TheBandit

On 8/22/2006 at 11:21 AM, AuldFartte said:

I thoroughly agree with the majority of your points here. The biggest exception is the statement, "the coin being slabbed is surely not a counterfiet". Well, the vast majority of the time that is quite accurate, but I have seen a few and heard about many more coins that were slabbed and turned out to be fakes.

 

Also, if a slabbed coin gets stolen, it is a rather simple matter to crack out the coin. Then there is a raw coin without any serial numbers to trace.

 

I have purchased both slabbed and raw coins for my collection. The vast majority I bought raw because, in most cases anyway, I trust my ability to grade and spot problems such as cleaning. When I buy a slabbed coin, I look at the coin, not the plastic tomb or its label because I don't give a rat's rear-end what the TPG thinks about the grade. I listened to enough collectors and dealers tell me to "buy the coin, not the slab" - so that's what I do.

 

The thing that irritates me most about TPG's is the adverse way they have affected the market, particularly with MS coins. I guess I don't understand why an MS-65 coin is worth $1,000 but the same coin reslabbed with an MS-66 grade is worth $7,500. And this happens frequently. People will buy a nice 64 and crack it out, submit to another company (sometimes even the same TPG !!!) and it comes back at 65. I know people who do this all the time. It's fine for these dealers/speculators/investors to make money - it's just beyond my comprehension why anyone would pay such huge differences in price because of a one point difference in grade. As you said, grading is highly subjective, so why do most collectors assume that the TPG is more accurate than anyone else? Besides, can you really spot the difference between a 65 and a 66? Or a 68 and a 69? With that, I will end my little rant.

Yes you can tell the difference between 65 & 66. To the perfectionist it is a big difference. Also the price reflects the population. Sure you can do what ifs or I can grade myself but you will quickly learn you had better odds at the slots! That being said only deal with NGC or PCGS as the grades are accurate and thorough. Never pay full price according to the guide. I figure 10-20% off list is good. Happy hunting.

so jealous as a fellow metal detector I am in a non populated rural area with few people. I still find modern gems with my Ace250 but usually only pre 1964 us silver. I only swung for about 6 hours in 2020. What a aweful year. I was actually chased out of a park because covid had closed down the park///// yep. what do you swing with? I am thinking about upgrading but need to find a worthy upgrade for the money. Peace.

Well Then I will have to say the Perth Mint Star wars coin is the best!

your best camera for taking photos of any coin is on your phone. that is if you have a phone from 2010 or newer

why not wait until gold as at it's all time high to start adding to the collection.... Frustrating but that is how it goes sometimes. for me it seems to happen with gold more than silver but anyways.. I have a opportunity to purchase a $10 liberty/indian headdress gold coin. it is legit at a great price I have no problems but 1 thing. I never bought a $10 indian gold coin. I think they are ugly. they have the same liberty head as a peace dollar just with a indian head dress so I hate they even call it a indian head. I have many $2.50 and $5 in my collection. anyone else have a problem with the $10 gold indian head coin? well I will see what I get back for responses as this is my 1st coin post ever. been collecting coins since 1983 when grandma got me started on pennies. always flew under the radar.