I need some 411 on Liberty Double Eagles

JohnZ

My favorite local dealer just got one in today, and I put $200 down on it as a layaway, so I can't post a pic. The date is 1904. I compared it to one slabbed by PCGS at MS61, and it seems fairly close. However, I'm very nervous about spending so much money on an unslabbed gold coin (total cost = $495). I just need a nice type coin.

I have specs on the series: weight and diameter, and I told the dealer that I would be back to examine it further. It appears to have been dipped at one point, but I see no evidence of whizzing, even with a 30X loupe.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. What should I look for?

darktone

Luster is the most important thing. These will be pretty dinged up in the $500 range and if it's not dinged up I would suspect there's something that you don't see. The 1904 is the most common one of the bunch. Good luck and be sure to post pictures if you get it. mike

airplanenut

First- if it looks dipped, do you really want it? Secondly, agree on a grade that it should be- then offer to buy if it slabs as such, you'll pay the fee if it attains that grade.

Jeremy

JohnZ

Good advice, darktone and airplanenut. There are no rim dings, but there are several bag marks on the reverse. I honestly don't mind the dipping, as gold is basically non-reactive. In fact, the slabbed coin had some unsightly carbon spotting.

But I'm taking this slowly. I'll take all advice to heart.

MrEureka

For all it's worth, if I was going to buy only one $20 Lib as a type coin, I'd buy a nice 63 or better and I'd buy anything but an 04. That may sound like elitist advice, but I really believe that the (not too much) extra money would be very well spent. Save your money for the "right coin".

WACoinGuy

<< <i>For all it's worth, if I was going to buy only one $20 Lib as a type coin, I'd buy a nice 63 or better and I'd buy anything but an 04. That may sound like elitist advice, but I really believe that the (not too much) extra money would be very well spent. Save your money for the "right coin". >>



I've been looking for a $20 Liberty for my type set too and have the same criteria. The 1904 is very common. And if you're going under MS-63, you might want to consider AU-58 instead.

DaveG

Since gold is a fairly soft metal and double eagles are heavy, you should be looking for bagmarks and the faint signs of wear that turn an MS-62 into an AU-58.

(I'm not sure I've ever seen a whizzed gold coin, but the whizzed coins I have seen, you don't need 30x to see the whizzing, 5x works just fine.)

Also, in my opinion, dipping gives a gold coin an unnatural look. Most gold collectors I know stay away from dipped gold coins. Personally, I wouldn't pay the premium due a BU coin for a dipped coin. Also, you're right, you should stay away from gold coins with copper spots.

Since common-date Type III double eagles are as common as dirt, personally, I'd go with one of two options: 1) buy a nice XF/AU raw coin. Many of these coins look just as nice as MS-60 through MS-62 coins and can be had for not much more than their bullion price. Personally, I wouldn't buy a raw gold coin as BU unless I was very comfortable with my grading skills.

Or, 2) if I wanted a BU coin, I'd buy an already slabbed MS-62 or MS-63 (if I wanted to pay a bit more for it). If you're going to pay a premium over bullion for a coin, make it a nice one, one that other collectors will also think is nice - it'll hold its value better.

MrEureka

If you're going to pay a premium over bullion for a coin, make it a nice one, one that other collectors will also think is nice - it'll hold its value better.

It's hard to argue with the value of a $495 unc $20 Lib. There's not a lot of downside. I only recommended the better coin because we're coin collectors here and there's an opportunity to buy something special for not too much more money.

JohnZ

Thank you all very much for your input. For now, I will continue to pay off the layaway, buy the coin, and post it here in addition to showing it to a number of collector friends. I am not at any risk, as the dealer is a friend of mine, and has allowed me to return and exchange coins frequently.