e-letters: April 4, 2023

Have you attended a show yet this year? What was your impression of the hobby/business of coin collecting?

I have gone to the January FUN Convention and this week’s Whitman Baltimore Expo. My impression of the shows is the same as always. Numismatic organizations such as the ANA are in the iron grip of an iron skulled leadership that can’t understand that the shows are under attack from the internet. We dissenters are quickly stifled.

Bob Graul
Lakewood, N.J.

Yes I have. My coin club, the South Hills Coin Club in Bethel Park, Pa., had our annual show last month and it was a big success as over 300 people attended. The hobby seems to be very alive and well.

Dave Burdis
Charleroi, Pa.

It’s been six months or so from the last show I attended. Back then the first day, usually a workday, was close to the Saturday activity.

Looking forward to attending the 141st, but my first, CSNA (California State Numismatic Association) Convention and Coin Show on April, 21-23.

Joe G.
Carlsbad, Calif.

I regularly attend three coin shows a month in my area. For the most part the dealer booths are all sold out and there is a lot of traffic. I am seeing an increase in pricing across the board. Bullion dealers are very busy. Most dealers will negotiate with you, which can help out the wallet a little.

Scott Anderson
Vero Beach, Fla.

I attended a coin show last month in Charlotte, N.C. The show was fairly attended but when looking around the attendees were primarily older men with a few women, but very few “young” collectors. I was looking to sell only one item, an NGC-graded PF-70 American silver Eagle. The price that I was offered was quite low. I was told on a couple of occasions that the dealers themselves weren’t buying, as they were getting out of the business and wanted to sell whatever inventory they had. This made me think and I came to the conclusion that all this talk about the coin industry being hot and in a great condition is [not true]. Unless you have an extremely rare coin which is truly in demand, forget it. As is typical in today’s world, everything is over-hyped.

You can’t even buy simple silver bullion bars without paying a huge markup over spot price. And then you watch the price, like I did, over the last two years go back and forth with no great price appreciation. Then, if you choose to sell your bullion, you get hit again with low-price buy offers. The price of silver would have to greatly increase in order for you to come out ahead. The only ones coming out ahead are the coin dealers.

I saw this coming for a while now, which is why I stopped buying any coins, sold my collection and cancelled my coin magazine subscriptions.

Fool me once, OK I fell for it and got burned. Fool me twice, not happening. I’m done and calling it quits.

J.M. Janiga
Address withheld

Went to a Saturday local show at 12:30 p.m. with my Grandson that was stated 9 a.m.-3 p.m. and most dealers had already left. The two remaining were boxing up as we were looking at stuff. Would I go back? That’s a no.

Peter R.
Florida

Yes, just yesterday I attended the Baltimore Whitman Coin Expo. Good dealer representation across all fields of numismatic interest. Attendance was moderate, but steady, and there appeared to be a lot of business being transacted. I’ve found that quality items sell quickly; hence, I pre-order some items, and in addition, I was an “early bird” attendee. Love the dealer and the members’ interaction with our local coin club attendees at the show. Nothing beats actually holding and examining coins of interest and being able to talk face-to-face with friends and dealers.

Lorne Lavertu
Herndon, Va.

January found me in three states attending numismatic shows: Florida, Texas and Arizona. All shows seemed well attended and dealers were, for the most part, eager to make time for retail customers.

In February a larger regional show in Ames, Iowa, had packed aisles most of the first day on Saturday. A couple weeks later found me in Lincoln, Neb., for their annual club show. A one-day affair, it was moderately busy as well.

Summary: retail grass roots collecting is alive and well in 2023!

Donald
Address withheld

Shows have been very busy, a lot more buyers than sellers. A large increase in younger collectors. Gold and silver markets hot! Both graded and ungraded coins selling. Canadian coin market is growing quickly.

Stuart
Address withheld

I have attended several shows. I collect raw U.S., Great Britain and Canada early copper and non-silver. Most vendors are interested in silver, gold and slabbed coins.

I try to find dealers with prices on their 2-by-2s because I hate it when I see a slightly damaged or worn large cent that they over-graded and then pick up a coin dealer newsletter and they want you to pay full ask price.

I think those prices in those letters are incorrect for certain denominations, and prices are played with by fake buys from dealers holding many of them with no transactions to back them.

Roger Lussier
Address withheld

I attended the Livermore Valley Coin Show on March 5. Over 300 enthusiastic collectors appeared at the one-day show. Many dealers ended the day with smiles on their faces, matching their customers’ cheerful mood.

Thanks to the pre-show publicity that appeared in Numismatic News, World Coin News and Bank Note Reporter, the coin show was a rousing success with record attendance.

Bruce R. Frohman
Modesto Calif.

Yes, I have attended four coin shows this year already. I have noticed the crowd is bigger than last year already. Many new collectors are looking for modern coins. Many bullion collectors or stackers are buying silver more than gold, but gold is still selling. I feel it is half bullion and half collectors. I will continue to look for upgrades on my registry set of Jefferson nickels with full steps. I have several shows to attend this year and am feeling very optimistic about the hobby and the future of it.

Daniel Beavers
Chattanooga, Tenn.

Yes. Still shocked at the number of copper rounds being offered.

Occasionally my patience is exhausted waiting to talk to a dealer who is engaged with another dealer. If their topic of conversation was in any way related to numismatics, I’m sure this wouldn’t be an issue with me; however, I am getting the impression that, apparently, retail customers just aren’t that important.

Lots of foreign coin offerings relative to U.S. coinage.

Attendance at the recent NCNA show in Charlotte, N.C., seemed sparse. It’s hard to believe the hobby isn’t slowly dying.

Cary Bown
Fairview, N.C.

I attended the FUN show and several small shows. Coin dealers were generally [unappreciative] of my coins and usually made offers well below published prices. Others tried to confuse collectors in order to maximize gains. Buying coins at shows is an expensive place to buy. Altogether, coin shows are not the most honest places on earth!

Paul Schmitt
Address withheld

I attended FUN in Orlando but could not get there until Sunday morning. I was very disappointed to see the number of empty tables. About half of all tables were empty, and the ones there had a large number already packing up. I was able to get the last three coins I needed for my type set, but I was hoping to be able to do a bit more price comparisons. I was happy to see some of my favorite vendors and was really impressed by the Wizard Coin setup. In general there were fewer people there than I would like to see, but when vendors leave early they hurt everyone because they limit who will actually show up for the last day.

Mike McG
Address withheld

In February I went to a show in Spartanburg, S.C. I talked to a few dealers, each said they were doing well at the show. They had a good attendance and quite a few dealers.

Brian O’Connor
Address withheld

I have attended a show in Wichita, Kan., and a show in Enid, Okla. Was pleased to see collectors of all ages looking to buy their next coin. Nice to see dealers from a three- to five-state area present.

Ron Braun
North Newton, Kan.

The Phoenix show was great. A little light on the second day. Some dealers need to be more attentive to customers. The U.S. Mint Director, Ventris Gibson, was in attendance. She was great to meet and very personable.

Name withheld
via Facebook

Baltimore Spring Expo was very well attended. The NGC grading table was hot – I’ve never seen them that busy. Good for them, they are doing a great job.

iCollect.money
via Twitter