Maybe this has been discussed before, but does anyone have the contact information for a person who does a good job repairing holed coins? I normally would not care, but in a group I just got a very nice bust quarter in VF with a clean hole. I just thought I could make a nice type coin for someone, (telling them of the repair of course). When I collected US coins I remember how hard it was to find a nice type of this coin, and thought someone out there would like one. Thanks!
I'm not sure if anybody does that, but if they did, it would probably cost more than what the coin is worth.
IMO, repairing the hole would make the coin less original (and thereby less desirable) than leaving the hole be, it would work well in a type set
I am not sure about the value proposition. From what I remember there used to be a guy who would do a coin for about $100 and it was great work. I am pretty sure a VF Bust quarter is more than that nowadays, (but I have been away from US coins for quite some time). Umn, maybe you are right. I was just thinking about my own experience in trying to get a decent bust quarter in the past.
I say leave it be, if someone wants the coin to be in their type set.. they would want to receive the coin regardless. Some people collect coins that are holed. If you leave the coin as is you will find someone out there that will appreciate this coin for what it is. A repaired coin in this case would stick out like a sore thumb to a collector.. Leave it be!
My suggestion is put your effort and money into trying to track down the bone head that made a decison to drill a hole in it, and waterboard him for a few hours. For the life of me, I can;t understand why people are inclined to ruin coins like that, just for the purposes of wearing them around their neck.
Generally, the holes were made to be a type of Jewelry by the poorer population or age group that couldn't afford professional mounts. Could have just been hung from a string. Some coins were holed so they could be nailed over a doorway or entry as a good luck piece. Often of the birth year. Others found it a convenient way to carry and somewhat hide cash. It didn't fall out of your pocket , if you were lucky enough to have "breeches" with pockets. Often those with skills of engraving holed the coins , ground one side flat and engraved initials or "familiarities" such as "Love". These are called Love tokens and a large number of collectors value them strongly. Coins then were a "tool" of life rather than a collectible. Jim
I wish I could tell you who did this one. But it was done well before I got the coin. He did however miss the small cross at the top of the crown. But other than that it was a lot of work for a not so valuable coin.
thats weird this thread got made around this time. last week i decided to try and fix a holed coin. it was nothing valuable, just a 1957 german coin. it turned out good and lucky for me the hole wasn't on any detail. i blended the new filler just right so you can't really tell. now i would never do this on a coin that was worth any money. i won't even do it to my seated liberty dime and that aint worth much.
There is a person who repairs coins, he advertises in the classified section of The Numismatist (at least he use to) the name I believe is Alan Stockton and he lives in Kentucky. He does an excellent job, makes repairs, fills holes etc. He will re-engrave missing details. He has the skill to make the repairs almost unnoticable but he deliberately leaves some traces so the coin can be identified as having been repaired. I can't say what he charges but it probably wouldn't be worth it for common pieces, and I believe he charges a percentage of what an undamaged piece would be for the rare ones.
Yeah, I wouldn't repair it. Plus, there are people like me that are putting together a holed type set
Any type of repaired piece is inherently "impaired", and will be noted as such by any of the major TPG'ers.....
You might appreciate the album by CT member Bqcoins. http://s240.photobucket.com/albums/ff71/bqcoins/Holey%20Friends/?albumview=slideshow#
Thanks for the help guys, especially for the link to the company who does it. I understand that it would not be a VF coin with the hole, and TPG would not grade it. Sorry, but I am not hung up on TPG and would not own a slab if you gave me one. I collect ancients but like I said got this coin in a group and thought it would be a nice type for someone who wants to appreciate the coin and not the plastic. Maybe I will just have it repaired and keep it myself, as it is a nice type with VF details, which is hard to find for a bust quarter. Thanks also for the post about different reasons to hole coins. I knew of some of them but not all. This one was holed at the 5 o'clock position on the obverse, so probably not for jewelry.
Melt some solder in it and use a heated exacto knife to carve out what you want in the new filled hole.. that's my best solution. Maybe even go to your arts and crafts store to buy some powdered form of the metal your looking for the sprinkle on the liquid solder before it hardens. If it's a quarter or something though it should be fine without that.
The last I heard, Stockton charges about $80 for filling a hole or repairing scratches in a silver coin. Copper coins were less. My guess is that he does charge more for really valuable coins like a 1798 gold eagle. Self repair will look like like self repair—obvious both in surface continuity and in significant (metal) color differences. Using solder will somewhat improve the appearance of a coin, but it will still be quite obvious. Take a look at http://www.crs-stockton.com/main.html#2,0 and click on the seated half to see what a true artisan can do.
Yes, I saw the work,. It was really nice. I have had friends from a previous coin club get holes repaired and were similar quality and that is what I was hoping for. Like I said, I was thinking someone, (or maybe myself), would just appreciate the type for the price, as they are not the easiest to acquire nice ones. I know a lot of people here are very much into investment, (or are new or spend a lot for a tiny grade difference), and like slabs to ensure a quality coin. That is great for them. I have been collecting for 30 years now, and left American collecting, (after acquiring a pretty sizable collection which I keep), due to overemphasis on slabs and grading, and just like to learn myself how to authenticate and appreciate the coins. I view my hobby as a current expense and if they are worth anything when I am gone, good for my wife. It is still cheaper than drinking or other things I could be doing. I hope that explains my anti TPG stance and I didn't mean to be rude to anyone. I appreciated warnings to me in case I was a new collector.
