Drilled holes ruin value?

Slacker76

lets say you have a decent coin lets say 1865 III cent piece in very nice condition (EF). the only catch is someone drilled a hole in it i am assuming to wear it on a neckless. pcgs has it at 500.00, how much does this hole hurt the value?

ar18

lots

Shamika

About as much as a hole in the head. The coin has value, but if it's worth $100, I'd be shocked.

MrSpud

It makes it pretty much worth just a very small amount unless it is an extremely rare variety. Fun to collect though. Lord Marcovan, who has been MIA for a while here, was really into them. He used to attach them to vests and hats and stuff.

jayboxx

Yeah, where is LordM?

lasvegasteddy

they's treated like the plague but beauty is to the eye of the beholder as a coins worth is truly denoted by it's purchaser.leaves me to ponder if there's collectors base growing day by day at the bargin you can acquire them at...hmmm probably below ego most would jump on a 33 saint to wear around their neck once legal...;-)

ldhair

<< <i>Yeah, where is LordM? >>


I heard he found a giant bag of gold coins and is still taking pics to share with us.

lkenefic

I know some folks that collect Large Cents that have been drilled and/or counterstamped. The realized prices generally go for about 1/10 that of what they would bring if they wern't holed...assuming common dates or varieties that is...L

Dave99B

I'd guess it would reduce it to a $50-$75 coin. Holes are not cool.

I saw a VF 1901-S quarter on eBay a few years back with a nice clean hole drilled through it. Sad. That auction still haunts me.

Dave

lkenefic

yeah...I saw something similar a couple of years back... 1801 3-error Large Cent with nice details...would probably be around F12-ish...but a crude hole just over Ms Libertys head..oh well... If memory serves I think the seller still got $40 or so...L

Baley

the value of a holed coin depends on many things, primarily the identity of the host coin, and what else is going on with the piece. If it's cleaned, scratched, or otherwise damaged in addition to the hole, additional value is lost.

If the only problem is the hole, for a common coin, the hole still basically crushes the value down to melt, or less.

for a less common to scarce coin, knock off 3 or 4 grade levels:

1803 half dollar, VF+ to EF details, holed, nets maybe good or very good



for a rare or very rare coin, knock off 2 or 3 grade levels:

1797 13 star half dime, Fine to VF details, holed, nets maybe AG or Good



(but I'd MUCH rather have the above coin than the typical AG or Good example )

above are generalizations, realize that some collectors don't want a holed coin no matter what the price, others, as mentioned, specialize in them. Still others will buy the occasional one, if it's a cool coin and the price is right.

Shamika

<< <i> lets say you have a decent coin lets say 1865 III cent piece >>


The fact that the hole is in a 3 cent piece is especially bad. A small hole in a large coin is nowhere near as bad as a small hole in a small coin. And 3 cent coins are small.

johnsim03

If memory serves...

There are also "coin restoration" services (I see a couple ads (last name Stockton?!) in the ANA's The Numismatist almost every month)
who will fill those holes, and repair jewelry coins, etc. for a fee, for a collector who is interested in that sort
of service.

I realize that is a touchy subject, probably, but I knew one collector on a tight budget who obtained
pieces which would be outrageously expensive in their undamaged state and had them repaired
at a reasonable cost, and no, he did not mis-represent the repairs, either...

John

LincolnCentMan

I'd probably offer $20-$30 if I wanted it... which I dont. With some peddling around, you could probably do a little better. I'd think that about $75 would be the top of the market for something like that.

David

wjd283

This quarter lists at $100 in F.
Because of the damage,I got it for $12.50 and that was probably too much.

stiffy

<< <i>lets say you have a decent coin lets say 1865 III cent piece in very nice condition (EF). the only catch is someone drilled a hole in it i am assuming to wear it on a neckless. pcgs has it at 500.00, how much does this hole hurt the value? >>



Is this a Silver 3 cent or a Nickel 3 cent?

A nickel 3 cent, EF business strike with a hole is maybe a 3 dollar coin, at best.

A silver 3 cent maybe a $25-35 coin, maybe. A hole sucks big time.

Boom

People drilled these holes in coins for a very valid reason back then. Today there are some collectors that LOVE buying them up.

PerryHall

<< <i>People drilled these holes in coins for a very valid reason back then. Today there are some collectors that LOVE buying them up. >>



What is the "very valid reason"?

Barndog

<< <i>What is the "very valid reason"? >>


To hang on a chain or string around the neck, for good luck (posted to a beam or wall), to make a bracelet, or to satisfy any one of myriad other desires/needs.

DNADave

<< <i>

<< <i>People drilled these holes in coins for a very valid reason back then. Today there are some collectors that LOVE buying them up. >>



What is the "very valid reason"? >>



To make buttons. Seriously, sometimes it was the best thing for a button.



Holes haven't ruined the value of these coins in my collection.

OKbustchaser

Oh, I don't know about worthless...ask Lord M or Cladiator

holed 1806 bust half goes for $1801.00 on Ebay.

PerryHall

<< <i>

<< <i>What is the "very valid reason"? >>


To hang on a chain or string around the neck, for good luck (posted to a beam or wall), to make a bracelet, or to satisfy any one of myriad other desires/needs. >>



These are reasons but I'm not sure they are"very valid" reasons. They also used to drill a hole in a silver dollar and string it on a ribbon. The ribbon would be put around a baby's neck and the baby could chew on the silver dollar to help with teething. They would also drill a hole in the center and cut notches in the rim to create a gear.

Barndog

So if an individual's desire for a button, jewelry, good luck charm, or other item is not valid, what is your reasoning? Is there some commission to which one must apply in order to get society's blessing as to what an individual may do with their spare change? Give me a break!

IndianHeadMan

One big reason holes were drilled was to sew the coin into a coat or jacket. This prevented the loss of said coin. Civil War soldiers did this alot.

orie

It was interesting to hear that silver dollars were used for teething. The saying “Born with a silver spoon in your mouth” actually comes from feeding babies with a silver spoon because silver supposedly has anti-bacterial qualities. I have know idea if silver has this quality, but parents believed it in the day.

JadeRareCoin

<< <i>

<< <i>lets say you have a decent coin lets say 1865 III cent piece in very nice condition (EF). the only catch is someone drilled a hole in it i am assuming to wear it on a neckless. pcgs has it at 500.00, how much does this hole hurt the value? >>



Is this a Silver 3 cent or a Nickel 3 cent?

A nickel 3 cent, EF business strike with a hole is maybe a 3 dollar coin, at best.

A silver 3 cent maybe a $25-35 coin, maybe. A hole sucks big time. >>



I agree.

ziggy29

I would guess that a typical hole might reduce the value by 80-90% and possibly a little more. Depends on the size of the hole relative to the coin itself, and perhaps the location of the hole (is it in a prime focal area, or just in the fields?)...

RGT

<< <i>

<< <i>

<< <i>lets say you have a decent coin lets say 1865 III cent piece in very nice condition (EF). the only catch is someone drilled a hole in it i am assuming to wear it on a neckless. pcgs has it at 500.00, how much does this hole hurt the value? >>

Is this a Silver 3 cent or a Nickel 3 cent? A nickel 3 cent, EF business strike with a hole is maybe a 3 dollar coin, at best. A silver 3 cent maybe a $25-35 coin, maybe. A hole sucks big time. >>

I agree. >>



An 1865 three cent silver in EF would be worth a lot more than $25-$35 (without the hole). It's a scarce coin and someone would be willing to put one with a hole in it in their collection, for the right price.

Cladiator

99% of the time a holed coin will lose 99% of it's value. I am painfully aware, from personal experience, that sometimes a holed coin can be extremely valuable. If I can teach people on this forum one thing it is to never, ever dismiss a coin simply because it's holed.

Another reason some old copppers are found holed was the people way back when believed it would bring them good fortune if you nailed a piece of copper to their barn. This was a very, very common practice.

coachleonard

Somebody put a hole through a rare US coin (BAD!) But now, for the first time, I can afford that rare US coin (GOOD!!)

Whizzard

Depends. How much can you charge for it as a necklace?