Remove $5 Indian from PCGS holder?
AntebellumGold
Posts: 73 ✭✭✭
I have this 1915 $5 Indian in an older PCGS AU50 holder. No great rarity as far as mintage or condition.
There is a bit of whitish residue under the Indian's chin and throat.
Should I remove the coin from the holder and use a toothpick to gently remove the residue? I can't think of any big advantage of having this coin in the holder versus removing the residue.
Thoughts?
0
Comments
Welcome to the forum!
It looks like it may be an older holder but without photos of the full slab or at least the tag it is hard to say.
Gold is not very reactive so it shouldn't be a big concern, you may lose if the holder makes the coin worth more.
Sell it. Buy a better one.
Not right now as just keep an eye on it checking it every so often over the course of a year.
Gold is pretty much inert to anything growing on it that will do any damage.
If you decide to crack it just soak it in mineral oil for a couple months and see if it lifts on it's own?
If not then soak the toothpick tip in mineral oil too and gently try to lift it while the coin is also still submerged in oil.
I agree. If you don't like it, sell it an buy one you do like. Taking out of the holder at this point is nothing but a money pit. You spend more to get it re-graded, which could result in a lower grade.
Some holders add value, without knowing which holder the coin is in it is difficult to say but it is possible you could reduce the value of your coin by cracking. And then there is the additional issue of how much value you could lose if the toothpick slips as you attempt to conserve the coin yourself.
My Collection of Old Holders
Never a slave to one plastic brand will I ever be.
I would just keep it as is if it were mine. Or sell it to me for a discount for that ugly white splotch
do not do any do it yourself conservation.
you may harm it in the process.
Thank you for the welcome. I've been lurking here for a few months. I rejoined the hobby following a 30+ year collecting hiatus. I collected early large cents and bust halves as a kid.
The holder isn't too old, but isn't the current PCGS holder, see below.
I've assembled about 20 of these lightly circulated $5 Indians when they're reasonably priced just to have them and admire them, without great concern for the grade.
My main passion (at the moment), is $10 Indians. I have some nice ones.
it's not a collectible holder. you could crack it, but I still advise against cleaning it yourself.
have you tried tapping it on a table face down to see if it is debris?
al gold may not be reactive, but this is 90% gold and the rest is reactive. I wouldn't go to it with chemicals unless you know what you are doing.
Do not attack gold with even a toothpick. You'll mess up the surfaces and end up with a damaged coin that looks even worse. If the spot bothers you, do EVERYONE a favor and just sell it and buy one you like better.
Also, it will be a lot harder to sell for a decent price out of the holder. Many are very leery of the incuse gold Indians when raw, and rightly so. They have been heavily counterfeited, and some of the fakes are very deceiving.
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@GoldIndian "I've been lurking here for a few months. I rejoined the hobby following a 30+ year collecting hiatus."
Welcome back to the hobby and once again welcome to the forum.
As mentioned the holder doesn't add much other than confirming it is authentic.
I would leave it alone or sell it as is and buy another to replace it.
The holder confirms authenticity, and also protects from well-intentioned toothpick mayhem...
Please don’t clean coins
Dave
Ah yes, the confirmation of authenticity is a good enough reason to leave it in the holder, as well as an actual physical reference of what an AU example looks like.
Welcome!
I am in the process of assembling a date set of Indian Head quarter eagles in grades from AU55 to MS64.
Don’t remove. Every other person will tell you it’s counterfeit
Leave as is / consider sell it off off if you don’t like it.
Out of holder they will question if authentic or pay much less.
For what it’s worth, I’ve picked plenty of debris out of gold Indians and still get straight grades. I tear the toothpicks in half and use one of the splinters to do it.
Yes, I'll leave it as is and hang on to it. I'll keep it as an exemplar of an AU50 coin to help guide me to grade raw coins I encounter.
My goal is to put together a "roll" of these (if 20 is considered a roll) in lightly circulated condition without regard to date and mint. There is value to me to have a big handful of these. Although, since I was a kid collector I've thought these were some of the most beautiful coins the US ever produced. I am likely to collect them more seriously in the future.
At the moment, I am more intently collecting the $10 Indians by date and grade.
..or quite possibly from the photos furnished, a no grade.
@GoldIndian .... Welcome back....Good decision to leave it slabbed. Authenticity is prime on these gold coins. Cheers, RickO
I support your decision to keep it slabbed.
Breaking it out will bring to many other aspects of the coin into question.
Wayne
Kennedys are my quest...
Welcome to the forum! ...and an awesome first post.
Definitely keep it slabbed. As someone putting together Classic Gold Type Set, I'm looking for slabbed pieces almost exclusively. Authentication is my main goal as these issues have been heavily counterfeited.
Best of luck!!
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Why would you want to crack it out? If that is the coin's number PCGS can do it for you. The gold that's underneath the milk spot is the coin, not the haze. PCGS should be able to help you out on it. It does however bring up a topic, for me at least: If there are milkspots on gold, what caused it? The plastic?
Hmmmm. Inquiring minds want to know!?
Leave it alone. It’s not a big deal.
I think the fact that you want to go in there and remove it means it will always be on your mind every time you look at it. I don't see any downside of cracking it out, get your fix and resubmit. No matter how it comes back, you learned something while having a smile on your face. I think that is worth the premium of Certified AU to raw AU. Which at last check, is not much compared to the experience you will have. It is a hobby, start hobbing. :-)
Since it is an older holder, PCGS will reholder It for you and can address the speck that is bothering you - all for the low price of ~80 dollars... !!
Even I wouldn't crack it out and I'm . . . well, you know.
From the "for what it's worth department" as others have said the series is one of the most counterfeited of the classic US gold coins and taking it out of the holder would probably result in lower offers when and if you decide to sell. I've submitted hundreds of gold coins to PCGS or NGC over the years and my one and only $5.00 Indian was the only coin that came back as counterfeit.
it's crackers to slip a rozzer the dropsy in snide
Welcome!
I’m working on a roll of quarter Indians but I keep getting sidetracked and I’m stuck at 7. They’re really thin and I think it’s gonna take about 40 or so to fill a tube.