Where did it all start for you? For me it was a Victorian Crown and a bit of advice.

[Foster88]

It’s a cold December Sunday afternoon here and in a rare quiet moment whilst drinking my tea at home and scrolling through the forum I started to wonder where all it started for me. How did I get into coin and bullion collecting. Then I remembered.

I went upstairs and found my first coin in a drawer where I’d say is where my collection started. But it wasn’t with the rest of the new bullion coins, I’ve kept it separate for some reason. I haven’t looked at it for well over a year, maybe two, but as I did it took me right back.

I was about twelve years old at an antiques fair with my mum. Unlike most twelve years olds I used to love going to the antiques fair on Sunday afternoons with her, my friends thought I was mad. So, whilst browsing the brightly lit glass cabinets on the stalls I spotted a 1892 Victoria Crown, I had no idea what it was, it’s worth or even why I wanted it. After some persuasion my mum agreed to buy it and that’s where it started. There were probably 100+ coins in the glass cabinet but I wanted that one. (I wish I’d picked a sovereign now at 1990’s prices) anyway, I digress.

As my mum handed the money over to the stall holder, an elderly man of about 70 ish years old he said “Here you go, look after it, I have a feeling you’ll be collecting more coins won’t you young man? Just a bit of advice, when you’re buying coins and collecting, always buy what feels right.” Then with a wink and a warm smile from the stall holder and £15 from my mum I must add, the silver crown was mine.

Then we left. I sat in the car on the way home and smiled all the way back. Now some 20 years on he was right, how he knew I don’t know. But out of all the silver coins I’ve collected, the sovereigns and half sovereigns, this is one I’ll never part with because it’s where it all began for me and here it is.

Today it’s probably not worth more than £20 but to me it’s priceless.

Where did your collectiong story start? I’d be interested to hear. 

[DarkChameleon]

 

The first two coins I was given were these two, my mother got them from Midland bank as an investment for me...I took them to an antique shop 20 years later to find they were worth the 50p she paid for them...lol...but then I got a half sovereign ring for my 21st birthday which I also still have and those between them started my coin and silver and gold and jewelry collecting and trading....I don't know if it was a good thing or bad thing but its something that has crossed oceans with me.

[TonyS]

My son and god daughter have the first two Britannia’s I bought last October, it escalated from there.

[Tn21]

Was a delivery driver listening to Jim Rickards via my phone which was connected to the van radio. Then listened to others on YouTube. 

Speaking to friends and family on potentially investing in au and Ag they say it was not a good idea. Good job I didn't listen to them because PM's act as a savings mechanism for me.

Bought my first bits of bullion from bullion by post in 2017. 

Came across TSF late 2017 early 2018. Enhanced my interest and belief in precious metals further. Learn't a lot from forum members and also established the lane I'm currently in. 

 

Very happy to have got into pms regardless of the prices because I was one of those individuals who blew my money on nonsense. 

Great place TSF to be involved in.

 

[mr1030]

I was probably 15 years old or so, and I was already a stamp collector.  My dad showed me his Whitman folders of Lincoln and Indian Head pennies, Mercury and Roosevelt dimes etc, that he had collected when he was younger, and that started me on coins.  For my birthday, my  parents gave me a 1 oz silver California Gold Rush art bar.  The kind that were made by Franklin Mint and Hamilton Mint  during the 70's.  That got me started on silver bullion, and I spent all of my allowance on silver just in time to sell most of them during the Hunt brothers silver spike.  When silver came back down, I started buying again.  When I moved out on my own, I really didn't have the money to indulge stacking/collecting hobbies, and except for a brief time around 2005 or so, I didn't do any stacking/collecting until I started up again in early 2016.  I still have that art bar my parents gave me for my birthday as well as about 25 ounces of silver rounds and bars that I kept when I was a teenager.

[firestacker]

I always thought bullion bars looked neat. I'm an investor and love to diversify but knew my weak point was the lack of PM's in my portfolio so early this year I took a look at the platinum, gold and silver prices and they looked a bit beat up to me so I figured it's time I start looking into how to buy the physical stuff as I"ve never been a fan of ETF's. My first silver was a 3x 1kg silver Umicore bars. They were lovely to hold and Arshimo gave me the original box it came in from Umicore so of course the empty space in it left me with a void that needed to be filled. Now I have full box that's overflowing 😄

At that time I would have considered myself just a stacker but that assumes I'd buy any silver assuming it's at a good price. For me that's not true, I only buy desirable brands.

At that point you could have considered me a collector of sorts but I think the collector in me became more evident when I started buying pre 1933 US gold which I think is really neat. You can tell a lot of thought has been put into those designs and I like the fact that people used it as money back then.

[sixgun]

It all started for me when i bought a 1oz maple leaf silver bar - except it was only silver plated. i was well pissed off when i discovered this. This was at the time when silver was flying up and i was trading gold and silver spread betting. The price then crashed and i was glad i only had my fake silver bar. 
A friend and myself tracked the price down and then took the plunge buying 2 monster boxes of Britannias from Celtic Gold. He never bought any more but i had caught the bug - i am still completely addicted. 

[Melon]

I found the "GOLD DEALS - (UK & Europe) See a deal, post it here" thread. 

All downhill from there 

[grey]

It all started when I was in my early teens. There was a whole cotton canvas bag full of coins from the Straits Settlements, mostly George V and George VI coins but also with quite a number of Victoria coins, bronze and silver both.  Everyone else in the family was not interested in them so the bag and coins became my "precioussss". I particular like the Victorian coins because they were the most shiny. Not knowing anything I often polished the ones I particularly liked. Later on when I left home I didn't bring them with me and now they are gone. Such a shame. My father also often brought home foreign coins from the bank where he worked as a cashier. There were also misprinted coins or some with no face at all just a blank disc. So from quite early on I was interested in coins. The second phase started in 2008 when I started frequenting gold/silver forums and reading up on anything related to them. Started buying that year and it hasn't stopped since.

[RacerCool]

Over the years I would occasionally find a silver dime or quarter, and would stash them in my desk drawer. Every now and then I'd sell them when I needed some cash.

Then at some point I realized that I could buy rolls of these silver coins, and when I actually began to make enough money to buy them, I started buying them regularly. And again when I was able, I began to accumulate gold coins.