Category Archives: Grading

These articles instruct on how to grade condition according to the Sheldon Scale.

Slabbing Common Coins

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Many hobbyists recommend holdering coins only if they are valuable enough without considering other reasons listed here.

True, the cost to grade can be prohibitive for some collectors. Top companies charge anywhere from $25-38 per coin in addition to fees for membership, handling and mailing, with additional fees for error coins, varieties, special labels or quicker turnaround times.

If cost is not a factor, you might consider holdering a coin for reasons other than inherent value.

Authenticity

A slab provides assurance that a coin is genuine, reducing the risk of purchasing a counterfeit. China exports hundreds of thousand fake coins each year to the United States, especially ones with a Carson City mintmark. If you holder the coin with PCGS, NGC, ANACS, CAC or ICG, you will have a unique barcode or serial number, allowing collectors to verify the coin’s details. Additionally, PCGS and other companies embed security chips to guard against counterfeiting.

Storage

Slabs are sonically sealed in hard plastic, protecting coins from physical damage, such as scratches and drops, as well as environmental damage. Companies also sell containers for compact storage. What’s more, you can share your love of the hobby with family and friends, letting them hold the slabs without your worrying about the coins being improperly handled.

NGC offers some of the most advanced coin holders in a range of sizes to fit virtually every coin ever struck. The company writes, “Designed for long-term preservation and protection, the NGC holders are comprised of high-quality inert materials” with security features. “Collectors, dealers and even the Smithsonian Institution trust NGC holders to protect their most treasured rarities.”

Photography

Top holdering companies also provide photos of coins, sometimes for an additional fee. This is especially important for toned coins. For example, PCGS does a fine job enhancing the rainbow of colors that grace the patina. Photos are important if you keep your collection in a bank box or live somewhere else (i.e. a college student away from home) allowing you to see your coins when and where ever you wish.

PCGS TrueView images are perfect for toned coins like this:

Family

A “family” of coins share common design elements, denominations, mintmarks or thematic characteristics within a series. For instance, you may want to collect all five 1878 Morgan dollars or W-mintmark Quarters or perhaps an example of various errors or varieties, as in the seven 1982 cents or 1942-45 silver war nickels. In these cases, a slab’s labeling is important as you assemble the family of your choice.

Set Assemblies and Registries

A complete date and mint mark set of Morgan Silver Dollars (1878–1921) usually contains close to 100 coins. Because there are so many, some hobbyists prefer year sets. Other assemble sets of a specific mintmark, such as all the coins minted in San Francisco or Carson City. A date and mintmark set of Peace Silver Dollars (1921–1935) consists of 24 coins. Regardless of the set in question, collectors may include a lesser value coin in a holder merely to complete the set in question.

Veteran hobbyists also may participate in set registry competitions, again requiring every coin or variety in the series. One of the most popular PCGS set registries are “low-ball” ones featuring the most worn coins.

Selling

It is often easier to sell, trade, or auction a coin that is already certified, particularly online or to collectors who cannot inspect it in person. Some large auction companies such as GreatCollections or Heritage may require you to holder your coins before they will list them in their catalogs. If you holder with PCGS, NGC or CAC, your coins can be sold sight unseen because of the consistency and quality of the grading.

GreatCollections even notes certification in his banner: “Certified Coin and Paper Money Auctions.”\

Provenance

Serious hobbyists often are concerned about provenance of specific rarities. But even damaged or heavily worn coins may be family heirlooms, such as a grandfather’s “pocket piece.” A coin with deep personal history can be preserved in a “perfect” state by slabbing it, even if it is not especially valuable.

In the past, family members might have passed down coins that they wore as jewelry. This was especially popular in the 19th Century. Here’s a perfect candidate for a slabbed personal heirloom, an 1885 20th Anniversary medal commemorating Abraham Lincoln’s death.

Many collectors prefer raw coins to slabbed ones because they want to hold history. There certainly is a place for that. Just keep some of the low-ball Morgan dollars, for instance, so friends and children can feel the heft of the silver.


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Proxiblog also has thousands of followers on Facebook Coin Groups, YouTube and other social media. To get the latest discussion and commentary, be sure to friend us by clicking here.

You can find more information about types, varieties, errors, grading, bidding and buying in Coin News Updated: The Essential Guide to Online Bidding. Please consider buying or gifting the work for a friend, as it underwrites this hobbyist blog. Thank you.

What’s My Coin Worth?

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There are many ways to figure the worth of a coin. Follow this step-by-step method, answering these questions along the way:

  • Is it certified?
  • Do you know denomination, series, strike?
  • Do you know the mintmark?
  • Do you know the Sheldon Scale?
  • Can you identify your coin on the Sheldon Scale?
  • Can you spot flaws affecting value?
  • Are you ready to estimate value now?
  • Do you know how to establish silver melt?

Is it certified?

If you have a coin certified by PCGS, NGC, ANACS, CAC and ICG, simply go to their verification sites and input the certification number on the label. Here are links:

Example:

If you have a coin holdered by another company, consider the coin inside “raw” or unholdered.

Do you know denomination, series, strike?

You need to identify these features, which every coin has:

  1. Denomination
    Definition: The face value of a coin, or the specific amount of money it is meant to represent.
    Example: Common U.S. circulating denominations include 5 cents (nickel), 10 cents (dime), and 25 cents (quarter).
  2. Series
    Definition: A series is the complete set of a specific coin design, minted over a period of years, usually including all dates and mint marks.
    Example: Lincoln Cent Series (1909–Present): Includes every date/mint combination of the Lincoln penny.
  3. Strike
    Definition: Refers to the method of manufacturing used to create the coin.
    Types of Strike:
    • Circulation Strike (Business Strike): Coins made for everyday commerce, usually produced quickly in high volumes.
    • Proof Strike: Coins made for collectors, typically with higher pressure, multiple hits, and polished dies to create a mirror-like field and frosted design.
    • Special Mint Strike (SMS) / Burnished: Specific, high-quality finishes used for special sets.

Do you know the mintmark?

These are mintmarks for US coins identifying the facility of manufacture:

P – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: The primary U.S. Mint. Most coins from Philadelphia historically had no mint mark, but the “P” now appears on most denominations except the penny.
D – Denver, Colorado: Operating since 1906, this mark is found on most modern circulating coins.
S – San Francisco, California: Since 1975, primarily produces high-quality “proof” sets for collectors.
W – West Point, New York: Established as a mint in 1988, it mostly produces bullion and special collector coins.

Historic U.S. Mint Marks: These letters appear on older coins from facilities that are no longer in operation.
C – Charlotte, North Carolina: Produced gold coins only from 1838 to 1861.
D – Dahlonega, Georgia: Also produced gold coins only from 1838 to 1861 (not to be confused with the modern Denver “D”).
O – New Orleans, Louisiana: Struck gold and silver coins intermittently from 1838 to 1909.
CC – Carson City, Nevada: Famous for silver dollars, operating from 1870 to 1893.

Once you know the denomination, series and strike, you can go to PCGS CoinFacts to find the location of the mintmark.

Do you know the Sheldon Scale?

The Sheldon Scale is a 70-point numerical system to determine a coin’s condition and market value, ranging from 1 (Poor) to 70 (Perfect Mint State).

There are two main types of condition: circulated and uncirculated. Numbers 1–59 (Circulated), from poor to almost uncirculated.

Intermediate grades are Poor, About Good, Good, Very Good, Fine, Very Fine, Extra Fine, About or Almost Uncirculated, Uncirculated.

Here is a nifty chart for numbers and condition.

Can you identify your coin on the Sheldon Scale?

Identifying the condition is subjective, even for veterans; but you can come close if you compare your coin to the denomination, series and strike on PCGS Photograde, which provides photographs that you can use for comparison.

Example:

You have to compare obverse and reverse, but for purposes here, we’ll just do obverse.

Underestimate when you compare your coin to one on Photograde, adjusting for personal bias. In this case, you may be tempted to think your coin is almost uncirculated. But a strict comparison puts it in the Extra Fine category, somewhere between Very Fine 35 and XF45. Let’s go with XF45

Can you identify flaws affecting value?

There are dozens of possible flaws on a coin that lower value or prevent it from being “straight graded” (a numerical score). Here are major ones:

Cleaning: Harsh abrasive cleaning or polishing that damages the surface.

Environmental Damage: Corrosion, excessive toning, or verdigris.

Physical Damage: Major scratches, rim dents, or metal movement.

Altered Surfaces: Applying substances like wax, putty, or lacquer to hide flaws.

Questionable Color: Artificial re-toning, often used to make a coin look more attractive.

Filed Rims: Rims that have been filed to smooth out dents or damage. 

Here is an example of environmental damage:

For other illustrated examples, see “Common Flaws That Hobbyists Often Miss.”

Any one of the above flaws will reduce the value of your coin, depending on severity. In many cases, that is 25-50% of estimated worth.

Are you ready to estimate value now?

You know the denomination, series, strike and mintmark. You know the Sheldon Scale and have estimated the grade using PCGS Photograde. You eliminated possible flaws and think your coin can be straight graded.

Let’s continue with the 1900 Morgan Dollar at XF40:

Go to PCGS CoinFacts for retail and auction values for such a coin.

The retail value here is $85 (due at the time in part to the high price of silver). But only 20 have been slabbed at that grade, meaning it probably wasn’t worth the cost of grading. That is confirmed because there are no recent auction sales listed at that low grade.

Your coin is silver melt.

Do you know how to establish silver melt?

Here is the formula:

Multiply the item’s total weight (in troy ounces) by its purity percentage, then multiply that result by the current spot price of silver.

Again, let’s use that 1900 Morgan Dollar.

Morgan dollars (1878–1904, 1921) contain 90% silver and 10% copper, with a total weight of 26.73 grams, resulting in 0.77344 troy ounces of pure silver per coin. 

The current market value for one troy ounce of silver, which changes frequently, happens to be $109 (during a spike in that precious metal). Thus, the silver melt value of your Morgan is 0.77344 times $109 = $84.30.

Keep in mind that coin dealers usually only buy 10-15% under silver melt. So you’re looking at about $71, depending on your buyer.

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Proxiblog also has thousands of followers on Facebook Coin Groups, YouTube and other social media. To get the latest discussion and commentary, be sure to friend us by clicking here.

You can find more information about types, varieties, errors, grading, bidding and buying in Coin News Updated: The Essential Guide to Online Bidding. Please consider buying or gifting the work for a friend, as it underwrites this hobbyist blog. Thank you.

Popular Morgan Dollar Varieties

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These varieties not only are popular and valuable but often required for complete set registries of top holdering companies: 1879-CC Capped Die, 1879-S Reverse of 1878, 1880/79-O, 1880/9-S, 1882-O/S Strong, 1882-O/S Weak, and 1887/6 and 1887/6-O.

This article provides key diagnostics so you can identify these valuable coins.

1879-CC Capped Die

The capped die variety happened when the Mint decided to change the small CC into the larger mintmark. An employee tried to tool away the smaller CC and replace it with the larger one. He didn’t do a very good job.

Hobbyists tend to prefer the clear mintmark to the distorted one. The process of effacing the die, or die cap, gave the variety its nickname. As for value, both are rare and desirable through almost uncirculated grades, with the clear mintmark bringing $4,500 in AU55, about $1,000 higher than the variety. But in uncirculated grades, the variety is more valuable, with an MS63 Capped CC commanding a retail price of $10,000 and the clear mintmark about $500 less.

1879-S Rev. of 78

While the 1879-S is a relatively common coin, the reverse of 78 is a rare and coveted variety with a mere 8,900 thought to have survived out of a mintage of 9,110,000. The production that year began with the 1878 reverse dies but were halted early in the process for the 79 variety. The 1878 reverse dies feature a flat-breasted eagle and parallel top arrow feathers whereas the regular reverse has a rounded breast and larger top feature at a slant.

The new “Reverse of 1879” dies were quickly put into production, making the Reverse of 1878 variety a notable and desirable key date for collectors.

As you might expect, the 78 reverse commands much higher values across conditions with an MS63 worth $1,600 while the regular mintmark coin goes for $100.

1880/79-O

The 1880/79-O Morgan dollar variety resulted from the New Orleans Mint reusing an older, dated die from 1879 by re-engraving it with the new 1880 date. The mint worker did not fully erase the older date, so faint traces of the “79” are visible beneath the “80.” (Note: The same happened at the San Francisco Mint with an even weaker trace of the overdate–so weak that we exclude it from this article.)

Both practices of repurposing older dies was a way to conserve resources. 

Here is the 1880/79-O overdate, compliments PCGS CoinFacts:

Because the remnant of the numbers 79 are usually faint, you may need a coin microscope to identify this variety. As for value, a regular 1880-O at MS63 retails for $90 whereas the 1880/79 goes for $800. That makes it very desirable.

1880/9-S

There are many VAM varieties (catalog of die markers) in 1880 Morgans, including 1880 VAM 6 8/7, 1880 VAM 7 8/7 Crossbar, 1880 VAM 8 8/7 Ears, 1880 VAM 9 8/7 Stem and 1880 VAM 11 Checkmark. We’ll leave those for another date. In this article we focus on the 1880/9-S because these are available and popular but may require a coin microscope to see on worn coins.

The 1880/9-S features the last digit of the date partially struck over the digit “9.” Here’s a PCGS CoinFacts photo showing remnants of the “9” in the overdate:

This variety is attractive because so many 1880-S Morgans were strongly struck and available in high mint state grades. The number of 1880/9-S Morgan dollars is not known out of a total 8,900,000.

An 1880-S at MS63 retails for $90 whereas the overdate goes for $160 at this writing.

1882-O/S Strong, 1882-O/S Weak

In 1882, the New Orleans Mint received a shipment of leftover reverse dies from the San Francisco Mint. A employee polished and overpunched an O on the S, creating the variety. The facility had three different reverse dies re-purposed for the New Orleans mint. Some overpunching was better than others, creating strong and weak versions.

The 1880-O had a modest mintage of 6,090,000. Many were melted in 1918 according to the Pittman Act and a mere 25,000 of the variety are said to have survived making them valuable. In MS63, a strong version retails for $550 and the weak version, $375. A regular 1880-O goes for $110 in that grade.

1887/6 and 1887/6-O

The 1887/6 and 1887/6-O varieties occurred because a U.S. Mint employee reused an existing 1886-dated die for striking 1887 Morgan dollars, but failed to completely erase the original “6” before engraving the new “7,” leaving a faint “6” under the “7.”

These usually are faint and may require a coin microscope to detect.

These overdates were melted in huge numbers according to the Pittman act. A regular 1887 at MS63 retails for $90 and an 1887-O, $275. An 1887/6 retails for $1,000 and an 1887/6-O for $2,400. That price difference is a reason for the popularity of these varieties.

If you like posts like this, you can read more articles on buying, selling and collecting at Proxiblog.org. Also, please subscribe to get our weekly newsletter and be informed whenever there is a new article or column.

Proxiblog also has hundreds of followers on Facebook Coin Groups. To get the latest discussion and commentary, be sure to friend us by clicking here.

You can find more information about errors and varieties as well as buying and bidding on coins in Coin News Updated: The Essential Guide to Online Bidding. Please consider purchasing the work for yourself or a friend, as it underwrites this hobbyist website. Thank you.


Buying Coins: “How’d I do?”

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Increasingly on social media, coin buyers display their recent purchases and ask, “How did I do?” If you ask this question, you probably should not be buying expensive coins. Then again, you can learn how you did by reading this article, which takes you step by step in the buying and bidding process.

For starters, if the coin is in a top-tier slab (PCGS, NGC, ANACS, CAC, ICG), you don’t need to ask that question. Just go to the cert of the holdering company, and you will see retail, wholesale and auction prices. See this article for details.

In the past, new collectors used to learn about coin value from brick-and-mortar shop owners who also belonged to the Professional Numismatist Guild. Now the number of coin shops have declined steadily due to high overhead (rent, security, insurance, inventory) and risk of robbery. Meanwhile coin magazine subscriptions plummeted. For instance, Coin World‘s readership declined from 33.4 million in 2015 to 21.5 million in 2019. Now the magazine measures its audience digitally, with some 65,000 collectors on its social media platforms and 40,000 on its marketplace page.

As a result, collectors prefer the convenience of buying online but often are misinformed by clickbait social media.

In the past, people had buyer’s remorse when they were hoodwinked. Now many collectors do not even realize they have been scammed.

Given these risks, how should they go about buying coins?

  1. Learn how to grade if buying raw or unholdered coins.
  2. Buy from reputable third-party graders, especially if you don’t know how to grade.
  3. Identify counterfeit coins masquerading in fake holders.
  4. Know common flaws that buyers often miss.
  5. Visit PCGS Photograde and compare your coin to grades listed there.
  6. Before you bid on or purchase a coin, visit PCGS CoinFacts to see both retail, wholesale and auction values.
  7. Only patronize online sellers who accept returns.

Let’s go through the above list with a coin being sold on eBay at this writing. Great Southern Coins is a reputable seller that also accepts returns:

This seller states that the coin is semi-prooflike and gem brilliant uncirculated. If you know how to grade, you might have a different opinion. It looks almost uncirculated or low mint state with flaws (scrapes, bag marks, rim dings and a pin scratch):

Now let’s go to Photograde and see what condition may match the raw coin above:

So we’re looking at an MS61 1879 Morgan. Now let’s consult PCGS CoinFacts for possible value:

Here we read about mintage and specifications:

Time to see retail and auction prices. An 1879 without flaws retails for $90 with 516 graded by PCGS at that level selling roughly at auction for about $70-100 with values seemingly rising over the years from about $50 in 2014.

But this 1879 from Great Southern Coins has flaws. What does one in a similar condition go for? CoinFacts again supplies the answer: $65.

Great Southern Coins ships inexpensively for $3.25 so I don’t have to worry about additional buyer’s fees and mailing. A good maximum bid for this coin would be $50.

If this coin were featured on HiBid or Live Auctioneers you would place a different maximum bid because sellers on those platforms often charge 15-25 percent buyer fees and $10-15 mailing. So if bidding here, your maximum would be $30 ($6 buyer fee at 20% and $14 mailing).

Here’s an example from a seller who already knows the value of the coin based on his starting $35 bid. But here you also pay $15 for shipping in addition to 15% buyer’s fee. So if you won the coin with a $35 bid, you would pay $5.25 plus $15 for a total: $55.25.

Now that you know the process, practice on eBay or HiBid/Live Auctioneers–not by bidding–but by following bidding and final sale and see if your estimate would have lost or won the coin. Do this repeatedly until you are confident in your purchasing skills.

If you like posts like this, you can read more articles on buying, selling and collecting at Proxiblog.org. Also, please subscribe so you can get our weekly newsletter and be informed whenever there is a new article or column.

Proxiblog also has thousands of followers on Facebook Coin Groups, YouTube and social media. To get the latest discussion and commentary, be sure to friend us by clicking here.

You can find more information about errors and varieties as well as buying and bidding on coins in Coin News Updated: The Essential Guide to Online Bidding. Please consider purchasing the work for yourself or a friend, as it underwrites this hobbyist website. Thank you.

Native American Dollar Varieties

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Known by its distinctive golden surface and edge lettering, the Native American dollar, introduced in 2009, is a continuation of the Sacagawea dollar series, featuring her on the obverse and a different reverse design each year. There are several major varieties, featured here, and several weak/partial/missing edge and position varieties.

Let’s cover the latter first:

  • Position A: The edge lettering is upside down when the obverse (Sacagawea’s portrait side) is facing up.
  • Position B: The edge lettering is right-side up when the obverse is facing up. 

Here’s an illustration:

Edge lettering is applied after the coin is struck with both positions considered normal, typically without any rarity or substantial value. However, weak/partial, missing and double edge lettering are highly desirable.

Here are illustrations:

Here are main years you want to search for along with values for gem MS65:

  • 2009-P Native American – Pos. B Partial, $200
  • 2009-P Native American – Pos. B Weak, $75
  • 2009 Native American Missing Edge Lettering, $35
  • 2010-P Native American Missing Edge Lettering, $75
  • 2011-P Dbld Edge Let., Overlap, Pos. A, $85
  • 2012-P Native American, Pos. A Weak Lettering, $90
  • 2012-P Native American, Pos. B Weak Lettering, $40
  • 2013-P Native American, Pos. B Dbld Edge Overlap, $350

If you like posts like this, please subscribe so you can be informed whenever there is a new article or column.

Proxiblog also has thousands of followers on Facebook Coin Groups, YouTube and social media. To get the latest discussion and commentaries, click here.

You can find more information about errors and varieties as well as buying and bidding on coins in Coin News Updated: The Essential Guide to Online Bidding. Please consider purchasing the work for yourself or a friend, as it underwrites this hobbyist website. Thank you.

2024 eBay Bidding Results

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Each year I review my online acquisitions from eBay and share results to show how difficult and often expensive it is to bid on raw coins and then attempt to holder them with PCGS.

Click the photo below to see my 2023 results, published in Greysheet.

This post analyses my 102 eBay purchases. I was only satisfied with 26 coins, or about 26% of my purchases.

Typically I keep coins that grade high, adding them to my toned coin showcase on PCGS. I’ll share a link to that later. I return other coins to eBay or consign some to Hibid auctioneers to mitigate losses.

I know that sharing this as transparently as I am here will invite negative comments about my choices. Fair enough. But I have been a collector for 60 plus years and am a respected numismatist, writing for Coin World, Coin Update News and Greysheet and being a past member of the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee of the US Treasury.

My intent here is to show the difficulty of getting coins graded, vying for a numerical score on the Sheldon scale.

In the past I was able to get my toned coins graded fairly regularly at PCGS. But the proliferation of coin doctors honing their artificial toning skills have changed the playing field. Graders now are often reluctant to assign a numerical grade to coins with rainbow patina.

In this post you will see some startling results concerning PCGS and their default grade of Questionable Toning. It has become so bad that I no longer submit toned coins to the company.

I am good at identifying rainbow patina. As proof, I have one of the most beautiful showcases on the PCGS website. Also, I always invest in TrueView photos because I keep my coins in a bank box.

Click the photo below to view my 100-coin showcase:

Now for the upsetting news.

Coins below are from two 2024 submissions. All 16 coins were purchased on eBay, and all came back as Questionable Toning:

Here’s one of the Questionable Toning coins with the first photo from eBay and the second from PCGS TrueView:

After receiving these grades, I did complain to the company leadership. They were understanding and offered to re-grade these. I decided not to do that, sending some to NGC and cracking out others and sending those sent to Capital Coin Auction as raw, often recouping my expenditures.

PCGS seems to have a Questionable Toning default label even when there is no toning at all. Consider these two coins from the same Lincoln cent album, with one getting a “red” designation and another, brown, “Questionable Toning”:

I sent the 1932-D to NGC and received this grade:

At times during the year I became so frustrated with PCGS that I continued to resubmit coins marked as questionable only later to receive numerical grades.

Let consider my 1968-D end of roll toners.

As you can see, my first submission came can with one graded questionable color and the other graded MS64. Upon crack-out and resubmission, the same coins came back MS66 and MS65.

I did, however, score with PCGS on some of my toned eBay coins.

This one came back MS64:

I also scored two out of three with these and in retrospect agree with the cleaned designation, although it is very slight and still might have graded.

I also only buy from eBay dealers that accept returns. This coin was overly dipped with the photo enhanced so as not to show the true surface of the coin:

This one had damage that I missed initially, a gouge. It was my fault, but I took advantage of returns accepted.

I hope the transparency here generates some second thoughts about grading. Keep in mind, too, the oft-cited phrase that grades from holder companies are subjective, to a degree.

Finally, if you think getting toned coins graded at major slabbing companies is difficult, try getting them to affirm errors and varieties. If you are intent on doing that, at least check my post about errors and varieties that PCGS will holder. Click here for that.

If you like posts like this, subscribe so you can be informed whenever there is a new article or column.

Proxiblog also has hundreds of followers on Facebook Coin Groups. To get the latest discussion and commentary, be sure to friend us by clicking here.

You can find more information about types, varieties, errors, grading, bidding and buying in Coin News Updated: The Essential Guide to Online Bidding. Please consider buying or gifting the work for a friend, as it underwrites this hobbyist blog. Thank you.

Authentic v. Doctored Toning

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Rainbow toned coins sell for multitudes more than retail values for the same mint and date, making them both idea for collecting and doctoring. The ability to tell the difference is vital. Otherwise you risk being fooled by artificial patina.

This 1884-O Morgan dollar recently sold at Heritage for $1,680 with a current asking price of $1,950. At MS66, the same coin without patina retails for $450.

Because of profit, coin doctors have devised all manner of fake toning techniques, including baking a coin wedged in a potato or cauliflower, storing a coin in a container with hardboiled eggs, heating it with a blow torch, leaving it in a mixture sulfur powder and petroleum jelly, dabbing it with bleach and even dousing it in cat urine (yuck).

The result usually is an artificial tone of yellow, burnt orange, blue and magenta hues, as in this coin:

Applying the right amount of heat can mute those colors in more believable hues of gold, red, blue and magenta, as in this coin below, which has a reasonable chance of being slabbed by a holdering company:

Because coin doctors are improving their toning skills, major holdering companies often are reluctant now to slab a rainbow coin with a numerical grade, questioning patina.

This coin came from an old album but was dubbed questionable by PCGS:

Album Toning

Certain vintage albums such as Wayte Raymond or Meghrig typically tone coins with natural patina over time. But if you don’t know artificial from genuine toning, you may be stuck with a sulfured coin like this from a seller who uses the brand name in his listing:

Compare the difference between a Morgan dollar toned in such an album and the above artificial one:

Vintage commercial and cardboard holders often color coins over time in vivid patinas as might be found in year sets, double mint sets, and Tidy House and American Savings boards. The issue here concerns unscrupulous sellers who swap out coins, taking the naturally toned ones and replacing them with doctored ones, as in this example:

Proxiblog has an article about sellers who swap out coins from 1947-58 double mint sets. Click here for that. Here’s an example from that post:

Often a holder label may contain chemicals that interact over years with the metal of a coin. Older PCI holdered coins tone beautifully in this manner. The brand has become synonymous with bright patina. Newer PCI holders count on your inability to distinguish real from fake color, as in these examples:

I have spent decades assembling a PCGS toned set across denominations. I purchased them from these holders, sets, rolls, albums and cases:

To view my 100-coin showcase, recently sold at GreatCollections, or the image to see TrueView pictures of my coins, see the photo below or open this YouTube video.

If you like posts like this, subscribe so you can be informed whenever there is a new article or column.

Proxiblog also has thousands of followers on Facebook Coin Groups, YouTube and social media. To get the latest discussion and commentary, be sure to friend us by clicking here.

You can find more information about types, varieties, errors, grading, bidding and buying in Coin News Updated: The Essential Guide to Online Bidding. Please consider buying or gifting the work for a friend, as it underwrites this hobbyist blog. Thank you.

How to Sell Coins

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No matter how you look at it, selling coins evokes feelings. Perhaps you are ending your interest in the hobby and will have to find other ways to spend your free time. Perhaps you inherited a collection and now must dispose of it for heirs. Or maybe because you just need the money.

Experienced hobbyists know the basics of how to sell coins. But newer or “never” hobbyists may have a difficult time because the process requires a modicum of numismatic knowledge, which this article provides. And, of course, money is at stake in the form of precious metals and intrinsic values.

Here are seven steps that I have used in selling my coins. They worked for me. You may experience different results.

Step 1: Read the Red Book and consult the Blue Book

The Red Book, otherwise known as A Guide Book of United States Coins, is required reading. You have to know what you actually have. Google, eBay, Etsy, YouTube and other online listings are unreliable and often erroneous.

The Red Book shares retail values and the Blue Book, wholesale, or what a coin dealer is apt to pay you–important later.

The Red Book has updated pricing and auction data with detailed expert commentary and photos–more than 2000 images, 7,600 listings and 32,500 coin values. You’ll learn about each denomination, type, mint error and varieties as well as read articles about investing, grading and holdering coins, and detecting counterfeits.

Click here or the photo below and scroll down to “HOW TO USE THE RED BOOK” to view a Proxiblog video on the book’s utility.

Step 2: Separate coins according to denomination

To view the various denominations, again consult your Red Book or PCGS CoinFacts, a free encyclopedia of U.S. Coins.

You will find at PCGS CoinFacts detailed photos and retail/auction values of coins from half cents to gold issues as well as commemorative coins, bullion, territorial issues and patterns.

But the utility now is using the Red Book or CoinFacts to separate your coins into categories.

Step 3: Divide collection again by precious metals

These will mostly be silver and gold coins but also platinum, palladium and rhodium.

Familiarize yourself with spot price values. A fine resource is provided by the coin company APMEX, which gives updated values of all precious metals. Click the photos below for gold and silver values to view what your coins are worth apart from collector premium.

Step 4: Create an inventory of your collection

Create your inventory by denomination. You can do this manually via pencil and paper but eventually you want to have this in digital format. You can use Word for this. It’s a hassle, but you also should photograph obverse and reverse of each coin and include that in your inventory. You can do this with any mobile phone with a decent camera. Photos also will help your appraiser later in the process.

You also have to remember what you paid for your coins. Note that in your inventory, along with the date of sale, if you can remember it. Bookkeeping is important, as you will learn in Step 7.

Once you have a draft of what you own, consider downloading an application for a formal inventory of your coins.

There are many low-cost and free coin collection applications. Coin Week has recommended the low-cost Coin Book Pro.

I prefer Coin World’s Portfolio Application, which is free; but you have more options with a subscription.

You will immediately have a sense of relief once you have completed your inventory. That sense comes from due diligence.

Step 5: Learn grading basics

Start with the Sheldon scale

The Sheldon Grading Scale describes the condition of a coin without damage or other flaws, earning a number between 1 (lowest) and 70 (highest). The scale is used by PCGS, NGC, ANACS and other grading companies. The grade is an indication of value.

Know key dates of the series

Here is a nifty chart that many coin shops use on their sites. It’s not comprehensive and doesn’t include what we call “condition rarities,” or coins that are common in lower grades on the Sheldon scale but rare in about uncirculated or uncirculated condition. But it will give you an idea about dates and rarities.

Compare your coin with images provided by PCGS PhotoGrade.

Do not use digital applications to identify your coin and grade it. Programs like CoinSnap powered by AI are notoriously inaccurate. Instead, train your eye by comparing your coin to the denomination and condition as found on PhotoGrade. You may have a tendency to overgrade and overlook flaws. That’s okay. You’re not expected to be an expert grader. But a little knowledge goes a long way.

You can find a list of numismatic terms on the Proxiblog site. Click here.

Step 6: Get an appraisal

Before you sell your coins, you need to have an expert give you a fair evaluation of their worth. The best way is to contact a friend, colleague or acquaintance who knows coins. There is trust there. Keep in mind it is not enough merely to send to your appraiser the denomination, date and mint mark of your coins. Condition is everything. If your hobbyist friend lives out of town and cannot eyeball your collection, you will have to send photos of obverse and reverse of each coin or set.

You can also go to a nearby coin shop. Make sure the owner is a PNG member as they are committed to honesty and professionalism. You can find a directory here.

There also are online appraisal sites. One of the most popular is Coinappraiser.com. Visit the site. It also has useful articles about selling, auctioning and grading coins.

Step 6: Sell or consign

The coin buying world is full of scammers. DO NOT sell on social media like Facebook, Etsy or YouTube or accept payment via Venmo or other non-traceable monetary venues. You will want payment by money order, bank wire or cash (if local).

Read this article about Venmo scams and how to avoid them.

If you have valuable coins, the best place to sell them is at Heritage and GreatCollections. The problem here is that major auction houses only accept coins holdered by PCGS, NGC, ANACS, ICG and CAC. It is beyond this article to explain the cost and procedures of getting coin graded. GreatCollections has a form to submit raw coins for you at discount prices. In other words, you won’t have to pay extra for grading and also can avoid membership, handling and postal fees.

You can consign your raw and holdered coins to an online auctioneer. This requires you to (a) contact the auction house, (b) ask if they will consign your coins and (c) request a contract and terms of service (usually a 10-20% selling fee).

You can find menu tabs of online sellers at Proxiblog’s home page. We are not endorsing these auctions as places to sell coins. Suffice to say that we have either bought or consigned coins to a few of these and find them reputable. Your experience may differ.

Step 7: Accept Reality

Unless you are a skilled hobbyist, chances are you bought or purchased coins with flaws or have dozens or even hundreds of raw coins that have little value, despite what the Blue and Red books state. Sellers have to earn a profit, too, and may not want to photograph, list and pay fees for your coins on their sites unless they are fairly confident that they will sell.

Even coin shops, loaded with junk coins and low value mint sets, typically will only be looking at the precious metal or rarity of your coins. You can sell part of your collection or hold out for a price for everything, even coins of little value or ones holdered by bottom-tier companies that exaggerate condition.

In other words, anticipate low-ball offers and seller’s remorse.

Sometimes it is worth taking a loss and focusing on what you can get for inexpensive coins or sets, just to dispense with them. A typical coin dealer will usually pay about 70-75% of current market value.

Now for the ultimate reality check: taxes. Refer back to your inventory. You will need to know what you paid and what you received for your coins. You should have these data in your inventory.

The Internal Revenue Service classifies gold and silver as collectibles. Capital gains are taxed at a maximum rate of 28% of any profit. Go to this IRS site for more information.

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You can find more information about types, varieties, errors, grading, bidding and buying in Coin News Updated: The Essential Guide to Online Bidding. Please consider buying or gifting the work for a friend, as it underwrites this hobbyist blog. Thank you.

Coin designations raise value

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In addition to mintage, mint marks and condition, expert hobbyists not only know the various coin designations but also study each series to see which ones increase values–some by hundreds and even thousands of dollars.

Take a moment out of roll and error hunting and learn these.

Know the Designations and Abbreviations

Here are PCGS designations and abbreviations (other holdering companies may have different abbreviations):

CENT: RED (R), RED BROWN (RB), BROWN (B)

Colors describing the brilliance or patina on cents, not only Lincoln cents but the denomination. Values for “red” brilliant uncirculated cents command the highest retail prices.

JEFFERSON NICKEL: FULL STEPS (FS)

Showing a strong strike for coins grading MS60 or higher, with at least five unbroken steps visible on the reverse Monticello building.

MERCURY DIME: FULL BANDS (FB)

Showing the middle bands of the fasces are clearly separated with no breaks, scratches or marks in coins grading at least MS60.

ROOSEVELT DIME: FULL BANDS (FB)

Showing the lower and upper bands of the torch are clearly separated with no breaks, scratches or marks in coins grading at least MS60.

STANDING LIBERTY QUARTER: FULL HEAD (FH)

Showing three leaves on the head, ear hole must be present, and hairline distinct.

FRANKLIN HALF: FULL BELL LINES (FBL)

Showing the full, uninterrupted lines on the lower ones of the bell device for coins grading at least MS60.

CAMEO/DEEP CAMEO

A glossy or matte surface on devices, appearing frosty on both sides of the coin, distinguishing them from the fields. The degree of frostiness establishes the designation. If one side is deep cameo and another side, only cameo (depicted below), them the designation is cameo, as both sides must contain the requisite frostiness.

DEEP MIRROR PROOFLIKE (DMPL)/PROOFLIKE (PL)

Mirror-like reflectivity of 4-6 inches for DMPL and 2-4 inches for PL used in coins of all denomiations, not just Morgan dollars.

Research the Series for High Values

After you have learned the various designations, then go to the PCGS Coin Values site and identify which years and designations bring the highest premiums. Here are a few samples:

CENT (R, RB, B)

JEFFERSON NICKEL (FS)

MERCURY DIME (FB)

ROOSEVELT DIME (FB)

STANDING LIBERTY QUARTER (FH)

FRANKLIN HALF (FBL)

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You can find more information about types, varieties, errors, grading, bidding and buying in Coin News Updated: The Essential Guide to Online Bidding. Please consider buying or gifting the work for a friend, as it underwrites this hobbyist blog. Thank you.

Identifying Full Bands on Roosevelt Dimes

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The coin above, safe in my bank box, graded MS67FB, a high designation bringing a $50 premium due to strike, retailing at $130. (The lovely patina will bring hundreds more.) To earn the coveted full bands label, the coin must be a business strike, uncirculated with full separation minus any disruption (bagmark, cuts, scratch, etc.) on the upper and lower horizontal bands of the torch.

This equally lovely 1960-D Roosevelt did not earn the FB designation, coming in also at MS67. Do you see why it failed?

My 1960-D dime value is $55. A portion of the lower band shows a tiny break in the bands on the right. Otherwise it would be worth $375. Compare it now to the full bands designation of the 1958-D so that you can discern the subtle differences.

You want to seek full bands on all Roosevelt dimes. However, these may bring the highest premiums, according to PCGS: 1949-S, 1955-S, 1958, 1965, and 1994-D. To compare, an MS67 1949-D without full bands is worth $110 while with full bands is valued at $850.

The same premiums hold true for the full bands designation on Mercury dimes. You can read about that here.

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You can find more information about types, varieties, errors, grading, bidding and buying in Coin News Updated: The Essential Guide to Online Bidding. Please consider buying or gifting the work for a friend, as it underwrites this hobbyist blog. Thank you.