COINS
joeyuk
Posts: 3,282
First I did not title this thread "coins and how to grade them" because I am by no means an expert. I have been collecting coins for about 10 years now so a few items are bound to be remembered.
Here is a passage from the book I refrenced in the prior thread.
Here is a passage from the book I refrenced in the prior thread.
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Most people break grading down to four areas. Marks, luster, strike and eye appeal.
MARKS are basically any signs of contact on the coin. They can be from a less then perfect planchet(metal disc prior to being struck), marks from other coins hitting it while at the mint or while in circulation, gauge or scratches from almost anything as well. Another thing to keep in mind is larger coins like Ike dollars have more area to show off distracting marks. While it is less noticable on other coins.
The luster of a coin is the way light is reflected off the flow lines of the metal created when the coin is struck. It is hard to describe but it is when the coin is slowly tilted and a "cartwheel" effect is created.
Strike is the amount of detail brought to the coin when it is made. The sharpness of the lettering. The detail in the subject on the coin, perhaps the hair on Lincoln's head. Many coins have an area which it typically weakly struck. These are areas which receive special designation when graded. They include full steps(FS) on the nickel. Full head (FH), Full Bell Lines (FBL), Full Band(FB) and I am sure others as well. When these designations are included in the grade it is most likely very well struck.
Eye appeal somewhat takes into consideration all the other grading attributes as well as color of a coin. When a coin tones sometimes it is in an even and attrective way. Other times it can be blotchy or even artifical and although the coin may score well in other areas if it does not have a certain look to it it may not grade well.
Most of what I have just written is just paraphrasing from the PCGS grading book. I have not been in the hobby long enough to grade accurately. I just received grades back on six coins I sent in. All were returned the same grade the had previously. It cost about $100 + shipping but I thought compared to other coins I saw graded higher my coins would stand up well. A one increment increase on any could have ment an increasr in value of a few hundred to over a thousand dollars. Oh well. I took a shot and lost.
Thank you for an informative post. I find it amazing that you say you have been collecting for 10 years but that's not long enough to grade accurately.
The fact that 6 coins came back at the exact same grade indicates an impressive consistency that some feel is lacking in the sportscard grading world.
Michael
I'd be happy to.