The NGC Holder has a slot in the holder for the coin. This slot keeps the coin from moving when the holder is dropped. The other TPG holders do not have a slot. As you can see this dollar coin has moved in it's anac's holder. Probably from being dropped or mailing. The holder on a NGC slab is made out of a soft rubber like material. The other holders are just hard plastic. The ngc holder has a reeded egde. It makes it easier to hold, and prevents slipping out of your hands. The others are just smooth plastic. The welds on the NGC holder and smooth. The others left sharp spots sticking out. When held in your hand, the NGC holder just feels better made. The other two just feel like cheap plastic. While the purpose of this article is not about their grading services and accuracy, it's about the quality of their holders. Personally I think the NGC holder wins hands down.
Agreed, when I do much modern coins I try and get NGC graded ones. I of course go for the coin in the holder & not the holderitself but if its a run of the mill modern, like Sacagaweas which I buy every year, I buy NGC.
I like it when I buy the holder, and they are so kind as to put a nice rectangle of wood pulp, with fun shapes and colors on it as well. That's going the extra mile!
I couldn't imagine giving a damn who or what thinks of my coin and what holder they put it in. On second thought...why get a raw double eagle when you can get a slabbed state quarter? LOL
I will say i have not tested any anacs holders, because i don't consider them a good TPG for their current standards, which is just my opinion. I have ripped apart PCGS and NGC holders, and i will say NGC is better made, again my opinion. One thing about PCGS holders though, is that they are a lighter plastic but not cheap plastic. NGC is a tough, heavy plastic, but PCGS is not that cheapy either. I will say that PCGS is more consist on their weld's and their pressure for sonically sealing. NGC sometimes rushes their holders, and i'm not going to give proof of that. I have and i'm sure some of you too; those NGC holders with the curled up label, and recently i have discovered that NGC holders that are not fattys are having this issue; http://www.cointalk.com/t201725/ NGC does have a more secure system though. To my knowledge, PCGS does not have a picture verification system, but just a verification/cert. number lookup. I am probably wrong though, i don't research PCGS slabs that much. NGC does have a verification photo cert. number look up for all slabs that were made pre-edge view holders and edgeview holders, the photo verification started with this generation slab, (again to my knowledge); All in all, the are basically three main factors to me in a slab; The security, intert material, and sonic sealing. The thickness or quality of plastic to me is not that important, as long as it does not harm the coin. If you have also noticed, PCGS holograms are tougher. Don't believe me? take any screwdriver or metal toothpick to a ngc hologram and a pcgs hologram. Also the PCGS slabs have a more textured finish, to hide scratches, but it is not textured over the coin. Here is the example; PCGS slabs are also more easily counterfitted, why? Because the label offers pretty much NO security features (except for the new secure plus labels), with comparable to NGC. Now, ngc slabs have also been counterfitted, but the weld pressure, label, and hologram all will show that if you take your time in going over the slab. Would you know the difference between a counterfit slab or not? All this is just my opinion, and i may very well be wrong on any of it.
Slabs function as a way to preserve and guarantee the authenticity of a given coin. Serving such an important role, it is only fair that people begin to care about durability, design and aesthetics. The OP's post did not mention buying the slab over the coin, he merely presented his opinion on what the best third party grader holder was. Slabbing has been the best thing that has ever happened to numismatics and is here to stay. Get with the program
Correct, but not until they had been in production for about a year, so not all slabs of that generation will have photos. The early photo they had were pretty crummy. Recent ones are better but there is still room for improvement. Your pictures of the real and fake PCGS slabs are good, but that is a first generation of the modern fakes. The second generation they make now has corrected many of the faults you indicate. The joint at either side of the slab used to be a great pick up point because it showed clearly in photographs of the fakes and not at all on the real ones, but on the new generation fakes it doesn't show at all. The height of the interlock corners was good, if you had the slabs in hand. In pictures, and often poor ones, that height is very hard to judge.
