morgan question

spanky0071

I see that alot of you guys buy morgans that are raw. And the ones that you guys post on here look better than the ones in slabs. I know that you dont buy cleaned ones, so my question is, what are the tell-tale signs that one has been cleaned? I would like to pick a couple up on ebay and want to know what to look for. Thanks.

agfox

Let me save you money real quick Don't buy raw high grades on ebay unless from a dealer you know and like. Real hard to shop for those on the crappy scans you get. And hopefully you've seen the photo magic Russ has preformed for us.

FC57Coins

Tell tale sign #1 - stay away from raw stuff on Ebay. I've been burned several times and I refuse to buy anything that's not graded from there. The best way to go about what you're talking about is to go to a show or a dealer and look through some coins. There you will find that UNC's generally have a crispness about them - no wear on high points and smooth brilliance. This works fine until you get to some of the early 1900 dates and 1921's. Here the strikes start being pretty awful and I'm not good enough yet to be certain that I'm looking at an MS63 or 64 and not an AU58.

Frank

nwcs

I recommend strongly against purchasing raw morgans from ebay. Many of us have learned the hard way by purchasing raw on ebay! As for the signs of cleaning, here are some things to look for:

1. No obvious signs of luster
2. Hairlines all over the place
3. Lower grade but very bright

MrKelso

Spanky here is a cleaned coin. May be not a great example but may be helpful

Dog97

all the nice raw Morgans I have I didn't get on eBay. I don't buy raw if it costs more than $50 and there has to be something about it I really like then.
The other guys had some good tips in circs and it's next to impossible to tell on Mint State unless it's so obvious that you see hairlines because most scans & pictures don't show hairlines and of course you can't rotate the picture to look at the luster like you would the coin. No luster or interupted luster is the biggest tip-off.

K6AZ

There is only a couple of sellers on eBay that I trust to buy raw Morgans from, and usually not the expensive ones. Most of the raw coins you see on eBay are either overgraded, or have problems such as cleaning and PVC. Here is a coin that has both problems, note the hairlines and the green goo in between the denticles:



Some of you may remember this one!

Tootawl

<< <i>Spanky here is a cleaned coin. May be not a great example but may be helpful >>



You name your coins? What does Alfalfa and Buckwheat look like? I can kinda guess what Wheezer will look like.

coinkat

Good question. If you are buying raw high end circulated better dates (1895-o, 1889-CC etc...) I still think you are better off going to a larger coin show and seeing the coin before you buy. A cleaned coin will have an unnatural look. For example, while an 1895-o in EF 45 should have signs of original mint lustre, don't confuse lustre with bright surfaces. An original coin should show some signs of age but not necessarily wear depending on the grade. Cleaning can create or magnify hairlines to the point that the surfaces of the coin have been altered effecting the value.

With respect to dipped uncirculated coins it can be more of a challenge. Dipped coins will still have a slightly unnatural look about them. Many unc. Morgans have been dipped and graded by the grading services. Just because a Morgan has been slabbed doesn't make it original...

K6AZ

<< <i>With respect to dipped uncirculated coins it can be more of a challenge. Dipped coins will still have a slightly unnatural look about them. Many unc. Morgans have been dipped and graded by the grading services. Just because a Morgan has been slabbed doesn't make it original... >>



I disagree. Morgan Dollars that have been properly dipped are impossible to detect. Many have been overdipped and dipped incorrectly, these may be what you are referring to.