I found this at my local coin shop the other day. I haven't purchased a coin in about a decade, but decided I really liked the look of this coin. Being the huge history nerd I am, I couldn't resist picking it up, and am curious as to whether or not it is worth slabbing. The pictures are not the best, nor is the coin, but given the other specimens I have seen I really liked the eye appeal - nice even tone, no pitting, etc.
If you don't mind seeing it in a ANACS slab that says "1834 Half Cent XF-45 details scratched" then go ahead and submit it.
Good to have you here Iskae. I like the color of the obverse but the scratchs are really bad. I wouldn't send this in for grading, I think you'd be wasting your money. Bruce
IMHO, it's not a coin worth submitting. Especially if you were to send it to ANACS, you'd probably not get much of a premium for having it slabbed. Make the most of it when it's raw... Good Luck, Brian
OK, so I am willing to concede that I paid more than 20 for this. I was worried about the scratches and their potential impact on the grade (probably should have looked into that *before* the purchase - live and learn). However, I am at a loss as to the cleaning - care to explain please?
the lighter areas in the fields of the obverse and reverse and the head. probably as old as the scratches since it kind of blends.
That's a very common mistake - buying a coin (or a bunch of coins) before you know what you are doing. A popular phrase in coin collecting is, "Buy the book before the coin." It is self-explanatory. $50 is a cheap lesson in my opinion. If this is your worst or most expensive mistake in coin collecting consider yourself lucky.
Trust me, I've made mistakes much more devistating then you have done yourself with this coin. $50-$55 lost...? That's pocket change compared to the amount I've lost by just "going with my gut". I've learned my lessons though... Havn't had a HUGE screw-up in quite a while. I've actually been going in the opposite direction (making money from coins). It's all part of the learning process, buddy. -Brian
ive made my fair share of cheap mistakes like buying a xf details 1892 barber quarter for 35 which ppl would offer silver value back - some counterfiet trade dollars at 5 a piece. bought a 100 oz silver ingot for 1300 and sold it for 1450 - i never figured on tripling my money. you bought it because you liked it. you could get something better for that amount of money but the difference may not even be that noticable. unless you want to study on the early series to make sure you get your money's worth stick with it since you probably wont attempt to make a set of half cents.
