Up next in 10
Collecting gold coins is a pinnacle activity in our hobby, but many people shy away from it due to their perception of the cost involved.
Is collecting gold coins really beyond your means? Noted gold coin expert dealer Doug Winter doesn't think so.
In this CoinWeek IQ video, Doug and Charles discuss ways you can get into gold coins and which types offer the most value for your collecting dollar.
We look at all types of U.S. gold coins, from gold dollars to $20 double eagles and everything in between.
If you have a stack of Morgan dollars in your collection that you do not want, odds are you can afford to buy at least one of the coins discussed in this video.
(c) 2018 CoinWeek
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so Doug I wanted to talk to you in this
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segment about something that I think is
0:35
probably something that a lot of
0:38
collectors feel like they are never
0:40
going to be able to break into gold gold
0:43
obviously the precious metal is very
0:45
expensive much more expensive this
0:46
silver and a lot of people like get into
0:49
coins and they're into coins for many
0:50
many years and they never own a gold
0:52
coin but
0:55
but the amount of money that most people
0:57
put in their coin collections goal
0:58
really isn't out of their price range if
1:00
they have a strategy for it or they want
1:01
to save up for it or if they they just
1:04
really want a representative sample of
1:06
what US classical points were all about
1:09
so I wanted to get your insights on how
1:13
do how would you what advice would you
1:16
give to these collectors and to how to
1:19
get into a couple of gold coins in their
1:20
collection and what points would should
1:23
they be looking at if they just want to
1:25
you know have a nice gold coin a
1:27
historic coin but they're not you know
1:29
they're never going to be buying five
1:31
$10,000 points true traditionally the
1:35
path to gold is usually people start off
1:38
with bullion or generics and then the
1:44
gateway drug gold coin tends to be a
1:46
saint a saint gowns double eagle usually
1:49
a common day of 24 27 28 and NS 63 or
1:54
ms-64 or even a little lower grade and
1:57
right now the premiums on those coins
1:59
are unbelievably low I mean you're
2:01
paying a very small premium over gold
2:05
content for a really fairly nice point
2:08
but if 1500 1250 to 1500 is too much
2:12
there are still smaller denomination
2:15
gold coins there's you can buy very
2:17
respectable gold dollars and quarter
2:19
Eagles for 250 to 750 dollars a coin
2:24
one thing I would probably recommend is
2:27
instead of buying lots of inexpensive
2:29
mundane gold coins maybe taking the
2:33
$3,000 that somebody has budgeted over
2:36
the year for five or six coins and
2:39
thinking for a longer term strategy
2:43
maybe buying one or two really
2:45
interesting coins a year and if
2:47
somebody's willing to go up to the
2:49
thousand to three thousand dollar range
2:51
you can start buying really interesting
2:53
larger denomination branchman gold coins
2:56
you can buy no motto Philadelphia half
2:59
Eagles and Eagles in very presentable
3:01
grades for five hundred to a thousand
3:05
dollars per coin gold has obviously you
3:09
can spend a hundred thousand dollars per
3:11
coin too but you don't need to be a
3:14
super wealthy super well filled
3:16
collector to buy really presentable
3:18
interesting gold so obviously in the
3:22
trade you know dealers and
3:24
professional new businesses use the word
3:26
generic to talk about tight points or
3:30
points itself or a lower numismatic
3:31
premium coins that are still available
3:32
in abundance but if you're a collector
3:35
in this gold coin is going to be really
3:37
special for your collection you probably
3:39
don't want to settle for a generic point
3:41
so how do you beat that beat that label
3:44
and find the coin that actually will be
3:47
something you'd be proud of in your
3:49
collection and it's not something that
3:50
just anybody would have and dismiss so
3:53
in series that aren't comprehensively
3:56
collected by day but a series that's
3:59
comprehensively collected my date is
4:01
Indian Head Quarter Eagles there are
4:03
very few sleepers in that series but in
4:06
a series like with motto Liberty had
4:08
half Eagles that aren't really collected
4:11
by date the population report is your
4:13
friend and you can see the most common
4:16
date might have a thousand graded in ms
4:20
sixty three but there are dates with
4:22
populations of a hundred NMS 63 that are
4:26
available for little or no premium and
4:28
that's what the collector should be
4:30
looking for are not necessarily the rare
4:32
dates but the dates that should have a
4:35
market premium factor that currently
4:38
don't and if that series becomes
4:40
collected more avidly by date it's
4:43
possible that coins that sell for little
4:46
premium right now might eventually get a
4:48
5 10 15
4:50
percent free meal our classical commends
4:53
a good buy today's prices
4:56
I've said they have been for years and
4:59
every time I say they are they get
5:00
cheaper the problem with commend gold
5:04
I like commemorative gold the problem is
5:07
the population reports have shown people
5:09
that coins with miniatures of 5000 still
5:12
have survival rates of 70 to 80 percent
5:16
the coins are small and
5:22
there's there they're just not made
5:24
enough to really attract people they
5:27
were heavily promoted back in the late
5:30
80s early 90s I think there are coins
5:34
regular federal issue coins which offer
5:37
a lot more bang for the buck well to to
5:40
classic Adams I'm especially thinking
5:42
about our the grant with star and the
5:44
pan PAC 250 do you think those are good
5:47
buys
5:48
I'm not a big fan of the grant with star
5:49
I love the pan PAC 250 it's such a cool
5:52
design to get a hippocampus on it where
5:55
else can you find a hippocampus I like
5:57
the the dice whirls that appear on the
6:00
surfaces if I were going to recommend
6:03
one commemorative gold coin it would
6:06
probably be a pan packed gold dollar or
6:08
a pan packed quartering the great story
6:10
and the fact that there's so much money
6:14
the bay area and the pan pack exposition
6:17
is so integral to the history of San
6:19
Francisco I could see that being
6:22
appointed would be promoted and prices
6:24
could go up and it's just even if
6:27
speaking putting in the investment and
6:30
go away I just think they're really cool
6:32
so let's talk about America's first
6:34
small dollar the gold dollar what about
6:36
that series people tend to either love
6:39
or hate Gold dollars I'm in the love
6:41
gold dollar fan I'm also of the age
6:43
where I now need these to see coins on
6:47
they're small and people who are of a
6:53
certain age have trouble seeing the
6:55
coins although I think that's what
6:56
magnification is all about
6:59
I love gold dollars it's a fascinating
7:02
series three distinct designs for the
7:07
most part fairly affordable especially
7:09
type three issues the coins made from
7:12
1856 or 1889 if you delete the breath
7:17
the Charlotte Dahlonega coins if you
7:19
focus a just on the Philadelphia coins
7:21
virtually everything is available at
7:23
under $5,000 for really nice coins so
7:27
I'm a big gold dollar fan I've put
7:30
together some of I would say probably
7:34
the greatest collections ever assembled
7:36
and gold dollars and I I have a special
7:38
affinity for the branch men issues which
7:41
are sort of the folk art of us gold
7:44
coins and if you if you can afford to
7:46
collect a couple working dollars you can
7:48
get into a gold dollar in your
7:50
collection you can buy even new
7:53
accommodate new orleans gold dollars
7:55
type ones like 18 50 100 50 200 you can
7:58
buy really presentable ones 400 $500
8:01
piece which seems pretty reasonable to
8:04
me what about the oddball $3.00 gold
8:07
point I'm a huge fan of $3.00 gold
8:11
pieces
8:11
I wrote with Dave Bowers the standard
8:14
reference book about
8:17
fifteen years ago on the series they've
8:20
been kind of unloved since then although
8:22
I'm starting to see an increase in
8:24
popularity it's an expensive series but
8:27
there are some real sleepers there's a
8:29
lot of history and the fact that there's
8:33
some interesting ones on the SS Central
8:35
America I think may jumpstart some
8:38
further interest in that series so I
8:41
think it's a very collectible series
8:43
that if you're a contrarian might be
8:46
interesting to sniff around and see what
8:50
you think about right now well I would
8:52
say with so many of those nice $3 gold
8:56
points we've seen so far come out of
8:58
that Central America hoard the front the
9:00
pump is probably primed that series
9:03
seems that way yeah so let's go into the
9:05
traditional denounced order eagle and if
9:08
you were going to only have one in your
9:09
collection when you go with the fella we
9:11
own Pratt 250 or would you go with the
9:13
Liberty I'm a liberty guy all the way
9:15
and two and a half lives Liberty had two
9:19
and a half two and a half dollar gold
9:21
pieces are really popular I've noticed a
9:24
big surge in popularity there's a
9:28
there's there are a lot of expensive
9:30
coins in this series but they're also
9:31
coins you can buy particularly
9:33
Philadelphia and San Francisco coins for
9:36
a thousand to fifteen hundred dollars
9:37
that are genuinely rare and nice quality
9:41
it's a it's a series that offers a huge
9:44
amount of value for a collector with a
9:46
reasonably limited budget is it worth
9:50
going earlier in the earlier Gold Series
9:52
if you if you have to get an impaired
9:55
coin to be able to afford it no
9:57
I think that's I hate impaired coins and
10:01
if if you can't afford anything other
10:06
than impaired examples of a coin it's
10:08
better just
10:10
to not fill that hole and is I mean as
10:14
an example you could spend forty
10:16
thousand dollars on an impaired 1808
10:18
quarter ego but you can spend $40,000
10:22
like four amazing ten thousand dollar
10:25
Liberty headquarter egos that actually
10:27
will go up in value and be in demand
10:29
when you go to sell them the problem
10:32
with that screwed up coins is they're
10:34
easy to buy and they're very hard to
10:36
sell they could be like a rarity six coy
10:39
but to find a collector that ones they
10:41
can be rarity seven right right so what
10:43
about we go to the larger denominator we
10:48
have Eagle Liberty had half Eagles and
10:52
classic half Eagles are a real favorite
10:55
of mine they're a little bit more
10:58
expensive Liberty had happy those are
11:00
interesting they're the only us gold
11:02
type struc at all seven minutes
11:06
philadelphia coins in the 1840s and
11:09
1850s
11:10
seemed like the best value to me they're
11:12
probably the least popular but there's
11:14
great coins available under $2,000 and
11:18
in some cases under $1,000
11:20
there's Charlotte the Wanaka points
11:24
which are extremely popular the New
11:25
Orleans coins are popular Carson City in
11:29
San Francisco are popular for varying
11:31
reasons and then the classic head design
11:34
which is 1834 to 1838 that sort of
11:37
bridges the gap between old gold and
11:40
more modern gold it's a series that I
11:42
love and it's got a small but very
11:47
passionate following mainly collected as
11:50
a type coin but it's something that for
11:52
somebody with a budget of 2,500 to 5,000
11:57
dollars a coin could put together a
11:59
philadelphia set from 1834 to 1838 with
12:02
really nice coins there's also some
12:05
fascinating dye varieties if you're into
12:07
dye variety collecting that are fairly
12:10
under research but there's I know of a
12:15
few collectors right now they're getting
12:17
ready to publish online some information
12:19
so if you're a diver iat guy classic
12:23
eight quarter e puerto rico's and half
12:25
eagles or a really fertile area that you
12:28
can pick off some very rare varieties
12:30
from dealers who are not so when you're
12:36
talking about the Liberty Head fives
12:37
here saying that that was like the one
12:39
series where all seven minutes struck
12:41
that point right for a dedicated
12:43
collector with a modest budget would it
12:46
be possible to put that set together of
12:48
one example from each minute it in would
12:51
you would have to you you would have to
12:53
budget at least
12:56
1,500 to 2,500 for a charlotte and
12:59
Dahlonega coin a little less for Carson
13:03
City in a New Orleans San Francisco and
13:06
a Philadelphia could be done fairly
13:08
reasonably in a Denver is a two-year
13:11
project oh six and a seven and they're
13:14
common so for a budget of maybe 10 to
13:21
$15,000 you could put together a really
13:23
really nice set with all the coins at
13:28
least extremely fine and a number of
13:30
them uncirculated so I mean that could
13:32
be like I said a two three-year project
13:34
for somebody but it says certainly
13:36
doable very doable let's get into the
13:38
bigger goal my favorite of the st. out
13:40
as designs is actually his town a long
13:42
time I love that it's going to sort of a
13:45
very popular point I think at this point
13:47
very expensive be a nice example there's
13:49
also very few common dates everything
13:54
even the most common dates are pretty
13:56
rare and high-grade and it's a it's it's
13:59
definitely a wealthy man's series
14:02
particularly in high grade it's a coin
14:06
who doesn't wear terrifically well
14:08
whereas an extremely fine Liberty Head
14:10
$10 gold piece I think is attractive
14:14
a 10 Indian is really pretty in gem
14:17
where a choice uncirculated but in my
14:20
opinion an X f40 10 Indian is usually
14:24
pretty ugly so I think if somebody wants
14:29
to buy the $10 Gold Series
14:32
I think the Liberty Head Series offers a
14:35
lot better value for a 1000 to $3,000
14:39
budget a lot rarer and much more
14:41
interesting and more historic coins you
14:44
know it's funny you bring that up about
14:45
where on that coin I don't know if I've
14:47
ever seen like a heavily circulated send
14:49
yet they didn't circulate as much
14:53
obviously as Liberty Head coins did
14:57
you'll see them
15:00
I mean very rarely in XF Warren au and a
15:04
lot of them have come out of Europe
15:06
they're just they're not necessarily
15:07
warrant there's B they either just beat
15:10
up down to a you and
15:12
they're just I'm the world's biggest fan
15:15
of dirty original coins and dirty
15:17
original a you ten Indians just don't
15:20
really do it for me yeah that really is
15:22
like more like a piece of sculpture and
15:24
once it's what's its mess with it just
15:26
looks like broken sculpture that's well
15:28
put I would agree with that totally so
15:31
yeah I'm gonna write contrary to most
15:32
people's opinion I'm not really a fan of
15:34
the twenty dollar st. except for the eye
15:37
relief as originally intended I don't
15:40
like the flatter versions I think the
15:42
face usually gets obliterated in the
15:43
knees and once I see that I'm employed
15:45
in focal areas I've just started off so
15:48
I don't know if I was collecting 20s on
15:51
a budget I think I actually would go
15:52
back to the probably the type three
15:55
liberties I tend to agree with you
15:57
although one people were scared off by
15:59
saints and there are I mean I counted
16:02
once I forget the number but there's a
16:04
couple of dozen issues that you can buy
16:07
very respectable uncirculated coins for
16:10
under $2,000 but obviously there are a
16:14
number of six-figure coins also so it's
16:18
it's a series that you have if you're on
16:21
a limited budget you have to understand
16:23
what your expectations are but I think
16:25
again for more bang for your buck I
16:28
type 3:20 lips which are made from 1877
16:32
to 1907 offer a lot greater rarity and
16:36
aesthetically I think a nice MS 62 MS 63
16:40
Liberty Head 20 is a really good looking
16:43
point yeah also also the thing about
16:46
that Liberty series I mean it really is
16:48
sort of the Rodney Dangerfield of the
16:50
Gold Series it doesn't get the respect
16:51
it deserves almost impossible to put a
16:53
uncirculated set complete satisfied date
16:57
and then mark about the series together
16:59
some of those this is just I don't even
17:00
know yeah I mean for somebody on a
17:04
workingman's budget type 120 lives are
17:09
really out of the question
17:11
the more mundane coins are going to be
17:14
two to five thousand dollars and there
17:17
are almost all the omens are five and
17:19
six figure coins
17:21
type twos are a little more within
17:23
budget especially if you punt
17:26
the rarer Carson City issues with type
17:28
three one of the things I suggest for
17:32
people to do are doing date sets so
17:35
there are certain year there's only one
17:37
year or 1886 that only comes in
17:40
Philadelphia which is a very rare coin
17:42
but every other year
17:44
if the Carson City or the Philadelphia
17:46
coin is super expensive there is always
17:49
one date that is available for usually
17:51
under $2,000 so if you're willing to do
17:55
I think it's like a 31-point set knowing
18:00
you'll get 30 of the 31 wins if you
18:03
commit fifty sixty thousand dollars to
18:06
it over the course of the say ten years
18:07
you can put together a really really
18:09
nice set and the points are interesting
18:12
you can do mainly Philadelphia in San
18:15
Francisco and maybe throw in a parson
18:17
city coin here are there just for a
18:19
little variety you usually I kind of
18:22
chuckle when I hear coin dealers say
18:24
that you know this is a gem ms 62 or a
18:28
Jim MS 63 whatever point it is because
18:31
usually there's actually plentiful
18:33
actual Jim points out in the marketplace
18:35
but I think with the twenty dollar
18:36
Liberty series that's actually one
18:38
instance I think in u.s. numismatics or
18:41
you can get away with that and actually
18:42
be quite honest with a point like the 20
18:45
Liv getting a sixty two or three might
18:48
actually be the best that's on the
18:50
market and there's there is there is
18:52
such a thing as a Jim 62 or 63 about
18:54
serious there's also expanding on your
18:56
point there's a huge variance and
18:58
quality
18:59
20 lives within the grade so you can
19:01
have a coin that's a very average MS 62
19:04
that's worth 5,000 and you can have one
19:07
that's super high-end maybe not a 63 but
19:10
a six to two point seven to sixty two
19:12
point eight
19:13
it's worth seventy five hundred to ten
19:15
thousand and that would be in my
19:17
estimation a gem and a 62 for the issue
19:21
so it's it's it's a misuse term but
19:24
there are definitely huge variations in
19:27
quality for twenty lives
19:30
it's a specific rate range for each
19:33
specific game well Doug thanks for
19:35
sharing your insights about gold
19:36
obviously I don't know anybody in the
19:38
present market who knows as much about
19:40
classes as well as you do thinking and
19:42
and and I think it's important for
19:44
collectors who are afraid of gold to
19:46
sort of break down that barrier you
19:47
don't need to be afraid of it
19:48
not every gold coins gonna be in your
19:50
range but you can get into it if you
19:52
have a strategy and you know the leyland
19:54
I agree gold is your friend
19:58
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