CoinsInOR
Hey, folks, I’m new to the forum and I gotta say, this seems like a great idea. I’m getting back into collecting after a hiatus. I’m in the US and I’ll mostly be swapping common coins, ie nothing too valuable. Just filling runs and enjoying collecting again.
I have a couple of questions about etiquette and preferences.
Listing Price: I’ve noticed some people include prices on their swap list and others don’t. So. 1. How much do people use price in determining fair trades? 2. Do people use the Numista valuations? 3. Where do the Numista valuations come from?
Shipping: How are people shipping coins? I imagine I’ll be trading mostly with people in the US. But I’m curious on the expectations of how coins are shipped. I’m also curious, do people ship a small number of coins in a box, or if you’re shipping say 1-3 coins, can you put them between 2 pieces of cardboard and mail them in an envelope? If so, how do they travel?
I'm interested in general comments on what worked or didn't work. Experiences of international swaps, costs of mailing, or grading are also welcome.
Thanks in advance.
Hello! I think I will be able to help/guide you. Someone helped me out 3 years ago, and I am returning the favor.
Listing Price:
1. There are so many ways people determine a fair trade, and everyone's calculations are unique. Some people base the swaps on the total value, like me. I put prices on all my swap coins. It helps me to count the approximate total value faster, and it should help other people to see how much I value the coins. Some coins are easy to value, and some are harder because there are rare. And if I put a price of $75 for a coin, and another person values it at $10, so it means that there is no point in selecting it for a swap. Is it a final value? Maybe not. Am I open to bargaining? Yes. But I won't drop the $75 coin down to $10 or even $20. Add here different values in different countries. Some coins are common in one country, and it will be harder to get them in others. So, it is all a part of the negotiation process. Not all swaps happened to be confirmed. In my case, probably only 50% of swaps are confirmed, others are declined. Some people swap 1 on 1 coin basis, some people look at Numista Rarity Index, some swap silver for silver only, etc.
2. Some people do, like me, and some don't. But it is not precise or correct for all the coins. Usually, it is ok, for more common coins, but can be off for some niche coins and rare coins. So, look at it, and make a fair judgment to yourself.
3. They come from a mean average of values that other Numista users put in their collections. It is saved in euros and automatically shows in the currency you selected. That is why sometimes it can fluctuate, especially when USD/Euro exchange fluctuates, like in 2022.
Shipping:
People ship coins differently. Everyone has their own way to do it, eventually, you see how other people ship, take tips from them and modify your way. The size of the swaps also can be different, I swapped 2 coins, and I swapped 200+ coins in 1 swap. Usually, if you both find a lot of coins from each other, swap bigger and save on the shipping cost. But very often, 1 person has a lot of coins that he/she is interested in, but another just a few, and a swap becomes small.
If it is a small swap within the US (1-6 oz. e.g.), I just use regular envelopes. I fold a piece of paper in 3 to fit in the envelope. Put coins inside in little Ziploc bags, or cover them in tissue paper (some people use aluminum foil), or 2x2 flips, and lay them flat and taped. You are not allowed to ship money in the US, meaning you are not allowed to ship coins as well, so you need to hide them, make sure they are flat, and don't make any sound. If you have a heavier swap or a more expensive swap, it makes sense to ship them in a package with a tracking number.
About the international swaps, I ship also in regular envelopes with a weight of 1-3 oz. Don't ship an envelope that is 3-3.5 oz., even though it is allowed, it always gives trouble and they return it. You can see prices here. Most countries will be in Groups 3-5. If you have 8-14 oz of coins, sometimes it is cheaper to ship them in a large envelope. Take a large, letter-size envelope, a cardboard, put your coins flat, taped over tissue, aluminum, 2x2, on the cardboard, and put it in the envelope. A lot of people abroad like to have a tracking number, but shipping internationally from the US will require you to use Priority Mail, and it will be ridiculously expensive, so make sure you tell that first to your abroad partner. The rate of confirmed international swaps is lower because of that.
Other tips on shipping:
- Make sure you have a scale to weigh envelopes
- I don't go to the post office, because they can give you a hard time, if they see/hear/feel coins in the envelopes. I either use stamps or print labels here, and drop them at the mailboxes.
- I buy stamps in bulk under face value (maybe 30% less), with different denominations. I can give you a contact where you can order them. But you need to spend $70-100 at once to get yourself a package of stamps. If you are planning to do 30-40 swaps, maybe it makes sense, but if not, maybe it will be an overkill.
- When you ship internationally in a regular envelope, you don't have to declare anything. People from abroad do not pay incoming taxes on them usually, the envelopes are not stuck at customs, and are usually delivered faster. But you don't have a tracking number and may be lost or stolen.
Other swapping tips:
- I have made 130+ swaps. 2 people have not sent their coins. I had probably 2 swaps where the coins were really off/fake. And, I think 1 or 2 envelopes were lost.
- The values of swaps were from a few dollars to $200-300. Thankfully, all more valuable swaps were ok.
- Usually, all swappers here are reliable and honest. Of course, everyone has their own style of communicating and swapping, and it may seems that people are rude, but overall they are trustworthy.
- Red flags. If people have no ratings. Numista is an amazing platform, but there are scammers that occasionally appear. Usually, newbies, send their coins first and only after receiving their part to get the first ratings. If you see the score of a person that is not 10.0, read the problem ratings. Sometimes it is an issue with the shipping, and sometimes the person who is rating is a bit ridiculous, but sometimes there is a good reason. And usually, if you see a person with a few bad ratings, and it was an issue with him/her, proceed with caution.
- Even though I had a few swaps that were not successful, others were successful. But even with swaps that I consider successful, there were minor issues. Someone forgot to send a low-value coin, maybe a coin fell out from the box while being shipped, the wrong year was sent, the wrong mintmark/subtype was sent, etc. But it is the nature of swapping, so be prepared not to be perfect. Try asking for pictures before you confirm. Though even with pictures you will miss some years/subtypes. I try to be attentive to these minor things, but I also made small mistakes before.
- If you have a niche collection, maybe you won't have a lot of success in swapping. It is hard to find people with the same niche interests, and there are maybe 2-3 of you here, you make those 2-3 swaps and that is it. But if you collect more modern or popular coins, you can make a lot of swaps here.
Overall, you are in a good place. Thousands of people enjoy it here. Some slow down with the hobby, some come back later, some are regulars and are active, some come in once a year, a lot of different crowds. I wish I discovered this website earlier though.
If you have any other questions, I will be glad to help.
