sorry had to post this. here is an auction for a 1957 SC. its is graded perfect new 70 by CEC(currency evalution company) grant it the bill is nice and sharp but the margins are way off and the bill almost looks like its not printed straight either. the 2nd printing is slighty askew. i know we always say buy the item not the slab but come one. at least its not going for to much $$$
which is exactly what sgs is nice note, and a star to boot... but no way a perfect 70... certainyl a grading company to stand clear of.. but it is a nice star lol
I wonder what mine would grade with this company? 74? Top margin is a little to large, otherwise I might give it a Super Gem 76.
I just gave a better note than that away as a prize in my recent contest. Seriously! http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x275/clembo1872/scan0002-25.jpg Did the lucky winner receive a 72? LOL. For the record SGS already "grades" paper money. I believe they only use three grades and all accurate I"m sure. NOT! BTW Urban what is that note going for? Kinda curious.
Forgot to mention. My wife looked at the picture from ACROSS the room and could see the centering was way off thus no where near a 70. She's NOT a collector she just lives with one!
i dont know what the ending bid was but when i saw it with about 35 minutes left it was at like $12 maybe $15
What you are missing is the standards used by the grader. This note may very well be a 70 based on the standards used by the person grading it. It sounds like you are assuming they use the same standards and number scale as other grading companies. Since there are no generally accepted numerical standards for grading you cannot out of hand say this note in not a 70. It is apparently a 70 according to the standards of this grader. This graders definition of a 70 does not comport with yours. That is all that can be said about this. This is the problem with the state of grading paper money in the US right now. There are no set standards. Unfortunately, the leading trade group for paper money in the US, the SPMC, has not taken an active role in developing standards. Dealers and the TPGs filled the void The US paper money TPGs adopted the 70 point scale from the coin side. Bad idea. It was not designed for paper money. There are additional considerations in paper money grading that do not fit neatly into a numerical scale. Grafitti, pinholes, centering, margins, embossing, tears, etc. do not lend themselves easily to numerical analysis. Even the PPQ, EPQ designators do not adequately do the job. Net grading does not do it either. If you had to choose between an AU note with grafitti on the face and the same note in EF without the grafitti which would you pay more for? The former will have a higher grading score but is it really more desireable? I believe the grader of this note is taking advantage of the lack of grading standards. Learn to grade and know what to look for before you spend the money. Do not rely on the grade on the holder whether it was put there by a TPG or a vestpocket dealer.
I don't collect currency but it is obvious the grader (and seller) are trying to pull a fast one on an unsuspecting buyer, much the same way SGS and seller's of SGS coins take advantage of new collectors.
Let the grading games continue - Let the grading games continue - as the price of plastic rises I'm sure we will see an MS-75 soon. No, the bill won't be a MS-75 but that virgin plastic might be! Long live plastic!!!!!!!! Down with raw coins or paper!!!!! If it can be entombed let it be so!!!! There's no plastic like a real plastic is all the plastic I Know!!! I'll bet that there is some grading company somewhere that when they receive an order they lay all the coins or paper down on a table with corresponding number on the wall and they sit back and throw darts at the grades to decide what each will be laughing all the way to the bank after they are though. Deliver us from plastic!!!!
Lettow, I agree wholeheartedly that paper is indeed a totally different animal and there are really NO set grading standards. As many have mentioned here the centering is way off and to me that makes it way less than a 70. Yesterday the boss bought a nice large size $5 note. Both he and my coworker said XF. I countered with VF. Now I'm certainly not a grader but I do more of it than they do. So my coworker is curious as to my reasoning. Pulls out a few books and starts reading the grading sections. According to the books they're XF so why do I say VF. 2 folds in the note. Two PROMINENT PAPER BREAKING folds. From some book that "paper breaking" fold stuck in my mind and I use it as a grading tool. Nice clean note and crisp as well. Might merit a VF30. So it's going on our website and my coworker asks if I could live with VF-XF. Sure - I feel that's fair to a potential buyer of a raw note. As for TPGs most of ours goes to PNG. I usually get called upon as to what something may slab or should we slab it. A few months ago it's a nice batch of red seal 2s. Improperly stored and I could FEEL the bend in all of them. Picked out the nicest and told the boss it might go AU58. Comes back a 64! I'm personally uncomfortable calling notes Gems but maybe I should change that. I tend to under grade although occasionally it's the other way around. Bottom line is it is a matter of opinion and without better guidelines it will continue to be. I just hat to see blatant overgrading be it coins or paper.
CEC is a very famous Grading service... (Cheat Every Collector) If thats a 70 I am from Mars!! LOL RickieB
