PCGS The Standart for the Rare Coin Industry

- Learn a few "facts" about coins from promotional brochures, from salesmen, and from prediction sheets. The more profits a firm promises, the more you should believe what its representatives have to say. Come to the conclusion, for example, that just about anything shiny, round, and in MS-65 is a wonderful investment. Don't build a numismatic library, for books cost money and take precious time to read.

- Spend your money as soon as possible, preferably with the seller who offers either the best bargains or the most glowing promises and predictions of profit, or, better yet, offers both at the same time.

I have every reason to expect that if you followed this procedure, the following would happen:

- You would spend your money quickly, and the dealers you patronized would be very grateful for your business and would no doubt assure you that you were doing the right thing. Of course, if you spent even more money than you planned to, that would be even better.

- You would gather an accumulation of common coins. If you did buy some rarities, you would overpay, for you would not know on your own how rare the coins are, whether they are nice examples of their type, or whether the price charged was reasonable. If you buy slabbed coins, you will acquire low-end examples and pieces with little aesthetic appeal, for these are the pieces that dealers try hardest to sell.

- Years later, upon being sold, your accumulation would appeal mainly to the wholesale buyer who, of course, wants to pay wholesale prices. Experienced collectors, leading dealers, and others would not take particular notice of your coins, nor would your collection attract much attention with anyone else.

I fully realize that many people have a gambling instinct, and that logic isn't always important. If you head for the gaming tables in Las Vegas or Atlantic City, you don't want someone telling you that it is mathematically impossible in the long run to win at roulette or the slot machines. You want the fun of the play, you want action. In coins, many people want to spend their money right away; they want action. If this is your motivation, please be careful and do not invest more than you can comfortably afford to lose.