Toned Coins..

AT = Artificially Toned. Basically, someone intentionally altered the coin to make it appear to be NT (Naturally Toned) in the hopes of making a lot of money on the coin. This is considered damage to the coin and makes it worth less.

 

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Got ya. AT = Artificially Toned, NT= Natural.

Thanks!

 

And AT coins are probably the reason you shouldn't buy toned coins unless you have somebody to talk to in depth about toned coins. If I were you, do some research right here on cointalk, and type in AT vs. NT or just artificial toning, I'm sure some useful information is bound to pop up

 

Will do. Thanks for your input TmoneyEagle.

 

Or buy CERTIFIED coins.

 

:thumb:
Agreed, but even sometimes, AT coins fool the pros...
But I think you and I are on the same page, as most raw toners are these baked outta the oven toned coins, and they would never make it into a slab.

 

That's true...but even some of those are borderline AT. I know that slabbed coins are typically "market acceptable," but just because it's slabbed doesn't mean it's NT for 100%.

 

Actually not to complicated. It's called the Toned Coin Collector's Society.
www.tonedcoins.org
A complete forum on nothing but toned coins and people that collect them.

 

If it fools the pros, then what am I worried about?

 

Much truer than you think. At coin shows I've found that there are many dealers that can not tell if a coin is AT or NT. And as one dealer was telling me if you think about it, really what is the difference. If you find a coin that was sitting somewhere for a few years and the invironment toned it, that is supposed to be NT. If you put that coin there and then left it there for those years, now is that AT? If someone else put that coin there and it toned, is that NT since you didn't put it there?
As for my preferences when it comes to coins. I've been collecting coins for a long time. I collect coins that look like they are new or as close as possible. This means I have no toned coins of any kind and never will. A few I came accross I dipped in a solution to get it back to looking like a coin. My way of looking at toned coins is like taking a new car and hand painting it with a brush and stripes and dots.
Just me but I really don't like painted or toned coins. Just not normal.

 

I know peacockcoins sells some nice toners on ebay...

Personally, I like toned gold myself. Not too much of a tone freak, but if the coin has nice eye appeal for a gold coin and is nicely toned, hey what the heck.

I think with toned coins you have to becareful because you need to store them in a dry place or the toning can change....use silicia gel.

Often times AT coins will exhibit 'neon' colors and such, but there are many NT coins like this too, often times you can tell if a coin is AT or has been as they say, "cooked". People bake them in their ovens to speed up the toning process..

I guess I like toned coins but I certainly wouldn't pay a premium for one. Especially if down the road it may change colors to unattractive..


Here's a coin that may be AT. Again I'm not very experienced with AT coins myself but often times the really bad ones will be bright neon, crayon like. This one may be AT, there's tons of them on ebay:
http://cgi.ebay.com/1967-Kennedy-Half-Dollar-Monster-Rainbow-Toning_W0QQitemZ390098803759QQcmdZViewItemQQptZCoins_US_Individual?hash=item5ad3b35c2f

By the way BNB thanks for the post, I hope you're learning alot, take it easy.

 

BNB, there are a ton of threads here on CT and the CU forum discussing toned coins - you should look them up, they have a lot of information - both pros and cons on collecting toned coins. Of course, most know I love toned coins and have many in my personal collection and for sale.

And, I'm sure everyone knows I look for any excuse to show off my toned coins , and in case you haven't been to my site yet, here are a few examples from my personal collection:

 

BNB,

You have gotten a lot of good advice in this thread. I would now like to throw my two cents in.

• Type Set Collecting: If you are looking to make a profit through investment in rare coins, you are going to have a very difficult time doing it by type collecting. Most collectors that make profits on their coins become very specialized and knowledgeable in a particular area of numismatics. Often times, they will know more about their particular series than most dealers who do not specialize in the same series. This gives them an advantage that they can use to become profitable. Unfortunately, the nature of the type collector is to assemble one of each series. An experienced type collector may be familiar with most series but is an expert in none. He has no advantage and must rely on the expertise of dealers & grading companies to assemble a decent set. IMO, it would be almost impossible to build a profitable type set. The only exception would be a key date type set which will run you big bucks.
• Rainbow Toned Coins Rule #1: ONLY BUY RAINBOW TONED COINS IN PCGS OR NGC HOLDERS: This rule is not negotiable. It is your insurance policy against AT coins. I have been collecting rainbow toned coins for 8 years and do not break this rule. The slab does not ensure that the coin is NT, in fact both PCGS & NGC use the practice of "market acceptability" for questionably toned coins. However, the slab does ensure that even the AT coins will sell at current market prices because they are deemed "market acceptable". The coins you need to be wary of are the PCGS & NGC coins that were once "market acceptable" but their particular toning pattern is no longer considered "market acceptable." The series you are looking into purchasing falls into that category. Gorgeous blue toned proof IHC's have most likely been treated with MS70 causing the color. Leadfoot, Charmy, and the slighly evil one (Gmarguli) will be able to tell you more about MS70 toned proof IHC's. If you are going to buy one of these, do not buy of E-Bay or Heritage. Find a dealer that specializes in toned copper and make a deal. If I were in your spot, Charmy would be my first choice in dealer. Having said all that, a phenomenal toned proof IHC is a great addition to a type set.

• Rainbow Toned Coins Rule #2: There are no price guides for rainbow toned coins and the market price for monster color can be many multiples of established wholesale prices. There is never validation for your purchases from most other collectors and they will tell you over and over that you are an idiot for paying that much for a color coin. From what I have seen, this will be your biggest challenge if you venture into toned coins.
• Rainbow Toned Coins THE Price Premium: Rainbow toning is an area of numismatics that is highly specialized. It usually requires years of experience to overcome "emotion buying" and stop overpaying for your toned coins. For this reason, I personally expect to lose money if and when my collection sells. I simply have overpaid for too many coins. As I state above, there is no written price guide. Understanding the toned coin market is very difficult and highly volatile. To understand the pricing a little better, please read the attached thread. It was one of my first posts on this site but still very accurate and useful. http://www.cointalk.com/t39837/

Rainbow Toned Coin Dealers:

• Polaris Numismatics: http://stores.shop.ebay.com/Polaris-Numismatics__W0QQ_armrsZ1 This is Brandon Kelley's shop. Brandon ran the daily operations of Anaconda Rare Coins for the owner Adrian Crane and was involved in purchasing. I believe he was responsible for the entire web design and all photography. Anaconda was the king of toned coin companies. I almost cried when I heard Adrian was selling the business and moving to Costa Rica. The coins of Anaconda and now Polaris usually have monster color and moon money prices. You get great quality, but there is now way you will make a profit.
• GreatToning: http://myworld.ebay.com/greattoning&ssPageName=STRK:MEFSX:SELLERIDThis is the best E-Bay seller of toned coins and even his photos are enhance a tad. He has a very loyal base of customers that check his auctions every week. Any quality item that he lists goes for big money.
• Island Coins: http://islandcoins.com/index.htm Another quality seller of great toned material with moon money prices. The photos are not quite as good as Brandon's either IMO. I have purchased coins from this company and have no complaints.
• Heritage: http://coins.ha.com/?ic=Tab-Home-041408 If you are looking to make a profit on a toned coin, this may be your only shot. Keep and eye out for a toned coin with what appears to be a poor photo.

Here is your homework assignment BNB, look at the Morgan Dollars in the upcoming signature sale and pick a toned coin that you think you might be able to obtain rather cheaply due to a poor photo and flip for a profit with a great photo. Here is the link to the Morgan Dollar section.

http://coins.ha.com/common/search_results.php?Ne=304&N=51+792+4294959069+382

I know this was a long post, but I want you to succeed. Rainbow toning is an advanced area of numismatics that requires both courage and patience. I am always here if you ever need help or advice about a toned coin.

 

Some don't care for dark proofs but they can have great color under the light.

Some don't care for this type of original look on an MS coin.

I like them all.

 

Toned 1928 S SLQ

I think this one is a beauty.

 

my 2 cents

Toned yes but they must still have eye apeal

 

The above is really more true than most will admit. Fads in any hobby come and go and I suspect that toned coins are just that. I might be wrong but just as error coins are big right now and couterfeit coin collecting is also on the rise, eventually just normal looking coins will be the final part of the hobby. With so many coins being difficult or even impossible to find, many have gone to other modes of this hobby such as toned coins, error coins, fakes, copies, etc.
And too with all the counterfeiting of rare coins the extensive amounts of creating toned coins artificially, those will also make that part of the hobby falter.
Regardless of the outcome of all these offshoots of coin collecting, most of this is as already stated many times, not a good place for investing for the future.
Remember the Beanie Babies, sports cards, Hot Wheel cars, USpostage stamps and all the others that have come and gone?

 

That is the downside, unless, like you mentioned, the coins are key dates. But, you seem to be like myself, in that it doesn't really matter much. I overpay for a lot of coins because the opportunity to buy a similar one may not come along again for quite some time. I'm not a dealer, so selling for profit doesn't exist in my collecting world. And, even if I did sell one day, I might lose a percentage, but that goes with any hobby. I could buy a boat for 120K today and if I sell it next week I'd be lucky to get 70K for it. At least my coins cover a lot more gain than that.
Guy~

 

I'll agree, that purchasing coins for the sole purpose to act as an "Investment" instrument is a poor choice indeed. Your intention of "Profit" might be better achieved in other venues. Of course everyone who buys a coin or any other form of collectible item hopes for some appreciation over and above your cost. However there are far to many intangibles against being successful. Whatever I purchase in pursuit of this hobby, I do so because I totally enjoy the simple fact of owning the item.

Sure I have made some very nice purchases in which I later sold for a "profit". This rarely happens though and more than often than not your fortunate to re-sell the item for close to what you paid for it. Which is fine for me as well. I can tell you, I have never lost on a coin! Because my Desire and Satisfaction was fulfilled at the time of my initial purchase.