1916 Barber Dime - to grade or not to grade…that is the question…

Discussion in 'US Coins Forum' started by Mark Metzger, Jun 7, 2022.

  1. Mark A Williams

    Mark A Williams Active Member

    With only minor scuffs and marks I would have it graded. That will give you the best answers on what you have. A beautiful coin!!
     
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  3. Mark Metzger

    Mark Metzger Well-Known Member

    I would gladly send it in for grading and take you up on your bet; however, the dealer who I piggyback my submissions with just sent a batch in and doesn’t have plans to submit again for a while.
     
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  4. Morgandude11

    Morgandude11 As long as it's Silver, I'm listening

    Ok, well, we shall see, when it gets graded. I hope, for your sake, that it is mid grade MS, as that makes it a $200-225 dollar coin.
     
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  5. KBBPLL

    KBBPLL Well-Known Member

    Sorry but this is just a crock. Just because a coin is "an obvious candidate for submission" doesn't mean that anyone ever did. My siblings and cousins all have similar coins as mine from grandpa and none of them have seen the light of day for 80 years. You simply cannot claim that any nice looking coin has to have been submitted for grading.
     
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  6. 1865King

    1865King Well-Known Member

    At a minimum that Barber dime was dipped. The color is way to even to look the way it does without being played with. I wouldn't send it in for grading it will get a details grade. However, it has the look of a MS 63 to MS 64 coin. Overall, a nice coin. Enjoy it the way it is.
     
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  7. eddiespin

    eddiespin Fast Eddie

    The photographs of the coin are nice and sharp but the lighting is a little funny. Still, I think you have the presumption right. A coin like this coming into a TPG is going to be heavily scrutinized for the reasons aforestated. But the verdict is going to hinge on whether it's market acceptable, and that I don't believe we can adequately judge from these photographs.

    Having said that, "back in the day," I had 14-year-old kids in my coin club who could spot a dipped coin in a coin shop ten feet away. Or at least five feet away, lol. My point is, the unscrupulous dealers dipped out toning (a.k.a., environmental damage), then. Today, the unscrupulous dealers dip it in. That's why most Morgan Dollars were indeed dipped, at one point or another. Same can be said on a lot of older, tarnished silver. You put those 14-year-old kids in the grading rooms and 90% or better of these silver coins are body bagged.

    Given the lighting in the photographs could be better and the grading standard of market acceptability, I have to lean toward, send it off. If they know what they're doing, they're going to judge it on the evidence, on acceptability standards for their market, and not dismiss it out of hand, again, for the reasons aforestated. Then, again, they could be dopes, in which case he winds up with expensive plastic and a coin that wasn't given fair treatment.
     
    Last edited: Jun 10, 2022
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  8. Mark Metzger

    Mark Metzger Well-Known Member

    Here are some more photos including some zoomed under a loupe. Have at it!!!
    EB307B4C-4B6C-4B9C-897A-22272ACE6FB4.jpeg 275895CD-B5B3-4060-88FA-547475331A7E.jpeg E248FF9C-0920-48FB-9472-8FCAEAFE0015.jpeg 32245D3F-F5C3-4027-A2EA-CBE320E34C88.jpeg 153A2764-6A17-4043-876D-AC63A5EEFCD3.jpeg 2DF99C74-6383-4380-A886-9A6EB97A566B.jpeg F39F76D5-FFF2-4B2F-B93A-CF778DA2475D.jpeg 7F3AA88F-08B9-42AC-967E-06EBA9F5DEDA.jpeg 0C0C5E22-A1DC-4C7F-8AE4-1EE6EBBF5ED9.jpeg 3B192EBF-C921-4511-8E2B-9A2455BCDCBB.jpeg
     
  9. green18

    green18 Unknown member Sweet on Commemorative Coins Supporter

    First photo: Looks like die polish lines.........
     
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  10. Morgandude11

    Morgandude11 As long as it's Silver, I'm listening

    I rest my case—cleaning lines.

    32B75290-8EBE-45AE-AC13-5B1A30768321.jpeg
     
  11. Mark Metzger

    Mark Metzger Well-Known Member

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  12. johnmilton

    johnmilton Well-Known Member

    My advice would be, don't waste you money on grading. Yes, the coin has lots of luster, but the obverse is really marked up. You will get no better than MS-62, and it's really an MS-61 at best IMO. The Grey Sheet bid is $100 in MS-60 and $115 in 62. At those prices, it's not worth it.
     
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  13. Mike Thorne

    Mike Thorne Well-Known Member

    I would have it certified. I should note, however, that almost all of my coins are certified, so obviously that's the way I lean.
     
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  14. AdamL

    AdamL Well-Known Member

    I still think it would get a details grade.
     
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  15. Tamaracian

    Tamaracian 12+ Yr Member--Supporter

    @Mark Metzger I would have it graded either by NGC or PCGS, but I would wait until you have other "worthy" coins to send in also so as to spread out the cost of the fees/shipping/insurance; alternatively, you could go with ANACS just to get it holdered and see if it would straight grade as they are the least costly overall, OR, if you're in a mind to sell it for a profit, send it in to Great Collections as they take care of the grading (at a discount) and ALL shipping and insurance fees to and from to TPG.
     
  16. Mark Metzger

    Mark Metzger Well-Known Member

    I’ve never used great collections but their service seems perfect for this case. Thanks for the recommendation!
     
  17. Morgandude11

    Morgandude11 As long as it's Silver, I'm listening

    Here is a comparison. Your coin, versus a PCGS certified MS 64 CAC 1915 Barber Dime. On the certified, note original, uncleaned surfaces, not polished, buffed ones. Also, note that there are no polishing lines, indicating mechanical intervention. Comparing your coin to a certified, uncleaned coin reinforces my belief that your coin is cleaned. Just enjoy your coin for what it is—an altered surfaces, but still attractive Barber Dime. I never said it is not attractive—it has just had assistance in being attractive, courtesy of a mechanical cleaning.
    BDD3CE6B-EA7B-411E-AE2F-A1503C2D96A1.jpeg C1EAFB15-5D31-4419-A030-6DAA0C82793C.jpeg ADECB1B9-515D-4827-9ED2-7AF1EE27F757.jpeg 6A62E288-28CF-4E9D-A304-05E64B744AC5.jpeg
     
  18. -jeffB

    -jeffB Greshams LEO Supporter

    Those photos are in no way comparable. The lighting in the OP's photos is harsher, and they're in focus, showing every hit in fine detail.

    The photo from the OP that gives me most concern is the second-to-last obverse photo:

    upload_2022-6-11_10-23-57.png

    I see what look like parallel scratches parallel to a line from 10:00 to 4:00. I don't know how prominent they are, but the lighting in this shot is coming from 1:00 or 7:00, perfectly positioned to highlight them.

    Magnified photos of dimes often make things look worse than they are. I don't know whether these scuffs will be enough to detail the coin, but I'd certainly expect them to keep it out of gem territory.

    But I see what looks like strong luster in the fields, and I don't see shadows around the devices, which I'd expect to see if the whole thing had been polished. It might have been scrubbed, or it might have slid across a dirty counter or two.

    I very much wish I could see the coin in person. Since I can't, I'd love to see what a TPG makes of it. (Especially since it's not my money being spent on grading, of course! :rolleyes:)
     
  19. Morgandude11

    Morgandude11 As long as it's Silver, I'm listening

    You mean, any nice looking coin, with cleaning marks all over it?
     
  20. ldhair

    ldhair Clean Supporter

    I would not have the coin graded. It would look nice in an album.
     
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  21. Mark Metzger

    Mark Metzger Well-Known Member

    Those comp photos are horrible. They look like they were taken through a fish tank. My photos are super high resolution and show EVERY detail of the coin.
     
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