PCGS coin restoration service. Walking Liberty half

Ron1968

Hello to anyone who may know. Will putting a PCGS graded coin through the PCGS coin restoration process improve the grade of your coin? I recently had a metal detector find graded and it came back an AU55. I am very pleased with that but I am also curious about whether or not the restoration process offered by PCGS would improve the grade. If it will and my coin even went up 1 or 2 grades it would increase the value substantially. Any thought and opinions would be appreciated! Ron

ifthevamzarockin

Dang! Nice metal detector find! Congrats!

291fifth

The grade should not change. You coin looks great just as it is. Be happy with it and save your money.

Treashunt

@291fifth said:
The grade should not change. You coin looks great just as it is. Be happy with it and save your money.

ditto

jesbroken

@291fifth said:
The grade should not change. You coin looks great just as it is. Be happy with it and save your money.

This is very good advice. Your coin does have wear, so not much chance of improvement with preservation.
Great find.
Jim

Ron1968

Thank you. I am very happy with it. Was just curious. Thanks for the advice all. I’ll save my money and my coin. I found it in the dirt and have grown fond of it. Thank you

ricko

@Ron1968 .... I agree with the above.... Leave it as is.... A truly great MD find and a good AU grade...Cheers, RickO

TurtleCat

The grade shouldn’t change... However, remember that eye appeal can be part of the grade evaluation. In some situations improving the eye appeal may lead to a higher grade. This is the era of market grading so if a coin’s value is improved by conservation it might be reflected in a + change or a grade bump.

That said, I would never expect a big jump in any case.

bigole

I was excited a couple of days ago when I pulled a nice 1936 Lincoln cent out of the coinstar slot at Walmart.

CONGRATULATIONS! A 1920-D half dollar grading AU55 found with a metal detector? I had no idea that was possible. Keep up whatever you're doing.......

koynekwest

My 1921 Peace dollar improved from MS62 to MS63. Eye appeal must have been a factor in that as its appearance improved dramatically after conservation. I've only ever submitted two items for conservation-the aforementioned Peace dollar and a bronze MacNeil Pan-American medal. In both cases there was a huge improvement.

Ron1968

@bigole said:
I was excited a couple of days ago when I pulled a nice 1936 Lincoln cent out of the coinstar slot at Walmart.

CONGRATULATIONS! A 1920-D half dollar grading AU55 found with a metal detector? I had no idea that was possible. Keep up whatever you're doing.......

Bigole, I didn’t know it was possible either!! lol. As an aside I found another 1918 S Walker on my property about 100 feet from where I found the 1920. >. @koynekwest said:

My 1921 Peace dollar improved from MS62 to MS63. Eye appeal must have been a factor in that as its appearance improved dramatically after conservation. I've only ever submitted two items for conservation-the aforementioned Peace dollar and a bronze MacNeil Pan-American medal. In both cases there was a huge improvement.

Koynekwest, that is great! The possibility of a jump in grade with restoration is what interested me. MS62 to MS63 is a nice bump!

ifthevamzarockin

"I found another 1918 S Walker on my property about 100 feet from where I found the 1920."

Mind posting your address so I know where to dig at night?

FranklinHalfAddict

Just something else to add...
An AU coin is a circulated coin. It has some wear to it. There is material missing from the coin that was originally there when it was minted.
Restoring any circulated coin will not magically added the material back and make it an uncirculated coin.

Ron1968

@ifthevamzarockin said:
"I found another 1918 S Walker on my property about 100 feet from where I found the 1920."

Mind posting your address so I know where to dig at night?

You are welcome to give it a go. I’ve been over it many times!

ifthevamzarockin

@Ron1968 said:
You are welcome to give it a go. I’ve been over it many times!

Since you are being soo nice about it do you mind if I knock on your door at 2:00 am to borrow your metal detector & a shovel?

ms70

...

Ron1968

Thanks MS70!> @ifthevamzarockin said:

@Ron1968 said:
You are welcome to give it a go. I’ve been over it many times!

Since you are being soo nice about it do you mind if I knock on your door at 2:00 am to borrow your metal detector & a shovel? :

Wait till 430AM. I don’t get up till 400AM

airplanenut

While restoration could (could, not will!) improve the grade, it would likely be because dull surfaces become more vibrant or particularly poor eye appeal is improved. I say that as a very generic statement. With respect to your coin, it's wholesome as-is, and would likely look worse if stripped of its toning, especially if there isn't much underlying lustre to be revealed. Additionally, it's AU because it has wear. The only place it could go is a 58. It's not as though it's an ugly uncirculated coin where it could jump many grades (and again, that wouldn't be likely for nearly any candidate coin--I say that just as a hypothetical that once the coin is uncirculated, there's a lot more room to go up in theory because there are more grades).

NumisOxide

Awesome find! I agree I think she's graded properly. Curious where you dug such a nice coin up? How far down dig you need to dig?

Ron1968

@coinJP said:
Awesome find! I agree I think she's graded properly. Curious where you dug such a nice coin up? How far down dig you need to dig?

This coin was not deep and was on my own property with a 1908 Barber and a 1918 nickel. Two or three inches. I have dug other Barber dimes on my property that were 5 to 6 inches deep

ms70

Posted before but here again to make the OP aware.... My results on an AU50 coin. It's more blast white than the pic shows. Does that look right for an AU50? I was only looking to get rid of that liquid stain on the cap and down Liberty's arm. If I knew this is what would happen I wouldn't have done it. A phone call warning me that they couldn't do it without blasting the entire coin would've been nice.

Ron1968

There was also a 1920 penny dug with these coins.

clarkbar04

The missing element for a higher grade is luster. The century in the ground has stripped some luster away. Restoration service will make it look like a dull, lifeless coin.

Ron1968

My own place has been good detecting!




I don’t think it had seen a detector until I searched it

clarkbar04

Was there a store on your property before?

Ron1968

@clarkbar04 said:
The missing element for a higher grade is luster. The century in the ground has stripped some luster away. Restoration service will make it look like a dull, lifeless coin.

Thanks clarkbar04. I’m going to keep it as is. AU55 is a good grade for something that probably sat in the ground for 100 years. The graders know their business and in happy to have it!!

TomB

That is a spectacular find. Not only is it cool to get a WLH out of the ground, but to find a 1920-D in AU is a near-miracle. I write this not only because of the high grade of the individual coin, but especially because the 1920-D is one of the most underrated WLHs in VF and above. The coin is spectacularly difficult to find circulated and with original surfaces and significant meat.

As for your coin, there is nothing but pain, regret and out-of-pocket expense ahead of you if you decide to send it in for "restoration". I put "restoration" in quotes because PCGS will not restore it at all, they will simply strip away some of the most outer layer of the surface to reveal underlying metal. An AU coin is an AU coin for a reason and that reason is detectable wear. The coin might bump in grade from a wholesome AU55 to a dipped AU55+ or AU58, but it isn't going into the MS grades. Additionally, the eye appeal will likely take a big hit to most collectors and this can make the coin less liquid in the future.

Great find!

Ron1968

Thanks for looking and for your advice TomB! I am going to keep my encapsulated AU55 at home.

Clarkbar, no store here. A family that were storekeepers in the county I live in lived here from the early 1900’s to the early 90’s. My father in law bought the place and my wife and I bought it from him. There is also an old railroad depot maybe 75 yards away from my house that was here before the house. My house is over 100 years old. I don’t think this property ever saw a metal detector before I bought my Minelab Equinox. I have beat the hell out of most of the property with my metal detector now. There are a couple spots I still need to go over but some things need to be moved for that to happen first. Thanks again for looking!

ms70

@TomB said:
As for your coin, there is nothing but pain, regret and out-of-pocket expense ahead of you if you decide to send it in for "restoration". I put "restoration" in quotes because PCGS will not restore it at all, they will simply strip away some of the most outer layer of the surface to reveal underlying metal. An AU coin is an AU coin for a reason and that reason is detectable wear. The coin might bump in grade from a wholesome AU55 to a dipped AU55+ or AU58, but it isn't going into the MS grades. Additionally, the eye appeal will likely take a big hit to most collectors and this can make the coin less liquid in the future.

Absolutely true. I'll bet if I cracked out my half dime and sent it in raw they'd bodybag it.

Jimnight

What @291fifth said.

winesteven

@Ron1968 - I’ve used PCGS Restoration several times.
1. PCGS guarantees they will not lower the grade: “Submitting a coin for PCGS Restoration in no way guarantees the upgrade of your coin. If the coin is already in a PCGS holder, it is guaranteed not to downgrade, nothing more. Through our restoration service, PCGS is committed to preserving and restoring coins to their original and natural condition.”
2. I have a $20 1904 Liberty that is one of the very few coins I purchased on eBay. It was graded MS64+ by PCGS and had a CAC. It now grades MS65+, and CAC chose to sticker it again.
3. Ignoring shipping charges, PCGS Restoration will only charge $10 to examine your PCGS graded coin. If they decide they will not restore it, that’s a small cost. If they do restore it, they charge 3% of the value in its final grade($10 minimum). Not bad!
4. Keep in mind if it is restored, you absolutely cannot retain the same cert number.

Steve

Ron1968

Thank you Steve. Sounds safe but I think I’ll keep it as it is. I am definitely not a coin grader or even a collector other than the older American coins I have pulled out of the ground. I truly appreciate everyone’s input on this coin. This is a great forum with a lot of helpful people. Thanks again!!!

Catbert

@winesteven while you had success with your coin, have you seen the OP’s coin pic and are you recommending restoration? I think that would be a big mistake.

winesteven

I wasn’t commenting on this specific coin, but was providing generic information, since I believe some forum members might not be too familiar with this service, or have misinformation.

winesteven

I'm going out on limb here, disagreeing with many above:

The PCGS Price Guide is showing $1950 in AU-55 and $2850 in AU-58.

As such, $58.50 is the Restoration fee if staying at AU55, $85.50 IF upgraded to AU58, and $10 if not accepted for restoration. While I'm in the minority, if it were MY coin, I'd send it in. I fully agree the chance of an upgrade is very minor, but I have confidence in the people at PCGS Restoration that if indeed the coin is restored, the eye appeal would be enhanced, which would be terrific for a coin at this AU55 price point! As noted above, if restored, the grade cannot be reduced.

LanceNewmanOCC

@ms70 said:

is your coin a major mpd?

ms70

@LanceNewmanOCC said:

@ms70 said:

is your coin a major mpd?

Yup. And also the finest graded and not cheap. Not easy to find. It looks ridiculous and I'm really furious over it. If they knew that's how it would turn out they should've let me know in advance and I would've passed. I figured it would just be a non-intrusive removal of that stain. It's completely stripped of all originality and looks like it was bathed in battery acid. I really wonder what they'd do if I cracked it out and sent it in raw.

ironmanl63

@ms70 said:
Posted before but here again to make the OP aware.... My results on an AU50 coin. It's more blast white than the pic shows. Does that look right for an AU50? I was only looking to get rid of that liquid stain on the cap and down Liberty's arm. If I knew this is what would happen I wouldn't have done it. A phone call warning me that they couldn't do it without blasting the entire coin would've been nice.

I am guessing that they thought they could. Once they started they found out they couldn't and it was too late. The final result was the best they could come up with. Purely speculation on my part. This is why I do not play with conserving coins. If the professionals can fail like this how would I do?

ms70

@ironmanl63 said:

@ms70 said:
Posted before but here again to make the OP aware.... My results on an AU50 coin. It's more blast white than the pic shows. Does that look right for an AU50? I was only looking to get rid of that liquid stain on the cap and down Liberty's arm. If I knew this is what would happen I wouldn't have done it. A phone call warning me that they couldn't do it without blasting the entire coin would've been nice.

I am guessing that they thought they could. Once they started they found out they couldn't and it was too late. The final result was the best they could come up with. Purely speculation on my part. This is why I do not play with conserving coins. If the professionals can fail like this how would I do?

Yup. Never again.

LanceNewmanOCC

@ms70 said:

not that it matters now but it would have been difficult to have reduced the darker areas of staining/toning w/o disrupting the original skin in places it should be left alone. stripping it may not have been the end of the world as there are avenues to take to get it naturally retoned. several ideas come to mind and here are only a few.

there are at least a couple/few routes to take. it looks like a nice coin, not much fear of details if resubmitted, even if it takes a couple tries.

try cac

or

Walkerfan

This coin will not benefit from conservation. In all likelihood; it will be made worse. I would leave it, as it is. It looks fine to me, anyway. I much prefer an original look.