New to the site & to Coin Roll Hunting... Some questions.

[Brandon3000]

Hey all,

My name is Brandon and I'm from the northwest suburbs of Chicago. About a week ago someone came into the store where I work and asked if we had any half dollars or 'odd coins'. I had a few half dollars and handed them to him for paper. Asked him what he did with them and he explained that he searches for silver and collects certain coins. This got me thinking. I remember my uncle (who is now deceased) collecting coins for many years. I never really bothered to learn much from him because I had my head dug too deep in video games. He tried to get me into it and it lasted about 3 months before I got bored of it. Definitely one of my regrets in life.

Anyway, this whole thing sparked my interest in collecting again. I went into a few coin shops and looked around, shocked by just how many coins were in the display cases. The gentlemen were very nice, however I could tell they were not the kind of guys that would appreciate being asked 1000 questions by a newb. So I walked out and started doing some research. There are so many coins out there that are considered collectible, and I really don't know where to start. I've picked up some rolls of a variety of coins at my local bank and have begun paying closer attention to the change that comes and goes through me at work, and have managed to find a few goodies. So far I've found 2 Walkers (43 and 44) searching through $160 worth of halves, one war nickel searching through about $10 worth of nickels, a 1909 Wheat Penny that I found in the register at work, and one pre-64 dime. This is the start to my coin collecting adventure. It's not much but it's a solid start in my opinion.

I've organized my searched/keepers via food storage containers, and when I'm ready to take them back to the bank I put them in a big cloth bag. Here's a picture.

I do have a couple of questions. Since there are SO many coins that one should be keeping while searching, is there a list of what to look for and what to keep when it comes to quarters/dimes/halves/nickels/pennies/etc? I have read through the CRH beginner's guide at the top of this forum a few time and have the basics of the years of silver coinage down. But is there a list somewhere online that goes into 'more detail' as to what I should be keeping?

Also, I notice many collectors store their keepers in little cardboard(?) squares that are held together by staples. What would be the best place to find these?

And finally, if there is ANY advice some of you veterans can offer me when it comes to coin roll hunting and collecting in general, it would be much appreciated.

Thanks for stopping by.

Brandon

 

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[citystacker]

A 2x2 flip is what you call the cardboard squares to store your coins, but don't use staples you can damage it by scratching. Use rubber bands instead. Go to the book store and go to the hobby section for a Red Book of coins-It will give you a good start and you can see the value of the coins you should be on the lookout for including any rare dates of different denominations. You'll learn a lot here by reading and also from your own personal experience-the more you do the more experience you'll accumulate-and hopefully keepers too!

 

[Pete_Iredale]

don't use staples you can damage it by scratching. Use rubber bands instead.

Or get a flat stapler. They don't cost much on Amazon or where ever, and they makes nice flat staples with no edges sticking out to scratch anything!

 

[Chizzy]

Brandon,
The best advice anyone can give you about what to collect (key dates of various denominations) is to read, research, ask your questions (here or at your Local Coin Shop......if they are interested in your business they will help you)..........then read, research and ask more questions.
You may decide to collect certain coins that are available from circulation. Some collectors are drawn to specific coins..........
Purchase a Red Book for quick easy reference............
Decide how you want to display/store your finds........there are several options.......the 2x2's you referred to, albums (Whitman, Harris, Dansco, etc.), air tight capsules or tubes for larger quantities..............
Do not pass up the opportunity to take advantage of the seemingly unlimited knowledge available here............these folks are the best!
Good luck!!!!

 

[WheatWaffle]

Make sure to check the 1909 wheat penny for the v.d.b variety. The initials will be on the wheat side of the coin in the 6 o'clock position. If the initials are there you have about a $10 coin.

 

[Iamrussell]

Man 2 walkers out of 160 ia amazing luck- congrats-
If you havent already read through the begginers guide up top almost any question youd ha e is answered in there

 

[kingskid1611]

Great start into a whole new world. Start your collection with one variety in mind and when you have completed that begin to expand to more varieties.

 

[minkybodl]

IMO What we find is mostly scrap value coins with the rare mint standouts. I store most of my finds in plastic tubes the same size as what a wrapper would hold or even just the paper wrappers. One good website for finding out the value of silver coins is coinflation.com which figures the spot price with the number of coins you have. Sounds like your off to a good start, keep at it and after how many wrappers you have, it becomes how many cigar boxes full. GL and HH

 

[Dozer D]

Brandon: suggest getting the RED BOOK first, read up on what coins may interest you the most; this can become a very expensive hobby but only to the extent of paying for the coins at FACE VALUE. CRH'g is all part of the HUNT. It's all about how much you are willing to get into it, time/energy/funds and most of all patience. Just like finding a job, you should network between your family, close friends, that you are into coin hunting, but don't go into detailed specifics. Good luck young man, and welcome to the club. HH

 

[ArkieBassMan]

Only you can decide what constitutes a keeper for you. I think its pretty much safe to say that anything silver is always a keeper, but when it comes to things like pre-1960 nickels, clad NIFC halves, and the like, its up to you. Collect what you like, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. There is no right or wrong answer to the, "What should I keep?" question. If you stick with the hobby, your definition of a keeper will likely change as your collection grows. For example, I used to keep all NIFC halves. Fairly quickly I had accumulated hundreds of them. I decided to only keep 2 or 3 of each year and mintmark and not tie up hundreds and eventually what would be thousands of dollars in coins that probably wouldn't appreciate in value.

 

[Brandon3000]

Thank you for all of the great advice guys. Will be going to pick up the red book as soon as I have some free time. Might just order it online. Went through about another $200 in halved with just a few NIFC. Skunked otherwise. No luck on the VDB! Will keep searching though!
Again, thank you all for your great responses. Means a lot!

Brandon

 

[TroutBumDave]

I like it when noobs have polite, well thought out questions and threads.

I'm just barely out of the noob stage myself and just graduated from old Rx bottles on top of my fridge (it started with one marked "wheat pennies" and another marked "silver".) After 12 or so of them stacking/falling/spilling, my wife had had enough, so I went to the LCS and bought a few stacks of 2x2's and a whole bunch of those plastic roll/containers. Now they're all stashed "safely" in a shoe box marked "TOYS", which is a decent poor mans safe.

Good luck dude, enjoy the hunt, and get your kids/grandkids into it if you can. I've been lucky to spend countless hours with my 7 year old daughter this summer going through rolled coins and learning all we can. If not for CRH, she would've been parked in front of the TV or playing on the iPad all summer long, and I would've probably done the same.

 

[conleytheking]

Yeah this was one of the only "I'm new" posts I've read that didn't annoy me..
I like this kid. Lol

Find silver, stack it until prices are right to sell, keep the cash you make in a safe.. Collect more silver, repeat the process. And keep anything rare along the way.

I was heavy into CRHing for a while

I sold my collection of scrap silver when prices were around $38 an oz
I made around $13K
Sadly I didn't put that money in a safe
I blew it. lol

Either way finding silver is always fun

But finding a seated half, or a barber, or a couple of walkers is always the best.

 

[thurmownator]

Brandon,

I strongly suggest, since you admit to being a newbie and looking for all and any advice, to read through the first post on the forum; titled:
BEGINNERS GUIDE TO COIN ROLL HUNTING!!!

Welcome and good luck !