argentumandcoins

We can't use a point scale for the reasons that I had already mentioned; Slabbing every coin is an absolute non-starter. I like the feel of an old coin, the way the light bounces of it, the way you can constantly play around with weighing different coins in a series for comparison, magnifying different areas under a scope to spot tiny adjustments on the dies. Slabbing ends most of that. Most bulk lots would vanish from sale rooms as the dross would be scrapped (not cost efficient to slab) and the little gem that you occasionally find would vanish as it would have been spotted on slabbing (hopefully). Losing the dross kills the hobby for new collectors as most would baulk at paying £25 for a slabbed 1949 Penny (prices would be higher as I would have to pass on the slabbing cost). All graders are different and grading houses even more so. The US companies don't even slab with consistency on their own coinage never mind UK coins! The US market is so crazy that you get some sellers listing a "raw" coin as MS-65...WHAT??? Call it "almost uncirculated with nearly full brilliance apart from the carbon spot and 5 rim nicks"....Please? As dear old Winnie said "You can't please all of the the people all of the time" John.

Scott, when you think of the grade "Uncirculated" it has to be taken as a coin that exhibits no signs of wear from circulation, but may have bag marks. You might not like to use the term but what else do you call it, "circulated but without wear"? What is "Almost Uncirculated"? A coin that nearly didn't make it from the mint into a bank bag? I know we're splitting hairs but we need to use a term that everybody understands. As a collector if you choose to call a coin A UNC that's your perogative, as a dealer it is to commit financial suicide. John.

You ask too much this time 400! You are dealing with a full range of "dealers" from ebay hobbyists to people with large reputations and even larger stock levels. My 40% lustre may be toned to you or B UNC to the next man. Like grades, lustre is very much open to the individuals perception. A dealer must call it as they see it and most will stand by their grade with the promise of a refund if not happy. With respect to Michael, why call a coin A UNC and charge an UNC price? I pay good money for my stock, sometimes too good, and whilst most of my grading is conservative or accurate some will be overgraded and some undergraded. This isn't me trying to rip off buyers, it's sometimes down to using templates to list, tiredness (10 hours photographing, sorting and listing often into the small hours) or worse still carelessness! There was a letter in coin news a few issues ago asking why dealers grade 2 sides of a coin differently. What's the answer to that one, grade at the lowest, highest or mid grade??? To be accurate if one side is VF and the other GVF is that not how it should be listed? Or as buyers would you rather that dealers called it the lower grade and took a loss on the sale? As 95% of my stock is auction purchased (quite often unseen due to living in the far Northern reaches of the Empire) I have to rely on auction descriptions and they are even worse than dealers listings in my experience! This means my price paid is often not much less than the price I am asking. To list as A UNC and ask an UNC price means I will never sell anything. Quite a few of my items are just called UNC when it is obvious to the viewer that they are UNC with almost full lustre. The only way to have any uniformity is to have all coins slabbed by the same grading company and that is an absolute non-starter. The one you didn't touch on and that really does p*** me off is the good old "About FDC" or "Toned FDC". Now that really is farcical. If it aint mint as struck (proof coins only) it is UNC or less. That really is something that dealers should be tightening up on! I'm sure if the members look through my listings they will find examples to complain about, they'll also find some undergraded bargains, but they never get pointed out to me until after sale John.

Hmmm, exceptionally rare, but with a starting bid of only £99.00 this time. Nice coin, nevertheless. It is rare, but so is a winning England football team and I haven't seen one of those on ebay either

It won't be mine! I would guess not much more than the starting price, but it's on ebay which means it may not sell at all or it may triple the start.

He's old school Dave Plus he has a large reputation, a walk-in shop in London and consults for some of the leading London auction houses, Mohammed and mountains!!!!

Dave, You will have to phone or email Michael as he has no shopping cart facility on his site. John.

Yes, GVF. A touch edgy with some contact marks as well and difficult to tell if it's had a bit of a rub due to the flash.

Thanks, Red. Very interesting article. In my experience Royal Mail do not help. I've lost count of the number of times I've had recorded delivery, and even special delivery items just shoved through the door. For a dishonest individual these occasions would have been a gift. It's a blessing living in the sticks when the postie does that for you. We usually have the same one (Rarity 19 nowadays) and he is a "good un" Having lost in the region of £1000 on ebay to people who were either too stingy to pay the extra for insured or had no intention of paying for the item (claiming lost in transit, account hacked etc etc) I am a little biased towards the postal services getting it right (most of the time) and the dishonest "buyers" doing it wrong!

I would guess they were either listed in the good old days (when they were worth good money) or have been listed by the sort of sellers that think an "old coin" is a 1967 penny and worth an opening bid of 4.99. It is essentially outdated now that the re-print has Michael Goubys revised prices. As I said earlier, Michaels latest work is much easier to use and contains many more varieties than were known at the time of Freemans ground breaking work. Purely my own opinions of course

Not the worst example though

I couldn't answer that one. Re-prints depend on many factors, the prime one being supply and demand. Freeman was always highly sought after. I suspect if he had solely studied Pennies it wouldn't have been reprinted as Gouby is a much better reference tool. If somebody ever bothers to write up to date works on halfpennies and farthings (there's a job for Derek instead of becoming a dealer) I think Spinks will struggle to sell any copies, As for your books; If you use them, definitely not. If you don't they're just a coin or two waiting to happen John.

It will only hit those people with their own sites as ebay already rape you for every penny as soon as a scammer buyer claims non-receipt! I don't mind refunding web buyers in full, but I have never had to yet.

A lot less than it was before he sold the rights to Spink. I used to sell Freemans at £60+ depending on edition and condition. I don't know if there will be specific collectors for "originals" or if it would only appeal to coin collectors after an identification guide.

Of course Dave, no problem. You may however find it easier to forego a week's coin purchases and buy Michael Gouby's 'The British Bronze Penny 1860 to 1970'. Due to it's arrangement, I actually find this easier than Michael Freeman's own book, and 'F' numbers are included. Can't remember how much it is, but probably no more than an AU Edward VII penny! £20 from Michaels website. The new specialised edition for Viccy Pennies is £50 and well worth the money.

Azda that's a cheeky wee question to be asking!! I offer 10% to my best customers on everything except bullion items. I can extend this courtesy to forum members on nearly every item on my site (some margins are very tight as I get burned on some purchases just like everyone else ) If you are interested in anything get in touch by email and I will send you a multi-use discount code for use at checkout. Postage is free for all sales over £150. John.

I've noticed a little difference in the link you provided John, the pic i have posted of the OBV has what i would say as a 3/4 broach, yours has a full broach, or is it my eyes and its late? As Gary says, the signature is clear enough to easilly determine the die. Other easy diagnostics are the Rose not being fully formed, the bust being well clear of the linear circle and the colon after the G of DG pointing directly to a border tooth. There are other tells, but they are the main ones to look for in combination. John.

Yes, of course. Postage is 1.99 per coin though

Gary, I have hundreds of Maundy 3d's lying around if you want them. Any date you like from 1887 to 1944 and some even earlier. They may look like currency but they are definitely maundy, and silver, and threepence, and probably touched by a Monarch, and very very rare.... do you want them? If not, Ebay it is!!!!!

I'll try a link that actually works!!! http://www.argentumandcoins.co.uk/1860-penny-unc-f-10-285-p.asp

I'd go with VF on yours but if you were selling on ebay you could probably call it "Very High Grade"!!!! Mine are £120 for an UNC and £140 for UNC with good lustre. I've put the link to the cheaper one on for your reference. http:ekmpowershop11.com/ekmps/shops/argentumandco/1860-penny-unc-f-10-285-p.asp I'd still stick with yours though If you decide you want anything at any point drop me a PM and I'll sort you out with a discount code for use at checkout John.

I only said "unfortunately" as there was a chance it could have been a rarer die pairing. F 10's I have 3 listed at the moment, but unless you have a desire to complete a date run in top grades I would personally leave it as is and spend your cash on another date you want (I know, I'm not a very good businessman!!!). John

Unfortunately its still a Freeman 10 Azda. John.

Wonder what the price was? The 1873s and 1881s (especially) are very difficult in high grades! From memory they were sold in 2's and 3's. The highest price paid was about £260 plus 17.625%. One of each went into the collection and the rest were sold. I was a bit hasty with the 1881 and took £650 I think. It was probably worth closer to £800 at that time but my overdraft needed reducing!

Noted Sir, although I had spotted it. Do we know why the 1917 seems to stand alone among a generally wretched series from 1915-20 as being well struck ? Interesting observation. The 1917 I've got is definitely better struck than the others with the exception of a really good '18H. As to the reason for this, I haven't a clue and it defies all logic. Perhaps a new master die was cut in that year which rapidly wore out due to the unprecedented demand for pennies? As I said, I'm guessing though... There are plentiful BU 1917's, well struck to be had, it's odd isn't it. As I've said before, I do wonder exactly how many original collectors we owe our supplies to today. Maybe it isn't anything to do with the striking, maybe it's to do with who was around and interested at the time ? Such a shame that we can never have a definitive answer and must speculate into the sunset. Absolutely. We'll never know where that UNC 1917 was hiding all those years. Was it by design, or by accident ? Maybe in a collector's box, or a long forgotten child's piggy bank. Possibly in an old suit, left to languish, or an army uniform left over from the Great War. Even tucked away in an unopened drawer somewhere....... .....We'll just never know for sure..... About 5 years ago I bought a nice group of B UNC bun heads in auction. There were 4 x 1862, 3 x 1873 and 2 x 1881 as well as some 1860 halfpennies and a Beaded Border Farthing. All came from a deceased estate and were found neatly wrapped in newspaper in the old girls drawer!! When, where and why did she get them? Why keep them wrapped in paper? It just goes to show that they do turn up in funny places