I started collecting coins about 9 or 10 years ago without having any goals in mind. My brother and uncle have been collecting for a gazillion years and I'm always impressed with seeing their hoards.
So, I decided to give it a go.
Now, after spending hundreds and hundreds of hours squinting through a magnifying glass to determine the Mint mark, I have a fair collection of coins from the 1700's through today. Of course, I don't have a 1909-S VDB one cent piece nor do I have many gold pieces (actually, I have only one. A single 1/10th ounce gold coin.)
For folks who want to start collecting, I recommend you start with the Jefferson Nickel. Why? Because I have almost every single coin in the series and I got them ALL from pocket change! Even the silver ones in the 1940's! They are common and it only costs you 5 cents per coin to collect (if you only collect those in circulation).
Granted, you won't be getting MS (mint state) coins and you'll probably get a whole bunch of Fine, Poor, and even Very Poor condition coins. But you will have a blast looking through your change and filling out that collection. This will also get you into the habit of actually looking at your change. You probably will not complete the entire Jefferson Nickel collection from pocket change but that's OK. It will get you going.
Another good one to start with would be the Statehood Quarters. Trying to get one from both the Philadelphia and the Denver mints may take a while but worth the time. This collection, however, will cost more, of course. I don't necessary recommend the entire Washington Quarter collection since finding any quarters with a date prior to 1964 is very unusual. That's because the older ones actually have silver content and the newer ones don't. You would actually have to pay more to get the older ones.
I would say start with one cent pieces but I rarely find any Lincoln cents prior to 1959 in circulation anymore. That's the one with the Wheat on the back instead of the Lincoln memorial. And a few of these coins are really rare.
So, I have a blast collecting these coins. I also have around 500 foreign coins from the countries that I have visited or that friends have visited.
I have a few paper currencies and most of those are foreign. It just doesn't seem the same as collecting the coins, though.
Maybe one day I'll even go out on a limb and get a couple of Roman coins, a Spanish dubloon, or ancient Chinese coin. Nah. Probably not. I really prefer the 'modern' coins and particularly the US Coins.
Still, whatever trips your trigger. This is a lot of fun and, if you don't go overboard, can be very inexpensive as a hobby to help you spend time.
So, I decided to give it a go.
Now, after spending hundreds and hundreds of hours squinting through a magnifying glass to determine the Mint mark, I have a fair collection of coins from the 1700's through today. Of course, I don't have a 1909-S VDB one cent piece nor do I have many gold pieces (actually, I have only one. A single 1/10th ounce gold coin.)
For folks who want to start collecting, I recommend you start with the Jefferson Nickel. Why? Because I have almost every single coin in the series and I got them ALL from pocket change! Even the silver ones in the 1940's! They are common and it only costs you 5 cents per coin to collect (if you only collect those in circulation).
Granted, you won't be getting MS (mint state) coins and you'll probably get a whole bunch of Fine, Poor, and even Very Poor condition coins. But you will have a blast looking through your change and filling out that collection. This will also get you into the habit of actually looking at your change. You probably will not complete the entire Jefferson Nickel collection from pocket change but that's OK. It will get you going.
Another good one to start with would be the Statehood Quarters. Trying to get one from both the Philadelphia and the Denver mints may take a while but worth the time. This collection, however, will cost more, of course. I don't necessary recommend the entire Washington Quarter collection since finding any quarters with a date prior to 1964 is very unusual. That's because the older ones actually have silver content and the newer ones don't. You would actually have to pay more to get the older ones.
I would say start with one cent pieces but I rarely find any Lincoln cents prior to 1959 in circulation anymore. That's the one with the Wheat on the back instead of the Lincoln memorial. And a few of these coins are really rare.
So, I have a blast collecting these coins. I also have around 500 foreign coins from the countries that I have visited or that friends have visited.
I have a few paper currencies and most of those are foreign. It just doesn't seem the same as collecting the coins, though.
Maybe one day I'll even go out on a limb and get a couple of Roman coins, a Spanish dubloon, or ancient Chinese coin. Nah. Probably not. I really prefer the 'modern' coins and particularly the US Coins.
Still, whatever trips your trigger. This is a lot of fun and, if you don't go overboard, can be very inexpensive as a hobby to help you spend time.
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