Coin shows are great places to meet people and do deals, and the Florida United Numismatists convention held Jan. 5-8, 2006, in Orlando, Fla., fulfilled both attributes well.
?I haven?t been to a coin show in a while where I?ve see this many people,? said Troy Thoreson, who represented eBay.
Richie Self of American Coins, Shreveport, La., said, ?If this show is any indication of what?s to come, it will be a good year for numismatics.?
Paper money dealer Tim Kyzivat of Western Springs, Ill., said it was a very strong show.
?What seemed to be better was the higher ticket items.? This included better National Bank Notes and type notes, he explained.
?I bought some nice, fresh, original stuff,? he added.
World coin dealer and auctioneer Rick Ponterio of San Diego was emphatic when asked how he had done.
?Damn good. The only problem is finding decent stuff to sell. The market is very strong. It is easy to sell and tough to buy.?
Bob Azpiazu, a paper money dealer from St. Augustine, Fla., said, ?It?s been very good, very busy. A lot of retail, a lot of floor traffic. Most everything sold very well.?
Azpiazu added that he got a lot of new customers at the show.
Harry Miller of Patchogue, N.Y., said, ?Business was fine. I don?t particularly care for this hall,? which was a new portion of the Orange County Convention Center that will be the site of the show through 2010.
Miller also said, ?I am concerned with the security situation. They don?t seem to have had the presence as at past shows. The food here was better than at most convention centers. Gold was hot. A lot of activity (was) in Indian cents, Barber coinage, Walkers and early dollars seem to be moving again.?
?It?s the best show we?ve ever had,? declared David J. Weygant of Lake Placid, Fla. ?We had more retail, almost 100-percent retail. Usually it?s half wholesale. The people are looking for quality coins. They are not buying just anything.?
Pat Davis of Torrance, Calif., called the show ?better than average. There was a lot of people. Public attendance was excellent.?
When asked about her sales, she replied, ?Good, but not barn burner, but good.? As for buying, ?that was harder.?
Julian Leidman of Silver Spring, Md., said, ?My show was a typical FUN show; a lot of people. Sales for me were just so-so. I had good sales, but I like to have a lot of sales. It was an enthusiastic crowd. People enjoy coming to the show.?
?The show was fantastic,? said Anthony Swiatek of Manhasset, N.Y. ?Everything was selling from Fugio cents up through $20 gold pieces.? In explaining the state of the coin market, he said, ?dealers wanted tomorrow?s price today. It makes buying very difficult.?
Bill Brown of Luther, Mich., said, ?It was a good, a very good show. The hard part was buying nice material. We were completely shut out at auction.?
Brown added a personal observation. ?This is the first FUN show since 1986 that I have been unable to buy a coin for my collection.?
Ancients dealer Tom Cederlind of Portland, Ore., said, ?It was a good show. They had a good turnout. A lot of collectors expressed the sentiment that it was important to support a show in Florida.?
?It was a great show,? said Aaron Ware of Carson City.
Wayne Herndon of Oakton, Va., said, ?It?s been a really good show both on buying and selling side. Traffic was fantastic.? What was moving, he said, was ?type with color and nice eye appeal.?
How many ways can dealers describe a good show? These were just a few. There were no real dissents.
