Amazingly, the 2010 FUN is a scant two weeks away. If you have decided to attend the show (and I strongly suggest that if you go to just one show all year that this you consider this one) here is a short list of things to consider. 1. Bring a good lamp. Viewing conditions at the FUN show are not optimal and a good coin viewing lamp is essential.   
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The recent Coin World “Coin Values” (or Trends as we long-time dealers call it) features a number of price reductions in the various Liberty Head gold series. This has caused some interesting pricing anomalies that have major ramifications for collectors of rare date gold coins. The grade range that appears to be severely affected by the Trends revisions is AU50 to AU58.   
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The realities of the new coin market are such that I have refined and revised my buying strategies for 2009 and, most probably, beyond. I think my “dealer strategies” can be easily applied to “collector strategies” and they are useful for most people. My first strategy isn’t so much “new” as it is a refinement of an existing strategy.   
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When assembling a collection, timing is truly everything. This goes for when you are in the process of adding to the collection or when you are disassembling it. In this article, I’ll explain how timing will, no doubt, affect you in the assembling of your set. I can’t count the number of times I have said to collectors that their holdings need to be looked at as a long-term endeavor.   
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Most high quality specialized collections are built with strong cooperation between a collector and one or two dealers that form a close, mutually beneficial relationship. What can you as a collector do to earn the trust of a dealer who will be critical in the success of assembling the sort of collection you aspire to form? How do you become the sort of collector that dealers like to do business with?   
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