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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;JeromeLS, post: 788118, member: 7867&quot;]I am quite able to detect fake coins in hand as far as my experience has shown. The only time I have ever bought a forgery unknowingly was by post from a major auction house (unsold lot) and I was given my money back and an apology. All reputable dealers will return your money if they sell you a forgery. It&#039;s a legal offence if they don&#039;t. If the poster of this thread likes the noble pictured (which looks OK to me from the pictures - I&#039;ve seen cast forgeries of this sort of piece), then s/he can buy it, and if it looks like a fake in hand, then the issue can be quickly sorted. </p><p><br /></p><p>Personally, I hate slabs. They have damaged the market in American coins by creating a dogmatic value system. Slabs are , if anything, for investors, not for collectors. I know that I&#039;m buying coins for much more than I could immediately sell them for - hopefully, in twenty or thirty years time, I will have made a hypothetical profit, but this isn&#039;t my main concern. I don&#039;t buy the grade, I buy the coin, and if the coin is attractive, I&#039;m not really bothered whether it grades a 60 or a 65. There is also this growing trend that coins which have been subjected to some sort of damage are not legitimate collectors piece. I personally would rather buy the coin in a good grade for a more affordable price with a small piercing/love graffiti than buy a slabbed, low grade piece. The damage is part of the history. I can see why slabs were a good idea originally, but they haven&#039;t really solved the problem: previously there was only a market in fake coins - now there&#039;s a market in fake slabs and fake coins. Finally, I really hate my coins to be behind a centimetre of plastic. I go for paper envelopes - if you want to hold the coin in your hand, you can just take it out. </p><p><br /></p><p>Sorry for the rant, but I just feel that many collectors spend too much money on TPG services when a guarantee would do far better.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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