Poll: If you could 2x or 3x the value of your coins by "conserving" would you do it?

ohbaby

I am going to say NO as I would leave that option to the next owner.

Remember a "conserved" coin can never again be original.

cherrypickincoin

Absolutely. 2x or 3x the value of my collection would make me a millionaire, I wouldn't hesitate. Since most of my coins are pretty decent, there are only a few that would even qualify for conservation and even then it probably wouldn't be worth it but if I could up the value 3x in a hypothetical situation, yes. Call me nuts, call me unethical but of course, this is America.

Steve27

I would conserve them just to remove the ugly damage already present.

Remember a non-conserved coin can never again look original.

jeffnpcb

That earlier Barber looked original, but I preferred it without the blackening around on the surfaces. It wasn't toned it was just dirty!

dorkkarl

not no, but HE11 NO. NOT EVEN 10X the value for any of my coins.

K S

nwcs

Absolutely without a doubt.

dorkkarl

3x would make me a multi-100-thousandairre, but i don't give a turkey's gobbling giblet, i wouldn't do it, not now, not ever.

K S

trozau

Even if it doesn't appreciate in value, I would (if it improves the coin's appearance).

barberlover

There is another option not listed and that is [no, with the exception of a financial crises like job loss or major medical emergency of your family] without one of those two exceptions I would say no.

Les

stman

The "purist" I am as far as coins are concerned.... the old saying money can't buy everything? I Disagree!!!

Edit to add... I'm talking about cash in hand, not a value on paper.

Baley

to those who answered "NO",
how about for 20x the value? how about 100x?
If you still answer no, I'd say you be stupid or a liar. They're just coins my friends.

reminds me of a joke.

Guy walks into a bar, picks out the prettiest girl, buys her a drink, they're talking, asks her,
"would you go to bed with me for a million dollars?", and shows her a briefcase full of money.

She hesitates a microsecond before saying "Sure!"

Guy then pulls out a C-note and says "how about for $100?"

She slaps him and asks "what do you take me for, some kind of whore?"

he replies, "Oh, I know you're some kind of whore, I'm just trying to negotiate which kind!"

Russ

Damn straight I would. Matter of fact, I'd start looking for all the "original" coins I could find, buy them cheap, dip the hell out of them, flip them and get filthy stinking rich. And besides the obscene money I'd have, the icing would be that it would piss off Karl.

Russ, NCNE

lordmarcovan

Sure, if by so doing I improved their appearance, which sort of goes without saying.

Which is not to say I would be enthusiastic about conserving natural, "original" coins that were already attractive.

If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

However, if I had a number of coins that could use just a little bit of tinkering, and the tinkering was done honestly and by a professional conservator, I have no problem with it.

One of my favorite coins, the cameo proof Barber half, was conserved, to remove an old-time lacquering. Looks great.

dorkkarl

<< <i>to those who answered "NO", how about for 20x the value? how about 100x? >>

you know that's completely unrealistic. but then, my answer would be YES. why? because then i would have enough funds to go buy every other original coin i could lay my hands on, & get 'em off the market.

uh, except for the accented-hair kennedies. russ can have those.

K S

keets

i had a sense that a thread like this would be coming on the heels of that other one!! i wonder what a "diareah mouth" like me should do, how i should answer the question.

al h.

Russ

<< <i>uh, except for the accented-hair kennedies. russ can have those. >>



Phew! I was sweating it. I already have enough competition.

Russ, NCNE

stujoe

Let's separate the men from the boys (or the women from the girls as the case may be), who's in for a good brillo pad scrubbing for 10x?

Typetone

First, I don't believe that conserving a coin should increase it's value. I think that conserving normally decreases value. However, if there was a case where it would increase value 2x then sure why not? That is creating value. Though it might not agree with my tastes, the market is ultimately the best arbiter of value.

Greg

grip

In a texas heart beat,but only selective ones.Al

Bear

People, I just bought 100 pounds of steel wool.

Lets get to curating them suckers.

DanC

<< <i> I think that conserving normally decreases value >>



aaaaaaaaah. (sound of "wrong answer" from game show.

Nope. And I'll be the first to admit I've not seen EVERY coin... but those that are done "right" - that needed it - always... always bring a far better price - and have been vastly improved from their former state.

The operative phrase is "done right."

Conder101

Well, I voted no but if the coins were being actively damaged by the contaminates on them I would be willing to do minimal conserving in order to halt the damage.



<< <i>to those who answered "NO",
how about for 20x the value? how about 100x?
If you still answer no, I'd say you be stupid or a liar. >>


My answer is still No. My coins are not for sale so the value increase is of no concern to me. And since I will be dead and have no use for the money. I have no interest in raising the value for them by damaging (oh sorry conserving) the coins either. If they do it after I'm gone, oh well.

ARCO

If it made the coins look nicer and as originals they were unsightly and ugly then YES. Just for more profit...ummmm. Yes! Seriously, since I collect circulated coins then conserving them is impossible because once original they cannot be cleaned without damage or making them hideous to behold, whitening them up is pure sacrilege and ruins them for all time and eternity.

I would not be a collector myself if I did not have original coins to choose from. I would rather work as a stripper at retirement homes than be forced to collect little cleaned spiffed up coins based on what some other yahoo felt they should look like.

Tyler

stujoe

<< <i> Seriously, since I collect circulated coins then conserving them is impossible because once original they cannot be cleaned without damage or making them hideous to behold, whitening them up is pure sacrilege and ruins them for all time and eternity.
Tyler >>



Good point. I also collect mostly circs. I never buy a coin if I don't like it's current 'look' because it isn't going to get better on its own and there ain't much you can do to improve it.

jdimmick

Dont have any in my collection that would even come close to needin Conserving!

ohbaby

Interesting replies thus far.

3 to 1 in favor of conserving. I would have never guessed, given so many proclaim they like "original" or toned coins. I now understand money talks!

Does anyone know if NCS turns down coins submitted for conserving? Coins that don't need help or can't be helped?

For the 3 voters who said they don't know what conserving is....it's the process of making a "dirty" or oxidized coin cleaner by using chemicals to strip about the dirt. In the process the chemicals also strip away some or all of the luster. It's part art and part science. Typically conserved coins look dull or matte.

Wolf359

If you don't, the next guy will. Purism and Profit don't mix.

coppercoins

This "original" crap is too hard to believe. You get a butt ugly coin because it's tarnished, ugly...and you keep it like it is because you ASSUME it's not been "doctored" before you got it. Come on, what have you been sniffing?? Dip the damn thing and get it over with, have a nice looking coin, and get your money out of it if you can't stand to live with it. Two to three times what you paid for it and you're not gonna take it? Yeah, right. I'm the tooth fairy.

puff

ABSOLUTELY "NOT"!

Wheat's Walkers # 1current late date set

Blade

Show me the money. I think some folks are misunderstanding here. A phenomenal MS68 Walker with original skin would never improve from conserving. Take the crusty, poorly toned misfits and get 2X-3X... absolutely. Move these coins, then replace them (nearly every coin can be replaced) for something with similar eye appeal. Remember, the coin will increase 2X-3X, so it is hard to believe this would happen on a monster like Joe Jeweler's barber half.

grip

coppercoins
You said a mouth fullAl

Android

<< <i>Does anyone know if NCS turns down coins submitted for conserving? Coins that don't need help or can't be helped? >>




Yes, NCS turns down coins for conserving. They'll only conserve a coin if they feel that the coin could be damaged long term in it's present state. They also offer a grade guarantee if your coin doesn't meet the previous (slabbed) grade after conservation. For a more detailed question, or maybe the answer is already there, go to NGC's website and look for the "Ask NCS" forum. They like answering questions. They also have their own site that explains their philosophy on conservation at NCS Website

dorkkarl

<< <i><< uh, except for the accented-hair kennedies. russ can have those. >>

Phew! I was sweating it. I already have enough competition.

Russ, NCNE >>

of course, i could always melt down all those accented-hairs & use the silver for something useful!

K S

tsacch

i have several coins i would love to conserve, especially a bust quarter in MS60 thats in a pig holder and a MS63 Barber half in an NGC.

I would do it in a heart beat if I could afford it now and be assured of the grades not changing for the worse.

pmh1nic

First, whether the toning is "damage" depends on the beholder. The definition of damage is:

"Harm or injury to property or a person, resulting in loss of value or the impairment of usefulness"

Toning doesn't necessarily result in a loss of value. In fact it can dramatically increase a coins value. Strictly speaking the patina that causes the thin-film interference that produces what we call toning is not corrosion or rust and the silver sulfide serves as a protective layer. In my experience the vast majority of coins that have very dark, unattractive toning if dipped would require that so much material would have to be removed to complete remove the toning that it leaves the coin with a flat, washed out look.

The question as to whether you would dip some of your toned beauties (or even the not so beautiful) for a 100X premium is meant to expose the "purist" resolve regarding original coins. Let me ask the question another way. Would you take a sledgehammer to your coins if someone would pay you a 100x premium to do it?

khayse

At some point I don't see how you could say 'no'.

If I could do something (ethical and legal) to double or triple my money I would probably
sell most of my coins. Same thing with my house. If it tripled in value for some reason (someone
really wanted the land) I would have to sell. The opportunity cost is just too great. The money
would be too important and would have too big an impact in other areas.

Maybe I would collect something cheap afterward like MS64 Franklins.

-KHayse

dorkkarl

for a mere tripling of value, i wouldn't allow anything to happen to my coins. but i'd sell my house in a split second.

but at 100x, suddenly i would be worth let's say $20M. i could save a he11uva lot of original coins from the dip-junkoes out there w/ $20M. so at 100x, i am still a purist, just a purist w/ a practical motive of sacrificing $200K (let's say) for the opportunity to rescue $20M in original coins. the tradeoff would be worth it. that's just a reflection of how strongly i feel about the rate that original coins are being wiped off the face of the earth in this era of slabing anything that's blast-white.

K S

barberlover

As I said before, I would do it for a financial crisis or money needed for a medical emergency, but no other reason [including profit] if the money wasn't needed on an emergency basis.

You think it's dumb to be a purist these days if their is money to be made ? That kind of explains the problem doesn't it???

Doesn't anyone care more about the hobby then money anymore???

If someone offered me 67,000 or 10 x what I paid for my original 92 S barber half, but the condition was they could crack it out cause a dipp might make it a 67 instead of an original 66 I would say NO!!!!

But everyone has to make up their own minds if thats important to them or not.

Les

Russ

<< <i>Does anyone know if NCS turns down coins submitted for conserving? >>



ohbaby,

I can state from personal experience that they very frequently will refuse to conserve coins.



<< <i>of course, i could always melt down all those accented-hairs & use the silver for something useful! >>



Karl,

Please do. I think that you should pursue every one you can find and destroy it. Matter of fact, if you could recruit a few thousand people to do likewise I'd appreciate it.

Russ, NCNE

oldcameoproofsguy

I answered "yes", but then again this is a hypothetical question. The coins I buy today are worth far more in their original state then if conserved. So basically, my coins will never be conserved. I don't even waste my money buying coins that are dull, bland, lifeless and have crappy color or eye appeal; I only buy the stuff that has the ultimate eye appeal.

dorkkarl

<< <i>Karl, Please do. I think that you should pursue every one you can find and destroy it. Matter of fact, if you could recruit a few thousand people to do likewise I'd appreciate it.

Russ, NCNE >>

i could name 1 off the time of my head. guy happens to be a NCNE.........

K S

Conder101

<< <i>This "original" crap is too hard to believe. You get a butt ugly coin because it's tarnished, ugly...and you keep it like it is because you ASSUME it's not been "doctored" before you got it. Come on, what have you been sniffing?? Dip the damn thing and get it over with, have a nice looking coin, and get your money out of it if you can't stand to live with it. Two to three times what you paid for it and you're not gonna take it? >>


Nope, because if I feel the coin is ugly to me I'm ether not going to buy it in the first place, or if I did buy an ugly it is because it is probably a rarity that I need in which case it is NOT for sale. Period.

Placid

If I was in coins for the money only heck yes.
As a collector no.