We were discussing on the coin side the effect of registries on collecting. Some of the points might be universally interesting.
The thread:
http://boards.collectors-society.com/ubbthreads.php/ubb/showflat/Number/1414555/site_id/1#importA post from that thread:
I don't know that I really agree that it's all that shocking, or even bad. I don't think the registry is the driver of how people collect in the way that you guys think it is. I think it's a reflection of the way many people collect.
When people were throwing coins in coin albums, do you think that it was uncommon for completionists to seek examples of lower grade coins just so they could fill the album up?
Who's to say what makes a coin worth collecting? Aren't they just little metal disks?
Colorful toning? Some dread it.
Blast white? Considered by some to have no character.
"Natural look"? That's nice, but some think there's no such thing.
Varieties? Who cares about an error? It's interesting, but why collect it?
Registry points? What for? Then it's all about the plastic.
Completionism? What's the benefit of just filling up a registry set?
Nostalgia? Why collect those junky low grade coins from pocket change just because your dad did?
Sometimes it's just plain odd to me how the levels of abstraction about what gives something value are OK in one type and not OK in another. I think it's like driving. Everyone who drives slower than you is a maniac, and everyone who drives faster than you is an *spoon*.
Here's what it comes down to, I think. People collect for alot of reasons and with a wide variety of priorities. The path they take to collecting coins comes from many different drivers, and in the end those drivers are just as valid as any other drivers. You could probably, with enough thought, even boil down the key drivers to a few major points, rank them in a particular order and then predict how a collector with those priorities will collect.
1. Return on investment
2. Design aesthetics
3. Completionism
4. Numismatic history
5. Cherry picking / the hunt for the hidden treasure
6. Competition
7. Sense of the "specialness" of the truly rare
8. Sentimental value
9. Hoarding
10. Coin condition perfection
Probably a few others. So if we rank these in the order that someone cares about these things (and probably all collectors care about each of these to some minor extent), then what does the guy who wrote that sentence look like? Maybe this?
3. Completionism
9. Hoarding
4. Numismatic history
2. Design aesthetics
8. Sentimental value
6. Competition
1. Return on investment
7. Sense of the "specialness" of the truly rare
5. Cherry picking / the hunt for the hidden treasure
10. Coin condition perfection
Here's a guy who enjoys just FINISHING things. This is the guy who loved putting model airplanes together. Or maybe likes nothing better than jigsaw puzzles. He also really just enjoys accumulating stuff. Who knows why, but he likes having things. He's also kind of into this coin series and thinks it's neat to have an example from every year in his collection and to look up what happened that year at the mint... but he doesn't need a 70 to do that. Hell, he doesn't even need a 64. He also really thinks that buffalo nickels just look neat, and remembers picking them out of pocket change with his Dad.
So here he is, collecting these cool looking mid-grade buffalo nickels, filling out his set, building up his possessions and learning a little something about history. And hey! As he adds coins, his set keeps bumping up the rankings and that's kind of a cool thing. Special for the grade? Who cares. This is his hobby. He likes it just fine to locate the specimens he needs within a decent budget, and can't be bothered to care about whether the cart wheel luster of a coin is primo for the plastic it's in. That's not where he gets his kick.
How does that guy's collecting look to this guy:
7. Sense of the "specialness" of the truly rare
10. Coin condition perfection
1. Return on investment
5. Cherry picking / the hunt for the hidden treasure
4. Numismatic history
2. Design aesthetics
8. Sentimental value
3. Completionism
9. Hoarding
6. Competition
This is a premium collector. If he's buying a coin, it's a rare one. And not just condition rare. It's got to be a low pop in general. The idea that there are only 40 of these in the world is exciting. Add to that the fact that he's got the one example in MS68 that exists and this coin is truly cool. But it's more than that, really. Staring at this unblemished pristine surface, knowing that this coin has survived the test of time to arrive today in this condition in his hand... that's unspeakably cool.
But it's not enough. He's a practical man. He's not just going to buy any rare high grade coin for any price. He's got to see some ROI. So he learns about grading and how to tell whether a coin is really well graded or maybe a bit of a slider. This helps him to cherry pick some nice values, and feel like his collection growing is also an investment. On top of that... this coin he's got... it's a very rare variety. And you know what? He snatched it from a dealer who hadn't been smart enough to spot the doubling on the obverse.
etc. etc.
Write a little biography in your head of the collectors that are out there who collect differently than you. Be kind and think of it from their perspective. They're enjoying the hobby with a passion about SOMETHING and having passion in life is a great thing. Maybe not the way you do, but collector isn't a term that defines one single way to acquire and appreciate collectibles. It's an umbrella under which many people fit. Why chastise them for enjoying what they enjoy? In the end collecting, like every other human pursuit, is more about human happiness than anything else.
