FAQ for you: Acronyms (e.g. TTT, BIN, DMPL)

nwcs · March 7, 2003 3:47AM

Since it sometimes comes up, and we have some new members here, I thought I'd post some commonly used acronyms and abbreviations.

Neil

ACG -- ACcu-Grade. Grading service. Controversial at present, because the assigned grades
seem to be inflated relative to standard services like PCGS and NGC.
AG (AG3) -- About Good. Grade.
ANA -- American Numismatic Association. Collector and dealer organization.
ANACS -- (originally) American Numismatic Association Certification Service. Grading
service. It has since been sold to a company independent of the ANA.
AU (AU50, AU53, AU55, AU58) -- About Uncirculated. Grade.
B# (B1-B10?) -- Browning number (1925). Die variety - Bust Quarters, 1796-1838.
B# (B1-B23?) Bolender number (1950, 1998). Die variety - Silver Dollars, 1794-1803.
BB# (BB1-BBn?) -- Bowers and Borckardt number (1993). Die variety - Silver Dollars,
1794-1804 and later.
BG# (BG101-BG1313) -- Breen and Gillio number (1983). Die variety - California private
gold, 1852-1882.
BIN -- Buy It Now. eBay (www.ebay.com) phrase.
BN -- Brown. Color grade for uncirculated copper coins (BN, RB, or RD).
BU (MS60?) -- Brilliant Uncirculated. Vague Grade.
BV -- Bullion Value. The value of the coin is closely related to its metallic content
(usually silver or gold).
C -- Charlotte (North Carolina). Mintmark, 1838-61, gold coins only.
C# (C1-C23?) -- Cohen number (1982). Die variety - Half Cents, 1793-1857.
CC -- Carson City (Nevada). Mintmark, 1870-93, gold and silver coins only.
CMM# (CMM1-CMM13?) -- Cohen, Munson, Munde number (1971). Die variety - Half Cents,
1793-1857.
CSDG -- California Small Denomination Gold.
CW -- Coin World. Publication.
D -- Dahlonega (Georgia). Mintmark, 1838-61, gold coins only.
D -- Denver (Colorado). Mintmark, 1906-.
DC (DCAM) -- Deep Cameo. High grade proof.
DDO -- Doubled Die Obverse. Type of die variety.
DDR -- Doubled Die Reverse. Type of die variety.
DMPL -- Deep Mirror Proof Like. Business strike, with deep mirrored planchet.
EAC -- Early American Coppers, Inc. Collector and dealer organization.
EF (EF40, EF45) -- Extremely Fine. Grade.
F (F12, F15) -- Fine. Grade.
FS# (FS1-FS?) -- Fivaz and Stanton number (19xx). Die variety - many series.
FS -- For Sale. Internet phrase.
G (G4, G6) -- Good. Grade.
GMM -- Gallery Mint Museum. A current producer of replicas of early US coins.
ICGS -- Independent Coin Grading Service. Grading service.
J# (J1-J1778?) -- Judd number (1959-77). Pattern or experimental coin.
JR# (JR1-JR13?) -- John Reich number (Davis, et al, 1984). Die variety - Bust Dimes,
1794-1837.
KM# (KM1-KM?) -- Krause and Mishler number. From Standard Catalog of World Coins. Type of
world coin. Includes California, Mormon, Colorado, Hawaii.
MS (MS60-MS70) -- Mint State. (Uncirculated, business strike). Grade.
N# (N1-N17?) -- Newcomb number (1944). Die variety - Large Cents, 1816-1868.
N# (N1-N105?) -- Newman number (1952). Die variety - Fugio Cents, 1787.
NARU -- Not A Registered User (implies account terminated due to violation of rules).
EBay(www.ebay.com) phrase.
NC -- Not Collectable. A unique or nearly unique coin. Usually one of Sheldon's die
varieties of Large Cents. At the time of Sheldon's "Penny Whimsey" (1958),
for a coin to be NC, there had to be less than 3 specimens known.
NGC -- Numismatic Guarantee Corporation. Grading service.
NLG -- Numismatic Literary Guild. A prestigious organization of writers of numismatically
related articles, books, etc.
NN -- Numismatic News. Publication.
NTC -- Numistrust Corporation. Grading service.
O# (O101-O128?) -- Overton number (1970). Die variety - Bust Half Dollars, 1794-1836.
OMM -- Over MintMark. Two different mintmarks involved. (versus RPM, which is the same
mintmark punched more than once). Type of die variety.
OT -- Off Topic. Internet phrase.
P -- Philadelphia (Pennsylvania). Mintmark, 1942-45 (5c only), 1979- (all but 1c).
Sometimes denotes absence of mintmark.
PCGS -- Professional Coin Grading Service. Grading service.
PCI -- Photo-certified Coin Institute. Grading service.
PF (PF60-PF70) -- Proof. Type of coin production and/or Grade. Contrasts with business
strike.
PL -- Proof Like. Business strike, with mirrored planchet.
PNG -- Professional Numismatists Guild. Dealer organization.
PQ -- Premium Quality. Sometimes part of the sealed slab grade, such as a MS64 PQ
(not quite good enough for MS65). Often it is just a hype adjective like "Choice" or
"Select".
PR (PR60-PR70) -- Proof. Type of coin production and/or Grade. Contrasts with business
strike.
PVC -- Poly Vinyl Chloride. An ingredient of soft plastic "flip" coin holders which will
damage coins over time.
R# (R1-R8)
Rarity scale. R1 most common; R8 least common. The often used Sheldon scale is:
R8 = 1-3 known (estimated), "Unique or Nearly Unique"
R7 = 4-12 known, "Extremely Rare"
R6 = 13-30 known, "Very Rare"
R5 = 31-75 known, "Rare"
R4 = 76-200 known, "Very Scarce"
R3 = 201-500 known, "Scarce"
R2 = 501-1250 known, "Uncommon"
R1 = over 1251 known, "Common"
RB -- Red-Brown. Color grade for uncirculated copper coins (BN, RB, or RD).
RD -- Red. Color grade for uncirculated copper coins (BN, RB, or RD).
RIC -- Roman Imperial Coinage.
ROFL -- Rolling On the Floor Laughing. Internet phrase.
RPC -- Roman Provincial Coinage.
RPD -- RePunched Date. Type of die variety.
RPM -- RePunched Mintmark. Type of die variety.
RSC -- Roman Silver Coinage.
S -- San Francisco (California). Mintmark, 1854-1955, 1968-.
S# (S1-S295?) -- Sheldon number (1949). Die variety - Large Cents, 1793-1814.
S# (S1-S9?) -- Snow number (1992). Die variety - Flying Eagle and Indian Head Cents,
1856-1909.
SEGS -- Sovereign Entities Grading Service. Grading service.
SP -- Specimen. Better than business strike, but not quite a proof.
TTT -- used on this forum to bump up threads to the top of the list
UC (UCAM) -- Ultra Cameo. High grade proof.
UNC (Unc., MS60?) -- Uncirculated. Grade.
V# (V1-V10?) -- Valentine number (1975). Die variety - Half Dimes, 1794-1873.
VAM# (VAM1-VAM230?) -- Van Allen and Mallis number (1976). Die variety - Morgan Dollars,
1878-1921.
VG (VG8, VG10) -- Very Good. Grade.
VF (VF20, VF30, perhaps VF35) -- Very Fine. Grade.
W -- West Point (New York). Mintmark, 1984-.
WTB -- Wanted To Buy. Internet phrase.
XF (XF40, XF45) -- eXtremely Fine. Grade.

longtimecollector · March 7, 2003 4:03AM

missed this one.....

WB#....... referring to Wiley/Bugert variety for the seated half dollar collector

Cameo CC · March 7, 2003 4:04AM

WOW - Great job NWCS!

Todd

LanLord · March 7, 2003 4:05AM

How about this one:

TLA - a three letter acronym that stands for "three letter acronym"

Okay, so it's not coin related, it's still appropriate.

BushMan · March 7, 2003 4:24AM

As a newbie here, I really appreciate the help there NWCS.

NumisEd · March 7, 2003 4:25AM

How about these:

MM = madmarty
LB = lucy bop, or long beach
R = Russ
DK = Dork Karl

But seriously, how could you forget AT (artificial toning, or album toning)??

ursabear · March 7, 2003 5:42AM

Don't forget FS (Full Steps).

Nice compilation. Thank you very much for taking all that time to make a compendium for us. I know I'll keep a bookmark to it.

nwcs · March 7, 2003 6:11AM

I'm glad if the list can help someone. I have to admit I copied it from a much earlier list and modified it some. Maybe I'll compile the ultimate list and host it on a web site sometime?

paigowjohnny · March 7, 2003 6:14AM

- BB...body bag

- PM...private message...a function of the forum
- MAO...see ROFL(also ROTFL)...that part of the anatomy one is laughing off while rolling on the floor.
- FBL...full bell lines...Franklin halves....don't bother to memorize this one, only a few people have any interest in Frankies any way

nwcs · March 9, 2003 10:14AM

TTT because it might be helpful

ajaan · March 9, 2003 10:20AM

NCLT - Non-Circulating Legal Tender. 'Darkside' term. Used for coins that are struck for sale to collectors and not for circulation.

roadrunner · March 9, 2003 10:41AM

DHW.........."wearing" Diane Hager wig.

roadrunner

nwcs · March 11, 2003 3:25AM

ttt

satootoko · March 11, 2003 3:34AM

Also Y# - the Yoeman number which Krause & Mishler use for coins that have them, instead of assigning another one.

NumisEd · March 11, 2003 3:37AM

PCGSACG, the acronym for the company resulting from a PCGS and ACG merger.

TWQG · March 11, 2003 5:04AM

TT = Teletrade. Another auction company.

remumc · March 11, 2003 5:37AM

FB Full Bands on Mercs

FSB Full Split Bands on Mercs

(ROTFLMAO) WTIME With tears in my eyes

Regards,

Wayne

paigowjohnny · March 11, 2003 5:41AM

BOHICA--Bend Over, Here It Comes Again...usually associated with submitting cross over attempts.

nwcs · March 31, 2003 9:58PM

ttt

nwcs · April 25, 2003 11:26AM

ttt again

MadMarty · April 25, 2003 11:28AM

<< <i>ACG -- ACcu-CRAP. Grading service. Controversial at present, because the assigned grades >>

Peetie · April 25, 2003 11:34AM

Can you all tell me what Russ, NCNE stands for? Been meaning to ask.

VonZipper · April 25, 2003 11:39AM

<Can you all tell me what Russ, NCNE stands for? Been meaning to ask<CAN you all tell me what Russ, NCNE stands for? Been meaning to ask.>>

I think that was for that auction he had of just the proof envelope for sale.

NCNE = No Coins New Envelope

Askari · April 25, 2003 11:56AM

A great job!! I was surprised that I knew almost all of them.

You might want to add 'WCN' for World Coin News and 'BNR' for Bank Note Reporter, two popular Darkside publications. Also, 'CU' means "Crisp Uncirculated" over on the US & World Currency Forum. 'FDC' is fleur-de-coin, meaning an essentially perfect "as struck" coin.

<< <i>NCLT - Non-Circulating Legal Tender. 'Darkside' term. Used for coins that are struck for sale to collectors and not for circulation. >>

Not a Darkside term, but a general numismatic term. The US also issues NCLT and most people on this board have one.

nwcs · May 14, 2003 8:28AM

TTT for the recent newbies

nwcs · June 30, 2003 9:25PM

Seemed time again for a bump

Shamika · June 30, 2003 11:45PM

Good job NWCS,

It takes a real East Tennessee boy to show what Southern Hospitality is all about.

You may also want to add:

NCS - Numismatic Conservation Services
IMO - In my opinion
IMHO - In my honest opinion

thadd · July 1, 2003 12:09AM

Thanks, this is great. I figure them out sometimes.

Here’s a couple more for the list that stumped me at first. Let me know if I’m wrong. (like you guy’s would let me slide)

SLQ – Standing Liberty Quarter
SE – Silver Eagle, I think I’ve seen this with an A at the front. American?

GE – Gold Eagle. Same as above.

Also, I’ve seen the ROTFLMAO with PIMP at the end. I’m pretty sure I know what the PIMP stands for.

NCNE – I thought this might be an engineering certification but I didn’t recognize it.

How about: NCNE – Numismatic Coin and Note Enthusiast?

Steve27 · July 1, 2003 12:28AM

PCGS "Lingo" Link

nwcs · July 18, 2003 2:46AM

TTT

zenny · July 18, 2003 2:58AM

<< <i>
IMHO - In my honest opinion >>

for some of us it's in our "humble" opinion.

not many, but some.

kamehameha00 · July 18, 2003 3:15AM

ROLFLMAOPIMP

kamehameha00 · July 18, 2003 11:34AM

you missed F-2 AND PO-1

joeyuk · July 18, 2003 9:15PM

sms- special mint set

ah · July 18, 2003 10:40PM

Neil, Thanks for the good info.
Al

MadMarty · July 18, 2003 11:36PM

Let's not forget PITA... Pain In The Ass!

and Russ's NCNE is "No Certifactions, No Education! I asked him about that before!

KlectorKid · July 18, 2003 11:37PM

What about breen numbers? PF (PF60-PF70) Nope check out the Gobrecht dollar in the heritage sale irs PR-8.

BAJJERFAN · July 19, 2003 2:22AM

S.H.I.T Ship High In Transit or so the recent postings on the web say.

BAJJERFAN · July 19, 2003 2:23AM

ACG Alan's Conniving Grading or Alan's Cleaning & Grading

redrum · July 19, 2003 4:52AM

thanks, thanks, thanks. That will be my interpretation of the TTT. Still don't get it what it means---- but the lists are helpul.

Cam40 · July 19, 2003 5:41AM

NG- no grade.....is that the same as body bagged?

JMO- just my opinion.

FUBAR- fixed up beyond all repair.

C D B ?....
S..I C D B..
S .E S A E T B T B 2....

who can translate that...

hint: ....bzzzzzzzz.

BAJJERFAN · July 19, 2003 8:46AM

redrum turn on yur PM
when you reply to a post in a thread that thread then automatically moves to the top of the page.
It is very common for posts on the BUY SELL TRADE forum to sink quickly to the 3rd or 4th page. It is very common also to get back to the top by replying to your own post; thus the plethora of ttt aka to the top replies. BTW HTH

BAJJERFAN · July 19, 2003 10:17AM

HRH HomeRunHall or HisRoyalHighness take yer pick

WUBAR whizzed up beyond all repair
DUBAR dipped up beyond all repair

ACCU-GRADE see FUBAR

Cam40 · July 19, 2003 10:39AM

WYSIWYG= what you see is what you get
NFS=not for sale
EDS=early die state
LDS=late die state
BTW=by the way.....or Booker T Washington

kamehameha00 · July 31, 2003 8:23AM

ttt

KlectorKid · July 31, 2003 8:34AM

Still havent changed pr-60 through 70 to pr1 through 70

Skipper53 · July 31, 2003 9:48AM

Thanks Neil, as an aging newby, I need all the help I can get. I've printed your list to add to my
reference library.

Skipper53 · July 31, 2003 10:20AM

What's SAE ? I think it's Silver American Eagle. Am I right ?

nwcs · July 31, 2003 10:44AM

Yep, Silver American Eagle (SAE) and Gold American Eagle (GAE).

Some day I may collate all these entries into a new FAQ post

lava · July 31, 2003 10:56AM

DPL -- Deep Prooflike -- NGC's term for a DMPL

kamehameha00 · September 20, 2003 5:42AM

ttt

oh yeah,
You forgot WAG.....

FAQ for you: Acronyms (e.g. TTT, BIN, DMPL)

Comments

Leave a Comment