Some coin collecting questions.

I'm probably am going to be asking a lot of questions on here, hopefully not dumb ones .
Also what is a details grade?

 

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On the 1964 D i am aware that it doesn't have any value, im just asking so i get a better idea of what different grades look like.
On this coin I still would like to know if there is a way to get the gunk off. I save older copper cents that I get in pocket change. Also I would like to know incase I find a more valuable coin that has something on it.

 

is that the American numismatic association? I tried typing just ANA into YouTube and it brought up a bunch of stuff that definitely was not about coins.

 

In G-4, if it's copper-nickel (should weigh at least 5 grams if it is), a problem-free example bids at $18, so my buy/sell margin would likely be $7/10, although I'd knock the sell price down to $9 if a customer bought multiple coins, and $8 if it sat for a while.

 

Most graders look at the Obverses of the coin first, and it's the Obv that carries most of the weight in the grade

 

It's far more dumb to not ask questions than to ask dumb questions. But there are no dumb questions, so don't worry. We've all been there.

As for a details grade:

"A "details grade" (often called a problem coin) is a non-numerical grade used by professional coin grading services like NGC Coin or CAC Grading. It indicates a coin is identifiable but has surface damage, alteration, or problems that prevent it from receiving a traditional number grade on the 70-point Sheldon Scale."

When I see "details" on a slab my mind processes it as "problem coin." I avoid them, but not everyone does.

 

So you don't want to explore PCGS' photograde which has high res images of every type in every series in every grade as mentioned earlier?

 

Not sure what you mean? I did check that out and it is useful. Still doesn't mean I can accurately grade a coin though, I have not studied this stuff for long.

 

Sometimes Photograde is kind-of hard,I prefer the Brown and Dunn grading book https://archive.org/details/bwb_O8-BNX-309 which goes more by descriptions

 

Grading IS subjective and we all can have somewhat different ideas, however we all recognize the differences between a G4 and an MS60. Your first step should be to get a Red Book

It doesn't have to be the latest and greatest, but it gives you the RELATIVE differences among American coins. So if you can find a book a couple of years old for cheap...go for it! Foreign coins are another matter! Grading is somewhat subjunctive and you have to build your expertise. Often grading means what the three (or four...sorry @Insider ) major TPG (Third Party Graders) have to say...NGC, PCGS, ANACS and possibly ICG (eh...and CACG) if you have a coin worth over $100 and want to have it encapsulated. So much more...

 

I did mention in my first post that I do have the red book. Actually I have the 2026 one and two older ones as well . Most of what I know about coins up until now has come from the red book.

 

If "cleaning" is done right, we call it conservation. It is an often quoted axiom to NEVER clean a coin. This is correct to a point of knowing what you are doing. There is very little downside to carefully cleaning common coins. If you restrict yourself to water, acetone and rubbing alcohol, you aren't running any risks unless you rub or scrub the coins. Rubbing can scrub around surface grit and leave scratches on the coins. Valuable or uncirculated or proof coins require more thought. Just make sure the coins are THOROUGHLY rinsed and PATTED dry.

 

The red books have some good descriptors of coin grades.