Guess the Grade - Franklin Half (revealed in comments)
U1chicago
Posts: 6,246 ✭✭✭✭✭
Please guess the grade of this toned Franklin Half Dollar.
I have included the PCGS Trueview and a GC Great Photo.
2
Comments
MS67
A beauty.
peacockcoins
I’ll guess 66+.
MS65.
If it was a white coin I would say MS63+, MS64 tops. With the bump for toning, I will say MS65. I feel there are too many hits and scrapes hidden by the toning.
Life member of ANA
65+
too much chatter and rub for better, but nice ea.
I am going with MS66
66
Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value. Zero. Voltaire. Ebay coinbowlllc
65
MS65, includes the bump for nice toning
65 and I'd almost bet they were both imaged by Phil
"Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working" Pablo Picasso
MS-65+
Yes
Phil Arnold
Director of Photography, GreatCollections
greatcollections.com
65
Very nice toner.
5
66 no fbl
MS66
Young Numismatist • My Toned Coins
Life is roadblocks. Don't let nothing stop you, 'cause we ain't stopping. - DJ Khaled
Reveal tomorrow
I am with the 65s
66+
65
And the answer is MS 64. It is an older blue holder and I think the grade is a bit conservative. Normally one might see a market grade for the color but I believe this was a technical grade.
There is a video posted on IG as well:
This coin strikes me as a member of a growing number of toned coins which are pretty, but only if held at the proper angle or photographed under just the right light. Absent either of those they appear dark. It is part of the reason why whenever I have been viewing images of a toned coined I step away if I can't see images of it straight on with no "assistance" to help me see color. To my way of thinking, coins such as this are past their prime toning age and in the twilight of their existence, on the way to terminal black/brown. Encapsulation may have prevented that here, or at least slowed the process, but I can't see this coin as anything but a too dark example.
It’s not too dark nor does it need assistance to see the color. Under normal viewing conditions all the colors pop. It’s up there among the best Franklins I’ve had.
That isn't verified by any of the images posted to this thread, they all make the coin look different. In order of progression there is the PCGS TrueView, the GC image and your in-holder image. The first two were taken by the same photographer and it appears from the images that he used more light for the 2nd image, it is considerably brighter. The in-holder image is quite dark and shows scant color, though it looks like it's there if the lighting angle was different.
I'm glad you're happy with it. I'm only sharing my perception and criteria for how I judge toned coins. Far too many of those I see offered for sale today as spectacular with intense lighting are only that way if viewed at the proper angle with intense light.
I'll take you at your word that this Franklin is one of those.
I think I am going to kind of slow down or stop playing these GTGs.
Lately it has only lead to a bit of personal embarrassment.
peacockcoins
Pat, there’s no good reason to be embarrassed. All we can do is go by the pictures presented. And since pictures don’t allow us to tilt and rotate coins under a light, there’s plenty of opportunity to guess “wrong” or even way “wrong”.
In this case, I probably would have guessed MS66. And if someone had guessed “correctly” at MS64, I would have thought that was silly.😉
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
I would not call your guess embarrassing at all. I would have said 66 if guessing myself and mentioned already that the coin looks like it could have been in a higher graded holder. I actually compared it with a 67 and liked this one better (the 67 was properly graded but this one stood up nicely, especially with the eye appeal). So please keep guessing and don’t worry about being “off” as it happens to all of us. Plus this is just for fun anyways.