CoinsbyGary

A journal by coinsbygary

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About this journal

When I was a young boy, my cousin introduced me to the hobby of coin collecting. Because I was also interested in photography, I used to frequent a local camera store. Along with camera supplies, this store had a rotating display case full of coins that I enjoyed scrolling through. My very first coin purchase was an 1881-S Morgan Dollar in BU PL condition; this coin was old, shiny, and inexpensive at just $12! Now 35 years later, I still own that 1881-S Morgan Dollar, even though it is still worth less than $100. I loved looking through the Red Book dreaming of the coins I would buy if I had the money, especially the coins in the back of the book where the gold listings are. As a teenager, I was beginning to show signs of gold fever.

Working through high school, I spent the bulk of the money I did not save on coin purchases. My first gold purchase as a teenager was an 1881 BU Half Eagle for $105 from a mail order ad in "Coins" magazine. Since then I have had this coin graded, and it resides in my Gold Liberty type collection graded at PCGS MS-62.

My next gold purchase as a youth stretched my resources. I purchased an 1858-C VF Half Eagle for $350, and my attraction to this coin was that it had a low mintage from an obscure branch mint. I also enjoy the comradely among fellow coin enthusiasts, and once I invited a kid to attend a coin show with me who was much younger than I was. As fate would have it, this kid happened to be the son of my mother’s boss. This boss always said to my mother how impressed he was with me taking his son to that show. As for me, I enjoy the company of fellow coin collectors, whoever they may be.

Two other purchases I made as a teen were an 1876 20-cent piece and an 1885-CC Morgan Dollar from the Lavere Redfield hoard. Since then my collecting has been sporadic, depending on my life situation. However, the passion has always been there. Gold has still not lost its luster with me, and today I am a very active collector. The cousin that introduced me to coin collecting years ago no longer collects. For a different twist on my collection, visit my website at: coinsbygary.com

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Entries in this journal

It?s All About Passion!

The definition of passion is, ?The object of somebody?s intense interest or enthusiasm?, and suitably applies to my love for coin collecting among other things. Greetings all, my father always told me, ?If something is worth doing, to do it right the first time.? Consequently, whenever I put my mind to do something, I do it with passion. This applies to all areas of my life, up to, and including coin collecting. How else can I explain the expenditures and time I spend on this hobby? As an extr
coinsbygary

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How Bout that for Customer Service!

A short one this time. A few hours ago I sent an e-mail to NGC's customer service asking them to add the 2011 slot for silver uncirculated British Britannias. So when I opened my CS page a few minutes ago, I found that the slot had been added! Now how's that for customer service! Thanks NGC! Gary To see old comments for this Journal entry, click here. New comments can be added below.
coinsbygary

coinsbygary

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Too Good to Let Pass Up

Rarely does the opportunity to own a coin with a population of one and none higher realistically come my way. When it does, even though the coin goes beyond my established goals, I must seize upon that opportunity because it may never present itself again. Last week I received an E-mail notice for a 1932 MS-66 Netherlands 10 Gulden gold coin up for auction on E-Bay. I immediately placed the coin on my watch list with the original intention of monitoring it for the closing price. I do this quit
coinsbygary

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This One Didn?t Get Away!

Taking a lesson from the one that got away, I snagged a great coin at a good price. About a month ago, I opined about a very nice coin that slipped through my fingers because I hesitated. While I cannot take back the actions of the past, I can take the lessons learned from the past and apply them to future opportunities. One of the lessons I learned when buying coins is to try and buy the hard ones first. For example, I am working to assemble a high grade Morgan Dollar collection of MS-65 &
coinsbygary

coinsbygary

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The Other Side of the Aisle

Make no mistake, I am a coin collector through and through, but occasionally I get interested in collecting paper currency. The definition of numismatics according to Wikipedia is the study or collection of currency, including coins, tokens, paper money, and related objects. However, when I typically think of the term, I rarely associate it with anything other than coins. Occasionally though, for various reasons, there is paper currency on ?The Other Side of the Aisle? that catches my eye.
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coinsbygary

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Feast or Famine

Searching for coins rarely offered for sale can be like a feast or a famine. In my previous journal, I wrote about obsessions. One of my obsessions having more to do with my personality than it does with the topic of coin collecting is football. As a proud owner of an NFL football team by virtue of owning one share of Green Bay Packers stock, I found myself on the edge of my seat as the Chicago Bears made the NFC championship game interesting. However, in the end, the Packers prevailed, and no
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Obsessed!

Why do my obsessions have to cost so much? It seems that forever and a day I have been obsessing over coin photography. I absolutely must have high quality photographs of my coins to display in my registry sets. For years I have been trying to take just the right picture, but only with mixed results. To say that this has been an obsession with me is an understatement. To add to my obsession is the realization that with each coin being different, there is no such thing as a cookie cutter appr
coinsbygary

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The One That Got Away

A popular fishing metaphor describes the coin that got away from me. As collector?s we all naturally desire to acquire coins with spectacular eye-appeal for our collections. Each of us having an idea of what spectacular eye appeal should look like; we spend countless hours perusing hundreds of auction listings to find the proverbial ?needle in a haystack?. For many of us those countless hours turn into years until finally our meticulous searching pays off. However, there are those times when f
coinsbygary

coinsbygary

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Another Year, Another Set

With the coming of a new year comes a new set of Morgan Dollars! Happy New Year everyone, this time of the year is a good time for contemplation and planning; contemplation of the past year?s highlights and low lights, and planning for the new year. Overall, last year was a good year for me as measured by the goals I set for myself. I have upgraded and/or added coins to my 19th Century type, first-spouse, Inspirational Ladies, and Britannia sets. A few of my goals, however, are longer term goa
coinsbygary

coinsbygary

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Milestones & Competition

Reaching an important milestone for my collection and the coin that put me over the top. Greetings all, just three short months ago I wrote about possibly discontinuing my first-spouse collection. Now three months later I have a new perspective even though the price of gold has not significantly changed. First, I have a lot invested in this series already, and if I have the money to continue, I should. Next, I want to continue to add gold to my portfolio and these coins are a great way of doin
coinsbygary

coinsbygary

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A Numismatic Tribute to My Son on his Graduation

The end of a long journey and the beginning of an even longer one Greetings again, seven months ago I wrote a numismatic tribute to my daughter as she earned her master?s degree. Now in little less than a week on December 19, 2010 my son will graduate college with a bachelor?s degree. The road has been long and hard, but now in the words of my son Jeffrey, ?I want to see what life has for me?. The coin I have chosen to commemorate my son?s graduation is a 2009 French 10 Euro coin commemorat
coinsbygary

coinsbygary

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An Amazing Sequence of Events!

Starting with my journal post of two days ago, follow the amazing events leading to the completion of ?Born on the Bayou?. Greetings all, it?s beginning to look a lot like Christmas around here as I woke up to several inches of fresh snow! Not in any hurry to shovel snow, this cold winter morning offers me a great opportunity to sit with a hot cup of coffee and reminisce on the events of the past week. Two days ago in a journal post, I wrote about the difficulty I had in buying a MS-61 1892-
coinsbygary

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One More to Go

25 coins after I started ?Born on the Bayou? on August 29, 2010, I have one more coin to go. Greetings everyone, three months ago, on a whim, I started a complete set of Morgan Dollars based on the New Orleans Mint, and now I stand within one coin of completing my set. With a strict budget of $200/coin, the last coin, the 1892-O, is proving to be quite a challenge to obtain in MS condition. Since I only get three points for an AU example, I am targeting this coin for MS-61 and 265 points. Curr
coinsbygary

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Here I Go Again!

Is there any cure for this disease? I hope not! Just the other night, while I was reading the owner description on my 1907-O Barber Quarter, I thought (thinking can be dangerous) wouldn?t it be nice to start a complete set of Morgan Dollars based on the New Orleans Mint? There has always been an attraction for me in the New Orleans mint ever since I learned of its history. Discovering that the New Orleans Mint may not have reopened after the Civil War had it not been for the Bland-Allison Act
coinsbygary

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Mintage vs. Survivability

The difference between a coins mintage and the number that have survived through the years can be immense. Greetings everyone, when I was young collector, I relied heavily on mintage figures to determine whether a coin had the potential to rise in value. I thought that lower mintages correlated to a faster rise in value. Now years later, I have learned there are many more factors that combined with mintage figures contribute to a coin?s potential to increase in value. The first thing to consid
coinsbygary

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Walking a Tight Rope

Purchasing coins on a strict budget and the balance between registry points, grade, and eye appeal. Greetings all, buying coins for my New Orleans, Morgan Dollar registry set, ?Born on the Bayou? has been a challenge. In the past, whether I could reasonably afford a particular coin or not, if I liked the coin, I bought it. All too often, to buy the coin I wanted, I pushed back other priorities. The problem with pushing back other priorities though is that they eventually come back to nip you i
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All?s Well That Ends Well

A disappointing purchase made over a year ago that in the end turned out well. Have you ever purchased a coin that you have come to regret buying? I?m sure that at one time or another we have all purchased coins that afterwards have us scratching our head and wondering what in the world we were thinking. While there is no way short of a buying freeze to prevent the time-to-time aberrant purchase, well-defined collecting goals do help to minimize the chances. It is always in our best interest t
coinsbygary

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Eye Candy on Morgan Dollars

Toning on Morgan Dollars can serve a very good purpose. Greetings all, I have long admired the 2009 grand prize winning ?Chappell Collection? of proof Morgan Dollars. Frosty devices on unmarked, mirrored fields combine to make this collection of Morgan Dollars a beauty to behold. Morgan Dollars of this quality are extremely rare though, since most have some degree of contact marks. Proofs aside, freshly minted Morgan Dollars were harshly handled. Fresh off the dies these dollars were thrown in
coinsbygary

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Sometimes it seems as if I am One-Dimensional

While I am currently concentrating on Morgan Dollars, I have not lost sight of my other goals. Greetings all, three of six of my last posts highlighted my latest rage, primarily New Orleans minted Morgan Dollars. With my enthusiasm focused singularly on one registry set, it seems that my other sets were overshadowed. However, it would be wrong to confuse overshadowing with inactivity. With an eye towards all my sets, whenever I have had the opportunity to add to my collection in accordance wit
coinsbygary

coinsbygary

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Recent Purchases and an Interesting Contrast

Two recent purchases and the quality of New Orleans Mint coins. Greetings collectors, these past two months have been an active period of acquiring coins for my collection. My New Orleans Morgan Dollar collection now stands at 14 coins, all acquired within the last two months and partially paid for by the sale of existing coins from my collection. My two most recent purchases made just this past week was an AU-55 1886-O and a MS-65 1900-O Morgan Dollar. With the 1886-O Morgan Dollar valued
coinsbygary

coinsbygary

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Words Can Not Adequately Describe?

It?s hard to describe the fun I am having assembling my latest registry set based on New Orleans Morgan Dollars called, ?Born on the Bayou?. Greetings all, a little more than a month ago I started a new registry set based on New Orleans minted Morgan Dollars. Little did I know at the time that what started as a whim has turned into a source of great enjoyment. Since then, I have learned much about coin collecting in general and the Morgan Dollar in particular. While I cannot adequately describ
coinsbygary

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It May Be Time to Get Out of the Golden Rat Race

I think I lost the desire to keep up with the First Spouse gold coins. Greetings all, many of you are aware that I have been collecting First Spouse gold coins. In the past, I have opined in my journals on strategies for collecting the entire series in PF-70 condition. The fact that these coins are gold, and they sprang out of a passion for my ?Inspirational Ladies? custom set has kept me buying these expensive coins. Although I did not buy these coins as an investment or hedge against inflati
coinsbygary

coinsbygary

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Blindsided by Improperly Cleaned!

Borrowing from a term in W.K.F?s recent post, there is no better way to describe learning that your coins have been ?improperly cleaned? than ?blindsided?. Greetings all, have you ever gotten your hopes up about a submission, only to discover your coin is ?not-gradable, improperly cleaned?? I?m sure that for many of you, myself included, this has happened on multiple occasions. I wish there were some way to take the risk out of submissions, but alas, there is none. To sum it all up in a famili
coinsbygary

coinsbygary

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A Sentimental Journey

In a story that has all the elements of a good drama; follow the journey of my lowly 20-cent piece from the time I purchased it until its crowning glory! To lay a little groundwork to this story, misfit coins have always intrigued me. You know the type, the half-cent, two-cent, three-cent, and 20 cent pieces. Moreover, coins minted at out of date branch mints such as New Orleans, Charlotte, Dahlonega, and Carson City captivates my imagination. At my very first coin show as a youth in the mid
coinsbygary

coinsbygary

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