COIN BUYING EDUCATION 101-4 ( New 8/10)

4th Coin



There has been as usual, many auctions which have been url-ed on ebay to draw attention to a specific point or discussion as to value or lack thereof. Most often the photos are not the best. I would like to offer as a lesson in coin buying in this post. I am not the teacher, the posters will be teaching and learning at the same time.

This coin is not for sale. It is the example used.

This coin is graded, BB, or "detail" by a big 4 TPG. The photos are taken through plastic.


So pretend this is the listing I have put on my auction, and then post what you think as to price and condition. After some action , I will tell you the results. AGAIN, this is a pretend auction I will not sell this coin. In financial groups it is called "paper money" so you can trade stocks on paper and not lose your money until you are ready.

Pretend ad: :smile
================================================== =

Wow! Rare High Grade 1935 Boone Bicentennial Half Dollar (10,000 net coins (not melted)~ Breen). Grading is subjective. Use my photos to make your decision. Taken out of Granny's safe deposit box! Looks good to me. Buy it now for $225.00 or best offer.





===========================================

Faint lines at top and vertical one in front of ear are on the plastic.

Ok, what do you think? offer grading/ condition/ price/ suggestions
and why you say so.

It has already been to a TPG and back, so you won't offend or anything.
Again
this is not an offer to sell, nor any offer at all, it is a pretend learning experience. A lab practical if you would.

Jim ( Granny :smile)

 

Log in or Sign up to hide this ad.

Is there a rim dent or nick visible on reverse between 12 / 1 oclock positions? It's right in the glare and I can't tell what that dark shape may be. Some details of the obverse seem weak while others don't, again maybe the pics looking through plastic.
I suggest: Natural toning, NGC MS 60, $115 final bid price.

 

Krispy, its part of the plastic. Coin has no rim marks or dings in that area. Good eye.

Jim

 

I am already 0 for three on these, so lets see if I continue the trend, I do not see any wear on blackfish, but I am a bit concerned at how boone on the obverese looks compared to the rest of the fields, I am a little suspicious of the toning being mainly in the spots around the rim it does not look like the toning included the edge letterring.

I am going to say cleaned, gently, probably by rubbing, and would give it a details grade of ms61, I would venture a c note on it.

 

On the obv, it almost looks like an 'x' scratched into the left field, above the A of HALF. Am I just seeing things?

 

First the disclaimer, I never owned a Boone or shopped for a Boone. I am going on a few minutes of online image comparisons. That said, coin image looks decent, I vote MS63. If I want the coin, $110 is my offer.

For comparison here are four Teletrade links:
#1 ANACS 60 cleaned $65 hammer
http://www.teletrade.com/coins/lot.asp?auction=2540&lot=1779&imagetype=j2

#2 NGC 63 $120 hammer
http://www.teletrade.com/coins/lot.asp?auction=2561&lot=2018&imagetype=j2

#3 NGC MS64 $120 hammer
http://www.teletrade.com/coins/lot.asp?auction=2487&lot=1910&imagetype=j2

#4 PCGS MS65 $160 hammer
http://www.teletrade.com/coins/lot.asp?auction=2626&lot=1853&imagetype=j2

 

Thanks for doing the legwork (mousework?) on that; I didn't have the energy!

 

I see it, looks like more scuffed plastic, at least on one of the legs of the X. Jim?

 

Ksparrow, here is a close up. I think the diagonal one is a slight ding, the curved vertical portion doesn't appear to be, but the toning haze there makes it hard to tell.
Jim

 

looks like a fingerprint from the left of the H in half to the mouth.

 

Thanks, Jim. looks like a little ding. I will settle on it as 'cleaned,' offer as per Red Tiger's post.

 

Noost, here is a close up of the area. If it is a fingerprint, it is the tiniest finger I have seen on a coin.

 

Doug, what I meant was that the coin was one of the 3~ assigned a grade , or was body bagged ( genuine now), or assigned a detail grade with a problem.

here is the closeup:

 

GDJMSP, I wouldn't and didn't guess that this coin was BB'd* and I don't think that Red Tiger missed anything in what Jim stated. I read that sentence, "this coin is graded" comma "BB" comma "or "detail" by a big 4 TPG" to mean it IS one of these possibilities, but not that it IS "BB".

For example in the past Coin Buying Education threads Jim has used the same line and it appears as noted below. So far none of those coins were yet BB'd:

• In the First Coin Buying Education thread it was worded,
"This coin is graded ( or BB, or detailed) of a big 4 TPG."
The 1921 Peace Dollar was slabbed ICG AU58

• In the second Coin Buying Education thread it was worded,
"This coin is graded ( or BB, or detailed) of a big 4 TPG."
The 1904 S Morgan Dollar was slabbed ANACS VF-35

• In the third Coin Buying Education thread it was worded,
"This coin is graded or BB, or detailed by a big 4 TPG. "
The 1937 D Buffalo Nickel was slabbed PCGS Genuine


* If the coin was BB'd, wouldn't it be in a flip and essentially unnecessary for Jim to shoot through the plastic? unless of course he was trying to be purposefully deceptive in his listing if he's playing the part of an uncouth auctioneer.

 

Thanks Jim, you pointed it out faster than I could assemble this reply.

 

Huh? Too late in the day or too early to post? You played the first three versions of the game. The introductory comments were identical and two of the three were in no-problem holders, only one had problems noted and even that one might get into a no-problem holder on another go around. There would be a lot less point to the game, if we were told the coin was already a problem coin, no?

As for harshly cleaned, or whizzed, I am not seeing that. To me, it looks nothing like the ANACS cleaned coin image, much more like the 63 and 64 graded coins. As always, I have been wrong before, will be wrong again, we'll see what the TPG said.

There is a second filter that skews my comments. If it were indeed harshly cleaned or whizzed, A collector that knows anything, wouldn't likely send it in for grading. An experienced collector would only buy it if deeply discounted, perhaps for an album or for educational purposes, and never submit it. Whizzing and cleaning can sometimes be a bit tough to see via online images, but is usually easy to see in person for an experienced collector. DesertGem certainly has shown that with some of the coins he/she posted, the quality of the photos and close ups, a good deal of numismatic experience, and knowledge. Anyone who owns three 1921 Peace dollars, and a 3-legger, and is buying coins raw to send in for grading, likely has a good collection, and many, many years in the hobby.