MS65 1955-S for $12. Good deal?

You are obviously an ignorant person Harry, cannot you see that? Hail, Hail !!!!!! We going to be schooled here. No questions, just pay your respects and bow.

 

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Been known to be ignorant and Stubborn. And have also been known to appreciate the beauty of a high quality Lincoln!!!!!!!!

 

Ah nevermind. Maybe something just rubbed me wrong tonight. I'm cashin it in for the day.

 

Yeah, something must have rubbed you wrong if you are referring to my post.

A number of people feed the monster of the grading machine by sending in full rolls of coins hoping and praying they get 'grades'. They waste enormous amounts of money on this practice, which is foolish at best. They would be better off to just buy the high grade coins they are seeking rather than just sending in piles hoping for a gem to come back. Why don't they learn how to grade, look at the coins, and only send the ones in that actually have the quality to achieve a grade worthy of a sealed piece of plastic?

We have thousands upon thousands of coins out there in wasted slabs that are the result of this practice, and the people who pay for them are generally newer collectors looking for a bargain. What they don't realize is that there are a LOT of coins out there of equal quality for a lot less money. The only difference is that they do not reside in holders that cost more than the coin is worth.

I consider the people who toss piles of coins at the grading monster with big checks quite irresponsible for not studying and spending their money more wisely. They prefer to live in the bliss of ignorance that if they toss enough at the graders they will eventually get a 'gift' coin that will bring them profit. Most of these people toss the reject coins worth $5 or less into bins or boxes for $10 each instead of recycling the plastic and selling the coins for their realistic value. So, in effect, it's paying for their ignorance to buy the coins worth less than the slab.

Not every instance is the result of this practice, but a vast majority of them are.

 

As much as I agree with what you say and firmly believe in buying the coin not the slab...

I would rather have a slabbed MS 66 Lincoln vs. a raw Lincoln that a dealer tells me is MS 67.

Personally its very hard for me to tell the difference between many coins in the MS range the slab gives me a little piece of mind.

From my limited experience a slabbed coin is much easier to sell. This helps me out greatly if I decide to sell a coin and will help out my daughter when she inherits my collection.

On a final note slabbing does serve to protect the coin. Would you rather drop an MS 65 1909 S VDB that is raw or slabbed?

 

Now where have I heard the grade guarantee before?........

 

I don't disagree with you one bit - as long as the coin is worth the slab. I would never HAVE a 1909S VDB cent without a slab around it, because any 09S VDB is worth a slab. They protect the coin, help resale, etc.

What I am in disagreement with is people selling coins worth $3 in slabs and charging $15 for the coins JUST because they are in slabs. I believe we are on the same page here.

 

Ok, fresh head and additude here

First, I think every person should learn to grade. Period. I also think that every person should buy the coin, not the holder. Period.

Now, not mentioned yet is the fact that there is a market for slabs. There are also many youngsters trying to build registry sets and who love the PCGS holders, and can only spend so much on any given coin. Selling a 1955-S in a MS-65 slab for $12.00 is the market, no matter how that coin got into that slab. Look at all the common date NGC's in 66RD I sell for $12.00.......am I ripping off the ignorant? Or providing a service and filling a demand ?

The op asked a question here, and it was answered. On tangent, we end up with ( what I perceived as) condescension, arrogance, and ego. If I was wrong, my apologies are due and offered.

By all means, CopperCoins, you are a highly respected top expert in the field, and I mean zero disrespect. Perhaps we just need to get used to point blank bluntness. This forum contains members with all levels of experience, budgets and from all age groups and circles.

We try not to use anything but nurturing and giving advise with the beginners and help them along. If some kid got a PCGS membership as a gift ( some have I KNOW ) and he sent in a $3 coin, the last thing we want him to feel is ignorant. That is part of his education and " tuition ".

Ok, said my part. Let it fly.

Again, welcome Chuck to the boards, everyone here including me will learn from you and the site has gained another top expert. With that, we all benefit. Cointalk is really climbing the ladder these days !!!

 

I appreciate the welcome Arizona Jack.

Sometimes I let my brain go into tangents, which clouds judgement in other areas. I never thought about the kid sending $3 coins in to PCGS theory, nor did I really consider that some people are low budget and like to have their coins in plastic at any cost (whichI still don't agree with myself, but can understand for others).

I am a purist collector at heart. I think for all the good slabs do, they do have their dark side. They have drawn a lot of attention away from the coins themselves - to a point now that many intermediate collectors haven't a clue how to grade, which is a crying shame. All they know is how much this slab is worth versus that slab, and they feel all-important when they 'make' coins (which is a term that sends chills through me every time I have to listen to it).

Anyhow, being a purist, if I can complete a series - like the Memorial cents or Jefferson nickels in nice MS65-MS66 grade for $100, maybe $200 - by carefully selecting the coins from dealers, rolls, or circulation, I see that as fun, educational, and completely supporting collecting the way it should be. When someone REFUSES to buy a $5 coin to fill a hole in their collection because it's not in a slab, I just want to slap them into reality and ask them if they REALLY want to collect coins...because the holder is irrelavent, and they are placing more importance in the holder than the coins.

I mean really...you HAVE to know the group I am referring to - the ones who would buy and collect graded pocket lint if there was a market for it, because the coins are not the important part - having a high grade label is all the rage!! And here we come around to the 'makers' - the people who submit huge piles of coins and toss a big check at the graders to 'make' a few $500 coins with the knowledge that 95% of what they get back is going to be worth less than the cost of slabbing the coin. Most of this happens for one of two reasons - either the 'maker' doesn't have a clue how to grade or is too lazy to spend the time to do it. Either way, it's all a game, and the ONLY winner is the slabbing company. Meanwhile we are left with hundreds of thousands of virtually worthless coins in these plastic holders that sell for five times what they would sell for without the plastic. Really...if this 1955S cent were cracked out of the PCGS MS65 slab today, by tomorrow it would be flipped into a 2x2, labeled as ChBu and stuck in a dealers row box for $5 along with all the other "raw" coins.

Now ask yourself...if a person really just wanted the coin and truly cared about the coins, why would they pay $10-$15 extra JUST for the holder?

So I guess my first post should have been to ask the OP what the reason for buying the slab was in the first place...was it just to have the slab, or was it because he really thought an MS65 quality 1955S cent was really worth that much. If the former, by ALL MEANS...$12 is cheap for ANY PCGS slab...have at it and good luck collecting! If the latter, however, all the rest of what I posted above applies and is completely correct.

So my apologies to the OP (that would be "original poster" for the abbreviation challenged) for not having the sensitivity to actually ASK why you were interested in this particular item. All I had in mind was that $12 is way too much for any average GEM grade 1955S cent, and I wanted to protect you from what I believe to be an overpriced market. But if you are really into slabs, you would be doing yourself well buying ANY PCGS slabbed coin for less than $15 with the shipping.

I hope my blather in this manifesto really explained my position better than I was able to yesterday.

 

Well to be honest, you really don't rank high on the "blather hierarchy" here yet Chuck. Jack has brought up a good point for many on the forum who tend to forget the wide range of age and experience here. I have been guilty a few times also, so I am speaking from within the "kettle".

I so much enjoy having a "large club experience" online, here with the great experts that can correct me when I am wrong, and enhance my education.

Jim

 

Im really on the fence for this one. I agree that the coin is the most important thing, and is beautiful raw, but a cheap slab is like a small investment. The fact that the plastic is there, means I can sell it for more later than the same raw coin. I'm still not sure if I should go for it. I'd rather have some slabbed MS66 cents from the forties.

 

For the price of a 65 or 66 RD Lincoln in a slab, you could surely find a great book on the subject.

I recommend the Lange book, and even Chucks book. There is also a new Lincoln Matte Proof book I cannot put down, but thats a different ballgame. Always buy books, and always before the coins

 

Jack, what is the "new Lincoln Matte Proof book". I thought you were talking about the 11 page pamphlet they sell on ebay.

Jim

 

I will give you a slightly different perspective. When I restarted my Lincoln set (mostly 34 - 58), I did most of it from eBay. There were (and still are) virtually nothing available on the "local" market here. Don't know why, but it just is not here. I kept ordering these "nice" Lincolns and getting not quite that nice of a coin. I did finally managed to find one dealer selling coins that met his grade, but he had the worst service I have yet had on eBay. I started buying slabs out of desperation. Granted, I was paying a little more, but I was also getting a lot nicer coins.

 

This book Jim, I bought it a cpl weeks ago, a fantastic read and probably the new " bible " on the subject. Alll my Flynn books are great, but this one rocks.


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