1842-O-Liberty Seated Dime- Hi everyone, thought i would share this Gem rare coin in the nature of High Quality of this coin ,I bought this coin from a guy in Louisana ,about 2 yrs ago, for under $ 50.00 -Questions: First should i in you opinion have it graded ? I see this coin half the shape mine coin is,$ 300.00-$ 400.00 in this variety and year,, you would pay how much for this coin ? Value wise Thanks for your time : PS as in most coin as high luster, as in struck yesterday, ,might not show in pictures., and coin was never cleaned Thanks hope you enjoy, and look forward to your comments KEvin
Hi, Kevin. First of all, "Gem" describes a choice Mint State coin in about MS65 grade range. Your coin is not Mint State at all- not even close- but rather a visibly circulated example which has been cleaned. What you are mistaking for "luster" is in fact evidence of polishing, which is not good. I would personally grade it in the choice Very Fine range with VF25 to VF30 details, and the cleaning will knock the value down a bit from there. That's the bad news. However, the good news is that it is still a fairly desirable coin, even as-is, and if you bought it for less than $50, I think you didn't do too badly. Numismedia lists an 1842-O dime for $40 in F12 and $186 in VF20. Yours has details a little bit better than VF20 (again, I'd estimate VF25-35 details- maybe XF40 on a good day), but factoring in the cleaning, it's likely to fetch closer to the Fine (F12) price than the Very Fine (VF20) price. Here is the PCGS/Photograde page with some comparison photos. It's not the most useful grading guide around, but can give you some idea, for a quick reference. Is it worth grading? Hmm... I'm not so sure. I wouldn't bother, personally. I think it would come back with a "details" grade for the cleaning, and you'd end up spending $35+ to grade a coin that's only worth $45-50-ish. But that's your call. You're welcome to solicit other opinions, of course, and perhaps someone with more specialized experience in this series will chime in. Welcome! PS- upon further examination of your photos, it appears the white balance is off, so it's difficult to determine just how "shiny" (i.e., harshly cleaned) the coin is. A coin with that level of wear should not be shiny at all. However, it might fall within the range of acceptability. IF you got it slabbed by a reputable third-party grading service like PCGS or NGC or even ICG or ANACS, without a "details" grade or "problem" notation for cleaning, you'd have a coin worth over a hundred bucks. I think it would get hit for cleaning, though. Personally, I'd keep it as-is. It's not a bad coin for what you paid. PPS- your poll makes no sense at all.
