bunch of blogs: Hobbies

There is more to coin collecting than just keeping coins. There is something at stake for those who make an effort to know what they are collecting: the Coin Collector’s Merit Badge.
A person who wants to acquire a merit badge must prove himself to be someone who knows a lot about coins.
Here are some of the things that a coin collector must know in order to earn the Merit Badge.
1. The Grading Scale
Merit badge aspirers must be very knowledgeable about the different grades of coins. They must master how to assess coins and categorize each coin as:
- Poor
- Fair
- Good
- Very good
- Fine
- Very fine
- Extremely fine
- Uncirculated.
They must also present five examples for each of the categories given above.
2. Coin Terminologies
Coin collectors must familiarize themselves to coin terms such as “encapsulated” coins, “proof” coins or legal tender to get the merit badge. They must be able to determine if coins are “buzzed” or “whizzed”.
They must also show competency in explaining the following:
- Clad
- Date set
- Observe
- Reading
- Reverse
- Type set
3. Coin Storage
For a coin collector to achieve a merit badge, it is important that he knows how to take care, store and preserve coins.
Coin collectors must be able to demonstrate thorough knowledge in coin collecting by showing the councilors different methods of coin storage. It is expected that the advantages and disadvantages of the methods will be provided as well.
4. Coin Anatomy
Knowledge of the parts of the coins will give important information. That is why coin collectors who want a merit badge must know where the mint marks are located in various coins and they must also know where to look for the initials of the coin designer.
5. Miscellaneous things about coins
The councilors will be very pleased to hear stories about what you have learned about coins. These recollections may come from reading coin journals, attending workshops or seminars, joining a coin collectors’ club, or visiting mint facilities.
It is also expected that coin collectors know a lot about coins from other countries as well.
6. Counterfeit coins
A coin collector must have a perception of whether a coin is authentic or counterfeit.
Reading coin guides or interviewing personnel from mint facilities will be a help in this situation.
After knowing these things, you are now equipped with the knowledge needed to be worthy of the coin collectors’ merit badge.

There are various sources where those “special coins” can be purchased. The following are the basic methods and starting places to obtain the coin(s) you have long wanted.
Go local
Coin shops are plentiful in most states. Generally your local area or city will have coin shops which you can visit to see if they have the coins available that you want to add to your collection. Most of these coin shops are located in the larger town or cities. Better yet, use your local phone book and start walking those fingers through the pages to find out where the nearest coin shop(s) is located…
These shops provide coin collectors the opportunity to actually examine or scrutinize the coins that interest you. Fortunately, these coin shops are also replete with experts and coin lovers who share your passion and can offer their valid judgment on a particular coin’s grade or value. They can also offer helpful tips as well as advice.
Local coin shops may sometimes have a limited stock or collection of coins and the price they offer them for may be a little bit higher than usual. This scenario usually applies to collectors.
Auctions for coins
There are also auctions specifically for coins. This method is a very effective – if not excellent – way to purchase coins. It is extremely important that prior to attending an auction you know the procedures and rules that apply.
There are various types of auctions; bidding auctions via mail, internet, as well as auctions conducted by phone. Always be aware and wary! It is important to make sure that you set a fixed price on the coin you are about to bid on. Auctions can turn very emotional and aggressive. Practice discipline and try not to bid more than the ceiling price you have set for yourself.
Buying coins by mail
This method is a very convenient and inexpensive way to purchase coins. Most dealers that transact via mail usually have overhead costs that are low so they are able to offer similarly low prices on coins they sell.
Do not forget to thoroughly inspect a particular dealer’s policies before returning an item. Make sure that once you receive your coin, immediately inspect it for authenticity or damage. The coin you must have must be just as you ordered and what you expected.
In summary, coin buying is not difficult. All you need is to research and look for the best product available.

Simplicity is not the best policy when it comes to coin collecting. Oftentimes it is the rareness, the history, or the mother country of the coins that collectors value most.
Here is a wide array of the variety of coins that “coinophiles” are obsessed with:
National Coins: Patriotism in Coins
Usually, national coin collectors are interested in collecting their own country’s coins. It is common practice for collectors of national coins to get a representative coin from each date and mint marks for each coin series. Various national coin collectors combine a unique variation of series, date and mint marks.
Error Coins: It’s OK to be Not-So-OK
One of the modern types of coin collecting is known as error coin collecting. Errors became possible when the production of coins was automated during the nineteenth century. Collectors of historic coins are fine with error coins because they like the uniqueness or error coins. Even modern day coin collector falls in love with error coins because they are assured that the modern processes promise that they are unique. The characteristics or coin errors include the following:
- dies that are doubled
- mint marks that are repunched
- over-dated
- double strikes
- coins that are “off” metal
- coins that are displaced or off center
- coins that are clipped
- one coin with different nominations on two sides a.k.a. mules
World Coins: Hobby of Kings…. of the World
Collecting world coins is about gathering those modern coins from all the countries of the world. Geographically-challenged individuals will have a hard time participating in this kind of coin collecting. If you would like to be a collector of world coins, you must be prepared to spend a considerable amount of money if you would want to have an extensive collection - being a “jetsetter” might be required. World coin collectors often acquire representative coins from each country or from authorities that issue coins. There are also world coin collectors that collect by subject such as those coins that feature animals.
Historical Coins: The Value of the Past
Collectors of historic coins find value in mints that are from medieval or ancient times. The most popular of these historic coins include the following:
- Byzantine
- Celtic
- Greek
- Indian
- Israelite
- Merovingian
- Ostrogothic
There are other ancient coin specialties but it really depends on the preferences of the collectors. The popular way is to collect the coins that were minted during the reign of a certain emperor or king.

Coin collecting is something that dates back to the when coins were first issued for trade. It was only in the Middle Ages that people turned this into a hobby because of the art work and the historical value.
Coin collecting today is still a hobby that many people enjoy. One of the most precious and most expensive collections that anyone can ever have are those of gold coins. The most expensive gold coin ever bought was worth around eight million dollars. This was the American 1933 Gold Eagle. This is why the collecting of gold coins deserves to be called the hobby of kings.
Gold coins were one of the oldest forms of money. This was later followed by silver coins. Gold coins were in circulation in the United States from 1838 to 1933. The design was the Liberty Head bust but this was only made until 1907. The design was then changed to the Indian Head and Saint Gaudens motifs and was used until 1933 when the Great Depression began. This prompted the recall of gold coins which makes them very difficult to find today.
Since these are no longer in circulation, the price for one of this rare commodity is quite high. Gold is now used for other things such as jewelry or bars that people retain as an investment.
South Africa minted its first gold coin called the Krugerrand in 1967. This coin has no face value but merely stands as a symbol. It is made of 1 ounce of gold and can be purchased for investment purposes.
Since then other countries also minted bullion coins. Canada made the Gold Maple Leaf in 1979 and Australia made the Nugget in 1981. These two are much more popular than the South African coin because of its 24 carat purity.
A lot of people retain gold today as an investment because they speculate that the demand will cause its market value to increase. Others hold it as a form of insurance should the financial situation become worse. There was a point in time when the more paper money that was made, the higher the price of gold which maintained gold and cash as equal value. After this standard ended in 1971, this enabled government to produce more paper currency without increasing the price of gold.
Since gold coins can longer be used to purchase merchandise most coin collectors just keep them to remember that people once used them.

Old coins that is. Try looking under that old dresser, or up the attic where grandma or grandpa’s things may be stashed away patiently waiting for you to discover them. Who knows, you might find a coin there, an old coin that – at today’s rate - may be worth a few dollars; probably three or four or five, even ten times what the coin was worth back then.
A penny a day, is worth okay
Fortunately or unfortunately, there was a shortage of copper during the year 1943 and all pennies made at that time were minted using steel. There were however, some Lincoln pennies that were incorrectly minted on bronze that turned out to be blanks. A few years – or decades later -these bronze pennies became a rarity and are valuable. The steel ones though, because of their commonality, are worth only between one to three dollars each.
Be aware and be wary as there are schemes where gullible coin collectors are sold coins that are copper plated in an attempt to make these pennies appear to be bronze. Also, keep your guard up anytime someone offers you a circa 1943 penny made out of a metallic white alloy.
Old coins are good coins
Coins, specifically the silver dollars made and circulated between the years 1878 and 1935, are worth between twelve dollars and twenty five dollars for the circulated coins. The coins that were not in circulation are worth considerably more.
Meantime, those quarters, dimes, or half dollar coins made and circulated prior to 1965, are usually made out of ninety percent silver and therefore worth as much as today’s silver (with an additional premium, albeit small, put on the coin’s face value).
Wrong pennies are right
There is a Lincoln penny issued in 1972 on which the date and the letters on it appear to have been doubled. This rare coin is currently worth about sixty dollars, assuming the pennies are in standard condition. The Philadelphia Mint during that time period accidentally misaligned the die used in minting the coins causing the portrait of Lincoln to look like it was doubled. Fortunately or unfortunately, eighty thousand of these were circulated before the error was discovered.
In summary, coin collecting is similar to collecting bits of history and trivia from the past. In addition to the face value its worth as a treasure - pennies, dimes and coins – often are worth more in the long run.

For every numismatist or coin collector, finding a good place to store their coins is the most important thing in this world because storing their precious coins in a good and secure place will ensure that the quality and value of their coins is maintained…
There are many types of storage spaces that can help you by displaying and storing your coins. You can either use folders, holders, plastic tubes, or the album, but among these reliable storage spaces, the coin collecting albums are the best way to display the coins.
If you want to know why, here are some benefits of albums and you can evaluate the concept from there:
1. Two-way image viewing
With coin collecting albums, you can get more satisfaction viewing your collections because albums let you see both sides of your coins. You do not have to remove your coins every time you want to see the opposite side.
Therefore, albums give you the best of both worlds.
2. Better defense against instant wear
Another benefit of albums over folders and other coin storage is that it gives the coins better defense against harmful elements that will expedite the deterioration of the coins.
Albums are generally characterized by the use of plastic materials that serve as shield against scratches and environmental factors.
3. Good coin holder
Albums provide pockets for coin storage. The best thing about using a pocket is that even “dilapidated” coins or extremely worn coins are better protected.
Worn out coins, when placed in folders, have the infuriating tendency of falling out over and over again. With coin collecting albums they are kept intact.
4. Variation in prices
Albums that are used in coin collecting are usually priced from $20 to $40. Even though they can be expensive, they provide better storage for your most-prized treasures. Paying the price for an album is a great alternative to the other typical types of storage.
5. Information center
Coin collecting albums are great “information centers” as far as the hobby is concerned because most of the albums that are used in collecting coins have an inside front cover| that allows you to place important information regarding your collection. It also has a back cover that provides space for your “mintage figures.”
Coin collecting is easier and more pleasant with the help of these albums. It makes your treasures last longer, thus, establishing greater value in them.
Therefore, coin collecting albums are definitely the best “keepers” for your coins.

A special machine does the stamping of coins to make them genuine. People who counterfeit coins are well trained and have the capacity to manipulate their duplication - especially those rare coins which have high value among collectors. The most common procedure used in counterfeiting is that they pour a liquid metal into molds that will leave die marks with cracking on the counterfeit coin.
Those who are experts in determining counterfeit coins have observed that the changes seen in the coins have added, removed, or even altered the coin’s date markings. If a person thinks that he is in possession of a counterfeit collectible coin, he can compare it with another coin – one like the suspect coin – which is known be genuine and have the same markings.
If the coin’s value is more than 5 cents, look for corrugations in the outer edges of the coin. These are very thin railings (also know as “reeding”) on the edges of the coins. Genuine coins have very thin edges and the railings are even and distinct if one is very observant. Those coins that are counterfeit can be distinguished if the edges are not thin enough and the railing is uneven or missing in some areas.
Should there be an instance when a person perceives that he has received a counterfeit coin, he must not return the counterfeit coin to the person that handed him. He must try to delay the person – should he try to escape – or try to keep that person in sight and follow him to his destination if possible. It is important to remember the person’s clothes and physical appearance and if the person has any companion during the exchange: if they have a vehicle, get the car’s license plate number and immediately call the nearest police department or the United States Secret Service for help.
There are many things that can be considered to determine whether the coin is counterfeit or not. There are terms that are used to describe a counterfeit coin’s characteristics and they are as follows:
1. A restrike of a coin can be considered to be genuinely authenticated. These coins are actually dated earlier than those originally issued by the country that released them but have the same or exact features as the original coins.
2. Coins of a specific country in the ancient times are sometimes copied by another country. A person may think that it is forgery, but it is not because they had been legally approved in the country where they originated.
3. Forgery can be associated with the making of an illegal profit. It would be the main objective of the counterfeiting syndicate. The government sometimes uses forgery for political propaganda, as in the Second World War when Germans produced millions of American and British banknotes with the intention of profiting from them and destabilizing their enemy’s economic situation.
4. Another known type of counterfeit coins is replica coins. Replica simply means that the original coins are copied with the same features and markings. The usual counterfeit coins have differences that are noticeable when examined by coin experts. Some coins have the word “copy” intentionally put on the sides of the coins and these replicas are used for educational purposes and museum displays.
5. A Lebanese connection is said to have a huge production of counterfeit coins. These coins were found to be used in an attempt to fool many museums, collectors, business leaders and other countries that are searching for their ancient lost coins before the discovery of this syndicate.
6. The collector intended forgery and the circulated intended forgery are types of forgeries where the coins are intended to be tokens yet the face values are accepted, despite of their illegality and irrelevant intrusive values.
It is important to consult an expert to determine if the coin is counterfeit or fake. An ordinary person can easily detect if the wrong metal was used for the counterfeiting. If the person is a collector of such items, he should be more aware of these coins. A collector needs to be more concerned with the collectible rare coins because this is where counterfeiters benefit frequently - their aim is to profit from the exclusive market for valuable coins.

There are many reasons why one collects coins. There are collectors who collect on the basis of the coin’s future perceived value, some collect coins coming from just one particular period, some on metal type and some for a coins historical value.
There are also those who enjoy collecting everyday common coins, gaining pleasure from inspecting mint marks and dates on their everyday change. Others have a collection of coins coming from different countries. Some coin collectors spend thousands on rare gold and silver coins from the period of the 1800’s until the early 1900’s.
The hobby of coin collecting can give pleasure and fun to an individual of any age. Many coin collectors began their collection when they were young children, collecting dimes or pennies and many of them have made coin collection a lifetime hobby.
The hobby of collecting coins involves spending money from the very start so it is good to join a coin collectors group to get ideas and help from knowledgeable and experienced collectors.
You need somebody to buy your coins from, and it may be hard to find a coin dealer of good repute when your are new to the hobby, so having someone that has been in this hobby for years can be of great help to guide you on choosing an honest and knowledgeable coin dealer.
Begin by acquiring a big magnifying glass and examine coins in a bright area so you can spot mintmarks, errors and to clearly read dates on worn or damaged coins.
Decide on what coins to collect and buy a “bookshelf folder” for that series.
You must also have storage, such as clear tubes made of plastic or coin tubes having top screws to keep your coins in until you are ready to put them in a coin album; storage can also be good for keeping duplicate coins.
You must learn about different coin values. Follow what types of coins are sold, and how they are priced, based on dealer pricing. You also will need someone or some references that will show you how to evaluate the accurate value of a certain coin based on mint mark, age, color, surface and condition.
“A Guide Book of United States Coins” or universally known as “the red book”, which is published yearly, provides a good outline of the U.S. coins history, information on basic coin grading, coin descriptions from past to present including a list of errors to watch for, average U.S. coins retail cost, and an explanation of errors which occurred in the “minting process”.
Monthly publications from “Coinage” (coin collecting magazine) contain many useful facts and information as well articles about your new found hobby plus a lot of great photos.
The newspaper, particularly in the numismatic world section, will be of great interest to you especially when you become more and more involved and interested in your hobby and want to remain up to date with the present happenings in the world of numismatics.
As you grow more experienced in coin collecting, your “eye for coins” will improve and develop maturely so that you now will be scrutinizing more carefully the features and details such as coin lettering, making certain that the letters are not blemished or blurred, but are still distinguishable.
You will be spending so much interest and concentration on the coin’s general state that eventually you can walk away from certain coins that show evidence of abrasion, and will then be experiencing the fun side of coin collecting.
Spend ample time reading, looking at photos, learning from experienced collectors and asking as many questions as needed from not only other collectors, but dealers as well. The hobby of coin collecting is a continuing process that will last for as long as you are continuing the hobby.
Your knowledge and training will save you a lot of money as well as make you money when the time comes, but more importantly, have fun while learning. Take pleasure in what they call the “Hobby of kings” that has turned to be the “King”of hobbies.
Keep on studying and learning, because the better you understand, the more that you will enjoy your new found hobby.

Coin collecting is one hobby that has been going on for ages. Some of the most popular collectors in the world were Louis XIV and the Sun King. To keep track of the coins in the collection or to monitor the value of rare coins in the market, it pays to have coin collecting software.
There are many reasons why coins are collectible. Some are valued because of the artwork and others because of certain events in history such as the Great Depression or war .Whatever the reason, coin collecting software can update a person about these varieties before taking any action.
Some inventory programs contain a comprehensive database of more than 10,000 coins worldwide. The software allows the user to scan pictures in one’s collection and programmed in the database.
Others only have a database of every coin that the United States ever minted. The program allows the user to select the coin and generate various reports about it.
Coin collecting software is there to help a person organize and catalog the coins in one’s possession. Some websites charge a fee to purchase the software but most can be downloaded for free from the internet. The program will work as long as the computer being used is compatible with the software.
There are more coin collectors that collect coins that are still in circulation than those who look only for the rare ones. The study of it is fascinating since a person can learn the history of a nation based on a few coins. Of course, this can only happen if a person has the time to do it.
Coin collecting software has given people an easier way to keep track of coins that they own. Instead of opening countless folders that have different coins in them, a person can just type a few words and the information can be seen on the monitor. This makes it easier for the collector to show his collection a potential buyer in with the hope of exchanging it for another coin of equal or greater value.
The ideal coin collection software program should have good search capability, unlimited number of entries and other special features. By checking the various programs and trying some, the person will find the right one needed for the job. Before downloading it, the person should first have it scanned since software may contain a virus that could harm the computer.

The condition of the coin means everything in coin collecting. In the world of coin collecting, the coins themselves are considered as gold, this is why there is a need to protect them from damage. Having the right supplies will allow a collector to preserve the integrity of his coin collection. The slightest hint of damage can diminish the value of a coin significantly.
Here are some of the supplies which are used in properly handling coin collections:
Gloves
In handling coins, you must be careful not to scratch the coins. The use of gloves (preferably white) will prevent scratches and other kinds of damage to the coin’s surface. Gloves should be made of cotton or plastic.
Coin tweezers
If you not comfortable using gloves, you can use coin tweezers. These are not your ordinary tweezers because their tips are protected with plastic that prevents the tweezers from scratching the coins.
Magnifying glass
In examining coins, you must be able to take a closer look at them. This is where the magnifying glass is most useful. You must be careful in using a magnifying glass when examining the coins. There are magnifying glasses available today that have stands attached to them and the stands allow the collector to use both hands in coin examination to avoid accidents.
Cleaning materials
A mild soap and a soft high-integrity fiber cloth can be used in cleaning coins.
Mats
When examining or cleaning coins, you must remember to put a soft cloth or a mat on the table where you are working. An accidental dropping of the coin can damage it significantly and reduce its value to literally nothing. A mat or a cloth will absorb the impact of the drop and will prevent the coin from being damaged.
Boards
You must be extra careful in displaying your coin collection. Coin boards are used by many to display their coin collections. In the U.S., the map of the United States of America is very popular among coin collectors to display the different quarters of the different states.
Envelopes
When transporting coins, the use of coin envelopes is very practical. The use of these paper envelopes allows a collector to safely transport his coin and put some information about it in or on the envelope itself.
There are other coin collecting supplies such as boxes, holders, folders, but everything points to the preservation of the coins’ condition. The right kind of supplies will determine whether a coin is priceless or price-less.