Why is Artificial toning bad?

LALASD4

I do not collect tone coins, but I was just thinking, why is Artificial toning bad? Why do coins with AT worth less?

If you get a baby from Artificial Insemination, he or she is still a baby, right??

Clankeye

<< <i>If you get a baby from Artificial Insemination, he or she is still a baby, right?? >>



Until you go to sell it, then you get less.

LALASD4

Until you go to sell it, then you get less

I have not sold any babies lately, but a baby is a baby, right?

agentjim007

AT is used to hide problems. Also to create a coin that can be sold for more money (if done correctly). Collectors want original.

1jester

AT is also seen as damage to an otherwise original coin. It is especially appalling to see on an early coin.

clw54

Every time somebody messes with a coin, that's one less original of that date and mint.

dorkkarl

artificial toning, in & of itself IS NOT BAD.

what's bad is deceptive toning used to hide undisclosed deficiencies of a coin, such as hairlines, plugged holes, etc. i have no problem buying an a-t, whether intentional or not, long as i know what i'm buying.

it's like asking "why is a waxed car bad?" you might be induced to pay more for it if to the uninformed, the car looks newer than it really is. but if you are aware that that 140,000 mile auto has been spiffied up on the outside, you have a better idea what your really gettng.

K S

Myqqy

When I think of AT coins, I am reminded of old black and white films that have been colorized. Color films are not bad in any way, but when you see a colorized black and white, it just doesn't look right. There is a definate inauthentic look to it- I feel the same way when I see an AT coin. Perhaps others feel the same way?

relayer

Because all of tonecoin2003 coins look the same

atomic

What do you think of...

- An antique Chinese crab tureen and cover, stripped and painted snowboard blue

- Antique Pennsylvania Plank Seat Chairs original paint circa 1835, stripped and refinished with polyurethain

- An ancient American Indian burial site paved over with a McDonalds on top

The principle is the same. Once your ruin an antique, it's ruined forever.

Atomic

Dog97

Instead of telling you why AT is bad maybe I can get the point across by telling you why original is better & worth more.
An original surfaced coin is a rare honest coin that has survived 100+ years without being dipped, cleaned, touched & fingerprinted, messed with, rubbed, cooked, soaked in chemicals, doctored, "improved", accused of being ugly and unattractive & sold for junk silver & melted or whatever & that's no mean feat.
While an AT job is a deceitful fraudulent coin has been used & abused & dipped, cleaned, touched & fingerprinted, messed with, rubbed, cooked, soaked in chemicals, doctored, "improved" which any idiot can do, so if any idiot can do it then it's really not rare & there's no collector market for them other than a few people that thinks it's pretty like a novelty or an oddity or the uninformed that think they are getting an original masterpiece dirt cheap (& sometimes not) when really what they are getting is only a cheap & easily reproduced copy.
In other words I want the real thing, not something you messed with & ruined.

nwcs

AT is bad in several contexts:

1. When it is misrepresented as incidental toning
2. When it is done improperly (which is all the time) and the reaction cannot be stopped and the coin is ruined over a few years instead of the reaction stopping nearly with incidental toning
3. When it is done to hide alterations
4. When the coin was fine without it

LALASD4

Is what NCS does consider doctoring a coin?

nwcs

Well, some people would say yes. But what they do is conserve. That is, remove surface contaminants. The only thing they do that is the gray area is that they will dip a coin which strips off a few molecules off the surface of the coin. But beyond that, they do not repair coins nor do they deceive people. And when they holder something in their slab, they document all the alterations/problems with the coin.

LALASD4

Doesn't NGC grade the NCS coins after?

nwcs

Not all the time. It will end up in a NCS slab under these conditions:

1. Submitter specifies it
2. Submitter wants slab no matter what and coin cannot be certified by NGC
3. Submitter wants authentication only slab from NCS