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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;BigsWick, post: 341640, member: 3534&quot;]The answer to much of this seems fairly simple to me, but then again I wasn&#039;t blessed with an overabundance of brains. Still, I&#039;ll take a stab at it.</p><p><br /></p><p>I believe our hobby has matured to the point that TPGs (be they good or bad) will remain with us for some time to come. As others have already pointed out there are many other hobbies - sports cards, stamps, action figures, autographs, etc.- that have had certification services evolve and take an ever increasing role in their respective fields. To me, Numismatically speaking, it seems as if the rise in the popularity of TPGs was rather innocuous at first- if given the benefit of the doubt. A company forms for the purpose of grading coins. The company employees several &quot;experts&quot; in coin grading. The company&#039;s mission is to objectively assign an unbiased grade to coins submitted for examination and certification for a fee. Sounds simple and innocent enough.</p><p><br /></p><p>I began collecting coins in the early 1970s. As a young collector I relied on the experience of my stepfather to educate me in the ways of Numismatics. He was certainly no expert, merely an enthusiast like myself. He did his best to teach me about the coins that interested him- Morgans, Lincoln cents, Mercury dimes, and so forth. I learned a lot, but in no way was my education complete.</p><p><br /></p><p>I didn&#039;t buy my first slabbed coin until 2001. It was an NGC certified 1927 St. Gaudins in MS-65. For me it was a rather substantial investment. I felt better about my purchase being that an unbiased service examined the coin and felt it was genuine and in MS-65 condition. Besides, it was the first purchase I made in the series, and I needed some guidance. Since then I have purchased several coins graded by NGC, PCGS, ANACS, PCI, and ICG. Most of my collection is raw, but I don&#039;t always feel comfortable in branching out into a new series without a little help. Certification services, despite their drawbacks, can provide that.</p><p><br /></p><p>I don&#039;t mean to sing the praises of TPGs too loudly, because that is absolutely not my intent. Nevertheless, I will admit that I can see a need for them under certain conditions, as outlined above. However, many of them began to lose credibility with me when things like ASE &quot;First Strike&quot; designations began cropping up. Also, I am put off by the number of proof and uncirculated bullion coins I see popping up with PR/MS-70 grades. Don&#039;t even get me started on the whole &quot;certified&quot; roll garbage.</p><p><br /></p><p>I&#039;ve been roasted in this forum before for stating that TPGs should be held to the highest standards since they bill themselves as the true professionals of our hobby. Nevertheless, I&#039;ll stand by my statement as long as any TPG is allowed to bill itself as the official grading service of the ANA. Do collectors bear some of the responsibility for fostering along the reputations of TPGs? Yes they do, but not all of it.</p><p><br /></p><p>If TPGs must remain a part of our hobby I&#039;d like to suggest the following:</p><p><br /></p><p>1) Develop a tamper proof slab that would be reasonably impossible to falsify.</p><p><br /></p><p>2) Slabs should be accompanied by a paper certificate or hard copy with each coin when it is returned after submission. The certificate would outline why the coin received the grade it was assigned.</p><p><br /></p><p>3) The certificate would contain a watermark, an official seal, or some other type of authentication that would be very difficult or almost impossible to duplicate or counterfeit, and match it to the slabbed coin.</p><p><br /></p><p>4) Said service would devote more than a couple of seconds to examining each coin, and it would adhere strictly to a reasonable turn around time for submissions.</p><p><br /></p><p>5) A guarantee would accompany each submission and would include such things as turn around time, authentication, and grade.</p><p><br /></p><p>TPGs are in business to make money of course, and perhaps a service that follows the guidelines I&#039;ve outlined could charge a bit more for their services. No, that wouldn&#039;t be to everyone&#039;s liking, but it might cut down on the number of state quarters, common Morgans, and special mint products that tend to flood the market.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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