I have only been to small coin shows in my young Numismatic Career. I am going to the ANA World's Fair of Money in August and wanted to know if I should expect better deals than small shows. Any words of wisdom would be nice!
Definitely not! Tables at shows as such are upwards of $1000@ a 6 foot table. That said how much inventory does a dealer have to sell to break even,before he's making a profit ? You think he's going to give you a better price? That's highly doubtful . Unless they are having a great show and likes your face. I will pass on a big show to buy at a local one.
That's what I thought because there are small shows near me where dealers only pay $90 for a table. I thought maybe at a big show there would be a lot more competition to bring prices down.
Nope...others may disagree but I live 10 miles South of Baltimore and the Whitman shows here how many times a year? I may go to 1 show.....last spring was to see my buddy Alan of coinzip, oh and SuperDave was there also.
I think the general consensus is better prices at smaller shows compared to large. In addition to higher table fees, there is considerable travel cost for a lot of dealers. But I don't think this is a hard and fast rule. Back when I collected early copper, I would run into the same dealers at Baltimore and some local shows, they charged the same price regardless of where they were, and it was listed on their website for the same price as well. With that said, I would encourage you to go to a big show. They are worth going if for no other reason than to enjoy the atmosphere. Nothing like walking into the Baltimore show for the first time and seeing 600 tables... Depending on what you collect, ancients for me, there is very little material available at local shows, so large shows are the only option. If you specialize at all you will likely find the sheer volume of material at larger shows outweigh the modest increase in prices.
I go to large shows to get great coins and small shows to get great deals. Seriously, large shows afford you a huge selection of coins to choose from, so obtaining good value is well within your reach, even if you're searching for something scarce. As your collections fill out, leaving unfilled holes only for tougher dates, attending only the smaller shows will eventually leave you frustrated with the lack of selection.
Sound advice from those posting here. There is little selection from the small shows that I go too but good deals. I am focusing on an Ike collection right now and hopefully will have some luck at the big show finding some nice specimens on the key dates I need (73S Silver Proof and 72 Philly type 2).
Hard to say either way. I have gotten some of the best deals ever at the Long Beach Show and that is pretty large. All depends on what you are looking for and where you look for it. Ancient coins at dealers who just have a few can sometimes be a good deal, sometimes not. Depends on the dealer, your wants and your luck.
The local show, that I attend, has the same people with the same stuff each and every show. It becomes so monotonous that I skip it for months. The big shows have much more to offer and you do owe it to yourself to attend one. Plan on attending over the period of two or three days........there's so much to see.
And you have to decide whether to go on the first day when there are fresh deals or wait till the last day when dealers are desperate to make some more bucks.
Very true.........but sometimes the last day is a ghost town. First days are great. I run all around the place looking for freebee's. @Treashunt taught me that.
In reality, if you do your home work, you can be assured that you will purchased a coin you want or like at a fair price. That being said, if there is a large show in your proximity, do not hesitate to attend. You will see lots of new stuff and it will likely be educational. also if you can go to the show earlier than later.
I'm going to the last day because of my schedule. I was planning on the first day too but can't do it. I'll be a scavenger on the last day looking for dealers that need cash. I'll be looking for a nice 1881S Morgan, some Ike's for my set, and key date ASE's for my other set that I am currently building.
The answer to the question being asked really depends on what you're looking for. I don't entirely buy the premise that the expensive table means no good deals or that small shows necessarily have good deals. If you're looking for an uncirculated large cent, for example, a small show might have a really small selection, which was the same as it was for the past 18 months because the one dealer that has a couple has unrealistically high prices on them. At a large show, you'll be able to look at a larger selection of coins and find the one that is the best deal for you. You will be able to get a good deal on an 81-S Morgan at the end of a show. That is a coin that dealers won't want to take home with them. Cherrypick for quality within the grade you want, because there'll be tons of 64-66 coins available.
