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How difficult can placing a bid be?

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ColonialCoinsUK

Entry posted by ColonialCoinsUK ·

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With an ongoing interest in far too many coin series there is usually something suitable at most auctions for filling a gap in my sets with a quality coin however I have bought almost nothing for months. Even with some outstanding top-grade minors appearing I just do not seem to be able to press the ‘bid’ button one more time to try and secure these elusive examples for my collection and in some cases I am already regretting it.

I think some possibilities for this, subconsciously or not, are:-

1) The COVID-19 crisis is causing me to cut back on spending in case cash is needed due to an enforced change in job, health etc

2) I have been on the lookout for two particular coins for a long time, both of which have surfaced over the last year for the first time in decades. The first was in a sale which also included one of my other ‘holy grail coins’ so, with limited funds, I had to make choice. The one that got away subsequently appeared on a dealer’s list for 3x the hammer price and, and as it is still there, I hope that it may re-appear at auction at a more realistic valuation. The second is almost completely missing from the auction records and attracted lots of bidders and sailed way past what I thought was an already high estimate causing me to just stare at the screen in disbelief.

I expect reality is probably a little of both, although I would like to think with more of the second option. Although both of these coins are very rare the auction results would suggest that they are now really beyond my budget and spending a few hundred dollars on a coin now may not actually make any difference – although restricting the family to beans on toast for the foreseeable future would xD. There are some auctions this month that will, yet again, test me so will I miss out on some excellent coins or hope that one (and not both :facepalm:) of my key targets appear at the major sales in November and January?

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Revenant

I've definitely seen some things lately where I wanted an item but the seller was listing it at a price that seemed divorced from reality and common sense. There are some things I've been watching literally for years that have not sold at the asked price, and, now that things are harder and people are cutting back, it's hard to imagine those things selling at those prices any time soon. But, as life goes, the seller / dealer owns it and can ask whatever they want and sit on it and pay listing fees on it until doomsday if that's really what they want... When in doubt, if it doesn't feel right, just don't do it. There will be more opportunities and maybe better opportunities down the road and there is something to be said about the uncertainty of the times. In 2016 I spent about $100-150 on some silver rounds about a week before I got laid off. The box came after I lost my job. I felt rather stupid for it at the time.

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Iceman

I have been in the same boat a few times in the past and now the present with some gold coins which the dealers are asking away above what they are worth and in some cases I can buy 1/2 ounce gold coins for what they want for the 1/4 ounce coin and believe me when I tell you that these coins are not anything special .......:(

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ColonialCoinsUK

A lot of coins I was the underbidder on seem to appear later on dealer sites - seems to happen alot with one dealer in particular xD.

I actually picked up a coin at the Goldberg sale yesterday - I was the only bidder so got it below estimate :bigsmile:. Although it was a more common issue* this will be my first mint state example and already graded too. I also think that there are a number of die varieties/pairs for this issue and it will be an upgrade for whichever of my existing examples it matches!

I just need to avoid the Sincona and Kunker auctions now or I really risk not having the funds should one of the real targets appear.

 

* The references class it as R1

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Iceman
3 hours ago, ColonialCoinsUK said:

A lot of coins I was the underbidder on seem to appear later on dealer sites - seems to happen alot with one dealer in particular xD.

I actually picked up a coin at the Goldberg sale yesterday - I was the only bidder so got it below estimate :bigsmile:. Although it was a more common issue* this will be my first mint state example and already graded too. I also think that there are a number of die varieties/pairs for this issue and it will be an upgrade for whichever of my existing examples it matches!

I just need to avoid the Sincona and Kunker auctions now or I really risk not having the funds should one of the real targets appear.

 

* The references class it as R1

Congrats...on your new coin ....... :golfclap: 

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