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PCGS vs NGC vs ... Danreller's View

I think each have their strong points. PCGS seems to be very good at grading moderns. But, they are very accurate overall including the old, many times to a fault. NGC is just plain good overall with almost always consistent grading including Japanese coins that I am most knowledgable with that I have seen.

This is truly the case where you "buy the coin" not the slab. They are so close in grading in many respects that I consider them equal. I don't know first hand about their "customer service". I just yesterday signed up as a Platinum PCGS Collector's Club member and will begin submitting coins soon. I found that the NGC site wasn't as "user-friendly" to sign-up with so I'm trying PCGS first. I have to admit that many comments I've read state that NGC is thriving towards customer satisfaction even more than PCGS. I cannot make a determination at this time. I asked PCGS about their Japanese coins POPs and they responded stating it's not available. NGC does list their Japanese stats although I question their accuracy as I have slabbed coins by them that don't even show on their stats. Time will tell.

With ANACS I've seen excellent, even grading to a fault with some of their attributions such as, "tooled" and "cleaned", but, yet I've seen a number of AU coins given the MS grade. I think they are over-harsh with the MS's yet can't fully differentiate AU from MS. I still consider them an excellent grading service equal to NGC and PCGS. In many regards they try to be over-cautious.

I've only had experience with about a dozen SEGS coins, but, I have agreed with all of them. In addition, I like their slab - excellent! I'm not sure why they are "downed' as much as they are. I must qualify again that my population of coins that this is based upon is limited. I can base my PCGS and NGC ratings after hundreds of coins each - almost all in the EF (5%), AU (15%), and MS (80%) area.

My experience with PCI is borderline. I've seen those that I agree with yet just as many I have said to myself "no-way". Their grading is sometimes 1-3 points over.

ACG- an encapsulting ( they can be regarded as a slabbing co.) company only IMO. I've had experiences of over-grading by 7-8 points. Completely inconsistent. I have some Ikes that have been graded by the "old" Accugrade when they were based out of Greenwich, CT that are right-on IMHO. Yet I have had more than a dozen of recently graded coins that are "all over the spectrum". I no longer support ACG in any way.

Just my thoughts,

I hope I don't get raked over the coals on this one.

Dan

Dan

Comments

  • wingedlibertywingedliberty Posts: 4,805 ✭✭✭
    I will now introduce you to my famous beverage analogy.

    PCGS: Coke
    NGC: Pepsi
    ANACS:lemonade
    ICG: Sams club
    PCI: club soda
    ICG: zeltser
    ACG: radioactive slurpie.


    Brian.imageimage
  • winged liberty - why is ICG listed under Sams Club and Seltzer? Are they flat and bubbly at the same time? image
    WHat drink is SEGS?
    Recommended reading - The PCGS Guide to Coin Grading and Counterfeit Detection and The Coin Collector's Survival Manual and NCI Grading Guide
    For the Morgan collectors - The Morgan and Peace encyclopedia by Van Allen and Mallis

    What would your slabbed coins be worth if the grading services went out of business? What would your coins be worth if the Internet was taken offline for good?
  • wingedlibertywingedliberty Posts: 4,805 ✭✭✭
    ICG is flat, they have a great holder , but the grading is terrible with modern specimens receiving
    the most overgrading. I have also had horrific experience with SEGS and will rate them near ICG and
    PCI.


    Brian.
  • SEGS would be the Generic Cola.

    Dan
    Dan
  • SEGS would be the Generic Cola.

    Dan
    Dan
  • SEGS would be the Generic Cola.

    Dan
    Dan
  • Wow! I'm not sure what happened there with the three postsings. I swear I only hit enter once.

    Dan
    Dan
  • wingedlibertywingedliberty Posts: 4,805 ✭✭✭
    I have not found good generic cola.
  • Safeway generic cola isn't any good? I like the cherry lemon lime myself.
    Recommended reading - The PCGS Guide to Coin Grading and Counterfeit Detection and The Coin Collector's Survival Manual and NCI Grading Guide
    For the Morgan collectors - The Morgan and Peace encyclopedia by Van Allen and Mallis

    What would your slabbed coins be worth if the grading services went out of business? What would your coins be worth if the Internet was taken offline for good?
  • coinguy1coinguy1 Posts: 13,484 ✭✭✭
    Dan, which grading service "would be the generic cola"? I didn't want you to mistakenly think that the "third time was (always) the charm". image
  • Coinguy,

    Your post made me take another look. You're right. ANACS would in my estimation rank third. ANACS would be the RC Cola. SEGS is the ? My experience says let's take another look. For a qualification, I have no interest in SEGS or other have any other purpose in supporting them. From what I've seen they deserve a "fourth" look.

    Dan
    Dan
  • mr1931Smr1931S Posts: 6,242 ✭✭✭✭✭
    for what it's worth i like pcgs...they have the most attractive holder notwithstanding their consistency in grading...

    all the services have made mistakes but it's not a problem for this collector who has learned to grade,and too,doesn't play the resubmitting game...

    trivia fact:The AVERAGE PCGS slabbed coin has a market value of almost $1000.

    evaluate the coin before you buy it using your own standards...standards are really a composite of many things but i think the key standard is your own discerning eye which has learned from experience...i make far fewer mistakes in my coin purchases than i made thirty years ago...

    all the services have made mistakes...

    Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds.-Albert Einstein

  • leothelyonleothelyon Posts: 8,459 ✭✭✭✭✭
    I have not found good generic cola.

    It's good enough if you can guzzle it down fast enough before the fizz flies out
    of the can. LOL

    Leo BUURRRPPP! imageimage

    The more qualities observed in a coin, the more desirable that coin becomes!

    My Jefferson Nickel Collection

  • sinin1sinin1 Posts: 7,500
    mr 1874 - I seriously doubt your statement "the average PCGS coin has a market value of $1000" - where did that statistic come from?
  • As always, buying the coin and not the slab is the cold reality. PCGS, NGC and ANACS are the three services that I would trust to authenticate a coin. As far as grading, PCGS seems to be the most conservative. I have personally seen a lot of NGC and ANACS type coins in MS 60, 61 and 62 with way too much rub. Buyer beware in these grades.
  • flaminioflaminio Posts: 5,664 ✭✭✭
    I'd label ANACS the "7-Up" of coin graders. ICG is more of an RC Cola or Safeway Select.
  • mr1931Smr1931S Posts: 6,242 ✭✭✭✭✭
    sinin1:
    mr 1874 - I seriously doubt your statement "the average PCGS coin has a market value of $1000" - where did that statistic come from?

    that was my own calculation made a few years ago.it came from dividing the market value of all coins slabbed by pcgs by the number of coins...

    the figure arrived at,by using their numbers which admittedly doesn't take into account resubmissions or a coin being counted more than once,is $900 plus average per coin based on a total claimed market value for all coins slabbed by them...

    actually,now that i think about it some more,the resubmissions would also be 'counted again' in the total dollar amount of all pcgs coins so there would be little impact on the accuracy of the calculated $900 plus average...

    i was just curious about this average dollar value of pcgs slabbed coins...i'm just full of useless information...

    image

    Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds.-Albert Einstein

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