Coin Show Report

I’ve been meaning to give you an update on what’s been happening at my local coin show (Feb 2014). The short of it is that general attendance is down, the regulars Numismatics are back, and the majority of dealers are buying silver and gold back.

This is an interesting change of sentiment because the last time I was there (about a year ago), gold and silver were at higher levels and lots of noobs were there buying coins. Dealers were selling to the public like crazy and all the transactions were done in cash. Now that the price of gold and silver is a lot lower, my guess is that the noobs are either holding or out of the market completely.

What’s even more interesting is that several coin dealers are selling copper ingots and buying back silver and gold. The whisper in the coin market is that gold is basing and fixing to go higher, but that remains to be seen.

Update

It’s been a long time since I’ve gone to a coin show or listened to a great coin talk. Then COVID19 hit and the show’s been on hiatus ever since. That hasn’t stopped my interest in what’s going on in the coin collectable market. I still remain a collector too! I just hunt for coins now on auction websites and I do get some great deals every once in a while.

Check out the latest price for a [Gold American Eagle](https://www.amazon.com/gp/search/ref=as_li_qf_sp_sr_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=frothedesofth-20&keywords=american gold eagles&index=aps&camp=1789&creative=9325&linkCode=xm2&linkId=41ae05dbf80ade2b152a8f52c1548047), 1 oz. Kitco is selling it for $2,088 by wire transfer and $2,175 by credit card.

You might wonder why the difference in prices considering that the ask price of Gold right now is $1,965.30.

This is the spread on what the coin dealers/sellers make and ordering this online is a waste of your money. My recommendation is to find a good local coin dealer and get a lower spread. My dealer from the coin show gives me $50 spread, which is reasonable considering the price of Gold can swing that much and more in a day.

So when you get quoted to by the American Eagle (above) for $2,088 and the asking price is $1,965, the spread you’re paying $123. Pay by credit card and it’s way higher. I don’t know what the bid price is but it has to be a lot lower than $1,965, at least $100 lower.

I’ve found that a well connected coin dealer really knows where the metal markets go and you can judge by how wide the spread swings get if you’re in for big volatility on the up or downside.