Inaugural Post - Rare Treat For Me In Superb Condition

[Zincoln]

28 minutes ago, UtahRich said:

Glad to see both you and you great finds here on DP..

 

Rich

Rich - glad to be here, and look forward to continuing our dialog and sharing our experiences here.  Hope to share some time in the field this coming year w/ you!

[Elbert]

That SLQ is a beauty. One of my favorite coins. Congrats.

El

 

[Zincoln]

El,

So happy to see you are here on this site.  Have missed connecting with you on some of the more recent outings.  Hope all is well with you and yours.  

Brian

 

[GB_Amateur]

4 hours ago, Zincoln said:

Anyone have any experience submitting a coin like this to NCG? It's certainly AU grade, but wondering if it will be labeled environmentally damaged even if its as sharp as this and hasn't been cleaned.  Hate to submit if it's a foregone conclusion.

Very pretty coin.  Probably going to cost close to $75 (all components, including shipping both ways) to find out.  How much is this coin worth before & after getting it professionally graded?  Ebay prices realized (aka 'sold', not 'completed') will give you an indication.  AU-55?  Here's an NGC graded AU-58:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/144245913880?hash=item2195b9f918%3Ag%3AQs0AAOSwaCBhZ0J7&nma=true&si=i85StK%2FH%2FaNB5mCWhQMqiqkuKMY%3D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

I don't know for sure but it might require luster to make a -58 grade.  A couple non-professionally graded AU's went for $275-$280.

IMO it's about break even, assuming they don't slap it with the dreaded 'damaged' or other negative qualifiers.

 

[Zincoln]

Appreciate the thoughts GB.  Seems we are thinking similarly.  Doubt it could reach MS60 which is where you start seeing 4 figures.  

I do find it odd/funny/a bit hypocritical that you can send them in to have them conserved (cleaned) before they go for grading. Essentially bringing back luster.  They are most certainly using chemical treatments to remove surface impurities just like you/I could with various dips that exist.  If done by a grading company, you are good to go.  If done by you/I, the coin is damaged.

Go figure...

Zincoln

[schoolofhardNox]

9 hours ago, Zincoln said:

RVPopeye - location was an old entrance to the park circa 1920.  Just got very lucky that someone dropped them right after they were minted.  

Anyone have any experience submitting a coin like this to NCG? It's certainly AU grade, but wondering if it will be labeled environmentally damaged even if its as sharp as this and hasn't been cleaned.  Hate to submit if it's a foregone conclusion. 

THx,
Zincoln 

I did PCGS with some silvers and colonial coppers - all dug. Never submit a copper coin that is dug. 😭 It will fail every time. They did slab a Seated half dime and a Mercury dime. The half dime was just an XF and had even color. The Mercury has some luster to it, so I think your coins would have a decent chance to grade properly. Never mention they were dug.

[GB_Amateur]

2 hours ago, Zincoln said:

I do find it odd/funny/a bit hypocritical that you can send them in to have them conserved (cleaned) before they go for grading. Essentially bringing back luster.  They are most certainly using chemical treatments to remove surface impurities just like you/I could with various dips that exist.  If done by a grading company, you are good to go.  If done by you/I, the coin is damaged.

I don't think their cleaning method is anything like what we talk about here on detectorprospector.com.  Starting in the ~1970's, plasticized (i.e. flexible) PVC sleaves were used to capture, display, and 'protect' coins.  In some cases that led to unsightly films on the coins.  I think the grading services' cleaning process (upon request) just uses acetone to dissolve the residue left from the PVC degradation.  Could be wrong there, but that's what I've seen/heard/read.

Most coins in collections were never in the ground and thus not subjected to the damaging chemicals in the soil (for decades into centuries).  The patina from typical circulation became acceptable in the eyes of numismatists (pros and amateurs).  Some people would try and increase the beauty by various chemical and physical (i.e. abrasive) methods and in many cases that led to unsightly and unnatural coloration and scratches.  As such, cleaning of any kind got a bad reputation which has carried over to today.

It's not any different than antique furntiture.  Refinishing of rare pieces drops the value by multiples.  But an otherwise already severely damaged finish in many cases has already taken away much of the value so careful restoration is accepted.  That's the situation we usually deal with when we recover coins from the ground, especially those with high copper content.  Gold and often silver dominant alloys are resistant to chemical deterioration in most, but not all cases.

Where to draw the line between leaving a coin alone and cleaning it is far from an objective decision.

[Steve Herschbach]

On 12/28/2021 at 7:46 PM, Zincoln said:

Beauties for sure, thanks for sharing! 

[Zincoln]

@Steve Herschbach  Thank you Steve, and thank you for hosting the site!

[cudamark]

Beautiful dug coin! IMO it would probably grade XF45 on the safe side. I has just a bit too much obverse wear, and I don't think it has enough mint luster to make an AU grade. I could be wrong though, depending on which grading service you use. I personally think PCGS is the best, but, NGC is not far behind. The scratches on the reverse will affect the value a bit though, so, I wouldn't invest in the expense to have it conserved and/or slabbed if it were me. Whether you are going to keep it or sell it online, it just doesn't seem justified financially.