I confess! I'm a slabber.

Deacon Ray, mad props for what you do. Sharing these tangible links to the Bible with others is great! If my budget ever increases, id like to do that. Thanks for the inspiration!

I don't do slabs, but I can see how it would appeal to non-collectors.

Btw, don't forget to post pics of your coins, I always need to add to my wish list.

Keep up the great work!

Erin

 

Log in or Sign up to hide this ad.

Fellow ancient slabber!! whoo hoo!!

 

We will each have to answer the question in our own way. I make the choice of buying more coins I want and keeping them in paper envelopes. I could send my collection off and have it slabbed for only $150,000 or I could buy a few thousand additional $50 coins. I could even buy those same coins slabbed for $100 each and break them out but as long as I can find Raw coins I want, I will not. Enjoy your coins. Don't ask me to buy yours and I won't ask you to buy mine. Whatever you do, however, only buy slabs from a company you trust. Being placed in plastic does not make trash into terrific.

 

Those are beautiful! It makes a very elegant presentation. The slabs are almost like mats on pieces of art. They draw your eye to the coin. And the beautiful box is like a picture frame. Very nice! Thanks for showing this!

 

Thanks Doug! I'm an Elite Member of NGC so I'll stick with them. I'm also a VCOINS addict.

 

There are still fakes on Vcoins, just many fewer than on eBay or elsewhere. You do get a generous return privilege for coins of questionable authenticity on Vcoins, and it's actually enforced by the site should it come down to that (as opposed to eBay, where maybe you can end up stuck with a potentially expensive fake you don't want).

 

Bless you, my friend!

 

"He's a slabber!"



"A slabber!"

"Rumble Rumble Rumble"

Seriously, I don't use them...I don't get work up about slabs. However, one of the reason I don't use them is you can't inspect the edges of the coins. I recently had a AE coin break out with BD on the edge. If the coin was slabbed, it would have really progressed quite a bit before I noticed it.

 

I believe Jesus is reported to have said "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone." Well, i won't be throwing stones at the glass house because for many years I too was a slabber.

@Deacon Ray , keep collecting in whatever way makes you more comfortable. The only issue I have with slabbing widows mites is that the cost of the slab is not really worth the price of such a common and relatively inexpensive coin, but hey, it's your money and not mime. You can do whatever you want with it.

 

This is my reason as well. You just can't fully inspect a slabbed coin. If there's a coin I'm interested in that's slabbed I'll ask the dealer if I can get it in writing that if I crack the slab and find something I wasn't expecting(corrosion, edge breaks, fouree, evidence of alteration or forgery under the scope, etc), can I return the coin. If the answer is "no"(and so far it always has been) they won't get my business unless I really need the coin AND I can find pre-slabbing sales records for it. I previously got bit paying for a coin that NGC slabbed as silver when in fact it was fouree and this was apparent under the microscope after breaking it out. That's a mistake I won't make again. What's the point of even slabbing a coin if they won't look closely enough to see and note things like that?

 

I dabble in ancients. the first one I bought (raw) turned out to be a fake, so I decided to stick with graded. People say they cost more, but I buy true auctions after doing some price comparisons, and seem to have done ok so far. Heck, I have even sold some for a profit

 

Over the years I have bought fourrees as solid and solids as fourree from dealers who should know better. One was a 'fourree' Vespasian denarius which NFA failed to note was just encrusted from being hoarded with copper coins. The copper cleaned right off. In their defense, NFA had little experience with cheap coins or fourrees and rarely had one in their lowest level sales (mail bids). I have seen a coin in NGC slab marked fourree which I was convinced was solid but it sold way over my head so I could not prove it.

I hate to hear this. Your error was not buying an unslabbed coin but buying from an unsafe source. If you dabble (meaning have no intention of learning about coins) it is especially important to buy from a good source. I'd MUCH rather have a raw coin sold by CNG, Harlan Berk or any of a hundred other honest and knowledgable dealers (including some who post here) than a piece of plastic from an unknown source. There are fake slabs. There are errors (very rarely NGC). There are slabs that have been opened and resealed (you can tell if you look - do you?). Be a belt and suspenders kind of collector. Buy coins from good sources whether or not they are encapsulated.

 

Brother Ray, i think its awesome what your doing, history comes alive when you hold a coin from that time frame.
Also these cup coins of Jesus are a big hit with church folks, there pretty inexpensive, they come in brozne, silver wash, and Gold, like my avatar.

Silver wash..

Big Bronze..
Obv. Jesus with the 4 Gospels, Rev. in 4 lines Jesus Christ King of Kings

And Gold..

 

Looks like we're going to have another slabbing thread.

 

Until recently I thought I was the only one! It's good to hear from others out there.... haha

 

Beautiful!

 

Having read through each and every post I will simply add these thoughts and opinions:

1.) It's your choice

2.) I appreciate the convenience of 'slabbed' storage and have bookmarked TIF's link

3.) Paying more for an opinion and not a guarantee doesn't sell me on slabs

4.) I LOVE being able to handle each and every coin and examine it closely.