I went to the Silver Dollar Show in Saint Louis today. It was actually out in St Charles which is a little bit outside of St Louis. It is a big show with some major dealers there (JJ Tea Party, Spectrum, Legend) plus the grading services (PCGS, NGC, ANACS). It was in a large convention center.

I got there at 10 AM after driving for almost an hour. Paid my $5 to park, gathered all my stuff together and went in to register.

When you registered, you got to scratch off the back of the registration form with a squished penny to see if you won a prize. I won an SBA dollar. So, I haven't even made it inside and I have an SBA and an Elongate.

I go in and it isn't exactly a buzz of activity. Not a lot of people and the dealers are just getting their stuff out. I do my normal walk around without any intention of stopping anywhere just to see what is what.

After about 20 minutes, I am ready to get my checklists out and start shopping. The first thing I wanted to do was catch my 1900-present set up from 2003 to 2005 so I found a table with binders. Got everything I needed for that with the exception of the State QUarters. Even got regular 2005 P and D's and not satins although they had some of those too.

Next I started around looking for other coins for my 1900 to present set. Found a few Barber dimes, a couple of Franklins, a buffalo to replace one I somehow lost out of my set, and a couple of other coins. Fpund a guy selling state Quarter singles and caught that set up.

After that, I went to get a drink of water and started another go around looking for type set coins. Didn't find a lot I was interested in that I could afford but picked up a couple: w/Rays Shield nickel, a nice Seated Quarter and the nicest coin I picked up all day: an 1809/6 Half Cent. Have to crack that one out of its ANACS holder.

That was about all the purchases I made. Picked up a NumiNews and a CoinPrices magazine for free and left.

All in all, I spent about 4 and a half hours. The show was a little disappointing compared to what it was a couple of years ago in Downtown StL. There didn't seem to be much excitement and the few big name dealers that were there like Legend didn't really even have any coins out and looked to be there just to socialize or maybe buy. I did get to eavesdrop on my normal amount of conversation catching some stuff here and there.

Only a couple of dealers appeared to have any kind of frenzy going on at their tables and that was Silvertowne and someone else. Silvertowne is always that way, though, at the shows I have been to. Their table is always packed. Mostly, at other tables, I heard grumbling about a lack of activity and how there wasn't anything worthwhile in the auction. I didn't look at the lots so I don't know.

Anyway, I had a good show as I filled a bunch of holes and got some cool coins. I didn't buy any off the wall stuff, though as there just wasn't a lot of Exonumia, etc that I saw. I left with money still in my pocket but I think I had looked at every coin I needed and could afford at least twice so I won't go back tomorrow as I was thinking of doing.

Oh! One thing I did this time that was different than any other is I took a purse. Well, it wasn't really a purse but a zipping canvas, briefcase type bag that you wear over your shoulder. Ok, it was a manly purse.

Anyway, I kept my folder in there and my purchases and my loupes and my pens and my grading cheat sheet and my price guide and my cell phone and it was great! I wasn't fumbling for everything in my pockets and worrying about leaving something sitting on a table, etc.

I highly recommend this.

That sounds like a self-conscience USian desperately explaining why he abandoned his backpack. Here that kind of bag is the rule and not the exception.




Yes, I would recommend something like that as well. I use the backpack here at auctions though.

Sounds like you picked up a few nice coins there. Congrats. Pity the show wasn't that great for you, maybe next time!

I'm taking my backpack with me the next time. Probably stick a few of my folders, Krause, loupe, and Redbook in there. I got tired of holding that stupid book the whole time.

Sounds like you got some good stuff. I'd heard that some other shows were a little off on attendance as well, so maybe something in the economy is keeping people away.

Thanks for the nice report.

I actually had a very good show for buying. The only thing lacking was the window shopping! There weren't a lot of jaw dropping coins there to drool over that I saw, anyway. Other than that, I left very happy!

The dealers I dealt with were all very helpful and polite. Not a bad experience with a one of them.

I thought about taking a backpack but this thing was actually much more comfortable for me. I am going to throw a couple of books in it next time.

A lot of people (probably vest pocket dealers) have rolling suitcases but that is a bit of an overkill for me!

It cost $5 to park and even with my almost 30 mpg car, it was another $5 or $10 in gas round trip.

The show wasn't well promoted and I am still not sure if it started yesterday or today and whether it ends tomorrow or Saturday! If it ends Saturday, I don't think there will be a lot of dealers left. Unless you take a day off work, it is a hard one to get to as a buyer.

My favorite purchase of the day was the Half Cent. It is only graded a F-12 by ANACS but it is perfect in color and look and I would truthfully grade it an F15 or, now that I own it, a VF20 . It was about the only slabbed coin in this EAC dealer's case that wasn't net graded lower by him.

Nice report. Sounds like you picked up a lot of 'stock' items..hole fillers as you say - any photos of that half cent coming?

Maybe after I get it cracked out. I can't take a pic of a coin in a slab worth a darn!

THey are a pain in the A to shoot.

A quick shot after the cracking. It is not well lit enough and a little blurry but not a bad photo. It is thundering here so I wanted to do it before we lose power.

But surprisingly easy to crack.

Nice report. Were there many foreign coin dealers?

I carry my man purse everywhere, I got it for free from a mobile phone company and now I can't live without it.

There were a few. Certainly more than at our local show. I would say 5 or 6 who had almost exclusively World Coins and one guy selling World Banknotes. A couple of others had some and 2 had ancients that saw. I might have missed a couple as I was on a US binge. I meant to pick up an Onza and a Brittania but I forgot. A surprising number of World Coins were in slabs.

And, my man purse is a keeper. At least for Coin Shows.

That Half Cent is quite a piece. Definitely one of the better ones I've seen in that grade.

My wife gave me a cool canvas and leather musette bag in '95 that's just like what you're describing. It came with a set of luggage she bought. I've used it at conventions and shows and it's great. Nobody has ever kidded me about carrying a "purse" though. Well, maybe you'd have to see me to understand why.....ahaha.

I'd say a high-end Fine, based on the clarity of LIBERTY in the headband. Very nice color, too.
Could be a VF if the pic is blurry, though. Good score.

I went yesterday, I was thinking of going back Saturday night. I'm looking for a good Morgan dealer to work with. Right now I don't have a clue. For years I collected Large Cents, I was going to go back to that, but all the Large Cent coins are pretty dried up now. Just looking for something new to collect, I'm lost.

NICE half cent, my kind of copper, REV could use a lite bath

I use to call the Silver crowd, the silver maniac crowd, now I am one
I GUESS

Maybe it was because I wasn't looking for them but it seemed like I couldn't turn around without seeing a table full of Morgans! Can't say who there would be good for them, though.

I LOVE the coloring on the half cent!!
Dark and lovely!!

Very nice report Stu, and a great looking half cent.

I cant visualize the bag, any pics or a link to one? I like the idea of everything in one place.

Where in St. Charles was it? I grew up there.

I always carry my man purse to shows. Sometimes even to the coin shop to carry my album(s), I can drop them in right after buying. To keep the dealer calm I don't open the man purse until after the unpurchased coins are put away.

I always imagine seinfeld yelling "IT'S EUROPEAN!" if someone says 'nice purse'.

It was at the new(?) convention center off of I-70. It was a nice place. Fountains outside and everything.

Thanks!




Similar to this:

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=3208705

but mine is all black.

Thanks for the link Stu,

I'm liking the idea of this & I am going to walmart today.

< Maybe it was because I wasn't looking for them but it seemed like I couldn't turn around without seeing a table full of Morgans! >

Well after all, it is the Silver Dollar Show.

True! But where were the tables full of Flowing Hair Silver Dollars?

I remember buying some coins from Silvertowne back when I was growing up in Illinois in the 1980s, but I've never been to a show where they have been! I guess it's because the only major shows I've attended were in the Northwest. Still, even though I like silver dollars I couldn't imagine a whole show around them! I guess if you are not a Morgan nut, you just don't get it. As for the economy, I think you might be on to something. I am still debating going to the Indy show next weekend, but the drive in my 20 mpg Dakota on US 31 will severly eat into my budget. So I will likely just stay around town and go to the South Bend show to browse.

I have a similar canvas man purse I got for free at some investor conference that I use for coin shows, though it has so many pockets I still lose stuff! Zippers here and velcro there, ugh! I suppose I should look through it again I might find something I forgot about! Now if you'll all excuse me I have a T-bone on the grill calling my name!

I know the show back in the 80ies used to have a requirement that you had to have X% of Silver Dollars for sale to get a table. That was back in the boom days. Now, I think they just have the name. But, there were still a lot of them there!

Silvertowne has been at all the major shows I have been to in StL. They have tons of stuff just everywhere in their area...slabbed, raw, rounds, bars, keys, etc, etc.

The owner (Leon?) seems to quite a popular and good natured guy and also seems to know everyone! It looked like there was more buying and selling going on there than in most of the other tables combined.

Silvertowne was also at the San Francisco ANA show, I bought a mess of raw coins from them. Very affable chaps. they let me spend hours looking through flips of raw coins for my type set.

I would shop at their table anytime.

I love your half-cent!!!, I also collect early coppers.Good call about getting it out of the holder, I would have done the same. what is your tecnique on "Cracking" it open??, I use to use the band saw i had at work..

I am more primative.

I set the holder flat on the concrete basement floor, donned my safety glasses, and tapped on the very the edges of the slab with a small hammer until they all broke off. That pretty much left the top and bottom of the slab intact but barely held together. At this point, I went to my coin desk and I just broke off the rest of the top plastic and pulled out the rubber insert with the coin still in it. By twisting the rubber a little bit, the coin popped right out and onto a soft cloth.

ANACS slabs seem to do this very well. You can pretty much knock all the sides off with little effort.

At a show once, I saw a guy with a big pair of what looked like heavy duty tin snips or big diagonal cutters. He was sitting at his table with a bunch of slabs and was cutting the corners off one by one and removing the coins that way. He could do one in a matter of seconds.

Or use the big meat cleaver like Tiffi does. As a coin, I'd be scared to death seeing that thing come flying down only inches from me.

It works though.

I chickened out and chose the method that would, at worst, leave me with flattened fingers...and not the method that might lop them off altogether!