I was just browsing through some listings and came across a coin with some poor alignment inside the holder. When I went to go look at NGC's cert lookup page for the coin to check out where in the world the "reverse spot" removal is (I still can't tell... the rim?), the coin's position is clearly much straighter. The inert plastic holders are rubbery and don't allow for the coin to rotate in the holder. After looking more closely, they appear to be the same coin (the first set of pictures below are from the seller, the second set is from NGC). So, is it not unheard of that coins can rotate in NGC's holders? Or, was this slab opened up and resealed to cause the coin to rotate? Thanks in advance!
I guess the term Rattlers applies to the newer slabs also.. Coin simply just shifted. Knock it on its side a bit to see if it moves a bit more or back to the normal position. The slab would show damage if it was opened somehow because of the special way NGC seal them.
You can often re-rotate them as @paddyman98 mentioned, by tapping the edge of the slab against a hard (but slightly padded) surface. I used to straighten out coins in crooked PCGS holders by tapping them on my own khaki-clad knee, or better yet on the edge of a desk, through a layer of folded towel or something so I didn't scratch or crack the plastic. You need something firm enough to tap against in order to shock the coin into motion, but obviously you don't wanna mess up the plastic. It takes some firm tapping, but once you tap-tap-tap-tap the edge of the holder and notice some rotation of the coin, you can tell what direction it's headed in and keep on tapping until you get it right again. If it's headed in the wrong direction, tap the edge on the other side of the holder. I've never seen a coin rotated in one of these newer NGC "prong" holders before, but I would imagine the same tapping method could be used to straighten it without having to go through the hassle and expense of having it reholdered.
Sometimes NGC uses the wrong size gasket. Most of the time they get it right, but sometimes they go a little too small and you'll see a coin at an angle because it doesn't fit right. Sometimes they go a little too large, and the coin will rotate like crazy. Either I would send back in for correction as a mechanical error.
