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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Ed Zak, post: 23634, member: 824&quot;]I guess the term should be the most consistent graders.&nbsp; With that, the top four are PCGS, NGC, ICG and ANACS...and not necessarily in that order.</p><p><br /></p><p>As Roy stated, grading is subjective and the same coin going to the same service may come back different.&nbsp; </p><p><br /></p><p>The only publication (that I know of) that tracks the professional graders is Grey Sheet:</p><p><br /></p><p><a href="http://www.greysheet.com/" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://www.greysheet.com/" rel="nofollow">http://www.greysheet.com/</a></p><p><br /></p><p>Personally, I put PCGS and NGC in the top tier...followed closely by ICG.&nbsp; ANACS is good for varieties.</p><p><br /></p><p>ICG probably has the best slabs to protect coins using the Intercept Shield technology.&nbsp; All things being equal and enviromental conditions alike, these slabs protect coins better than anything out there.&nbsp; I heard NGC recently started using air-sealed slabs for their coins and have &quot;upped&quot; their slab technology altogether.</p><p><br /></p><p>It still seems that PCGS graded coins command a&nbsp; premium over NGC and the others.&nbsp; I oftern read here that NGC will soon surpass PCGS for prices realized, so we will wait and see.</p><p><br /></p><p>For me...slabbing is all about &quot;sight, unseen&quot; buying and selling of coins.&nbsp; If you can&#039;t see a coin and somebody offers you a 1916-D dime raw or one that is graded and certified by the above four,&nbsp; you will feel more comfortable buying this coin &quot;slabbed&quot;.</p><p><br /></p><p>Also, I like how the coins are stored, protected, and displayed with the slab.&nbsp; The only thing I wish the big four would do on their slabs is what PCI slabs offer, which are the mintage numbers.</p><p><br /></p><p>There is something about a coin with only 484,000 minted...like the 1909-S VDB compared to the millions that were minted for other years.&nbsp; And yes...if I were to buy a 1909-S VDB, I would want it graded because I have seen fake 1909-S VDB&#039;s and they are pretty damn good.</p><p><br /></p><p>Peace of mind...sight unseen selling and buying...storage...display.&nbsp; These are reasons why slabbing is attractive to many people.</p><p><br /></p><p>Now that you heard the good stuff...are your prepared to spend $15 to $30 slabbing and certifying a coin (economy service that may take 60 to 70 days!) that may come back MS63 instead of MS65 that you &quot;thought&quot; it should grade to?&nbsp; Many times, the slab costs MORE than the coin.&nbsp; You think...they made a mistake, so you break it out and resubmit it and this time it comes back MS62!&nbsp; It is up to you![/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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