GEC or SGS~You decide

First of all I would like to state that coin grading is subjective (ever heard that before?) and I am ONLY expressing my OPINIONS on the subjective manner in which coins are graded.

Now onto the meat of the matter.

I see GEC popping up these days. You can see the website here.

http://www.gecgrading.com/index.html

WOW! Can you say disclaimers? Impressive actually but I have yet to find a contact link on the site.

I recently found a GEC coin on ebay here.

http://tinyurl.com/2o6j3c

This part of the auction struck me as odd.

"TRENDS GUIDES VALUE THIS COLLECTION AT OVER $23,000. ALL ARE SLABBED BY GEC AND CERTIFIED AS MS-67. ALL ARE BRIGHT WHITE COINS. YOU WILL SOMETIMES SEE THESE COINS SELLING FOR $150. TO $200. EACH ON EBAY. GREAT INVESTMENT LOT!"

Now this is a five coin set. If they sold at $200 each wouldn't that leave us at well under $23,000. By my ciphering it would and I have asked the seller about this.


Now I know that some people have a negative opinion of SGS. You can look at them here.

http://stargrading.org/

So, I'm leaving it up to you and your OPINIONS. Not wanting to sound negative which one of these fine services is better?

 

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Hmmm...if I had to choose between the two I'd choose...not to buy any coins at all.

 

Neither - I would not waste my time trying to figure out which is "the least of two evils". You can always do a poll and include NNC, ACC, etc., etc.

 

I'm not a big fan of going for th ultra rare coins over ebay in the first place, I like to see the expensive stuff up close and personal

 

I would say that the grades I put on my 2x2s are a much better grading service than either of the two.

 

Amen but that's just my opinion.

 

I have to agree with bq here,once the price goes past a point i want to be able to hold the coin in my hands!! But i have to admit that before i knew better i bought an sgs graded Morgan ( oh the shame!!!) But it is still a nice coin and i bought it in New Zealand so i didnt pay much for it!

 

John,you do realise that 'S.G.S.' actually stands for 'Scumburger 'Grading' 'Service'.

Aidan.

 

I bought an American Silver Eagle, MS70, on ebay that was graded by GEC. You can see a scratch on the obverse without any magnification. I was disappointed to say the least. I'll never buy a coin from an obscure grader. TPG's that sell their coins to a vendor/friend/partner will never grade properly. They are in it, only, for the money. I learned my lesson.

 

I think you will find less forgeries in GEC slabs, but the grading will be just as appalling.

 

What makes you think that they are better at spotting fakes?
Or is it because they 'slab' and 'grade' cheaper coins (less likely to be faked)?

 

"GEC does not guarantee the grade and authenticity of the coins it certifies and encapsulates in an GEC holder"

then what do they do?

 

waste plastic?

 

*applauds*

I liked that !

 

this is ebay forums self-slab scam graders

http://forums.ebay.com/db1/thread.jspa?threadID=2000285039&tstart=0&mod=1180134141910

I dont have a fleabay account and am a little leary about buying there,,but my choice would be PCGS or ANACS

 

I'm not sure I agree with NTC being a scam self slabber. It would make an interesting debate. Do they overgrade coins?.....yep. Are they accurate?.....nope. I'm just not qute sure they fall into the exact same class as the others on the list.

That said, I would still never trust or use NTC for any coin grading.....but that's just my opinion.

 

Twiggs:
Although I have to agree with most of your listing, I have to disagree with your listing of NTC (NumisTrust Corporation).
Believe it or not, they are a real grading service, and they guarantee their coins.
No, I do not always agree with their grades, but, at least in the early days (when they first started) they were very conservative with their grading.

 

GEC is still grading coins that are selling on ebay by sullyscoins. They are selling 1964 S Kennedy half dollar PR70 DCAM coins. I thought all the proofs were minted at the Philadelphia mint. Check out ebay item # 13012463464. There are more of the same by GEC.

 

My mistake. The ebay item # is: 130124763464 GEC is Grade Evaluation Company.

 

I also agree that NTC does not belong as a "self slabber". I have found them to be fairly consistent grading Lincolns (mostly 1930-1958) although slightly over-graded. I can buy an NTC graded MS-67 red for ~$5 or an NGC graded MS-66 red for $20. In my un-educated eyes, it is about 50-50 which is the better coin. Someday maybe I will have enough of the NTC's to send 100 to NGC to be regraded. If my eyes are correct, I will have paid $5 for the coin, $6 for the slab, and wind up with a $20 coin.

Having said that, I hope people keep believing that they're not a respectable slabber. That way I will get more bargains.