I know, buy the coin, not the slab. Still, I'm appalled at how much overgrading there is, even with the so-called premier TPG, PCGS. I was just looking at an "AU-53" large cent on ebay that's VF35 at best. This is not a rare occurrence.
Here's one: http://www.ebay.com/itm/1842-LARGE-CENT-CERTIFIED-PCGS-AU-53-LARGE-DATE-No-Reserve-38-/270933819514?pt=Coins_US_Individual&hash=item3f14ea007a Maybe VF-35 is a little harsh, but it ain't no AU-53. Ton of wear on this thing. In fact, let's see what PCGS has to say about large cent grading: http://www.pcgs.com/photograde/#/BraidedCent/Grades edited is this coin an AU-53.
VNeal, I'm not concerned about the color. I'm concerned about the heavy wear on the high points (and some of the medium points) of the coin. Look at the hair above the ear, the curl above the neck, the hair just to the right of the crown. This is not consistent with AU-53, as illustrated by PCGS's own photos.
Large cents aren't graded like a lot of other coins. The hair above the ear is a prime example of this. That area is almost always weak, and not due to wear but rather because these coins were produced with crude machinery that didn't always allow the details to come out. Though I've certainly seen many nicer AU examples, I'd have to agree with their grade on that piece, and I'm not usually one to agree with TPG's on much of anything. Guy
