What should I do about PCGS submissions?

khayse

I've submitted coins to PCGS on two occasions, about 8 Walkers total.
Judging from the grades I've received back I have absolutely no
idea how to grade this coin. I've been at least two and sometimes eight
points off.

Now my question, should I:
Stop buying coins at all. I must be completely incompetent so any money
I spend on coins will be a complete WAG on whether it's any good.

Stop having coins graded and only buy them already in the slab.

Send recently slabbed coins to NGC as a tie-breaker as to what grade they are.

Assume the non-dealer PCGS submission process is corrupt. Test it by cracking
out some PCGS coins and see if they come back the same grade.

Ignore it. Way too small of a sample size.

Blindly keep plugging away.

I have the book. I have a good magnifying glass. I've seen hundreds of slabbed
Walkers and own about 50. I THINK I know what I'm doing but I just can't seem
to get PCGS to agree.

Ideas?

-KHayse

keithdagen

KHayse,

I don't think that PCGS is harder on non-"Dealers," but they can be brutal -- looking at the coins as they are now in the slab, do you still disagree with the grades?

PS -- go grade the Kennedy I posted and see what you think of it.

Russ

<< <i>Test it by cracking out some PCGS coins and see if they come back the same grade. >>



I did that. Four out of five didn't.

Russ, NCNE

khayse

Keith,
I'll let you know. I don't have them back yet.
(and I'll post pictures)
I couldn't possibly agree with the grades though. One of them
came back as a 62. (62?!?!?) Unless the postal truck ran it
over before delivering it I don't know how PCGS and I have any
common ground for grading.

> I did that. Four out of five didn't.
Russ,
I swear if I ever receive similar results I will never buy a sight unseen
coin again.

Thanks,
-KHayse

keithdagen

I got several back once that were at least 2 grades lower per than expected, and in the slab, I agreed with the lower grade. I changed the way I packed them at that point.

Android

I am to the point that I will rarely buy a sight unseen SLAB. I find great slabbed (and raw) coins at every coin show I attend. Most of the raw coins I buy at shows get sent in to be graded by the "pros", and almost always come back graded exactly what I thought they would be. Almost every time I buy a slabbed coin on Ebay, I am dissapointed. How and why these coins acheived the lofty grade they received from the services is a mystery to me. The quality difference between the slabbed coins I find at shows and what I've purchased on Ebay is simply astonishing. To me the assurance of buying PCGS or NGC slabbed coins on Ebay is non-existant unless there is an incredibly accurate and detailed scan, not the miniscule picture of the slab that looks as though the picture was taken from an orbiting satellite!

I guess coin collecting is like most other things in life - difficult. If it was easy, we'd all be rich and have #1 registry sets!

Andy

clackamas

I think that some graders have real tough times with certain issues and therefore should not be grading them. I sent in an MS66 Walker recently from an original roll and it came back AU58. Go figure. I have seen all sorts of wierdness with Lincolns as well.

wallstreetman

I think you should hang it up! Eight points off, what are you smoking!

dragon

Khayse,

Hey, don't worry about it, Walkers can sometimes be tricky to grade correctly and PCGS makes quite a few errors on them too.

My advice for you would be to examine as many PCGS and NGC graded Walkers as possible as well as looking at a lot of pics of various dates and grades in the series on auction websites like Heritage or B & M. It just takes practice and knowing what to look for when grading, thats all. Also, buy a few common dates in various certified MS and AU grades and look at them closely to see differences in strike, lustre, location of marks, wear spots, etc. Then you can also use them as a grading reference tool for future purchases too. Don't get discouraged, it just takes time and practice.

Dragon

Wallstreetman, Your comment was unnecessary, from most of your posts, I often wonder what YOU'RE smoking

rkfish

Khayse,

We've all been there....don't get to discouraged! Read Dragon's thread real good. As usual he offers some wonderful advice!

I wonder why some people have to make the comments (attacks) they do! Geezzzz......

BowAxe

<< <i>I got several back once that were at least 2 grades lower per than expected, and in the slab, I agreed with the lower grade. I changed the way I packed them at that point. >>




Keith, what do you mean by changing the way you packed them, and what difference did that make?

robbnsc

My biggest issue with slabbed coins, from all services, is grading of Indian Gold ($2.50, $5.00 & $10.00). Given that these coins are difficult to grade, especially the two inclused coins. I do not think that any of the services can consistantly grade these issues. I bet that if you sent one of the inclused coins in three times to both PCGS and Brand X, you would get a different grade each time.