTION INFORMATION
The Blue Ridge Numismatic Association (BRNA) invites you to participate in its 51st Annual Convention.
Friday August 20 8 AM to dealers with tables General Public: 10 AM to 6 PM
Saturday August 21 8 AM to dealers with tables General Public: 10 AM to 6 PM
Sunday August 22 9 AM to dealers with tables General Public: 10 AM to 3 PM
Security: 24 hour Armed Security from Wednesday Noon thru Sunday 4 PM
The show is held in the Northwest Georgia Trade and Convention Center in Dalton Georgia. The convention center is just off I-75 at exit 333. From the center’s web site:
The Northwest Georgia Trade and Convention Center is easily accessible from either Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport (CHA) or Hartfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL). The facility is 1/4 mile from Interstate 75 at exit 333 in historic Dalton, GA.
After exiting I-75 at Exit 333, turn West onto Walnut Avenue. Continue 1/4 mile up the hill and turn left into the convention center parking lot.
The show hosts roughly 200 tables with a wide variety of collectible and investment numismatics on display for buying, selling and trading.
To use a cliche, remember, “the early bird gets the worm.” The dealers will buy and sell throughout the three-day show. However, what they sell will be gone, and what they buy may not be on display. Arrive early to find the widest variety of numismatics to match your interests.
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REMINDER – Coin Show August 8
The monthly Greater Atlanta Coin Show for the month of August is this Sunday, August 8. For guests, the bourse opens at 9:00 am and continues until 5:00 pm.
The show is located at the Holiday Inn Select on Chamblee Dunwoody Road just inside interstate 285. Click on location and directions for more information about the venue.
The bourse includes over 30 dealers with interests across the spectrum of numismatics including coins, currency and bullion from ancient to old to new. Visit the show to buy, sell or trade in your interests.
Reminder: several dealers have long drives or other obligations. They arrive early and leave by mid-afternoon. For the widest range of dealers and numismatics that match your particular needs, plan to come to the show early in the day.
We hope to see you on Sunday!
2010 Mint Sets
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Late last week, the US Mint sent email alerts about the new 2010 uncirculated sets (more commonly called “mint sets”). The Mint now has the sets available for purchase.
Their email included a picture of the set:
As they say, “it takes two to tango.”
Each uncirculated set contains two sleeves of coins, one from the Philadelphia Mint (blue) and one from the Denver Mint (red).
Each of the two sleeves contains fourteen coins:
Five of the coins include the first five “America the Beautiful” quarters. Those five quarters correspond to Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas, Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming, Yosemite National Park in California, Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona, Mount Hood National Forest in Oregon.
As for circulating the new quarters, both the Hot Springs and Yellowstone quarters are already available. Yosemite will be available on July 26, Grand Canyon on September 20 and Mount Hood on November 15.
Four coins include the fourth year of the Presidential $1 coins. This year, the thirteenth through sixteenth presidents are honored with their own golden dollar. These presidents are: Millard Fillmore who served from 1850-1853, Franklin Pierce: 1853-1857, James Buchanan: 1857-1861 and Abraham Lincoln: 1861-1865.
Circulating versions of both the Millard Fillmore and Franklin Pierce coins are already available. The Buchanan dollar becomes available on August 19 and the Lincoln dollar on November 18 in circulation coinage.
A fifth golden dollar has the recognizable image of Sacagawea and her infant on the obverse, but this year’s coin has a new reverse. The design shows the Hiawatha Belt around five arrows and states “GREAT LAW OF PEACE” and “HAUDENOSAUNEE” on the image.
One of the coins in the fourteen is the new Lincoln penny with the shield on the reverse. Unlike the four different reverse designs introduced in 2009 for only one year, this new shield design will be continued in subsequent years.
Next in the uncirculated set is the nickel which has the off-set portrait of Thomas Jefferson that was first seen on 2006 coins. The reverse of the nickel contains the iconic Monticello design.
The last two coins, the dime and the half dollar, remain with their portraits of Roosevelt and Kennedy. The dime’s reverse includes the familiar torch, olive branch and oak branch, and the half dollar shows the heraldic eagle recognizable from the presidential seal.
Though several of these coins are not yet available in circulation, the uncirculated set is obtainable and includes twenty-eight coins - fourteen coins each from Philadelphia and Denver.
If you have difficulty finding the new coins in circulation in relatively unharmed condition (meaning minimal nicks and scratches), the uncirculated set provides a beautiful example of the coins that go into circulation each year.
You can order the set from the Mint or from other internet sources. If you prefer to review prior to purchasing, dealers will soon have versions available at their shops and at coin shows.
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The Coin Show Conundrum
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Recently, articles appeared in local coin club newsletters and in the major coin magazines about coin shows. In particular these articles discussed how many of the dealers leave early and how coin show management should “fix” this problem. They further commented that people do not attend the last day of a three or four day show because they know very few dealers will be there.
Well, this problem resembles the chicken and egg mystery. Though, a recent study using a super computer in Edinburgh claims scientific proof that the chicken came before the egg.
In the case of coins, did the dealers start leaving early first? Or, was it guests who first did not attend in large numbers on the show’s last day?
In all likelihood, the last day’s fewer dealers and less traffic could be attributed to actions by both the dealers and the guests.
Let’s explore some of the reasons why dealers leave early. Depending on the dealer, their reasons could be safety, monetary, personal or a mixture of all of them.
Some dealers have long drives of eight hours or more. As such, they want to be on the road in daylight hours for safety reasons. They don’t want to drive late into the night while tired from a long show day and with significant valuables in their vehicle.
Eight plus hours? That’s a long drive. Why don’t they fly? Think about it. Coin inventory can be bulky. With today’s baggage limits and TSA horror stories, dealers do not fly with coins unless they can keep their valuables with them at all times. This means dealers who bring large inventory must drive their coins to a show.
Then there are the monetary reasons. People who attend the last day generally do not buy very much if anything at all. These people are lookers. Will they buy at some point? Sure. Is it worthwhile for the numismatic community to have coins they can peruse? In general, yes.
But, individually, from a dealer’s perspective, spending all day on the last day when very few purchases are made – usually for small amounts of money – just does not make financial sense for them to stay. Some dealers leave the evening prior to the last day to save both the time and the hotel expense. Others value their time over the little monetary reward and leave either the night before or the morning of the last day.
More importantly, perhaps the biggest reason dealers leave early is that they need personal time. Many of the dealers open their coin shops every day. Some dealers work at other businesses during the week. Others want time with family, kids and grandkids on the weekend. Some just want some kick-back time. If the monetary rewards on the last day are small, they leave to enjoy time away from coins for awhile.
But why did the guests not attend as much on the last day?
One reason could be that the last day of a three or four day show historically fell on a Sunday. Some people prefer not to do any business on a Sunday. They would walk the bourse and look at the various coins on display, but they would not purchase.
Another reason could be that many dedicated collectors attended the coin shows as early as possible such that they would have the greatest number of coins to review. The numismatist wants to look at several versions of the coins within their area of interest and select the best coin or coins to add to their collection. Casual collectors would wait until the last day and not spend much money.
So, what’s the solution?
Today, some shows use the carrot approach. Others use the stick.
For example, the ANA penalizes dealers who leave before the end of the show. However, many of the ANA dealers work around this requirement. They leave one person behind with a very limited amount of coins (sometimes just one) on display. They meet the ANA’s “stick” requirement, but the guests do not benefit from their staying.
Other shows solve their guests’ issue with business on Sunday by having the show earlier and ending on Saturday.
Still other shows use a “carrot” approach by drawing nice gifts for dealers who are still at their tables on the afternoon of the last day. Perhaps this approach keeps some dealers, but several dealers still leave the show early.
Can the bourse chairman “fix” the problem? Probably not.
The issue remains the unsolved “chicken and egg” conundrum. If the business is there then the dealers will stay. But, the numismatists and investors know that a lot of dealers leave early so the larger buyers do not come at the end of a show.
Furthermore, the dealers and the guests are individuals making their own choices. A bourse chairman has limited (very limited) control over either the dealers or the guests.
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Coin Show This Weekend!
As we grow older and as times change, celebrating our independence becomes more and more important. We hope you enjoyed and celebrated our nation’s freedoms and had a fun and safe holiday weekend.
This Sunday, July 11, marks the seventh month’s coin show. Come visit your favorite dealers who will bring and display some old favorites along with new acquisitions for everyone to browse.
The Greater Atlanta Coin Show is held monthly at the Holiday Inn Select on Chamblee Dunwoody Road just inside I-285. Directions to the bourse can be found on our main web site: http://www.atlcoin.com/GACS-Location-Directions.html
Browse the main site, www.atlcoin.com, for more information about the coin show and take a look at some of the fun coins and comments we’ve added to the site.
We hope to see you at the show on Sunday. Remember, arrive early for more selection and dealer availability. Doors open at 9 am for guests.
Mercury Dimes
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At the show Sunday, dealers displayed slabbed 1916D Mercury Dimes.
Interestingly, there’s a story going around coin circles about someone taking Mercury Dimes (not a 1916D, we hope) to a coin roadshow somewhere - one of those that advertizes for you to bring your gold and silver coins and jewelry to sell to them at their rented hotel rooms.
It seems this person with the Mercury Dimes was told that the dimes were not valuable since the “W” mint mark (for the US Mint location in West Point, New York) was not valid on Mercury Dimes. Well, it’s true that the West Point, New York mint did not mint coins during the Mercury Dimes era, 1916 through 1945.
In fact, the West Point location began as a storage facility for silver in 1937 and became known as the “Fort Knox of Silver.” It did mint cents from 1973 to 1986, but it did not become an official mint until 1988. Still a storage facility, today the West Point Mint strikes gold, silver and platinum coins for commemorative and bullion sales.
Oh, in 1996, the West Point Mint did mint a dime, but it was an uncirculated Roosevelt Dime for inclusion in that year’s mint set.
But, why would the hotel buyer claim the Mercury Dimes had “W” mint marks?
Well, today’s coinage generally has the mint mark located very prominently on the front, obverse, of the coin, primarily near the date. For the Mercury Dimes, the mint mark was placed on the reverse near the edge and just to the right of the “E” in “ONE.” Actually, the mint mark can be difficult to find without a loupe or magnifying glass.
For the Mercury Dime, the artist’s initials are easy to see on the obverse just to the right of Liberty’s neck. Of course, the initials are “AW” for Adolf A. Weinman. Lacking numismatic knowledge, the hotel buyer mistook the artist’s initials for a mint mark. Though, we’re not sure what he thought about the “A” in the “AW.”
Most people who know and understand coins will not take coins they want to sell to a hotel buyer. Hotel buyers are much different from hotel coin shows. Coin shows have many different, knowledgeable dealers with a variety of interests who sell and buy at the show. Hotel buyers, on the other hand, represent a company or companies who only buy. They also only buy at rates where they can make a significant profit even after they pay their hotel, travel and business expenses.
If you plan to visit a hotel buyer to sell gold or silver coins or jewelry, make sure you research what you are selling such that you know an approximate worth and can readily accept or refuse their offer.
Plus, if you spend a little time on your education, the hotel buyer’s comment about the “W” mint mark on the Mercury Dimes would easily be recognized as nonsense.
Oh, by the way, if one (or more) of those Mercury Dimes was a 1916D, then you would want to sell to someone who understands the numismatic values not just the silver melt values. A low-end 1916D could be worth $1000, and a high end could be over $40,000.
The late Jim Rohn said, “Formal education will make you a living; self-education will make you a fortune.” In this case, a little self-education could “save” you a fortune.
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Coin Show Reminder, 6/13/2010
The next monthly Greater Atlanta Coin Show is this weekend, Sunday, June 13, at the Holiday Inn Select on Chamblee Dunwoody Road just inside I-285.
Per weather.com, Sunday’s weather is expected to be “Partly cloudy, chance of a thunderstorm. Highs in the low 90s and lows in the mid 70s.” In other words, Sunday will be a typical late spring, almost summer day in Atlanta.
You and your guests are invited to attend the coin show. Doors open at 9:00 am and the show continues until 5:00 pm.
Note the metals markets continue to inch upward, therefore gold continues to be difficult to maintain in stock. As a result, any gold the dealers bring to the show goes quickly.
If you’ve been to the show before, welcome back. Arrive early to visit with your favorite dealers and to see what new numismatic collectibles and bullion are available.
If you’re a newcomer to the show, welcome. Come early and browse the bourse to see what the dealers have to offer this month and to hear the prevalent interests of the dealers and guests this month.
See you Sunday!
Mint Sets
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At the May 23rd show, a gentleman brought a full run of mint sets from 1947 through 2009. In our notes recapping the show, the question was raised about how many total coins would be in all of those sets.
Well, we have a number! Drum roll please….
The mint sets from 1947 through 2009 included 931 coins. That total includes the Special Mint Sets for 1965, 1966 and 1967 along with the three coin silver set in 1976.
The coins follow an interesting face value distribution as follows:
| Face | $0.01 | $0.05 | $0.10 | $0.25 | $0.50 | $1.00 | Total |
| Quantity | 168 | 157 | 156 | 242 | 143 | 65 | 931 |
| % Quantity | 18% | 17% | 17% | 26% | 15% | 7% | |
| Total Face | $1.68 | $7.85 | $15.60 | $60.50 | $71.50 | $65.00 | $222.13 |
| % Face Value | 0.8% | 3.5% | 7.0% | 27.2% | 32.2% | 29.3% |
Given that three years, 1950, 1982 and 1983, did not have Mint Sets produced and adding the three piece 1976 silver set, there are 61 sets in the run from 1947 through 2009 with the 931 coins equaling $222.13 in total face value.
Across the sets, the average number of coins in the 61 sets is just over 15 coins. The fewest number of coins was the three piece silver set in 1976. The most coins were produced in the 2009 set that included the six different Washington DC and territory quarters, the four different pennies and the five different dollars along with the other coins for a total of 36 coins, 18 for each of the P and D mintmarks.
Seventeen years of mint sets included coins with P, D and S mintmarks. Some of those years included all coins from all three mints, and in other years the coins were a mixture from the three mints.
For example, the sets in 1968 through 1970 had three pennies, one from each mint, two nickels (D and S), two dimes (P & D), two quarters (P & D) and one half dollar (D).
Another set, 1981, included P and D minted coins for all the different denominations plus a clad dollar from the San Francisco mint.
Since 1984, the coins equal a full set just from each of the Philadelphia and Denver mints. But, of course, there’s an exception, the 1996 set included an additional dime from the West Point, NY mint.
For the face value of $222.13, the US Mint’s purchase price over the years for one of each of these sets totaled $482.55. That does not include any insurance or shipping and handling charges.
Using the Bureau of Labor Statistics Inflation Calculator, the total of the inflated purchase prices for each of the sets equals $1408.67.
But, what are they worth? Looking at recent asking price values, those 61 sets would be over $6000 to purchase today.
Of course some of the earlier sets are the most valuable with 1947 through 1958 being the bulk of the value. Those sets range in price from roughly $125 for the 1958 set to over $1200 for one of the 1947 sets.
On the other end of the scale, the 1971 and 1972 sets are under $3.00 each and just slightly over their face value.
Even with some of the sets at seemingly low values, the full run’s market replacement value is over 1200% (no decimal point) of the Mint’s purchase price and over 400% (no decimal point) of the inflated purchase cost.
Could other investments be as lucrative? Sure, maybe some would even be more lucrative, but what about the fun of collecting? That’s more than half of the excitement of numismatics!
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Recap of May Show
Just a quick post today since time was spent recapping the May show for everyone. Head over to our 2010 Notes page to see highlights.
The short version is it was a gorgeous day and a packed show!
