I'm thinking about taking a chance on some old original bank wrapped coin rolls. My question is can it be possible to take the coins out without damaging the paper roll? I'm just afraid there is a slick way for someone to open these rolls to look for errors and switch them out. Thanks for any advice!
Yeah, it's possible. But on another note, if by your question you mean by "taking a chance" that you are going to pay premium prices for some bank rolls - don't. There is nothing special about them nor is there any guarantee of what coins will be inside. Bank rolls most often contain circulated coins of various dates. Every now and then you might a roll that contains BU examples for a single date, but more often than not you won't. You might want to read this - BU Roll Buyer's Guide
I open rolls all the time and reseal the end. It is hard to tell they been open but the only reason I open them is to check that they are all the same coins. Like the previous post stated sometimes there are older coins mixed in.
NICK66, If you are purchasing the rolls via the Internet (eBay or other Auction Sites), you can almost bet that they have been opened at sometime in the past! I am sure that there are a few rolls offered that are trully unopened and unsearched but do you want to take a chance of paying $140 to $200 for a supposed unopened, unsearched roll of 1955-P Cents then opening it to find only normal, BU Red cents? Sure, BU Red 1955-P Cents will bring a premium but not enough to make up what you paid for the roll! Your best possibility of finding unopened and unsearched rolls of coins, is to purchase them directly from old folks or from Estate Auctions or Estate Sales but even with these, you need to check the ends of the rolls very carefully. If a family is having an advertised or unadvertised Estate Sale that includes coins, ask them as to whether the coins have been looked at, searched or appraised by anyone and especially a Coin Dealer or Auction Representative. If so, then inspect any OBW rolls very carefully for tampering. I would venture to guess, that at least 90% of the supposed unopened and unsearched OBW rolls of coins that I have purchased on eBay, were opened and searched before I received them! As to whether the Sellers opened and searched the rolls or they were opened and searched by the previous owner(s), it is hard to determine or make a case! Good luck...Frank
Frank, thank you very much. That is some very good information. If I find any rolls I'am interested in and the ends look a little "funny", I will pass them up. Thanks again, its appreciated. This message board is awesome! Learn something new every day.
Just open the things up. Even if you did get them all back in and made it look unopened, no big thing unless you sell them on ebay like everyone else dose.
