Grading Ruined Coin

I had a nicely toned Morgan dollar that had been stored in a cardboard holder for decades and had developed some beautiful toning, nice greens, blues, yellows.

I had it graded around 2 years ago and when it came back from grading in the slab it still looked nice, and the grading was acceptable. So I stored it along with my other coins, in a normal, cool dry place in my house.

I just pulled the coin out and it looks like absolute crap! Just a brown and grey mess! What is going on?

 

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Toning is oxidation (rust).
Encapsulation does not stop toning.

 

I think you would have had the same issue regardless, with silver its a crap shoot
At best pretty today ugly tomorrow !
I collect silver bars and have had similar issues so I can feel your pain !

 

Oh my.... I'm an old guy and just learned something..... So I been negotiating for more than a year with a dealer on the most gorgeous toned seated liberty dime. It is a proof coin that has the most beautiful rainbow halo. And the price reflects it! So, then this beautiful coin I been working a pricey deal on will inevitably change appearance and potentially become unappealing?

 

It's really a crap shoot. It might and it might not.
You pays your money and you takes your chances.

 

Ha-ha.... So true... And the seasoned gambler recognizes the advantage goes to the house!

 

Who did the grading?

 

At some point in time probably, but not necessarily in your lifetime. That label hasn't been used in a while so that one is likely has been pretty stable

 

It depends on if there are still active chemical around it when it is encapsulated. For silver, it is probably best to do a solvent clean-up to remove any lingering active compounds (stray paper or cardboard) that may have attached themselves.

 

It is definitely a crap shoot as to whether it will or won't tone, and at what rate it does so. And then whether or not it tones evenly, or spotty, or streaky, or if it goes a golden color, brown, dark brown, blackish, rainbow, or even certain particular colors. And sometimes one side will tone, and the other does not. And sometimes both sides tone, but in different colors or patterns. And sometimes, years apart!

There is one thing though that is dishonest about purchasing coins that tone, and that is this: Several people (many of them are dealers or just sellers who aren't really classified as dealers) will take a slabbed coin that has ugly toning on it that no one is buying, remove it from the slab (called "cracking out"), and then they will dip it to make it a nice white, shiny specimen. They then resubmit it to have more eye appeal in a new slab. However, they will try to sell it quickly because they know very soon it will again start to tone, unbeknownst to an unsuspecting buyer of how ugly it will again become. This is done more commonly then many people think.

That is why - when you can - I strongly recommend people to buy slabbed coins in older generation holders; it shows so far they have held up over time.

 

This sounds scary! At age 74, I am a brand new collector. Am always open for suggestions...I want to will my two g'children my collection. Any recommendations for a way to go?

 

It’s really not a crap shoot how well a toned coin will hold up. It’s far more predictable than that. Also it’s not like a change happens overnight short of something drastic happening, you would see a minor change overtime as a clue that you need to make changes to how it’s stored.

There’s nothin dishonest about dipping coins either. They also aren’t trying to sell them quickly because they think they’re going to turn ugly, they’re trying to sell them quickly because dealers try and sell everything quickly that’s the whole point of selling things. Dipped coins don’t turn over night either or very quickly when done properly.

 

Many of us have found that our children and grandchildren have no interest in the old-style hobby of collecting. I will give you some advice. Collect what you like and enjoy it while you can. Coins can be great fun but don't imagine that your spending will yield value which can be transferred to your heirs. Your grandkids are highly likely to sell it off for a fraction of what you paid, maybe even a small fraction. Everyone knows (as do you) that cellphones and video games are far more engaging than coins.

 

This isn't true...it's not a dishonest practice at all. Removing toning through dipping does not put the coin at any additional risk of retoning. It's a completely acceptable method of conserving a coin if it is done correctly. Doing it wrong will ruin a coins luster. If a dipped coin isn't stored properly it will tone again...just like the freshly minted coin did the first time.

 

Make sure to use a solvent like acetone to remove any contaminants from your coins before submitting them to a TPG.

 

There are many opinions about toning, some like it & some don't. What you must understand is that it IS a function of the environment, & just because it's "in a normal, cool dry place in my house", that doesn't mean it's SAFE from vapors & elements which may interact with it. For example, if you keep it in a gun safe which actually has guns & powder residue in it, that could trigger (no pun intended) a reaction.

What you consider dry may not be dry enough - you may need some desiccant in close proximity. And there are many household items which give off chemical vapors over their lifetime (do you store them in Tupperware?).

If you want to "conserve" (read: clean the correct way) & you don't want to attempt it yourself, send it back to the TPG - virtually all the top ones will provide this service (for a fee) & you will be reasonably assured it will be done correctly.

In the meantime, do an honest evaluation of your storage methods.

 

I respect some of you politely disagree with me. However, I say what I said because I know dealers personally who do that. I know more than a handful actually. I am not guessing or trying to come off as an authority. Why would they admit that if they weren't doing it? I have also seen some of their resubmissions of Peace dollars, before and after. And if a coin has toned and it has been dipped, it will definitely tone again. Dipping does not change the coin's metallic makeup that caused it; it merely affects the surface.

 

That is your honest opinion and that's the way it is, but consider "Why would they admit that if they weren't doing it? " and let me ask Why would they admit it if they considered it wrong or cheating?

 

No one was correcting saying coins get dipped, they were correcting everything else. There’s nothing dishonest or unethical about dipping, nor does dipping a coin mean it’s going to instantly turn just like color can be stable for very long periods of time.

 

Actually it won't if the coin is kept in an environment which prevents toning. It's all about storage.

Exactly...it happens all the time. It's normal in this field and is not dishonest.