Where do you mainly purchase your coins from?

Ebay?
Dealers?
The average-Joe?
Garage sales?

I've bought most of my coins from flea markets. They really aren't HIGH quality coins and are relatively cheap but I'm not in it as an investment or anything (yet). I just enjoy the fact I have the coins.

Ebay
Online Shops
Coinpeople

That's about it. I did buy 2 coins from a dealer here once but his shop sucks so I don't go back. They have a storefront but seem to be primarily an online shop. I've actually ordered coins from them over the internet.

Century Coins (http://www.centurycoinspittsburgh.com/) is my main source for coins. Everyone give Eileen's website a visit and recommend it for everyone. And in the Pittsburgh area stop by, she is a square deal collector/dealer.

Mostly eBay and online stores... most of the coins that I am looking for are almost impossible to look at the stores around here.

Although I did get some from the coin stores around here

I buy from a coule of online dealers, CoinPeeps, a local shop, a once a month large flea market at the fairgrounds that has 2 good dealers (out of about 5 or 6 that show up from time to time) and occasionally the US Mint and Ebay.

Probably 50% Ebay.....and then Heritage, Teletrade, BWRC (Brian Wagner Rare Coins) Northest numismatics....etc. I also go to local shows and pick up some nice stuff from dealers

Between vcoins.com and ebay, you have my purchases covered. I do buy things from other peeps too, Blackhawk etc. Never at a show, never in a shop, they never have what I want.

Many coins I've bought from coin shows, few of them from ebay, some from flea market...

Almost all of them from folks on this forum, with 90% of them from Blackhawk, and Ed. Where are they anyway, not much for sale lately

I purchase from ebay and a coin shop up the road called "The Silver Baron" in Alameda CA.

The owner of the Silver Baron is a good chap. he'll chat and rummage in his safe as I flip through his 2x2s. I have some coins from him i'll never sell because they look too darn cool. I have some I'm already replacing. most of my type set was purchased there.

My Avatar is a silver baron purchase. Hardly "high grade" but I like it a lot. I grade it as VG, although I see similar grades on ebay as Fine.

ebay: i purchase lots of "packaged" items. foreign mint and proof sets in the original sealed packet, for example. I've started slowly buying raw coins on ebay, but very slowly.

Coinpeople: one purchase so far, from blackhawk. Nice pair of seated liberty dimes at a good price.

I purchase most of my coins from ebay. I do purchase a few at our local show and some from folks here on CoinPeople.

Most of my purchases are from mints/numismatic offices and "online" dealers. I also check out local coin stores from time to time. Fellow collectors - to some extent. eBay - almost nil. Flea markets - well, maybe if I am on vacation and the weather is bad ;-)

Christian

I buy from two world dealers online who are more or less wholesalers, from people who come to my jewelry kiosk and to my setup at a rural flea market, and from a bullion dealer in Richmond who gets the most amazing variety of gold and silver coins and jewelry. I buy from members here and from jewelry repair customers, antique and junk dealers, and from pawnbrokers.

That's the short list of sources. There are other dealers online who provide small lots and singles from time to time. The list expands every year that I keep dealing in coins and jewelry.

I'm listing a few things but a large amount of my inventory is tied up in anticipation of a trade I've been working on. Bill has been kind of MIA lately. Wonder where he is?

I usually buy my coins from online auctions, such as ebay, swedish Tradera and finnish Huuto.net. Sometimes from antique shops and flea markets.

eBay, CoinPeople, local coin shows.

Recently, pawn shops, hoping to run into familiar pieces.

Hope you do find some of your collection again. When mine disappeared several years ago I did the same thing...hit the local pawn and coin shops. No luck though.

On the other hand, I DID find and buy back a familiar coin on Ebay last fall, still in the same 2X2 with my handwriting on it.
Jim

Did you inform the seller of that?

I get most of my coins here, from CP members.

Further from some Mints and I've bought quite some coins trough ebay and a dutch auction site in the past.

No, didn't bother. After 7 years there was no telling how many hands it had passed though. For the 140 bucks I paid for it just wasn't worth the hassle.

Of course, technically speaking, it wouldn't have been mine to claim anyway, but the insurance companies.

Jim

Ummmm, there is nothing there at the web site.
No inventory, no pictures.
New web site?

Let's see:EBay, Lyle's Antiques, Plaza Coins, The Coin Depot and Coinpeople. That about covers it.

I do have a good dealer here in town I frequent. His high end pieces come as expected with high end prices, but you can hold them in your hand and evaluate yourself before you put the money down.
I buy from some of the dealers here at CP as well.
I get my best deals from some of the users here at CP, the price is always great. (Free)
I also use Alaska Coin Exchange as a reliable on-line dealer.
Then there is always eBay. Caveat Emptor.

U.S. Mint and HSN (all of my slabbed coins). Would like to find a good dealer in North Dallas, if anybody knows of one!

Mostly buy/sell direct to/from online dealers. Still buy from mailing lists too.

Failing that i pay regular visits to several coinshops and recently coin fairs too.


For me Ebay is a no no. CDs/Videos/Books/retro stuff that's hard to get hold of, i use ebay for that. Coins and anything else of value i steer well clear of the place, too much junk and very little of what i want anyway.

Coin shows account for 69% of all coin purchases
Coinpeople 15%
Websites 15%
Ebay 1% if that, havent bought a coin off of ebay in a year

Various online, local shops and shows (junkbox digging). Haven't bought much anything lately at all, though.

I guess in order by quantity, I'd have to say:

Local dealer,

Local coin shows,

Forum members/dealers,

E-bilge.

My choices have changed over the years.

When I started, I only bought from retail stores. Lansing, Michigan, had four coin shops back then, and I found one I liked. (Michigan tends to be heavier in retail outlets and clubs, even today.) I still shop at coin stores and I when I travel I visit new stores just to see what's up and say hi and I usually buy something just to be polite. I buy very little serious material at coin stores because my interests are beyond what they usually carry, though I do ask if they can show me this or that or if they have any of these or those or whatever.

As I learned more and my interests broadened, I patronized mail order sellers validated by the publications they advertised in. Not all of them lived up to my expectations, but it was an educational experience, to be sure. Actively collecting ancients, I learned to trust advertisers in The Celator. I still follow the same habit. Building a collection now to support a new area of research in medievals, I ended up buying from VCOINS dealers. Several of them are not Celator advertisers, but I came to VCOINS because of those who were, so the one set validated the other for me.

Along the way, I joined a local club and began going to coin shows. (Again, the Greater Detroit area is a rich marketplace for numismatics.) Seeing the same people over and over at local, regional, and national shows, I became more familiar with the sellers and their wares. I now do most of my buying at coin shows, especially the MSNS and ANA conventions.

Although I am an MSNS director, my hands are tied regarding some of the problems I run into on the bourse floor. Even so, I consider MSNS a very safe venue based on trust, respect, long-term commitments, and the highest standards for building the hobby in order to build the businesses.

Even more than MSNS, I have implicit faith in the process at ANA conventions. Yes, each of us assumes personal responsibility for our own transactions, and, yes, there is no Santa Claus. For all of that, I trust the ANA conventions to have the highest caliber of dealers and materials. Therefore, I tend to save my money during the year or two between ANA conventions and then to do most of my buying there. I attend the nightly auctions as well as walking the bourse floor. I spend two or more days at the show.

Yes, it seems to cost more up front. However, there is no such thing as a free lunch. Mail order, eBay, coin stores, whatever, every mode of buying and selling comes with its own costs and burdens. For what I would spend (or risk) in other overhead, attending an ANA convention once a year or two years, is no more expensive than driving to a local coin store every Saturday morning and spending two or three hours hanging out -- and at an ANA convention, I meet 200 to 300 dealers, each of them competing for my money.

I still buy at local shows, stores, via mail, VCOINS or whatever. I just do about 75% of my buying at the MSNS and ANA conventions and relegate minor purchases, exceptions, and general socializing to the other venues.

As a medieval collector i know exactly what you mean about medieval coins being described as 'ancient', Ancient to me ended with the fall of the Western Roman Empire everything after, Dark Ages*-1500 is medieval, be it early, high or late.


*Dark Ages, is it still referred to as that or has Political Correctness changed it to something not entirely rememberable.