Bent, Holed, Polished, Re-Engraved, Rim Filing, DAMAGED - Ranking the Rank Coins!

I was musing on whether or not there are any Details issues that make a coin completely unacceptable to me, a budget collector. The answer is nope! What I love is history and especially rarer coins. Don't get me wrong, if I had the budget for all MS / PF70 coins, I'd probably go that route. That said, some types of damage are worse than others in my opinion, and I was curious about others thoughts in this regard. I don't include Counterstamped, Planchet Flaws or Chopmarked on the list as I consider those collectible in their own niches, but I recognize that NGC has a really comprehensive list that includes those - https://www.ngccoin.com/news/article/6434/. From what bothers me the least to the most, I'd rank things basically as follows:

1. Wheel Marks
2. Cleaned
3. Stained
4. Altered Color
5. Environmental Damage (obviously this, as most of these, has quite a range, I'm talking light)
6. Corrosion (as above)
7. Scratched / Graffiti
8. Holed
9. Damaged
10. Bent
11. Clipped
12. Whizzed / Polished
13. Rim Filing
14. Re-Engraved / Tooled

Why does anyone file the rim on a coin, I wonder? Anyway, here are a few samples that I have of more serious issues coins that I still think are nifty from a historical perspective or for my (and my sons) collection, though I'm really glad we could upgrade our 1927-S Standing Liberty Quarter - first I had one found raw in a consignment store lot that was Scratched, G4 (submitted to ICG), then I got a cheap F12 ANACS Details that is re-engraved, finally I bargained for a good deal on a PCGS F15. Please post pictures of any unusual Details coins you have or ones that you like / dislike and any thoughts you have on the subject.

 

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PLUGGED. I would take a holed coin under the right circumstances, but plugged nope...

 

This was a ploy by ner-do-wells of the day….. A quarter eagle passes through their change and they file a bit of the rim. Next day repeat and so forth. Before you know it, you have yourself a nice pile of gold shavings.

I too am a bargain hunter. I long ago satisfied my yearning for common coins and brother I have plenty and then some! I now like acquiring a few pieces that I dreamed of since I was a youngster. My all time bucket list coin was a USA Bar copper. I found one that somebody had scraped grime from the bars with a pocketknife. That act earned a “tooled” designation making the piece scornful to most but perfectly affordable for me. My 1794 dollar is beautiful except it has a very light”X” scratched in the eagles chest. Again, right in my affordability range…… I believe the only thing I would turn away is the re-engraved piece. That’s rather like green hair on a pretty girl to me. It’s just a bit too unnatural for this old boy.

 

I have punched out plugs for my holed type set.

 

Here's a Partial Collar Mint Error Cent from my collection.. Altered Color

 

One of my recent acquisitions for dirt cheap.
Obverse covered by old solder.

 

Oh man that solder is brutal, lol! Love it!

Wow, a USA bar copper?!? Those are amazing (and so rare!). Please post a photo if you can. 1794 dollar too! You’ve got it going on!

 

Well it isn’t all that but thank you.

 

I hear that, I also usually have a hard time with coins that have been holed as buttons - the double or quadruple holes? Yuck! I did have to have this one though, it was such a deal and I think these "Bryan" money tokens are neat. It helps that it is a larger size so the holes don't take so much of it away.

 

Questionable color is definitely the least egregious and easiest to fix.
Holed/bent/wizzed and probably polished too will be the ones that the most people avoid.

 

Over a period of time I've collected lots of damaged coins.
Heres one ancient I have already scanned

GB Penny 1854 Young Head Victoria

 

I have a whizzed that I still like (plus it's a good example of what to look for).
I second @baseball21 that questionable color can also be fine (some are still quite attractive and others can be dipped to remove the color-although there is risk as the color could be hiding something).

 

Mintage 208,000

 

1843 shattered reverse cleaned.

 

Enjoyed the OP and all the others too, thanks for sharing!

 

I have this coin that I believe was whizzed. I'm not an expert but am I correct in my assumption?