Question - Large sized US gold certificates...

Outhaul

I am just getting into currency. As I have been searching, I have noticed that the large-sized US gold certificates online, both raw and certified, have extremely vibrant reverses. A vibrant reverse is what I'm looking for, but how many of those online images have enhanced coloring through manipulation? What are your experiences? Cheers

Bob

techwriter

Outhaul, as they say in Las Vegas -- sometimes it's a crapshoot. Just be very careful and be certain to check the Feedback for the seller. IF you have any questions about an item you might pose it here on the forum; we are friendly and usually answer to the best of our collective experiences. Good luck. Oh, welcome to the fascinating world of currency collecting, visit often and do share your treasures as you acquire them.

DanCong

It is not just gold certificates that are photoshopped - people try and clean up notes with software to look better. Bright colors sell. Just a look through eBay shows a range of terrible photos, bad scans, blindingly enhanced notes, as well as natural looking ones. Crappy photos are just as bad as overly enhanced. The best method is to see in hand and get experience with what a natural looking note should look like. Then online colors can be gauged better. Look for contrast (difference between lightest and darkest colors) and saturation (how "colorful" a color is, brightness). A lot of times increasing saturation also makes green brighter, and that should be easy to gauge. Of course, a person can subtly enhance a note as well as grossly. Banknote paper is not really "white" so that is another test to see if the note has been tampered with too.

numbersman

Large size gold notes......now you're talking! But,along with the altered pics are many other pitfalls to watch out for when buying any large size note(or small for that matter).Some advice I can offer would be to take a bit of time-don't move too fast.You need to get familiar with what these notes "should" look like vs the many ones out there that are off or less than you really were hoping for.There are dozens of different large size golds to choose from and so it is important that you lock down which one you like best(depending on your personal goals and finances) and do some research on that type.Try to get familiar with what to expect from the different grades(again,it depends on your personal goals as to what grade you need) and be 100% sure that you can return what you buy if it turns out to be less"in hand" than was advertised.Also know the "golden" rule.....when a note is graded.....buy the note-not the holder! Often,less experienced buyers will automatically assume the safe bet is to buy a graded note.That can be a great idea but be sure you know.....often it is the case that two graded notes-same note-same grade-look very different.Bottom line....there are many to choose from as they are(for the most part)easy to obtain so you need to take your time and be picky.Good luck.Here's one of my golds...

TheRock

Numbersman is RIGHT ON THE MONEY !!!



It's your money so you have the right to be "VERY PICKY" !!! There should be no rush what so ever to buy a note or pressure from anyone to buy the note.



Take your time, like the note, then buy it as it will be with you to look at for a while.



No reason what so ever to buy something that has got you thinking twice why you bought it as you'll look at it all the time. Be happy with it from the start !!

Outhaul

Thanks guys. You're a wealth of information. I wanted to start with the gold certificates because many years ago I had a $10 note and don't know whatever became of it. So, I wanted to do the $10, $20, and $50 to start with. I was looking at a few $20 gold notes on ebay. All were graded 50 +/-, but the prices were all over the place, but not under $1000, for the same grade. My research showed me that in the grade, $700 - $900 is the range so I want to stick with that. Cheers,

Bob

techwriter

with TheRock, and remember a couple of Thomas Jefferson's Canons of Conduct:



== never buy a thing you do not want, because it is cheap, it will be dear to you.



== take care of your cents: Dollars will take care of themselves!

DanCong

I decided to photoshop a note I have, which is not quite in the same ballpark as the $50 above but was in my price range.


This is natural photo, nothing done to it.







This is photoshopped, I tried to make it fairly natural, if you looked at it by itself it is not as apparent that it is enhanced.

Outhaul

WOW! The difference is incredible!

techwriter

Good post, DanCong. Outhaul, patience is a virtue and it's encouraging to see that you are doing some research and 'homework' before spending the $$--good for you.

numbersman

To help out with at least a start when it comes to recognizing grade(s),my $50 up there has been graded by PCGS (since that pic was taken) at a VF20.The pic's colors and vibrancy are true and the note is completely original.Touching on what I mentioned earlier,there are VF20's that look like mine (GREAT!) and there are many others that do not.If you're in search of a higher grade note,the vibrancy can come easy....with lower grades it can be much tougher to find the right one but,of course,you pay significantly less.

golden

Do yourself a favor and buy PCGS notes.

Outhaul

Are you saying that CGA and PMG are not reliable services?

DanCong

gnat

PMG is reliable as is PCGS. CGA is completely unreliable - virtually all of the accurately graded CGA notes of any value now reside in PCGS or PMG holders. Even eBay won't permit CGA encapsulated notes to be sold with the grade shown.

bsides

Hi Bob,

Sorry I didn't reply sooner. I couldn't work out how to log in to the new system!

Gold Certificates are a wonderful Large Size note to collect. I am building a set myself. To your question, I haven't come across any issues buying certified PMG notes. If you look through enough online images, ebay, Heritage, Lyn Knight, Stacks, Manifest, etc, you will get a good feel for what's right. The brightness will vary among the issues, and the 1906 $20 has some particularly bright orange colouring on their reverse (if you can find them).

I will add that buying only EPQ notes (PPQ also if you are happy with PCGS notes) of 53 and above is the best way to ensure quality, if you can afford it.

There is an amazing thread here by another user, have a look here for inspiration : vibr0nic's collection: Large Size Gold Certificate Set (Complete)

oklahomadanny

Great thread bump on vibronic's notes. Pleasure to see some amazing notes!