I've got this here coin in a bezel. Looks to be in about G4 condition . My questions are - Do you think the bezel has damaged the original rim? I want to take the coin out of the bezel, but I am a bit curious what condition the rim will be in and whether I may end up regretting removing it. Also, is there a recommended/best method of removing the bezel that minimizes the risk of damaging the coin in the process? Several pics of the coin...
I also suspect the bezel of being gold, but will have to get someone to verify. I want am thinking I might want to remove it because I, well, I just want to, frankly. Don't like my coins to be in bondage!!! I am curious why you guys would want to leave it in the bezel - do you think it will look ugly (uglier) if it is raw and has a damaged rim? I have not decided either way yet, just thinking about it.
The way that the bezel is set leads me to believe that it was crimped on and has likely caused damage to the coin. It doesn't always damage it, but the chances are pretty high.
I am also curious about values for the coin. The 1908 No Motto is valued less than the 1908-D No Motto (in higher grades at least ). Weird considering that the Philly one has a mintage of 33,500 and the Denver one has a mintage of 210,000. From Numismedia...
Even if the bezel has not damaged the soft gold - unlikely - chances are the treatment associated with wearing it as jewelry has qualified it for Details grade. So, IMO leave this one as-is and leverage the jewelry backstory as a value-add if you ever sell. I think it would offer better that way rather than just Details gold.
If your "OCD'edness" is the only reason for removing the bezel, then you'd probably want a jeweler to do it to minimize the risk of damage to the coin. If the bezel is gold, it is probably only 10kt or 14kt, and keep in mind that the jeweler will probably want to be paid for their time. Chris
It's so worn and cleaned I don't think it is worth anything above melt value either. I would just leave it in there.
The coin with bezel weighs 18.3 g, about 1.6 g more than weight standard for the coin (16.7 g). 10kt gold is worth about $16.44 per gram so I can just let the jeweler keep the bezel as payment!
I almost bought one a couple weeks ago at a pawnshop. It too was in a bezel. If I knew I could have gotten it out without damage , I would have definitely bought it. Wanted to set it free, call it OCD or whatever, just my preference.
Why not just sell it seeing it will only be worth melt value and buy something that may go up in value?
Good question. It's been in the family since way back (I am guessing since at least WW1 - doing research to find out more). Not interested in selling, just preserving. It's so worn though, I might just keep it as jewelry or remove from bezel and make it my $700 pocket piece!
The coins in such bad shape that removing it isn't going to help in anyway should probably be left as is, as when selling you could probably get more with it in the bezel.
