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For you fans of OBW rolls, in your opinion, when, if ever, should such rolls be opened?
SanctionII
Posts: 11,732 ✭✭✭✭✭
I understand the appeal of opening an OBW (the thrill of finding hidden treasure).
I also understand the appeal of having an unopened roll stay that way (preserving a relic of the past).
However, what is the thought process behind keeping the coins hidden and unknown for years, decades or forever. Is it limited solely to economics, where as time goes by the allure/intrigue of owning an OBW roll and being able to sell it to another person fascinated by the concept of OBW rolls, the price goes up and up. Or does it also have to do with a mind set of simply keeping an artifact/relic of our past intact forever.
I also understand the appeal of having an unopened roll stay that way (preserving a relic of the past).
However, what is the thought process behind keeping the coins hidden and unknown for years, decades or forever. Is it limited solely to economics, where as time goes by the allure/intrigue of owning an OBW roll and being able to sell it to another person fascinated by the concept of OBW rolls, the price goes up and up. Or does it also have to do with a mind set of simply keeping an artifact/relic of our past intact forever.
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maybe when you have a dupe.
but part of me thinks that an unopened roll is not really that thrilling. i see parallels of it in other
hobbies. take for example buying a case of unopened baseball cards from the 80s. people sell
these for many dollars a pack and people hope to get the winner in it.
same thing with the roll situation. greed has the possibility of getting a stronger price.
same concept as stacks selling raw coins where people allow greed to influence their bidding
due to TPG plastic not grounding their ambitions.
There is a time and place for everything. Unlike wine - the coins in most OBW rolls haven't improved over time, but what makes them special is what has happened to all of their brothers and sisters during the intervening years. What was once ordinary, is now somewhat special.
I knew it would happen.
Yep, there are such rolls. However, in most cases the likelihood that the roll has previously been opened and searched is inversely proportional to the potential for discovery of keys and rarities. In other words, common dates are more likely to still be original.
It was my understanding that such rolls advertised as being such are just an example of slick advertising: about all rolls have been picked through and rewrapped. Guess I learned something new.
And yes, there are more re-wrap jobs than the real thing these days. I classify them according to how many times I think that they've already been searched - 0, 1 or 2 times. I make that determination based on the evidence, such as the wrapper itself, the feedback or reputation of the seller or dealer, the appearance of the coins on the end of the roll and any anectdotal information that the seller can provide about the history of the roll.
I knew it would happen.
"I am sorry you are unhappy with the care you recieved, is their anything I can do for you right now, how about some high speed lead therapy?" - A qoute from my wife's nursing forum
"I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them." – Thomas Jefferson
waiting until you know what you're looking for but this can easily
be carried too far. You'll never know everything that might be in
the roll for sure.
I tend to almost always open original rolls immediately. If the
seller will let me that will be before they are even purchased. The
only exceptions are when I know what's in the roll because I've
seen a sister roll or if it's a very scarce roll with a very low prob-
ability of containing anything of additional value.
<< <i>You mean there exist genuine, original bank-wrapped rolls (with the true potential for key, rare coins to be found within)? It was my understanding that such rolls advertised as being such are just an example of slick advertising: about all rolls have been picked through and rewrapped. Guess I learned something new. >>
There are a lot of picked over and resealed rolls but this problem
tends to be a minor factor if you simply avoid common rolls with big
premiums relative to their availability. You also need to avoid "gar-
bage" rolls and most coins that have widespread interest in the high
grades. This applies primarily to Morgans and walkers.
You really can quite often tell a roll is original from its appearance.
Once it's opened it becomes even more certain because original old
rolls will have a few gems. Modern rolls often don't have gems so
you can't be as certain.
Many of the "assembled" rolls are choice coins picked out from larger
batches so it can all even out in the long run.
I really think the biggest danger for most coins isn't the rerolling of
substandard coins but the seller having multiple rolls of what he knows
is all junk. You can protect yourself from the other stuff but not from
this.
As cladking notes, I suspect that there are some really nice original rolls that were stored in plastic tubes right from the day that they were obtained. Unfortunately, there are probably many, many more rolls that have been packaged so as to appear that way.
When I was younger, my standard practice was to do exactly that - put the coins directly from the paper wrapper and into a plastic tube, without even searching the coins for good ones. Why bother? They were all brand new and easily-obtainable.
Although I haven't pursued the buying of "original" tubed rolls, someday it might come to that. The fun is in the chase!
I knew it would happen.
Interesting comments.
Anyone else want to chime in?
If I'm convinced the roll is authentic, I'll pay good for the priviledge of pawing through it since I neglected to or could not "afford" to do so when I was younger.
The name is LEE!
Originally I started collecting just for the toned end coins. Then I came across a couple batches of toned rolls and bought multiples. They were 53D lincolns. The end coins had great color and some unfortunate spotting. Problem was I couldn't see the whole face because of the paper, so I just had to break one lose so i could enjoy it all. In the process I found that the inner coins were handsome velvetty and red and 10 of the coins were 66's, one has an outside shot at 67 and real value. And that began my interest in rolls for their red coins and cherrypicking. I'm still proud to say I've kept six of the eight unopened even though I know what's in them.
I've bought a lot of truly original rolls with untampered paper and toning, some with no toning, a lot of rolls I suspect opened and searched and mechanically resealed. But I bought them willingly because I was after the end coins. I've also picked up quite a few rolls that were assembled by knowledgeable collectors and mechanically re-wrapped in paper and then stored (I've noticed these have mostly gems, very few die pairings with only 4 or 5 in a roll) and I paid dearly for them. It's a gamble to pay bigger money for 50 coins based on two that you can see and that leads me to answer the question. Now that I collect rolls both for the ends and the guts. The only "red" rolls I open now are ones I paid so much for that I couldn't possibly get my money back if I were to resell them. So I'll cherrypick, TPG and sell. The others I'll probably keep as investments unless I decide some day to encapsulate the toners.
I collected rolls for a while without opening any and found that I was really missing out. Take that from a collector who has kept 95% of his rolls intact but who enjoys the 5% very much.
And for me, I wasn't prepared for how quickly I wanted to get the ugly rolls out of my collection once discovered by opening, it was ASAP!!!!
Jeff
<< <i>I've also picked up quite a few rolls that were assembled by knowledgeable collectors and mechanically re-wrapped in paper and then stored (I've noticed these have mostly gems, very few die pairings with only 4 or 5 in a roll) and I paid dearly for them. >>
It's always tough to know with certainty but when it's mostly a single
die pair that's one time you can be sure. Of course it's unusual to have
only four or five pairs represented and no stragglers too.
I guess it depends a lot on the date and how it usually comes. If it's
'66 quarters then having no junk is almost proof positive it's a cherry
roll.
I agree 100% with the advice given to not open them until you are
knowledgeable enough to know what you are looking for.
I have found some very expensive coins in rolls that have been looked through
previously.
I know I'm sticking a big target on my back.
I think collecting rolls is one of the great ways to enjoy the hobby.
I mean hoarding them with the intention of 'never' opening 'some' of them.
I've only got around 40 rolls of Lincolns but in the 5 or 6 rolls I've opened I've found about ten really gem cents.
PCGS agreed on the two I sent in for grading.
Now I know I prolly got stuck with a bunch of rolls from 'bad' batches others had and have passed along to me for a price
but so what? Some of them look pretty promising. When I do decide to open an OBW roll I more than likely get the
same kind of feeling a dealer must get when someone walks in the door with a package under their arms or
when you open a package you get in the mail. It's fun, plain and simple.
As soon as I get them......................
K S