flyingveepixie

The latest buzzword I've started to notice over the last few days from various sources in news media is that the country needs the skills of all the illegals coming over in the dinghies..
If only I could make this nonsense up meself and sell it, I'd make a packet..!

Haha, apologies..😂   yeah it's a pile of 💩 and a complete mess which just gets worse with every bit of tinkering they do.  Grrr..😡

You are trying to trigger me this morning!....LOL.  When I got made redundant I looked at the benefit system its crazy you can't even claim job seekers now as it's been lumped into universal credit and they take your partners salary in consideration so if they earn something like over 18k they deem it enough for 2 adults to life off......Oh and forget having any savings anywhere, might as well buy a load of PM's before you even attempt to make a claim.  
I have 100% sympathy for those who have fallen on hard times they will soon learn the system is very unlikely to help them, you think if you work all your life and pay into the system then you will get help when you need it.   

Lol. Yes, sad but true. Same as how they bring down the unemployment numbers by making up more and more rules to exclude people from claiming and making them take zero contract jobs.  They're very clever.

It’s a fantastic way to bring down the crime numbers, whoever dreamed this up will get a knighthood for reducing crime by 20-30%. 
 
Effectively legalising petty theft.  

Too busy painting their toe nails pink and looking at facebook for hate-non-crimes or whatever it is they call them...

Too busy painting their toe nails pink and looking at facebook for hate-non-crimes or whatever it is they call them...

I think you actually can you know....
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-42492488

I got booted off the Amazon selling platform because of some idiot who complained that an item I sold him - an old Rush album which I had had in my collection since the 70s - wasn't in mint condition even though I had listed it as being obviously used and road worn, so I guess it's kind of the same over there in terms of broken-ness...  

Come to think of it, I can distinctly remember a time on ebay when if something fake was advertised it would be automatically flagged as such by some kind of bot or other and the auction cancelled and  a warning would be sent to the seller on a 'three strikes and you're out' basis along with a requirement to go and read ebay's terms and conditions for sellers with a wee tickbox at the bottom which you had to tick before you could proceed.  I can definitely remember that from about 10-15 years ago, so why not now..? 
 

This is only one of the many reasons why ebay has become so c**p.  The guy will get away with it simply because he has said at some point in the description that the coin is silver plated.  As long as it's noted somewhere in the description the buyer can't come back and make a claim that the item has been misdescribed and is in fact a fake when it can be argued that the description clearly states that it is a fake, if not in so many words....

I can attest to that.  It does my head in, especially when it's a higher value item like a guitar which I wont post and needs to be collected.  I get some twit from overseas pressing the buy it now button and paying via paypal after I specifically note in big bold letters in the description that I will not ship under any circumstances anywhere never mind abroad and will only accept cash on collection.
Infuriating.
 

I think you actually can you know....
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-42492488

It might be a UK thing, like police being too busy to attend burglaries, shoplifting ignored unless it's £200 or so, etc. There's so much of it going on that nobody has the time or resources to tackle it, so it gets worse.
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Because @stefffana can pretend to flog them on TSF as 999 fine after, he has a knack especially with spoons trays jam jars etc

It was once considered a very serious offence to pass counterfeit coins, underweight even debased precious metals, but now all seems to be ignored. I read recently how many areas have a zero rate of solving domestic burglaries. Recently spoke to an ex met officer who told me youths found carrying knives in London are asked to attend a knife crime awareness course so clearly treated as low priority.
Clearly the plod are too busy policing "hate crimes" such as wrong speak on social media.

I would not be able to resist checking the land registry to find out - you can also check on zoopla and rightmove for sold prices a few months after properties sell

About this time last year I was considering investing in property for the sake of having a bolthole should the SHTF scenario ever arise. I became interested in a very attractive wreck of a detached house on the island of Barra.  It was coming up for auction and I had registered to bid for it without actually going to see it first as it was in need of more or less full renovation including a new roof so no survey required.  None of the work would have been beyond me given time and I was quite excited at the possibility of such an investment, although it would undoubtedly have been a very long project due to transportation costs for materials. Unfortunately it sold a couple of days before the auction due to someone making an acceptable cash offer - I didn't know you could do that at the time so lost out..🥴
Projected expectation of auction price for it was around £37 000 so I'm guessing the buyer probably got it for a little bit over that.

... and ebay surely know, and are therefore part of the unwritten conspiracy to mislead and defraud people.
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This is only one of the many reasons why ebay has become so c**p.  The guy will get away with it simply because he has said at some point in the description that the coin is silver plated.  As long as it's noted somewhere in the description the buyer can't come back and make a claim that the item has been misdescribed and is in fact a fake when it can be argued that the description clearly states that it is a fake, if not in so many words....

Silly girl !   
I can just see the scenario : package arrives from @ChardsCoinandBullionDealer.  Girl opens it, sees coin, exclaims "oh how lovely",  and promptly removes coin from capsule to get a better look...tsk🥴
  My wife did exactly the same thing the first time I handed her a proof coin in a capsule.  Fortunately it wasn't a gold coin but a relatively low value silver £1.00 🙄
A pleasantly phrased idiots guide in the form of a little printed note with a headline in bold along the lines of   "caring for your new proof coin"   added in to the envelope would add a nice extra touch to high value transactions such as this, and people do appreciate such things. 
You could even personalise it !   "Dear (insert customers name)" ,  Thank you for your purchase etc etc....
My missus sells little bits of artwork on Etsy from time to time and takes great care in the packaging and addition of little personalised thank you notes and such like, and the reviews she receives are always gushing.
Might be worth a thought...

Silly girl !   
I can just see the scenario : package arrives from @ChardsCoinandBullionDealer.  Girl opens it, sees coin, exclaims "oh how lovely",  and promptly removes coin from capsule to get a better look...tsk🥴
  My wife did exactly the same thing the first time I handed her a proof coin in a capsule.  Fortunately it wasn't a gold coin but a relatively low value silver £1.00 🙄
A pleasantly phrased idiots guide in the form of a little printed note with a headline in bold along the lines of   "caring for your new proof coin"   added in to the envelope would add a nice extra touch to high value transactions such as this, and people do appreciate such things. 
You could even personalise it !   "Dear (insert customers name)" ,  Thank you for your purchase etc etc....
My missus sells little bits of artwork on Etsy from time to time and takes great care in the packaging and addition of little personalised thank you notes and such like, and the reviews she receives are always gushing.
Might be worth a thought...

How Not to Invest / Collect / Stack Proof Gold and Other Coins
There is much discussion on TSF on what to buy for investment, how to store it, and so forth, with many members giving their differing opinions and advice.
Sometimes we see glaring examples of how not to invest, and how not to handle coins. This was a very recent case:

2022 Gold Proof "70" Platinum Jubilee 50 Pence with Fingerprints - Reverse
This actually looks worse to the naked eye, and there are some small scratches.

2022 Gold Proof "70" Platinum Jubilee 50 Pence with Fingerprints - Reverse Entire Coin

2022 Gold Proof "70" Platinum Jubilee 50 Pence with Fingerprints - Obverse

2022 Gold Proof "70" Platinum Jubilee 50 Pence with Fingerprints - Obverse Entire Coin
A customer bought this quite recently from @ChardsCoinandBullionDealer, but took it out of the capsule, put fingerprints all over it, and a few small scratches.
She sent it back saying she would like to sell it. We had to break some bad news to her.
Should we be including an info sheet with every proof coin advising people to avoid handling it, and how not to wreck it?
If so, might this insult some people's intelligent, and how do we word it to avoid causing offence, while helping buyers with friendly and useful advice?
I am aware we may be able to remove most or all of the fingerprints, but it requires time and skill, not to mention the risk of causing more damage despite taking great care.
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I'm very partial to a double sovereign I must admit, even more so than a 1oz Brit.  I like Brits and sovs too of course and sovs are undoubtedly the easiest to shift if you ever come to resell,  but it's just something about the size and weight of the double which gives it that feeling of "rightness".
I guess it's a personal thing..

I think any collection is quite a personal thing... coins being no exception, by the look of it - what's great for one person isn't necessarily right for someone else.
I'm still pretty near the start of my 'stacking/collecting/building up a bit of wealth' journey and have absorbed quite a bit of useful knowledge from the lovely folks on here. I hope to stick around and absorb a whole lot more while accumulating some nice coins and having fun while I do it. 😊
Thanks All, always appreciated 👍