Where to Find Banknotes?

So some of you may be wondering where to find banknotes for purchase, especially world banknotes.  While the banknote hobby is not nearly as large as the coin-collecting one in the United States, there are numerous way to acquire specimens for your collection. 

One such method is online, either through ebay or the sites of individual dealers.  This is perhaps the easiest way to find that banknote you've been searching for, especially if you live in an area of the country--or world for that matter--where the hobby does not have a strong presence.  The wide selection and ease of access is the major advantage to the online method of banknote collecting.  the major disadvantage, and it is a major one, is that you can't examine the banknotes in person before buying.  As I detailed in an earlier post, this can result in receiving a note different from the one you thought you were purchasing.  Whether this is due to dealer dishonesty or through legitimate differences in opinion regarding grading practices does not matter--when push comes to shove, you are getting a banknote that does not meet your expectations. 

My method of choice for expanding my collection is regional coin shows.  Some of the larger coin shows feature a number of banknote dealers in addition to their numismatic counterparts.  The advantage to having a number of dealers in one location is that you can shop around and find the best prices/notes.  In addition, while looking through the stocks, I've often come across interesting notes that I had little previous knowledge of which then opened my eyes to new branches of the hobby.  I'd highly recommend attending a moderate to large sized coin show as the entry fee is minimal (usually $5 or below, and it provides a great opportunity to see some interesting notes and talk with some (usually) very knowledgeable people. 

For some beginning collectors, collecting out of circulation may be a valid option.  Many collectors decided to focus on collecting notes with particular patterns in their serial numbers, for example a birth-year.  If this interests you, these notes can be found for just face value and a little (or a lot) or patience.