Defining AT: Length of Time

JoeLewis

Suppose a coin becomes toned in a very short amount of time (say a 2007 coin is shown to you as being toned.) Is the coin definitely AT? In otherwords, is length of time that a coin acquires its toning a determing factor for deciding whether a coin is AT or NT?

RedTiger

Of all the questions, this is the one I would want answered for classic coins.

If there were a device that could tell how old the toning was, it would go a long way towards determining valuation, possibly more so than any of the other questions.

The question has always been one of shades of grey, not black and white so there would not be a line in the sand. However, if toned coins had a carbon date for the toning, the market would sort it out. The biggest problem with toners is that more are made every day, that and the price premiums that collectors pay. By having the age of the toning known, that would solve the main two problems.

No one responded to this thread, so maybe my opinion is all wet. Maybe the other points are easier to argue.

mgoodm3

I like to think as time for a good determining factor for AT/not obviously AT. I feel like time is the factor that give toning the look that people temd to like. The toning crawling around the devices and such.

JoeLewis

Is toning that takes ten years to develop any different than toning that takes ten days to develop?