PCGS PLUS
Gazes
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I go back and forth regarding the PCGS PLUS coins. First, lets assume for this post that it is an accurate grade. In other words that the 65+ is closer to 66 than 65 but does not qualify for 66.
Some days I think to myself, I can get a high end 65 for just 30% over a 'regular"65 and a 66 would cost me 200% more. Other days I think, why would I want to pay 30% more for a coin that is still a 65 and won't be a 66.
Further, I see evidence of collectors who search for a plus coin with a green sticker. Curious as to others thoughts about the plus and whether you seek them out or avoid them? Thanks
Some days I think to myself, I can get a high end 65 for just 30% over a 'regular"65 and a 66 would cost me 200% more. Other days I think, why would I want to pay 30% more for a coin that is still a 65 and won't be a 66.
Further, I see evidence of collectors who search for a plus coin with a green sticker. Curious as to others thoughts about the plus and whether you seek them out or avoid them? Thanks
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Also, CAC disregards the + when deciding on whether to sticker a coin or not.
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A 64+ 1922 Peace dollar is of trivial significance. A 64+ 1928-S Peace dollar carries a certain bit of weight.
But as more art than science, I think plus grading is splitting the hair a little too closely to be generally reproducible.
I see a plus as PCGS saying 'this is a strong A coin' on the A-B-C spectrum within, say, MS65. A green bean is saying 'this is an A or B coin' on the A-B-C spectrum. In reality, CAC declines to even green bean many PCGS + coins and gold beans non PCGS + coins. So while they are further guidelines, you have to do the same calculation every time in your head: For this TPG and this grade and this bean/absence of bean and this price, is this a coin that will make me happy.
My thought when a coin is plus and stickered is that the sticker represents CAC believing the coin is original and solid for the grade and the plus signifies that PCGS considers it an A on an A B C scale
What I mean by this is that I have passed up higher graded coins because I didn't like their look and/or price. For me, this would apply to "+" graded coins as well.
If the coin is a "+" and is "all there", I can see myself paying a premium. I currently have ZERO plus coins though. I've only seen a few, in person at a show, and they weren't coins I was presently interested in.
So, for purposes of what to pay, I could easily see paying a premium at grade for a "+" coin and not a much higher premium for a grade above. Now, if there wasn't much difference in pricing to go to a higher grade, and I liked that coin a lot, then that would be a no-brainer (to me)
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I know grades mean a lot, particularly for registry folks (I have registry sets) but I have gotten to the point where, while I will look at grades as part of my pricing and desire, I look at the coin, itself, as well.
What I mean by this is that I have passed up higher graded coins because I didn't like their look and/or price. For me, this would apply to "+" graded coins as well.
If the coin is a "+" and is "all there", I can see myself paying a premium. I currently have ZERO plus coins though. I've only seen a few, in person at a show, and they weren't coins I was presently interested in.
So, for purposes of what to pay, I could easily see paying a premium at grade for a "+" coin and not a much higher premium for a grade above. Now, if there wasn't much difference in pricing to go to a higher grade, and I liked that coin a lot, then that would be a no-brainer (to me)
When I was working on my Philly Peace dollars I did look for and purchase a number of 66+ coins because I really didn't want to pay the huge jump in price for a 67. Beyond that though, I have never purchased or not purchased a plus coin because of the plus. My 1921 Peace is MS65+ which I bought because it was really strong in the characteristics I prefer on the coin. I sent it to CAC and they did not sticker it, but I love it and have seen a number of CAC examples of that year that I think are much less appealing coins.
I have purchased some Mercs that were plus grades and I paid a premium for them, but I loved the look of the coin and was willing to pay the premium because of the look, If it had been a straight grade I would probably have paid a similar premium. We all like what we like.
The significance of the plus is variable depending on context.
A 64+ 1922 Peace dollar is of trivial significance. A 64+ 1928-S Peace dollar carries a certain bit of weight.
But as more art than science, I think plus grading is splitting the hair a little too closely to be generally reproducible.
I think that's reproducible. A quality PQ, higher end coin will also be picked out the "coin show lineup" vs. its peers. While not every one will see the difference, or care, there are enough top level graders and sharks who will see the difference. Any sophisticated collector dealing with pre-1964 MS/PF 63-68 coins should be able to take a pile of coins all graded the same, and place them into 3 groups: low end/next grade down, average/solid, strong to high end for the grade....with 60% or better accuracy. Others call them ABC. I've seen the better dealers do this at auction and at the wholesale level since 1975. They can tell the difference. And it's not required that say 10 top dealers looking at the same coin all agree it's high end. All you need is 2-3 of them to think that...and there's a viable market at that higher level. In the auction room, the final price is determined by the top 2-3 bidders out of hundreds (excluding Mr. Potted Plant).
Grading and pricing is a continuum. There isn't a magic jump in a 65 being worth 100 and a 66 200 with nothing in between to value the progression of quality.
Agree 100%. But, there's lots of collectors and dealers out there who are stuck on price guide levels....and nothing in between. The coin's grade gives us a starting point to begin the negotiations. If the coin's grade is not that accurate...the negotiations are much harder (over-graded) or can be much easier (under-graded).
33 grades of uncirculated? Maybe for the best of the best. I feel there are 23 grades for me. (60/61 combined, 62, 62+, 63-68 three levels each, 69, 69+). I use the 64-67 grades so much that I can't see not having 12 levels in there. I could scrimp on the others and get 'er down to 20...but that's ROCK BOTTOM.
The low end coins for the grade really shouldn't be there. But that's an off shoot of 30 yrs of gradeflation, bulk grading/min grading, and numerous resubmissions. Ideally we should either have coins that make the grade all day long or are borderline next grade up...and that would still be 20 levels of uncirculated/proof. And because of the pricing continuum suggested by Boosibri, that means there are more than just the integer grade levels of 60-69 listed on the holder. The grading services are doing their job if they grade a coin the same 9 out of 10 times (or even 2/2, 2/3, 3/4, 3/5, etc.). It's the 11th try which upgrades the coin to be low end at next higher grade which gives us fits.
With the + coins I see, I'd say about 25-50% of them have more marks than I'd like to see for a high end coin. On the other hand, most of them do have superior eye appeal/blast.