AU with Scratches?

I'm new at coin collecting. I bought this St Gaudens 1908 double eagle. The seller, a big on-line dealer in gold, advertised it as AU. I see scratches on both the obverse and reverse (see attached). Is it still considered AU with these scratches?

 

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It's hard for someone to judge the overall condition of any coin when they are shown just a small part of it.

Just my 2c worth of gold!

Chris

 

Yes. Pictures of the entire coin would be helpful.

 

Or circulation. But the length of them suggests a wipe rather than passing between fingers.

 

Sometimes dealers sell raw coins as “AU” or “UNC” implicitly meaning AU/UNC details. A US dealer once told me that any raw coin in his inventory is unlikely to receive a straight grade and should be considered a “problem coin”.

 

Clearly a photo of the entire coin is needed to subjectively verify the AU grade and evaluate potential cleaning. As for the scratches, there is a point beyond which a buyer will pass on buying a coin technically graded AU with scratches at an AU price. At that point, the potential buyer would consider it a ‘problem coin’ valued at a price consistent with a lower grade.

A natural extension to the discussion is the value of a coin with choice surfaces for a given grade. For example, I routinely pay a half to full grade higher price for a circulated copper coin with eye appeal /choice surfaces.

I am a bit troubled a coin dealer considers all raw coins in his entire inventory unlikely to receive a straight grade. That would be the time to move on to another dealer.

 

Here are photos of the whole coin.

 

Thanks for all your comments. What is the etiquette for returning a coin to an on-line dealer? Or it it just caveat emptor and don't buy from them again?

 

I looked at their return policy. Nothing about a return having to be in an unopened holder (it came in a coin flip). I need to tell them within a week of getting the coin. I'm within that. Also, I have to call and tell them about the problem over the phone. Apparently, a written notice via email with photos won't do.

The opening page of their website says in large letters "100% Satisfaction guaranteed." But when you look at the details of their return policy, it says that for *refund* they charge a "restocking fee" of $50 or 10% of the purchase price, whichever is greater (which would be over $130). For an *exchange*, they say they charge a $50 "processing fee."

This doesn't sound like "100% Satisfaction guaranteed," as I am not exactly "satisfied" with paying fees like this to return or exchange a coin that is not in the condition they represented it to be. I'll call them on Monday and see what they say. Their return policy says "We want our customers to be pleased with their purchases." But I don't expect to be "pleased" with what they have to say.

 

That's why you should have checked their return policy before you bought it.

 

It looks like there are areas on the obverse where the luster is disturbed. Notably, These areas are where I see hairlines

 

If you bought it on ebay even if the dealer has a no return policy you can return the coin. From my experience with ebay they are more lenient towards the buyer than the seller. If you bought it straight from a dealer most reputable dealers will accept returns. Good luck.

 

Thanks, Thomas. I'm going to take it to a local coin shop today to see what another set of expert eyes thinks after looking at the coin itself rather than just a photo of it. I may end up keeping it as bullion because the price I paid for it was only $63 over its melt value at that time (paid $1354; then melt value was $1291). When I compare the price I paid for it to the price of other coins of that year and mint mark on the web --- whether for sale or recently sold at auction --- I can't find anything that comes within $200 of what I paid. The fact is that I am not that picky about condition. I just like the No Motto design of the St Gaudens double eagle better than the ones after 1908. Also, the history behind them is interesting. I may just have to adjust my expectations to align better with the relative bargain prices I am getting.

 

If the coin was represented as something it is not, you shouldn't have to pay to get a refund. On eBay, you can start an "item not as described" return if you can't get satisfaction directly from the seller. IMO, a cleaned coin not described as such fits this category. OTOH, if you paid a good price (not very familiar with Saints, but a lot of them seem to be going for less than $100 over melt these days) it may be worth keeping even a cleaned coin.

Edit: Didn't see the immediately preceding post when I posted. Sounds as if you may just want to keep it then!

 

As basically an attractive bullion investment it’s worth keeping. For what you paid. If you hang on to it and gold goes up and then sell it will be a decent return. Especially with the fees Personally I’d keep it for the bullion reason and then wait until you have the money and buy a nice higher grade slabbed example to go with it. I know AMPEX sells slabbed gold reasonable compared to bullion content and you can sometimes get a good deal from ha too if you pay attention 08 no mottos are very available as are 24 and 27 saints even in ms 64 for not much of a premium

 

I don't know if this violates forum rules, but the place I bought it was APMEX. They have the best prices I have seen, but their standard for an AU seems to be a bit loose. Here is another one I got from them that has a purplish "freckle" on it, a ding and a scratch or two. Any idea what the freckle is?

can find , They may be passing along their "problem coins" for those bargain prices.