Reporting on my ICG Submission

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I didn’t see it any other way, I just don’t want to potentially mess up a good thing by telling the world. The last time I was stationed in Europe, I went to a coin show in Germany. There, I went around asking every single dealer if they had US coins they wanted to exchange. Several hours later, I found a gentleman who had a bag of coins he was eager to sell. After some discussions, I learned he had access to much, much more for sale and the partnership began. They drive the coins to my house and I pay 90%, so I can only imagine how little they pay to make it worth their while.

 

No new updates. Trying to stay patient, while also checking my emails every 10 minutes

 

Shhhhhh

 

Let’s hope. Right. Love when members do well. Like the quarters

 

Damn. Have a beer

 

Great to hear ICG has moved up in stature a bit, I've never used them but here's a coin I bought in their slab, I'm happy with it as I needed a Carson City for my small gold collection!

 

Every 10 minutes??

 

Update: I got billed sometime in the last 24 hours from ICG. I was alerted to this because my credit card thought it was fraud. Thankfully, I beat my wife to the approve/disapprove button.

 

Nobody does. It's just the market.

There are issues with PCGS, from what I could see. They seem to be disorganized and very inconsistent. There are also reviews where people complain that an expensive coin was swapped for a lesser value coin. And when they complain, nothing is done. Anybody from law enforcement care to look into the matter? Oh, yeah, I remember. Yall got "defunded".

As for NGC, if you go to Glassdoor.com, you will see that the employees are complaining about the employer being very stingy and unwilling to help them face rising costs of living, which means a high turnover rate, which means that experienced graders look for a different kind of job.

The only reason why I myself would become a grader would be to complement my retirement. And I am not retired yet. Although I took the first step by becoming a grandpa.

 

Update: I received an email that the coins have already shipped! USPS says the label was created, but close enough!

I was billed for a total of $425, which comes out to about $17 per coin, with a very gracious CoinTalk discount. That is quite incredible, considering 21 of the coins required conservation, and that includes return shipping.

Below is the list of the coins, certification numbers, and the grades they received. I requested 5 coins to be photographed. I think I will likely need to wait until tomorrow for the images to appear in the database. I will be asleep before they upload. I added an asterisk to the coins I requested photographs for.

CG Coin Number Year Denomination Prefix Suffix Variety Grade
955642-02-01 1915-S 5C MS 63*
955642-03-01 1918-S 5C AU 55*
955642-04-01 1915-D 5C F 15
955642-05-01 1937 5C MS 63
955642-06-01 1923 5C MS 63
955642-07-01 1914 5C VF 30 Details
955642-08-01 1914 5C EF 45
955642-09-02 1917 5C EF 45 Details
955642-10-01 1916 5C EF 40 Details
955642-10-03 1916 5C EF 45
955642-14-01 1999-P 25C MS GA, Partial Collar 63
955642-17-02 1913 5C AU Type 1 55
955642-17-03 1913 5C EF Type 1 40 Details
955642-18-01 1918 5C AU 55*
955642-01-01 1913 5C VF Type 2 25
955642-01-02 1913 5C AU Type 2 50
955642-07-02 1914 5C EF 40
955642-09-01 1917 5C AU 50 Details
955642-10-02 1916 5C VF 25
955642-11-01 1996-P 5C MS Struck Thru 61
955642-12-01 1913-D 5C VG Type 2 8 Details
955642-13-01 1989-P 25C AU On 10C Stock 58*
955642-15-01 1980-D 10C No Grade*
955642-16-01 1989-P 5C MS Partial Collar 60
955642-17-01 1913 5C EF Type 1 45 Details

The 1915-S came back graded much higher than I anticipated. I cannot wait to see the photos of it after conservation! I was surprised the 1989-P 25C got a straight grade, as I thought I could detect counter wheel damage on it. I am curious how the photos will appear. I know the grades are not given the same weight as NGC and PCGS, so when I receive the coins and see the photographs, I will likely apply my own subjective grades to them.

I was disappointed by the number of them that got details grades (7), but what can you do? They required a lot of conservation (which is why I sent them to ICG!). They also cost me 4.5 cents each, so even as details grade coins, I am not sure I could have purchased these coins for what I paid to have them conserved and slabbed.

The most confusing is the 10C that got a no grade. I believe it to be a missing clad before strike. I am unsure if it is going to be in a slab, and/or if the no grade will get explained.

Now comes the wait for the coins to return from across the globe (I live in Europe for those not tracking). Overall, the experience has been quite positive. I will update with ICG photos of the coins when I wake up (unless someone beats me to it).

 

We think it is a normal coin with a copper colored "plating." The silver surface shows through. We don't think it was intentional. I've had coins become copper plated when the old dip was used for copper. If I remember the coins were detailed for scratches, damage, and corrosion rather than cleaning.

 

I’ll have to examine the dime more. I had never seen such a beautifully red copper on a dime. It very well could be PMD, but In my mind, it was loss of clad before the stock was rolled, then struck. I hadn’t noticed silver shining through more than just one spot, so I’ll look more closely at the areas I didn’t see it and try to figure that out.

I expected some details graded coins to be due to the environment they were in. I knew there would be a couple, I had just hoped to eliminate as many as possible. I’ll be more careful on my next submission. I actually cannot wait to get back to my collection stateside to submit all my favorite world coins.

Update for the group: no photos yet, will check back in during the day.

 

Your 1915s buffalo jumped out at me when I first saw it. MS 63. Nice coin.

 

The coins have returned to me! The ones that received a details grade were scratched or damaged. I saw the scratches right away on a couple of them but will have to inspect the others more closely.

Though I appreciated receiving a thumb drive with all of the requested photos, I feel the quality of the photos could have been better. I will end up retaking all of the photos when I have time. Below are the photos I received.

Overall, I am quite happy with how they turned out. I will definitely use the service again, I highly recommend their conservation, but I do not recommend paying for the photography.

 

Well AZFasty. you make accusations such as "coin switching" by the largest coin grading service in the country.
"your proof?' something you read online.
If you have actual proof of nefarious dealings you should show it. I think you are a petty swindler and con man out to rip off innocent coin collectors. what proof do i have? Oh I think I read it online somewhere!
Why don't you take your ideological B.S. and peddle it somewhere respectable like the National Enquirer. James

 

ANACS photos are worse. Heck even NGC photos are worse sometimes.

 

Well, looks like the 1918-S would about cover the grading fee, the 1918 would cover a round of drinks, and the 1915-S would cover the flight over to buy them...