Starting a Coin Collection
Collecting coins is a lot of fun, and it can be profitable. Coins are not only artistically attractive but can be historically fascinating. There are various ways to begin collecting coins. You can start your collection from your pocket change, or you can build your collection of coins by buying from dealers.
When starting with your own coin collection, whether it is for you or for a youngster, get ideas on what to collect, how to organize a coin collection, the best way to store and display your coins, and some thoughts about coin investing and selling your coin collection. You can also learn how to grade coins, and get information about the best places to buy, sell, and trade your coins with other coin collectors and dealers. It’s important to find honest and ethical coin dealers. I find being associated with a coin club is one of the best ways to obtain most of these goals.
A basic starter kit should start with:
- A reference book to help identify your coins.
- A magnify lens, also called a loupe, ideally 5x -10x magnification to see the details of the coin.
- A method of storage, whether an album or box.
- A method of classifying and sorting your coins.
When collecting coins, the understanding of the basic criteria in grading is important and essential skill to have if you want to make the best use of your limited coin collecting funds and will allow better coin buying decisions. The grading systems are based on simple concepts that are easy to learn, especially for circulated coins. Although you can purchase previously graded coins graded by a third party grading service, it’s my belief that finding a coin in its raw state and knowing its grade is the best way to purchase coins.
Have fun.
Fred