You should collect what you like and enjoy.  This is Your
Dream.  Design it any way you want.

Never-the-less, . . . decide on Foreign coins or US Coins;
and Proof or Mint State.  If US, then decide upon a Denomination:
penny, nickel, dime, quarter, half dollar, dollar or other.

Or, decide upon a particular Period in History, e.g.:  Morgan
Dollars (Lady Liberty, Following Civil War) Peace Dollars (Following
WWI) War Time Cents (Steel and Shell Casing - WWII), War Time Nickels
(Silver - WWII)  Silver quarters and dimes pre 1965;  Statehood
Quarters;  20th Century;  19th Century.

Or decide upon an Historical Figure;  Kennedy Half Dollars (Following
his death);  Lincoln Cents;  Washington Quarters;  Franklin Half
Dollars;  Eisenhower Dollars, Susan B Anthony Dollars, Roosevelt Dimes;
Sacagawea Dollars.   You can also choose Type Sets, Year Sets, Mint
Sets, Proof Sets and Decades.

The Next Step is to decide upon the Quality of coin you want
to collect.  Your choices are:  a)  pocket change;  b)  bank rolls  c)
US mint and proof rolls or sets (new and used)  d)  Buy from Coin Shows
and Clubs  e)  Buy on the Internet  f)  Buy from dealer;  g)  Buy from
coin magazine or ad.   Each has their benefits and advantages.  Pocket
Change and Bank Rolls provide circulated coins.  The US Mint provides
uncirculated Mint State and Proof coins.

But the Internet provides the Greatest Selection from private Web Sites,
e.g.  ThePerfect-Coin to the big Auctions like eBay, Yahoo, Heritage
and TeleTrade.  And With the advent of PayPal (free) it becomes very
easy to pay for purchases over the Internet and by Phone.
 

The one thing that is important in all of the above choices is the Grade
of the Coin, which is closely related to Value (a topic for another
article).   But which leads to the next choice:  Buy Slabbed or Raw?
Raw coins are what you find in pocket change.  Slabbed coins are those
that are Professionally Certified and Graded by an Independent Third
Party.  The coin is then placed in a slab, made of plastic, identified,
labeled and sealed.  It actually takes 3 Professionals to decide upon
the Grade of a Coin.  If Buying Raw Coins, You need to Know How to Grade
a Coin.  Even then, there will be disputes about the Grade.  If Buying a
Slabbed coin, You Know the Grade.  The Grade Becomes Virtually
Undisputable!   All references to Price in any resource are Based on
Grading, which follows the Guidelines set by the ANA American
Numismatic Association.   Currently, there are only Four Companies that
are Recognized for Strictly following these Guidelines:  PCGS, NGC, ICG
and ANACS!

It is from these Professionals that one should buy slabbed coins.
Buying Slabbed Coins is the First Rule of Serious Coin Collecting.

Obviously, one will be very limited in the years, mints, and
varieties available from pocket change and bank rolls - both being local
in nature.   Even if starting with these means of collecting, always
keep an open mind about other resources.  So, a little future insight
helps to decide that better resources will yield better coin
collections.  Most collections will span a greater range than either
pocket change or bank rolls will produce.  It is therefore imperative to
investigate other resources.  Your budget will usually determine the
Grade of coin that you can afford to collect.  MS63-MS65 is an Ideal
range for collecting, not only because of the excellent condition and
detail of the coins, greater availability, lower costs, and because
coins in this range tend to appreciate faster than other Grades.

Lastly, decide whether to collect all of the coins in your
Group including varieties and errors or just the regular issue
coins. Errors and Varieties can become extremely expensive and
difficult to find.  Most people will avoid them.

There is one more item to decide, but it is very simple, and
it has to do with the quality of the coin or how much you want to
spend for an average coin, for an exceptional coin, or a perfect coin.
Your budget will usually determine this factor, or, how much per month
you can spend for your new Investment.   Think of it as a Fund.  You are
trading Money for . . . Money that Grows!  Properly attended, this Fund
can quite possibly put someone through college.

This Concept is critically important because most people shy
away from spending a little more, just to get the best.   And I am
talking about the best in quality of coin, no matter what the Grade.
In other words, you get a Coin with the Grade it is Supposed to Have.
This is the Only way to be sure of the Value of the Coin.   Spend your
Money Wisely.  Get what you pay for.  Until you become a Professional at
Grading, rely on the Professional Graders.  Whether you choose to
collect Kennedy Proof Half Dollars, or Jefferson Nickels from pocket
change, thanks to the Internet, you will find a huge number resources
available to give your efforts a boost, but Always Know Your Grade!

Robert L Taylor, JD

Copyright 2006 Robert L Taylor, JD
 

About the Author

Robert Taylor is a 59 year old retired Lawyer, from Denver, Colorado,

who spent most of his career representing people who could not afford an

attorney, and who has had a passion for collecting US coins,

particularly Morgan Dollars, since the age of 6.  Wanting to share his

Passion, he created ThePerfect-Coin which features US Rare and Modern

Dollars (from 1878) and Coins (from 1960 to 2000), all Certified and

Graded by NGC or PCGS.

For Beginning Coin Collectors, he then created Beginning-Coin-Collecting

which features US Modern Coins, from 1960 to 2000, that are high quality

BU, Certified and Slabbed Coins that are all priced less than $10 per

coin.