For moderns, subtract a grade or two and they are on par with PCGS/NGC. For classics below MS, they are very good. On par with PCGS/NGC/ANACS. For classics in MS, they are a point or so overgraded. They are a bit more liberal in allowing "problem" coins into their holders. As with all slabbed coins, buy the coin not the holder...Mike
I really don`t wan`t to get into it with you and jody (jody has my respect!) , but tpg grading is not a fad. 5, 6, and 7 figure coins are almost exclusivly graded. Just go and find a raw MS60 1893-S Morgan ungraded. Or a $4 Stella any grade, or even as simple as a 1914-D Lincoln RAW in MS63-65. I say 99 out of 100 such raw coins (maybe 999 out of 1000) will be : (1) way overgraded (2)enhanced (3)fake (4) way overgraded (5) enhanced (6)fake (7)altered If tpg is just a fad........... the whole fad shoulda died 25 years ago........... Of course, this is just my opinion.........
Third party graders in general serve a singular purpose and that is to attribute a coin for authenticity. Most observers rank the third party graders as follows: (1) PCGS (2) NGC (3) ANACS (4) ICG. (5) Pretty much everyone else. In terms of who has better attribution, this has always been subjective, but the market has spoken as follows: (1) PCGS coins retain their value (in general) higher than every one else. (2) NGC is considered as reliable. However, the prices for their coins have not retained the same level of price consisitency. (3) ANACS is reliable, however, their slabs and NGC slabs do not axiomatically cross over to PCGS and some times vice versa (4) ICG is considered the number 4 in the industry, righty or wrongly. Each have their own particular grading standards. As for the merits of those standards and how they are applied it is for other people to comment.
The only way acceptability and trust will be be achieved is when a universal grading standard is enforced by all slabbers, maybe regulation is needed. If the wine industry can do it, Third Party Graders (TPG's) should be able to. There is no excuse not to. Third Party Grading is still in it's infancy and already rife with felons and con artists who are ruining the reputation for all those who offer a legitimate accurate service. There seems to be no self policing action among the different parties. You know weed out the bad apples that give the whole a bad name. Also, there is NO advertisment of the services when it comes to anything outside-of coin magazines. Industry growth just isn't there. The entire process... well it will either prosper or fail on these standards. When an individual has, say a silver dollar in an NGC holder and crosses it over to say a PCGS holder it should receive the same grade within a point. I purchased a good bit of stock in one of the servies. I bought on emotion and speculation, usually a bad idea, but I made a little money and got out. After seeing all the lawsuits and bad mgt decisions within the company I sold after 14 months. I have no regrets... As far as respect, I do respect you and your opinions. Kindest Regards Sir Ben
A friend of mine is owner of a replica coin business named the Royal Oak Mint in a town by the same name (Royal Oak) in Michigan. He's a very nice person who does excellent copies of virtually every U.S. coin. Now as a "legitimate collector," I ususally don't buy replicas; but they made a 90% silver 1964 Peace Dollar, which I thought was a novelty and so I purchased one several years ago. Later I saw a similar coin on ebay that sold for close to $100. So, I guess there's really a resale market for some replicas. For anyone interested who hasn't heard of the place, the link is www.royaloakmint.com.
i believe the tpg's are here to stay, whether we like it or not. my feelings are the coin public in general, desire to have an 'umpire' in the mix. jmo grizz
I don't think the TPGs can be called a "fad" because they've been around too long. But it would be equally wrong to automatically assume they are a permanent fixture in the hobby. I think it's only a matter of time before someone invents a device that can grade and authenticate coins on the spot. It isn't an easy thing to do, but technology continues to exceed everyone's expectations over time.
