A Lesson Learned - Don't Make My Mistake

Been receiving catalogs from an outfit named Gold Standard Auctions. By all appearances they were peddling some decent coins. However slightly out of focus photography and glitzy packaging did a good enough job of hiding reality that I took a dive. Results are below.

I'll preface this by saying that I should have seen the forest through the trees. The first auction they sent me advertised a two cent pattern dated 1863. What I didn't know and thankfully @Tall Paul clued me into is that the motto on that pattern should read "God Our Trust". The photography was just fuzzy enough to make the motto unreadable. I sent a note to the auction house asking for a better shot of the motto. They didn't respond.

Now the auction I took place in, I bid for ten coins and won seven. Coincidentally all seven were won at my max secret bid. What a coincidence, huh?

I had high hopes for the twenty cent coin. But as you can see, the twenty cent, twenty five cent and half dime all are polished like an old Buick bumper. That was not apparent in the auction photography. The half dollar isn't quite as bad however the reverse rim ding was obscured by the fuzzy photography. The other coins I won were slabbed and alright. Still yet, they happened to all run up to my max secret bid.

I am posting this so that if you should receive the glitzy Gold Standard Auction catalog, be very very wary and don't dive into a pile of problem coins like I did.......

 

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Oh, that sucks... those are all polished pretty bad. Thanks for the warning. This is like GSC on Ebay!

 

I always call coins like that "skinned". Sorry. James

 

I wish they had "nuts" button. Thanks for the info.

 

Polished is the pits, happy you're letting us know!

 

I’ve never heard of them and best that I haven’t. Sorry you got hosed.

 

Did you request the catalogues or did they start showing up unexpectedly? Once they ignored my request for better pictures, I wouldn't have bid a single cent.

 

I been active in local auctions and that seemed to open the door for junk mail from every auction house in the nation. And heck, I look looking at coins so I didn’t mind the added junk mail so much….. And yes, I do deserve the dunce cap for bidding after the auction house didn’t respond to me. Big time.