That when I (meaning us as collectors) go to buy a coin its say a VF, the seller has it marked as an XF. I am asking because I can not for the life of me figure out on ebay how some of these coins get graded the way they do. Just how hard is it to pull out a grading book on circulated coins and compare pictures.. I am looking for a certain Flying Eagle. (NOT A SOLICITATION) and the grades on ebay for these things are all over the place on the ones that you can see in pictures. Is it just me? I am not picking on ebay or sellers here. I have been on ebay for over 10 years and its out of hand with grading. I know its a buyers beware yada yada..... :headbang: Ok done venting, I need more coffee.. Have a great day guys/gals...
It's human nature. Sellers try to present their merchandise in the best possible light, even if it is junk. Buyers try to talk the price and quality down, always looking for the best possible deal. In the coin world, these tendencies are very pronounced because of the subjective nature of collectibles in general. That's just the way it is.
Hey Jim, It is a host of things. E-bay hosts all types: the knowledgeable and the novice; the honorable and the dishonest; people with integrity and those who just don't care. I've said before that I used to e-bay to collect and with great success. Today I won't touch it as a source for the coins I collect, mostly because my standards and grading skills are higher and I want at "least" what I pay for. Grading will aways be subjective, to a point. It takes a very long time to be truly an expert grader and as we know even those guys don't alway see it exactly the same way consistently. I'm referring to MS coins mostly. My passion! With circulated coins, IMHO, there should be a better or stable grade to assign a coin with all the info we have today. I feel that with knowledge of the coin type and any special attributes about the year strike, anyone can be relatively safe in grading circulated coin. My plan is to save lots of money, buy only from reputable dealers and most of all study, study, study, then study some more. Keep on Collecting!!! Allen
grading... it really pays to educate yourself on grading. there are many sellers out there that don't know how to grade and are depending on the buyer to be uninformed so they take for granted 'someone' will buy the coin............so what the heck! steve
That's EBay! That's EBay! Smart collector! That's EBay! That's exactly why I'm in agreement with many others that I avoid EBay like the plague when it comes to buying "sight unseen" coins. Knowledge and good grading skills help but the trouble is that many times, and we're seeing this more often, the coin pictured isn't even the one you will get.
Basically, I can only think of three reasons, most likely many more, but here are the three that come to my mind at the moment: 1. Either people that have no idea how to grade, and just look at a coin, think of a grade, and mark it as that. Sometimes for the good, or for the bad. I've picked up some coins marked VG, and actually turn out to be VFs, and have seen some coins marked XF, which don't go more than a VG IMO. 2. People know how to grade, but they show favoritism with there coins. They will look at a coin, and since it is theres, they think it looks absolutely better than it really is, like a VF, but oh, it might go a XF, so they give it that bump, because it is theres. 3. Some people out there will do all they can to make the extra buck. That's what I can think of, might be wrong with some, but those are my opinions at the moment. Hope they help answer your question man. Phoenix
I used to use ebay all the time for my coin purchases, but now that the coins I am looking for are scarcer or better grade, I am very scrutinizing about what I buy and almost never use it anymore
Ive seen this too. Ive been looking for a decen 1865 IH Cent... and let me tell you. Some of them are worn down to nothing! They would grade "poor" but some people call them VG... Very Good? No, not good at all I say! Other teams Ive seen what you've expressed. A coin is clearly F, nothing more, and yet people say its EF or better. Its unfortunate, but its all over Ebay. The only way to succeed on purchasing on Ebay is to be smart about it. and even then, a stupid bidder will out bid you, haha.
My ebay store has 4 grades...avg circ, mid grade, high grade and choice, with excellent pictures...you grade em As a policy, I ignore sellers description and grade period. Grade em yourself is my policy and bid accordingly taking into account shipping
If you only think it is vf than only bid up to the vf price that you are willing to pay!!!!! Plain and Simple
