I hope everyone had a peaceful, happy, and safe Easter despite this horrible virus scare. When I say I care for the goodwill of everyone I've come across in these forums, I couldn't be more sincere. My career was in healthcare so I've unexpectedly become useful recently, but that means I haven't been able to be as active in collecting as I would have preferred. Still struggling with the constructs of grading, specifically the subjectivity (and the rest of it, too), I respectfully request permission to temporarily skip homework in favor of Cliff notes. My time may be limited right now, but that's exactly why I want, and need, to spend time playing with my coins. I know these photos still aren't the quality they should be so I actually reached out to the manufacturer of my microscope but haven't had time to pair their advice with the great suggestions I've received from the forums. These are pics I have taken while practicing and I'm hoping anyone might be willing to take a quick glance and offer opinions on grade for the coins? I know I need both sides for real grades, but I'm just trying to get a better understanding regarding grade. Pretending the images were good enough to form a reasonable grading opinion, would they be closer to Ded than mint state? Would any of them be fine, really fine, or super duper fine like my body was when I was a teenager? The sad state of my poor guesswork and inexperience just isn't cutting it. Until I get better at it, I've been using my own 2 grades: DUD (Definitely a Useless Disappointment), and STUD (Save Til U Die) and that's the best I can do. I have been advised to post no more than 2 or 3 pics and I will do as I'm told, but I have enough questions for at least 2 or 3 or 4 or 5 or.... etc,., posts with 2 or three pics each. Eventually. BTW, I haven't always been married so speaking of fine and extra fine, there was this brunette I knew in college........... Best wishes and prayers to all. ps: my editing software just died so it took me six weeks tonight to try a new app. Hopefully it's not worse than it was going to be already.
Hope you had a great Easter. Thanks to you and all healthcare workers for putting yourselves out on the front line. My Son works in an ER at a fairly large hospital in Brooklyn, NY and every day I pray for his and everyone's safety. IMO your IHC reverse looks to be a EF-45 (possibly even AU); The quarter is PMD; the Kennedy looks like it could be MS but the photo is a little blurry so I wouldn't say for sure. 2 STUDS and 1 DUD. Edit. PCGS has some grading tutorials on YouTube.
I was headed to bed when I saw your note about your son and had to stop to offer my prayers for you and your family. We're all worried about our spouses, extended family, friends, co-workers, etc., but to me at least, nothing matches the love we have for our kids. More than three decades in healthcare administration tells me your son still has the odds weighing quite heavily in his favor. Still, if I was in your position I'd probably be terrified. It sounds like you have Faith in God and the Bible says multiple times if you believe when you pray, He will answer. So to stop myself from preaching a sermon, which is against forum rules, I'll stop here. I'm going to bed, but before I go to sleep I want you to know that tonight, tomorrow night, and the night after that, someone in Texas will be praying for your son too. I'm going to do just that as soon as I quit typing. BTW, thanks for the information you gave regarding the coins. They're just not as important as your son. I wish you God's greatest measure of Grace and Mercy. ---Sam Stone
First of all, thank you for your service to those of us are no good when it comes to treating illness. You are in a tough position treating the sickest patients in the front lines. Now for some advice on grading. First, buy a copy of the ANA grading guide. It continues pictures of graded coins which give you an idea of how each grade should look for each coin design. I started learning from line drawings in a book by Brown and Dunn in the early 1960s, refined my skills further with a book called Photograde in the late 1960s. Second, look at as many graded coins as you can. Pictures are good, but looking at the real thing is much better. Over time you will probably gather the skills you need to be a better educated collector. You will never stop learning, I’ve been at this for over 60 years, but you will get the hang if it if you have some God given talent. I do have warn you, that a few people don’t have that gift, and never seen to learn. Okay, now for the coins you posted, and yes, you need to post both sides. The reverse of the Indian Cent appears to have VG to Fine sharpness, but the surfaces are a little rough or might have something like glue on them. As such it would get a net grade somewhat lower than VG to Fine. You really need to show both sides. The obverse is more important than the reverse. No matter how nice the reverse might be, it almost never can pull up the grade of the coin. It really comes along for the ride unless it has problems. The Wyoming Quarter has lots of post mint damage. Spend it if you can. If not, the bank will take it, and retire it from circulation. The Kennedy Half Dollar looks good in the surface, I think it has been cleaned. The surfaces appear to have some granularity to them that indicate the metal as been moved or removed. Note the brownish, slightly rougher area in the lower left area from “half dollar” to “United.” Detecting this sort of thing is a hard earned skill, but it’s vital if you want to avoid getting taken. I hope this helps, and I hope things go well for you during this trying time.
Thank you for the kind words and all the time you donated towards helping me, but I'm not the one to thank for anything regarding our health care crisis. I guess I was too cowardly when I was younger so I learned how to sit behind a desk and send others to do the hard work. However, you are correct about the actual "hands on" caregivers. I have been blessed beyond words to have met and known some of these most incredible people God ever put on His earth. I watch first hand as they march day to day directly into enemy fire not unlike military heroes throughout history. I can never be thankful enough for what either of those have altruistically sacrificed for my family. 60 years of collecting? A new hero that I can be thankful for. I will look into books, but after a stroke a few years ago I developed adult ADD so severe I usually have to be drugged to finish reading a single paragraph without "Hey look!! A squirrel!!" Videos and pictures are pretty much the same, so your recommendation regarding the real thing is exactly what I need. At the moment, I don't believe there's much realistic opportunity for that so I threw myself at the mercy of this forum and good people such as you have responded and accepted my limitations without the discouraging judgement I've encountered elsewhere. Again, thank you for your kindness, observations, and suggestions. These things mean more to me than just learning how to look at coins. God Bless you all.
Thank you for your thoughtful reply. My Prayers are with you and all of those out there fighting. I know we'll all be stronger when we get through this.
