THE CSNS SHOW

THIS MARKET REPORT IS WRITTEN BY LEGEND FOR LEGENDS CUSTOMER BASE. YET AGAIN WE MUST MENTION OTHER TYPES OF DEALERS WILL EXPERIENCE A DIFFERENT SHOW THEN WE DID AS MOST DO NOT DEAL IN SIMILAR AREAS AS US. 

LEGEND HAD A SHOW WE NEVER DREAMED WE COULD 

We had expected just an okay show at best. CSNS is really another dying show that has gone from a “must attend” to more of a large regional show.  Dealer attendance was weak. Most of the major dealers who did come, had left by Thursday evening. We DO NOT feel the show was impacted by the economy or anything else major. Its just not the show it used to be. We do NOT think this show is a good indicator of the coin market.

COLD AND RAINY START

That is how the weather and climate both outside inside the building was when we arrived in town.  We saw our regular “first shot” buyer within minutes of arriving. He is a major retail dealer and we always give him first dibs. He clearly was aggressive and bought a nice little pile. We figured the show just might be better then we expected at that point (we can gauge the market through him as he is soup to nuts). Then suddenly after our second dealer, the doors just shut as we “lobby leached’. We only sold 1 more small coin to one dealer and that was it. Our kind of coins simply were too much for the wholesalers to buy unless they were “crack outs”.

Wednesday at set up was like pulling teeth. It seemed like there was little cash and few coins to buy. Most dealers we normally show to did not even want to look. Wednesday was so bad we plotted our escape for early Thursday.

If this report had been written at 9 AM Thursday, you would have heard nothing but gloom and doom. Then like a flower in field of dirt being the first to sprout, we sold a five figure pop1 finest graded coin to a collector. Then it became a sunny Spring time in Illinois. More sales started sprouting. By noon we had TWO six figure coins SOLD to dealers for inclusion in some great collections. We did sell our 1c 1864L PCGS PR65+ RB (too many people thought for too long on it). By the time the day had ended we had done nearly $500,000.00 in sales! Most sales were $10-$35,000.00 (examples: 1C 1856 FE PCGS PR65 CAC, $1 1880 Trade PCGS PR67+ CAC , $10 1914 PCGS MS65 CAC to name a few). We did a few sales to collectors, but our sales were mainly to dealers representing collectors.

Friday was quiet as most of our peers had left. We did do a few more sales (both to collectors and wholesale). Still, Thursday was a sales day as great as any ANA or Fun Show we have done. The one thing that bugged us, we never really saw or heard any “buzz” in the room (unless you dealt on the opposite end of the spectrum from us). We had several other dealers complain how “dead” their shows were. We did see many big time local collectors attend, but they seemed to be just looking and resigned to not finding much.

While this show may have not been good for many, it really is NOT a reflection of the market. The auction proved there are still MANY collectors alive and well. In fact the overall strength of prices realized in the sale kind of surprised us. We are so beyond last Jan-March weakness. Collectors just don’t want to come to a show that is marginal at best anymore to see mostly retreads. We don’t really blame the CSNS people for the shows weakness, we think its a clear sign of the times of shows.

In the end, Legend had a RECORD Sales show. We don’t feel we got lucky-the market is still there for GREAT coins-and we had great coins!  Our “super secret stealth seller” said he had a “start and stop show” but ended up doing just fine.

Meanwhile, back in the office we were still selling coins.  Typically, we see a slow down around major shows or auctions. Not this time! Legend is also proud to announce the sale of our #1 ranked PCGS Peace Dollar set that we had parked with Bob Simpson for a few years (he never liked the design which is why he sold it).  The sale was well in excess of $500,000.00. More important, the set went to a super enthusiastic collector who really treasures the coins. There were some irreplaceable pieces: 21 67, 22S 66+, 23S 66, 24 MS68, possibly the FINEST 25S 65, 27D 66, 34S 66, and many more. When we build a set-we build the real deal-not plastic! EVERY coin was CAC and most were white. This Peace Dollar set took us a decade to build for the original owner. Congrats to the collector on this magnificent addition to an already awesome collection.

We now also have information that Legend just recorded its BEST April (sales wise) since 2008! That is impressive. Typically, things die out at tax time, this time sales remained quite active. As we have said many times before, we think the market is or is at the very least trolling the bottom. Only dreck and retreads are still suffering.

GOLD 

There is ZERO better PCGS CAC gold to be bought on the bourse floor. We have not seen a GEM proof Twenty Dollar Lib in months now. And everyone seems to looking for an AU $2.5 Cal. (good luck)!

Warning: watch gold-especially generic gold. With gold rapidly rising, so is attention from buyers, and wholesale bidders. You can NOT buy generics at the same prices in as late January. At least gold is still way off from its peak prices. BUY your generics NOW before the premiums really jump. The supply of PCGS CAC piece is ever so limited.

NEWPS

What a selection we have! Again, we’re NOT about quantity, just quality. Buying was mixed. Tuesday we bought almost nothing-not even $10,000.00. Wednesday we bought maybe $50,000.00. Still not much for us at all. Then Thursday and Friday, out of the wood work came some amazing coins. A good customer and major Bust Half collector sold us some of his neat better dupes (we’ll post those next week). We actually bought a few common DMPL’s (another two weeks as well-have to send to CAC and get some imaged by PCGS) from a long time collector. On Friday we bought two MONSTER FINEST KNOWN Type coins. We paid what took-can not let coins like those walk away. We probably ended up spending $450,000.00 total at the show-including the auction (not much at all for us). What we did buy was total numismatic nirvana!

This weeks highlights include:

1C 1898 PCGS PR67 CAMEO CAC  WOW, WOW, WOW!

10C 1916D PCGS MS65FB CAC TOTALLY ORIGINAL

$1 1883o PCGS MS 66 GODZILLA MONSTER COLORS!  PCGS # 80659094

50C GRANT W/STAR PCGS MS66+ CAC GORGEOUS!

$1 1928 PCGS MS65+ CAC SUPERB

Sorry, no major gold pieces this time.

ALL NEWPS ARE NOW POSTED!  

THE POGUE SALE 

The fourth session of the Pogue collection will take place May 24th. If you are seeking world class representation and expertise, contact Laura Sperber now at lsperber1@hotmail.com. Since this is a smaller sale, we need to have all reservations for bidding in place as soon as possible.

LEGEND RARE COIN AUCTIONS

www.legendauctions.com

We wish to thank everyone who stopped by our table at CSNS to view the lots. Thursday and Friday we were packed! The reviews of the coins and the sale were absolutely positive!

If you wish to make an appointment to lot view in our offices: do it NOW  Please contact Greg Cohen: Greg@legendauctions or Julie Abrams: julie@legendauctions.com.

Also, NOW is the time to discuss possible terms, phone bidding, or other representation. NOTE: We do NOT charge ANY rep fees in our sales. You get the same people who represent the biggest collectors and top collections ever. There are no hidden agendas other then to make sure you buy the right coin for the right price.

IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR WISH TO ORDER, EMAIL US: legend@legendcoin.com. WE DO NOT CHECK OUR PHONE MESSAGES UNTIL 9 AM MONDAY.