jaggy

MS 64 RB

Tracking seems to be the thing now. I am able to track just abut all my coins whether I buy them at DNW, Heritage or from a dealer. I like it.

Me too. They are upping their game which is a good thing.

I think it is. The certificate number is the same. The Heritage photo makes the coin look worse and not better. Quite how PCGS gave it a PR66 is beyond me.

My experience with a recent purchase from Atlas was that their photo did not do the coin justice and understated its beauty. Specifically, it did not capture the toning. The coin was spectacular 'in-hand'. Incidentally, Atlas gives the certificate number so I was able to look at the NGC photo of the coin which was better than the Atlas one. Similar experience with Spink whose photography is generally horrible. Their photos tend to understate the coin as well. My experience with London Coins, on the other hand, is that their photos tend to hide problems with the coin and specifically hairline scratches.

I bid on two lots and won both of them. Both lots were NGC slabbed coins. Nothing particularly exciting. A 1907 sixpence which is an upgrade at MS63, two George V sixpences (AU58, MS64) and a George V farthing (MS63) for my type set. Saving the big spend for DNW this time around.

"Scope creep" is the problem. Where do you draw the line? My thought is to start very basic and then I can expand as little or much as I want as the mood takes me.

I have started building Edward VII and George V type sets. For the time being I'm looking at one example for each coin. Maybe later I will start expanding the type set to different varieties of each coin found during the reign. So, for example, for Edward VII, I have a: Third farthing Penny Sixpence Shilling Florin So far. Still a few to get before I start worrying about varieties.

You and me both. I enjoy doing date/variety runs. Also getting into type sets by monarch.

FORD - Fix Or Repair Daily FORD - Found On Road Dead

i will be making an email bid on three lots.

Perfect! Thanks Rob. I have the 1605 mm. rose. Bought at Buckland Dix Wood, June 8, 1993. The ticket that came with it referenced the Burstal sale but I never really noticed it until I was looking through my coins.

If anyone has access to the catalogue for the Burstal sale, I would be most grateful if they could look up Lot 232 for me.

In fairness to LCA, all auction houses make mistakes in their descriptions. I have emailed both DNW and Heritage in the past pointing out mistakes. I have also received emails from them acknowledging the error and thanking me.

I have some powder to burn. The issue is having the right coins to spend it on. There are a couple of lots at LCA which are of some interest but they are not 'must haves'. DNW, on the other hand, has more that is of interest for me this time around. The problem with LCA is that I have become somewhat wary of their photos and descriptions and not really willing to drop big dollops of powder there. I did have a look at the Stewartby catalogue but need to have a closer look. Also interested to see what the other Spink auction the day after has.

The other issue is that we only really have an idea of rarity and population by what comes to market. But there are probably plenty of collectors who are buyers but not sellers; myself included. Coins I bought in 1985 and subsequently are still in my collection. I can count on the fingers of one hand how many coins I have sold over the period. While TPG populations help, they are necessarily a very incomplete guide.

This is an interesting discussion. As a collector of sixpences, I have a pretty good feel for which coins show up often and which ones hardly ever show up. And this has very little to do with what ESC says the rarity is or with book values. To a large extent it is a question of experience and knowing your field. When it comes to prices it really depends. For auction prices it is all about who is bidding on the day. Sometimes the prices go high, sometimes you can get a good deal. Sometimes a dealer can be cheaper for the same coin than an auction when all costs are considered. Again, it becomes a question of experience and also of researching past prices to get an idea of market value. After that you need to know how much of a premium over market you are willing to pay to get the coin.

Sorry about above messed up post. This thread has been behaving strangely.

To err is human. To really foul things up you need a computer.

Had a quick skim through. A few things of interest to me so I may well throw a couple of bids in.

There is a 1935 penny for sale at this week's Heritage auction. It is a nice coin and in excellent condition; MS 65 RD. But the bidding has reached $80 which, with buyers premium and shipping will be well over $100. Is there something special about this coin that you penny people can identify and am I missing something? I just don't see how it is worth that much money. https://coins.ha.com/itm/great-britain/great-britain-george-v-penny-1935-ms65-red-ngc-/a/231706-62220.s?ic2=mybidspage-lotlinks-12202013&tab=MyBids-101116

The TPGs certainly make the odd mistake. I have picked up two, both to my advantage, where coins were either misattributed (a 6d attributed as a shilling) or important varieties missed (R over V in Victoria in the first, I over S in Honi in the second). The first one was a PCGS coin, I broke it out of the slab and sent it into NGC who got the attribution correct (it helped that I gave details in the submission). Once again, buy the coin and not the slab and you can sometimes pick up on these mistakes and get the coin at a good price. That said, auction houses make mistakes too. I have seen several at both DNW and Heritage. If I am not interested in the coin I tell them. Otherwise ......

Just based on your photos, the Obverse appear to be pretty heavily scratched. That would likely get it a 'details' grading form either NGC or PCGS and which would detrimentally affect its value (unless it is a very rare coin). As such, I would not recommend submitting it for grading.

From the NGC website: "Grading is a team effort, with at least two professional numismatists examining every coin. To maintain impartiality, NGC's coin graders cannot be involved in the commercial buying and selling of coins. Each coin is examined by one NGC coin grader at a time, who enters the coin grade into the system." https://www.ngccoin.com/coin-grading/grading-process/ngc-grading-process.aspx

I think that over grading is a problem throughout the hobby. When I compare coins that are EF or GEF with coins I bought at the same grades from Glendinings 20-30 years ago there is a clear difference. Glendinings were stricter graders than DNW who are stricter graders than London Coins. I don't have a lot of experience with TPGs but I have found that the coins I sent in to NGC have been pretty strictly graded. In fact, it has been something of an eye opener and has made me much more critical of the coins I bid on at DNW or LCA. So when they describe a coin as "about mint state", I take that with a pinch of salt. I did buy a couple of CGS slabbed coins (CGS 82) at LCA, broke them out and sent them to NGC. They were both graded at MS63 whereas, according to the comparisons I have seen, one might have expected an MS64 or MS65. I have one more CGS coin (a 75) being graded by NGC at the moment. It will be interesting to see where it comes out. My guess, based on my own grading experience, is that it will be an AU58 rather than an MS62-MS63 that the comparisons might suggest. I knew that when I bought the coin and factored it into the price I paid. So, once again, always buy the coin and not the grade.