I can usually tell a G from an XF, and on good days, perhaps a G from an F . When it comes to the MS grades, it's a guessing game for me, particularly when it gets above MS65. As pertains to recent coinage (last 50 or so years, and last 10 in particular) I see high prices for MS67 and above coins. A friend recently sent me some pictures of a recent cent and was asking if it would grade MS67...I'm at a loss. Please take a look and see what you would grade this coin and WHY. Wow, just realized this is 32 years old!!! How time does fly!
If you can't tell one point grade differences, as I usually cannot, then "buy the coin and not the slab" is just insipid pablum.
Not a 67. Take a look at the ANA Grading Guide. IMHO, the grades from 67 to 70 are the easiest to determine. One problem is the TPGS's bump grades for exceptional eye appeal such as blazing luster and beautiful toning. When grading a coin, YOUR OWN PERSONAL STANDARD is what counts. If the coin is in a slab, that also applies but the TPGS grade is what most will go by even if your grade is more accurate. The other problem is that with modern coins and new issues that are "worthless-at-the-moment" grading is not so strict. For example, a 70 should be perfect but many are not. You should need to hunt for a tiny mark on a 69. The word "minuscule" in the upper grades is often ignored allowing "small" marks to be considered less detracting. I am amazed at how the mint and TPGS's do it but Perfect coins do exist in MS/PR-70 slabs. You just need to look for them.
Let me say what I find right and wrong about this coin. First, I see no signs of wear, so that gets us to at least MS-60. There appear to be no MAJOR distracting hits in fields where the eye focuses, so lets bump it to MS-62. Now, lines on the coin (I know it's a crappy Zinace between coln), in front of Lincoln's face I see something from below the T to underneath the chin, some disturbance in front of his Adam's Apple, something going from the N in IN down through LIBERTY. Plus numerous spots and irregularities (@Insider are those striations on Lincoln's head below the space between the GOD WE?). Let's leave the reverse for now... The luster and color look nice to me, but is that enough to raise it to an MS-65?
Not in my opinion. Even though the coin looks nice I see several scratches on GTG’s obverse field. Since they are coated with copper it must be a planchet defect but alone in my opinion would hold it back several grades. Personally, I find them very distracting when looking at your photos. Just my opinion so don’t get upset with me.
63, 64 maybe. Seems to be something going on in front of the bowtie. Don't know what the scratches are from. White spots visible above the L and the I in Liberty. It's MS but not high end MS. I have many high end MS coins in my US type and they are truly special to view. There's a lot of MS69s out there that I can't tell why they got a 69. Sometimes I can but some I can't. A 70 can't have anything wrong with it. That's easy. This drops to a 69 with the slightest spec, luster problem, hit, spot, any little thing. Could be not very noticable and on the rim. A 66 has some leeway. I've found the smaller the coin, the harder it is to grade. Morgans give you a lot of real estate to look at and notice things. I've noticed MS66 Morgans usually stand out over 65 versions pretty noticably. And 65s usaully are slightly nicer than 64s. You can tell. 67 to 68 is what's difficult to me.
I see what looks like a scratch going from the rim at 7:00 to the rim at 11:00. Is it even possible to get high end MS grade with that?
60 ugly 61 not as ugly 62 unattractive 63 attractive 64 a little more attractive 65 very attractive 66 very very attractive 67 stunning 68 mind-blowing 69 as good as it gets 70 you drank the koolaid
After 1982, I won’t dare attempt to grade a cent. The profile is so shallow and the copper layer so inconsistent that I would never dare make that leap of faith.
Precisely ! Things get a whole lot easier when one follows the standards listed for individual coins and grades in the ANA grading book. That's because they give you actual standards for each one ! And by the way Mike - I like it !
GDJMSP, posted: "Things get a whole lot easier when one follows the standards listed for individual coins and grades in the ANA grading book. That's because they give you actual standards for each one ! And by the way Mike - I like it ! I like the ANA Grading guide too!
When grading these moderns, especially a copper plated planchet. You first need to know how well these coins were struck, and what kind of planchet issues did they have for the year. 1990 was struck very well with great luster. Smooth fields and light planchet issues. Plating blisters will immediately drop the coin below MS67. You are then left with contact and strike. A weakly struck coin will need exceptional eye appeal to make a MS66. Any contact or distracting mark will likely put the grade below MS64. PS , there are many years of ZLincolns that plating blisters do not become a factor.
