What are your thoughts on the term "PQ" in relation to coins?

Guess you misread my statement: I said I was NOT excluding raw coins. Absolutely, there are PQ raw coins.

I agree - we are talking about PQ for the grade.

I'm not sure who made them up because the term PQ/premium quality is used in many different industries, not just coins. Again, Leadfoot, I think you are being way overly synical here - it's not "plain and simple" that PQ is used by most dealers JUST "to justify a higher price"! I strongly disagree with you on this one. Dealers wouldn't sell many coins if they were charging higher prices just because they labeled a coin as PQ but it was a dog or even average! In my opinion, PQ really does help define a better quality coin in a given grade. And if that coin is PQ, then it should be priced higher than the average coin for that grade.

I think everyone will agree that there are all different levels of coins in any given grade. Using A, B, C, D is one way to help define a coin in a given grade, but this system can get too complicated. When I look in another dealers case and see "PQ" on a coin, I will pay more attention to that coin to see if I agree that is is on the high end since that is what I am usually looking for, and yes, I will expect to pay more because a PQ coin will be worth more than an average coin in that grade. But I certainly won't buy it (and pay the higher price) unless I agree that it is PQ. So that really is the bottom line, whether YOU as the collector agree that a coin is PQ and are willing to pay the higher price. As you said, grading is subjective and so is a PQ designation but it is helpful!

And yes, collectors do use that term as well - I have heard it many times from "old timers." But I agree that choice and good for the grade and even GEM are pretty much the same thing and used just as often, but PQ is just said with a different, more succinct term.

 

Log in or Sign up to hide this ad.

I have purchased some coins a few years back, from a company by the name of PQ Rarities. They never marketed every single coin using that terminology, however some of the coins were exactly that, for the issue, date, grade , surviving specimens etc.

 

Think I'll start my own grading company and go back to the old standard of 10 grades -Poor, G, VG, F, VF, XF, AU, UNC, BU, CHBU. Then let the buying and selling public haggle over how PQ the coin may be.

 

There is no "perhaps" about it. Many sellers (both dealers and collectors) badly overuse/misuse/abuse the term. And that's even considering that grading is subjective.

 

My personal opinion is that PQ is used way to much - not just ebay but big time dealers also. I figure my collection I get the final say anyway, so I treat PQ like a dealers grade - I ignore it and form my own opinion. Sorry - but I do not think you understand how hard it was for me to buy those IHC's from you without at least pictures. Certain online dealers I do not use just for that reason - not that I do not trust you all, but I have to make the final determination. Plus I hate to think I had to spend money to see a coin in hand - most do not refund to/from shipping.

 

I completely understand. By the way, I wanted to mention that I am now providing photos upon request! I have been practicing with my new very complicated fancy camera and giant lens and though the photos aren't the greatest yet, at least I can only get better!

 

That makes my day. I have a few I am still looking for - if something appears in your inventory I will certainly make a request. Not sure I will ever get around to upgrading late 60's early 70's - but you never know.

 

For me PQ means an exceptional coin considering the year/mint - strike/die state, eye-appeal, luster and toning.....in that order.

One particular dealer that I buy a lot of Lincolns from very rarely uses the term. When I see one he lists as PQ, I normally end up buying it because he really knows Lincolns.....and his prices are sweet. Here's one that my crappy pics don't do justice to. In hand this coin is an absolutely blazing, deep red with glowing luster. So happens, it also has a cracked skull, a small lamination error and a cool die break to make an eye-ball in the 9.

 

Here's another one I bought from him. This coin is just outstanding. I teased him about the 2x2, but he was just crazy about this coin:

 

This is a good discussion although I think I may be more confused now. I agree with Lehigh that I prefer the RB MPL in part bc I could live with the spots (not too many and not too big and not in that bad a place). In halves and nickels (what I collect), such spots would not be as big a deal though.

I don't like the term PQ much because I usually see it followed by one or multiple exclamation points and feel like I'm about to fall into a marketing trap. I suppose "high end" is no better. I think PQ is often put forward as an enticement that the coin can resubmitted and grade up a point. If the coin is expensive enough and it is a serious dealer offering the coin, that is probably not the case as the dealer would just submit the coin herself. Jsut my thoughts.

By the way, I saw the article and enjoyed it as well.

 

Actually, I didn't express what I was trying to say. What I should have said is "So there's no such think as a PQ ungraded raw coin?" The point being good coins are good coins, regardless of their grade. As an aside, I think that's something that's lost on many of today's slab-centric collectors. Let's try this from a slightly different perspective....

When one collector hands a coin to another, PQ for the grade rarely if ever comes up. A collector looks at the coin and says "Cool coin!" and if it looks almost undergraded (i.e. a coin a seller would often call PQ) they will say something like "looks good for the grade" or "looks undergraded". The point being, in all of my numsmatic discussions I've never heard the word PQ used between collectors. Now, introduce selling into the equation, and now the term is flying all over the place -- and in virtually every instance it is either trying to incite higher bids or justify a higher-than-normal price. You might call that cynicism, but I prefer calling a spade a spade.

That's not to say all dealers are guilty of this, nor is to say that there aren't really "PQ" coins that should fetch a premium price, but rather just as I said earlier, "a term made up by sellers to justify a higher price".

Respectfully...Mike

 

My thoughts on this are:
Of course PQ designation is real, and of course I think it explains coins better,
Sure it is overused, but so are most terms you find on slabs...
"MONSTER TONER!!"
"A+++"
"Mark Free!!"
But There is no doubt in my mind that If you find a PQ MS 65 coin in a slab, and fins an MS 65 "C" coin, and crack them and resubmit enough times, the "C" coin will come back 64 and the "PQ" will come back 66.
PQ just falls under the same category everyone grades their coins with.
MS XX A, B, or C.
PQ is just an A++ that hasnt been cracked and resubmitted yet.