A coin is worth what you can get for it! Isn't it?

1shotwade

Full Member
May 29, 2014
189
107
southern Indiana
Detector(s) used
white 4900/d
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
I was snooping around on eBay looking at coins. Maybe you are one of these guys but I just need to understand the difference in value.

I saw a 1909 VDB asking $300,another $70.$50 then I find this. 12 VDB's for $10.00 !I like coins but that's about it. I'm no expert in anything like that.So I just have to ask,what's going on? are they truely valueable or not?
Thanks,y'all.
Wade
 

digging440yrs

Gold Member
Dec 5, 2012
5,946
4,410
UPSTATE NEW YORK
Detector(s) used
1970 COMPASS-
WHITES SILVER EAGLE-
WHITES DFX, 4X6DD COIL, 6X8DD COIL, 950 COIL, 10X12SEF COIL-
GARRETT PRO POINTER AT, GARRETT AT PRO , MINELAB EXPLORER SE with 8.5x12.5 Cors coil
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Condition plays a large part of value
 

Captain Caveman

Silver Member
May 14, 2015
2,513
2,234
Madison, MS
Detector(s) used
Fisher F75SE, F44, F2 and CZ-20. Minelab E-TRAC and Go-Find 60. Tesoro Tejon. BH Quick Silver.
Primary Interest:
Other
Condition plays a large part of value

Condition plays a LARGE PART of value.

Also, certified coins will bring more depending on who they are certified by.
 

huntsman53

Gold Member
Jun 11, 2013
6,955
6,769
East Tennessee
Primary Interest:
Other
I agree with the above answers but they don't get to answering your real question! Yes, some are fairly valuable, some are less valuable and condition means everything but in this case, some Sellers/Dealers are trying to get more for their' coins while others likely have less money in their' coins and are undercutting the other Sellers/Dealers. Such Sellers/Dealers that can afford to undercut other Sellers/Dealers, is the very reason I quit selling coins on eBay, especially Error and Variety Coins. These folks were selling the same Error and Variety Coins at way less than what I had in my' coins. It's a dog eat dog world.


Frank
 

OP
OP
1

1shotwade

Full Member
May 29, 2014
189
107
southern Indiana
Detector(s) used
white 4900/d
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
It sounds to me like all of y'all know what you are talking about! I'm not a person driven by money.I think if you have "enough" then why do you need more.This has been good to me. Enough so that I was able to retire 10 years early. I understand that many others have this drive and that's ok,just not for me. The things that get me are seeing such a fluctuation in pricing as we have just discussed or things like this. I watched a gold coin that was worn so much you couldn't get a date off it go for almost $500 which was around $340 over melt! At the same time I see many gold coins that are in great condition see for only maybe 4-5 % premium over melt!
I can't understand it! Maybe it's just that I'm so new to the game!(But I do love the beauty in coins!)
Wade
 

Captain Caveman

Silver Member
May 14, 2015
2,513
2,234
Madison, MS
Detector(s) used
Fisher F75SE, F44, F2 and CZ-20. Minelab E-TRAC and Go-Find 60. Tesoro Tejon. BH Quick Silver.
Primary Interest:
Other
Be careful. If you get too enamored by coins, you'll need a job again! :tongue3:
 

Terry Soloman

Gold Member
May 28, 2010
19,419
30,082
White Plains, New York
🥇 Banner finds
1
🏆 Honorable Mentions:
1
Detector(s) used
Nokta Makro Legend// Pulsedive// Minelab GPZ 7000// Vanquish 540// Minelab Pro Find 35// Dune Kraken Sandscoop// Grave Digger Tools Tombstone shovel & Sidekick digger// Bunk's Hermit Pick
Primary Interest:
Metal Detecting
I agree with the above answers but they don't get to answering your real question! Yes, some are fairly valuable, some are less valuable and condition means everything but in this case, some Sellers/Dealers are trying to get more for their' coins while others likely have less money in their' coins and are undercutting the other Sellers/Dealers. Such Sellers/Dealers that can afford to undercut other Sellers/Dealers, is the very reason I quit selling coins on eBay, especially Error and Variety Coins. These folks were selling the same Error and Variety Coins at way less than what I had in my' coins. It's a dog eat dog world. Frank

Sniff, sniff.. Smells like capitalism. :skullflag:
 

Honest Samuel

Banned
Sep 23, 2015
8,814
4,969
Connecticut
Detector(s) used
Minelab
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Do not purchase coins on eBay, or anything else. You want to sell the items incuding coins in person. 1909 VDB, graded ms-60 sells around $100.00 from dealers.
 

coinsareawesome

Bronze Member
Apr 6, 2013
1,028
263
Mid-Atlantic Region
Detector(s) used
Ace-250
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Do not purchase coins on eBay, or anything else. You want to sell the items incuding coins in person. 1909 VDB, graded ms-60 sells around $100.00 from dealers.

...which is a very, VERY high price to pay for a 1909 VDB in that condition. Red book states that a VDB in that condition is worth $25, and they give RETAIL values.
 

OP
OP
1

1shotwade

Full Member
May 29, 2014
189
107
southern Indiana
Detector(s) used
white 4900/d
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
I feel I've fell in with a bunch of pretty savvy critters! Y'all got it going on! Thanks for all. I'll learn the ropes some day if I live long enough!
Wade
 

enamel7

Gold Member
Apr 16, 2005
6,384
2,546
North Carolina
Detector(s) used
Garrett AT Gold
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Look at it this way. What's worth more, a pristine corvette that's been taken care of it's whole life, or a worn out one in a junkyard? You wouldn't pay full price for a junker would you?
 

austin

Gold Member
Jul 9, 2012
5,360
3,501
San Antonio, Texas
Detector(s) used
Garrett 250
Primary Interest:
Other
1909 VDB's are not rare. 1909 S VDB, now that is worth some money. It is rare. Look, since your world, like mine, isn't money driven(I was a hippy in the 60's) just buy waht you want. If you can truly afford it and it makes you happy, just go for it...
 

huntsman53

Gold Member
Jun 11, 2013
6,955
6,769
East Tennessee
Primary Interest:
Other
Sniff, sniff.. Smells like capitalism. :skullflag:

Yeah, who cares right! When you are losing money or not even making sells due to the undercutting, you would sing a different tune. I once had over 15,000 Error and Variety coins with values averaging in the $10 to $50 range with quite a few valued at $75 to $100 or more. I had to stop selling any of them on eBay due to Sellers/Dealers selling the same Error and/or Variety coins for $1 to $5 for the lower valued coins and $10 to $20 for the higher priced coins. Again, who gives a big hairy :censored:, right but Capitalism Runamuck is a large part of what is wrong in this country and businesses go in and out of business so quickly.

Frank
 

Last edited:

jeff of pa

Super Moderator
Staff member
Dec 19, 2003
85,782
59,579
🥇 Banner finds
1
🏆 Honorable Mentions:
1
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
I was snooping around on eBay looking at coins. Maybe you are one of these guys but I just need to understand the difference in value.

I saw a 1909 VDB asking $300,another $70.$50 then I find this. 12 VDB's for $10.00 !I like coins but that's about it. I'm no expert in anything like that.So I just have to ask,what's going on? are they truely valueable or not?
Thanks,y'all.
Wade


You pretty much said it all.
People on EBay price things at what they Want.
If someone pays it, That is what that particular item is worth to the Buyer.

Even so if that buyer takes it to a dealer or even Re-posts it & tries to recoup,
they are most likely in for a rude awakening .
 

ARC

Gold Member
Aug 19, 2014
37,251
131,561
Tarpon Springs
Detector(s) used
JW 8X-ML X2-VP 585
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
"A coin is worth what you can get for it! Isn't it? "

This applies to ALL things... not just coins.

I know this "tidbit" doesn't help or lend any insight... but hey I just woke up. :P
 

OP
OP
1

1shotwade

Full Member
May 29, 2014
189
107
southern Indiana
Detector(s) used
white 4900/d
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
Everything said here rings true on both sides of the issue. Now does anyone have any advice or ideas to make things better? One example I'll give is I needed belts for my chipper so ran up ti NAPA and they could get it tommorrow for $18 ish so I went home and get on the net and got 2 each to my door,next day for $14 and change.
So what's the right thing to do? Suppore your local merchant buy paying over double and butning your gas and taking up your time and making a trip to order it and another to pick it up?
A few years back I bought a gun over the net at a good price and had it shipped to my local ffl. Went to pick it up and while doing the paperwork he said"I don't know why you don't buy these guns from me!" I told him"well I will if you can match the prices on them. I'd rather give you all my business!" At that he went back to his desk and looked at some stuff then the paperwork on my gun. Then he came back and looked at my gun(My brand new,Ihave never touched yet gun)He picked it up looked it over then THREW it down on the carpeted counter! SO hard it bounced up about a foot! My brand new gun I never had touched yet! Then he says.Hell,I can't even get these for what you paid for this!
That's the day I quit dealing with him and the day I quit dealing with guns since it causes so much ill feelings.
Wade
 

huntsman53

Gold Member
Jun 11, 2013
6,955
6,769
East Tennessee
Primary Interest:
Other
To be honest, there is no fix or way to make things better! A Global, International or even a Domestic pricing structure is out of the question and there will always be individuals or business entities that can beat some price somewhere. We all have had good and bad experiences with Gun Dealers or Sellers of other items but that should not cause one to stop purchasing certain items because of a bad experience.

On another note, there was no call whatsoever for the Gun Dealer to act the way he did and he will be lucky if he doesn't get :censored: slapped in the future for such antics that he pulled with you and your' newly purchased gun. There is no reason for his behavior even though he was P.O.'d because he lost a sell and if it happened to me, I would put the word out to everyone I know and don't know about what he did. Although I don't use it enough, Facebook is a powerful tool. If this had happened to me and the Gun Dealer had actually damaged my' newly purchased gun, I would have called the local Law Enforcement entity with jurisdiction over the area where the Gun Shop is and filed charges against the Gun Dealer for destroying my' property. I have both walked and setup at Gun Shows and have dealt with buttheads (for a better word) on both sides of the table and such behavior is usually not tolerated. I once had a potential customer damage a rifle I was selling partially due to being upset that I would not drop the price of the rifle to what he wanted to pay and partially by accident. I later found out that the Gun Show Proprietor would have made him pay the full price for my' rifle for damaging it, if I had informed one of their' employees. Even most infractions by Sellers/Dealers at Gun Shows will not be tolerated and the Proprietor usually bans them from ever setting up at any of his/her Gun Shows in the future and sometimes is removed from the current Gun Show.


Frank
 

Last edited:

Top Member Reactions

Users who are viewing this thread

Top