Any value to 1921 morgan if toned?

Is there any value to nicely toned 1921 morgans or even in AU are they still only work 50 max ish?

I like this coin but it doesn't seem like its worth much and I don't like paying for coins with little resale, just in case I want to change my collection in later years. Plus the reverse is ugly ha.

Bonus question: how do you tell if toning is natural?

 

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I'm not a Morgan guy (although I have a few), but the reverse of that coin would make me want to run. WTH happened to it? I doubt that would ever be a high value coin.

Looking at it again, I don't think the toning is natural, but... IMO, it seems that artificially toned coins are starting to become accepted in the general marketplace (not here on cointalk though). If you like the coin, and can look past the reverse, and it's cheap enough where you'll enjoy owning it, then buy it. If you buy it right enough, resale won't matter.

 

@Beefer518 i do really want a toned morgan in my collection but I dont want to break bank for one. I have never spent more than 90 on a coin and 50 for me is very big since im still in college (aka no money ha). I think i'll keep looking until I find a ebay auction that goes low. I'll just remain patient for sure cause I really don't like the reverse, I was just gonna put up with it if it had value.

 

Eventually you'll find one you like and doesn't break your bank.

I think the reverse of that one has to do with the process of toning the front gone wrong. I have no experience in artificially toning a coin, but something makes me think they made a mistake on that one.

 

I'm a Morgan guy but not really into toners. Having said that, that is one UGLY coin. Save your $$$ for something better, IMHO.

 

This coin is AT. It looks like they had it one something that allowed the sulfide solution to pool under it. If you want a toned Morgan, I would be more than glad to make you one at no charge. Do you want blue, violet, gold? Just let me know. If you see the blue and purple, with a bit of brownish gold, run! Sky blue, ruby red and emerald green are the colors that are the most difficult to copy.

 

This one is definitely not market acceptable, run away.

 

My advice...........stay in college!

Chris

 

Be patient. You will get one eventually. Be prepared to spend $200 to get a nice toner in MS-65, and less for lower grades. These prices exclude the Monster Toners, which are a class all of their own.

I am in the same boat as you, being in college with limited money. I wanted a toned Morgan, but could not will myself to pay the steep premium for one. However, three showed up at my local We Buy Gold shop for $17 each (one pictured below, the other two sold for multiples more), and I found a nice rainbow-toned PCGS MS-64 on Facebook for $83 (which I flipped the same day for $125). My advice is to never get desperate for a coin and settling on something inferior. You might enjoy it for a couple days, but then you will regret it. Something will eventually come up that will fit your collection and your budget.



Post Slabbing:

 

The 1921 in the OP is AT (and a poor job of it too). It is not worth $50...more like $20 (give or take a few dollars).

In general, 1921 is the most common date, but it is one of the harder dates for nicely toned coins. Conditions like storage and production were different for the 1921 examples.

I would recommend looking at 1881-S, 83-O, 84-O, 85-O for better prices in terms of toners. A decent MS 62 or 63 example can be had in the $50-$85 range for those dates.

 

It is a 21-D not a 21.
The leprosy on the reverse makes me pass on this. Not $50.

 

Some purists think that all toned coins are damaged coins. That said some folks are wild for toned coins and pay a premium for them. That premium has brought out the fakers who create beautiful toned coins and sell them as natural. Selling one that you created to a kid would be wrong IMHO. Selling one to an adult could be a moral act if you simply put the coin on display with a price and didn't make any claims about it. Then it would be the responsibility of the buyer.

 

I still remember when me and my friend (both 13) were at a coin show. We both went for a nice morgan.. I got a nice 1881-S PCGS MS64 with some blueberry toning. He saw a perfect PCGS MS63 morgan (cant remember the exact date but it wasn't a common date either). He had the guy put it aside while we continued to look around. We split up while I got some ancients and he came back with a VF dark brown artificial toner with cleaning common date raw from a different dealer. Same price too.

 

Is there a difference between toned and tarnished? I ask because I have a WLH that was coupled with a 1987 ASE and placed in a plastic presentation box that must have been presumed to be air tight, but wasn't. Both show coloration like the Morgan above in post # 9.

 

One man's toning is another man's tarnish. Some people don't believe in tarnish, I don't believe in toning.

 

Then there is the third group of people who think that any toning = $$$.

 

Toning is tarnish period. Some can be pretty with vivid colors, while others can be just ugly, but it took the same chemical reaction to create them.

 

Even if the toning on the OPs coin were natural, there is a such thing as negative eye appeal and that Morgan has it.
That toning, in my opinion, severely affects the coin in a negative way.

 

Ugly

 

@TypeCoin971793 what a amazing buy! I need to find some locations in KC for coin hunting. The local pawns i've tried havent had squat.