so disappointed i didn't win this coin ...

I was bidding on this coin on eBay last night. The high bid was $158 with about a minute to go. So I put in what I thought was a crazy high bid of $258 with 6 seconds to go ... then got outbid by 2 people. The coin ended up selling for $306.



I have to say I think I am probably nuts for bidding so high on a toned ASE that actually books for about $50 in this grade, but it was the nicest toning I've ever seen on an ASE. Then again I guess there were 2 more people out there nuttier than me.

This makes me want to lay out a bunch of mint state ASEs on some sulfur paper and hope for some magic.

There were 2 things I didnt like about this coin ... the finger prints on the upper left and the strange scratch marks in the toning on the center right.

 

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Let's say you put in an even high bid and won it for $306 - would you have felt guilt/disappointment/remorse for paying so much money for that coin? If your bid was the highest you could do, and the highest you thought this coin was worth, don't feel bad about losing it.

 

I am definitely a novice so my opinion doesn't really mean anything, but that looks very AT to me. I couldn't see spending any additional premium for that coin.

Why do toned coins bring such crazy premiums? I would think collectors would want pristine examples.

 

Good point, rhino. Actually I think the winner had a high bid above that $306 mark (who knows high high). Yes, that's the great thing about this hobby. There is always another coin.

 

Consider yourself fortunate you didn't bid any higher . Patience can be a money maker .

 

Yeah, just go back out there and keep hunting I personally get a satisfaction out of hunting down coins and winning them for what I feel is a good price, I hate beating myself up for overpaying in the heat of the moment.

As far as your missed one goes, good point on the winning bidder bidding more than $306 - if you wanted it that badly, there's no guarantee that you could have gotten it for anything reasonable. The guy's bid could have been $310, $320, $350, $400... you just never know. Patience will reward you:

About 2 years ago I was bidding on an auction for a coin I just HAD to have... I bid $120, thinking there's no way anyone could top it. Before you know it, I lose to a $150 bid. Got really upset, and was wondering why I didn't bid higher if I wanted it so much... about 6 months later, I win a small lot of 5 coins from an estate sale for $200, one of which was a coin just like the one I wanted to win 6 months before. After selling off the other 4 for a total of $180, I essentially got to keep my sought-after piece for a mere $20, after you do the math. I held an auction not too long ago with a ridiculous reserve just to see what bidders would be willing to pay for it - went up to $350. Patience is as good as gold...

 

I was thinking that the toning on that piece is what hurt the grade. When I think of graded bullion I think MS 69 and 70. The Eagle is big and allows for a larger area for blemishes to show, but that is a dime size area of scratchy toning. It is really distracting in my opinion. Even it is not damage on the coin, it sure looks like it at arms length. Whoever bought that coin is buried.

 

Buried???? Obviously there are folks who will pay that much for it, so how can you say the winner is buried?

I've lost some bids that made me angry as well. Losing that one would have irked me as well. That is a beautiful coin.

 

That "hole" is kinda weird, makes it look more like it's AT, not that it is.....

 

The thing about toned coins is that they're not fixed / stable. You never know how they're going to look in a few months... much less a few years.

I have to agree with others in this thread - this one looks gorgeous, but it also looks like AT.

If you want to save yourself a few hundred dollars, get a clean ASE and put it in a cardboard backed holder for a few years.

 

This is what I was thinking! All you really need is some high sulfur paper & time.

 

Yeah tell me about it. How the heck does a tone coin start from the center and work it's way outward. I think it's AT as well, you lucked out by not winning it, imo. Pat yourself on the back and move on. :thumb:

 

i am not smart/experienced enough to differentiate AT vs NT, so i am more than happy to let PCGS figure that one out.
although the line between those two states seems to have gotten blurrier over the years.
if PCGS or NGC blesses it, that's good enough for me.

 

My advice: Buy some of these:



Put a silver eagle in it, leave the top off, place it on a high shelf in your home and make one of your own. Heck, do 5 or 10.

99.999 fine silver is VERY reactive. Much more so than 90%/10% Silver/Copper Alloy coins and this is exactly how this coin was toned. http://forums.collectors.com/messageview.cfm?catid=26&threadid=685577

 

Attractive coin, but not worth $300+ IMO. You were lucky to not win it. One thing to remember with coin collecting... there is ALWAYS another coin out there for you to buy (and hopefully at a decent price).

 

If you are patient, I think you can do better than that coin. It's nice, but there are much nicer ones to be had. As others have mentioned, these coins tone if you look at them funny, and there are lots of monster examples to be had. Just be patient -- another will come around even nicer.

 

And how do you know for sure it isn't?

lol...I'm thinking someone got the terminals on their 9 volt just right. I wouldn't have touched it due to the doubt, regardless that it's slabbed.

 

I agree. Good advice.

 

That is a very nice looking coins and for those who think that it's AT, well I doubt it. Coins do tone from center and outwards in some cases. Coins do not always have to tone from the edges and into the design all the time. The reason why ASE's have such questionable toning at times (IMO) is because the metal content is much more vulnerable to the air than that of the older 90% silver coinage so this is why they tone much faster than older coins.

For this reason, ASEs have not been my favorite coins/bullion to collect when toned. Few are found with eye appealing toning but Leadfoot is right, be patient and another one will come by your way.