Question re: regrades of old dot-matrix slabbed coins

39Special

Just a general question. I know you always hear about "old green holders" and the possibility of upgrading these coins because supposedly standards were tougher way back when. What have you found from your own experience upgrading coins in the very first holders, those dot matrix labels from the 80's? I ask because I just missed out in a auction on a really nice MS65RD early date Lincoln that, from the pictures, looked to be an MS66 with full red luster. Is that whole thing of upgrading coins from 1st gen old holders a myth, or is there some truth to it that the coins didn't grade much higher than 65's back then regardless and would upgrade in many cases today?

Thanks in advance.

dragon

Each coin must be evaluated on a coin by coin basis. Many coins in the old holders are just average to below average for the grade, and some may have upgrade potential. Keep in mind most upgrade candidates have long since been cracked out if they had even a remote chance at upgrading.

dorkkarl

it's a bunch of b.s. crack the coins out, & leave them out

K S

Bear

One advantage of the early slabs has to do with

copper coins. If the copper is red and looks good,

it means that the color is stable and wont turn on you.

coinguy1

There are countless extremely nice coins AND sub-par coins in each of the various holder types. Forget about the holders and judge each COIN on its own merits.

39Special

Thanks for the feedback Mark and everyone else. I agree, the coin is the key and you can't judge quality based on a holder. What's difficult is for those of us that buy a lot of coins on eBay, it is very hard to photo grade because most small time sellers just don't have the technique down to provide really good closeup pictures. I tend to think that on the whole, you are more likely to find an undergraded coin in a rattler (not an OGH, but a true rattler with the dot matrix labels), but that isn't based on a lot of personal experience quite honestly, just what I've heard before. I was wanting to see what experiences others had had and whether my perception was accurate.

oreville

dorkarl:

You said:



<< <i>it's a bunch of b.s. crack the coins out, & leave them out >>



Then what? Risk harming the coin by possibly mishandling it? Also storage methods? There is value added to know that the coin has been stable color wise for over 15 years. When you get to 25 years plus you will learn to appreciate that the holder gives you some peace of mind that the coin has not been fooled with since the coin was slabbed. Better in that regard than any raw coin can say for itself.

Indeed, agreed that one should forget about the upgrade potential and all that. But if evaluation of the coin shows a pleasing coin for the assigned grade, why not buy it on its own merit and keep it that way. It WILL be easier to sell many years later and most importantly save you money on not having to repackage it to ship!

By the way, nice to see you back! I enjoy the exchange of ideas with you even if we do not agree too often.

tradedollarnut

In general, the rattlers were graded much tighter then than now. However, most of the good ones have been cracked out already thus seriously reducing the odds of getting an upgrade. Unless you luck into a collector selling off an old time group, your chances aren't real high on any coin with an appreciable spread in value between grades.

BillJones

<< <i>In general, the rattlers were graded much tighter then than now. However, most of the good ones have been cracked out already thus seriously reducing the odds of getting an upgrade. Unless you luck into a collector selling off an old time group, your chances aren't real high on any coin with an appreciable spread in value between grades. >>



Yes, about six years ago, I bought a fresh deal from a collector who had a group of very old slabs. They were both NGC and PCGS coins. I cracked some coins from both groups and upgraded all of them. But it's hard to do that with the old holder stuff you see at the shows today. It's almost all been picked over. That's especially true of the "rattle slab" PCGS coins.