Is PCI still in business? And would this company also be Photo-Certified-Coin Institute? I have googled and searched but I keep hitting a blank wall. I have 4 PCI slabbed-1986,1988,1989 and 1992, US one dollar silver eagles that are listed as MS-67, 100 % White. All 4 are toning. Is this from the slab? Some how I was under the impression that once a coin was slabbed, it stayed the way it was slabbed. 2 are an orange-red around the edge, front and back, and the other 2 look like a round rainbow. They are-to me anyway-nice to look at, but if it is hurting the coins then I may remove them. They are stored in a climate controlled room in a safe with silca and the door cracked. Gary
If the toning is pretty to you, then it is likely that it is pretty to a future potential buyer. Leave them like they are until you are ready to sell, then send them to NGC to be reslabbed. NGC tends to be more generous with toned coins and you could come out of it with quite valuable coins, as some buyers will spend a lot on beautifully toned coins.
Yes PCI still exist - they have been around for a looooooong time. This is their web site - PCI It is a common misconception that once coins are slabbed - they stay as they are when slabbed. Nothing could be further from the truth. Slabs are not airtight, with one exception - the newer NGC slabs. As for the toning - even if you take them out of the slab - the toning will continue. You would have to physically do something to the coin to stop it. My advice would be to sell the coins as is if you do not like the toning and replace them with untoned examples.
Thank you for the response. I really like the toning. I had just assumed that once slabbed they were SEALED. Here is a pic of one. I didn't buy these. These were inherited and I would not part with them...unless I could pay the mortgage off! gary
This one isn't WHITE any more but I love it!!! I'm not much on toning but I tried to buy one just like this a few months ago and got out bid.... Speedy
Take a look at the SAE in my avatar. Its an example of a gorgeously toned coin (The reverse had no toning). It went for over $4k on ebay. Now, it if had been mine to sell, I don't think I would have.
Sonically sealed slabs SOUND air tight, but they are not. Take that PCI slab for instance. I was at a coin shop and the dealer was using "Goo-Gone" to clean a PCI slab from adhesive label residue. To his dismay, some of this Goo-Gone crept through the top of the slab right on the PCI label. He had to crack it out quickly so that the coin would not become damaged! Regarding PCI...I have found some of their older slabs were properly (or closely) graded. You see them at the shows and in my opinion, I take their MS grades and subtract 2 to 3 points before I bid (i.e., ebay). Here is what gray sheets have to say: Grey Sheet Market Indicator LINK
