Morgans in my area all seem to have the same issue, regardless of MS. Normal?
ArmantheDobe
Posts: 7 ✭
As new as I am to this hobby, I have approached it from the standpoint of buying what I like, even if the “classification” or grade isn’t always what I would prefer.
My local sellers, and the occasional estate sales that I visit, usually have more Morgan dollars than even Kennedy dollars. I rarely find a Liberty of any type. The Morgans all seem to have facial gouges, much more than the Kennedy dollars. i assume due to softer metals and age-related contact damage?
What bothers me is probably due to my personal attraction to faultless facial images on coins that are rated MS62 whereas the MS66 sitting beside it has visible gouges on the Morgan cheek, chin and neck. How does such damage allow for a rating of MS66, with the obvious price differential in favor of the MS66?
I assume the disparity is due to the points assigned to different items that compose the entire coin, rather than the obvious demerits in the facial gouges.
I have much to learn🙈
Comments
You should buy from someplace else. I would buy from greatcollections.com.
God comes first in everything I do. I’m dedicated to serving Him with my whole life. Coin collecting is just a hobby—but even in that, I seek to honor Him. ✝️
Study the PCGS Photograde.
Kennedy HALF dollars are too cheap to be a good seller at estate sales and auctions.
Bigger coins are heavier and leave more contact marks. That doesn't mean they are ignored in the grading, but they will be more common and now severe on larger coins.
grade is mostly on the overall marks on both sides. a clean cheek will be easier to find on a 66, and the odds severely go against finding them on a 62. however, a clean cheek is not impossible on lower grades
silver kennedy coins are collectible in high grades and some buy them for color. the lower grades go into the "sell as silver" category. the clad ones need to be in good grades.
morgan dollars that are common and circulated still have people picking them up. there is a lot of interest from collectors. however, even those low grade common morgans are sold as silver, and they bring more than a common kennedy silver
know the value before you lay out the cash
all 1882-S in MS66
from https://www.pcgs.com/coinfacts
https://www.ebay.com/itm/267222615517 (not mine & no one i know)
Most 66 morgans are relatively clean
God comes first in everything I do. I’m dedicated to serving Him with my whole life. Coin collecting is just a hobby—but even in that, I seek to honor Him. ✝️
i forgot to mention pcgs and ngc have plus grades now
https://www.pcgs.com/news/two-leading-grading-services-announce-plus-grading
The question is who gave the coin an MS 66 grade? Is it one of the top grading companies (PCGS, NGC, CACG, Anacs, ICG) or is it a "basement" slab (self graded by the dealer or some other company that is known to not have high standards). If you have a PCGS 62 next to a PCGS 66, you should see a fairly clear difference in quality, with the 66 being superior.
Signed up with GC auction house. Nice supply of info and historical pricing there. Thanks!
heritage auctions and stacks bowers are a must, too
Go slow. There are plenty of coins out there to buy.
No problem brother. Here to help.
God comes first in everything I do. I’m dedicated to serving Him with my whole life. Coin collecting is just a hobby—but even in that, I seek to honor Him. ✝️