I think a type set in PR01 could be pretty awesome and cool in its own way, but coins that bad are only graded when the coin is super rare and valuable. So someone wanting a super-low grade set like that would have to get many of the coins graded themselves, which would make it expensive and so I don't know how many people would undertake it, no matter how much I would think that would be cool and look at that and think, "Darn, that's neat."

But I think it's unavoidable here that any coin that is going to be too low in grade to make back its grading fees and / or be competitive in the registry is going to be thought of as a "bad coin" because part of being here is usually going to be wanting to be competitive here. The custom / signature sets and the things that are undertaken for "style points" are of course an exception.

Early red copper coins are extremely rare. I think that many people who buy these coins, buy them because they garner the most points in their registry sets. An early copper coin can have a red surface, and a technical grade of 67, but have poor eye appeal. People sometimes overlook poor eye appeal to own a technical grade simply for registry purposes. This is not to say all early coppers graded red MS-67 have poor eye appeal but for my money I prefer the same MS-67 in brown and red/brown. I have a friend who will not own any early coppers but brown. Any Indian Head Cents other than brown or red/brown, and only accept some Lincoln Cents as red. He says, based on the reactive nature of copper, older coins in red and red/brown look unnatural. I can't argue that. I own a very attractively toned brown 1835 MS-63 half-cent that I'll put up against most higher graded red/browns and reds of the same type,

I think your logic is sound, I prefer to think of it as a bad buy or a good buy, which again is very subjective and may not be the same for each collector.   As an example when I was younger I used to buy lots of "stuff", just random coins and proof/mint sets many of which were found on the old time bid boards at coin shops.  Not bad coins or even overpriced but the randomness of the buys lacked focus and now even today I still have many of those coins just laying around in boxes and bins with no home for them.   Even today I still fall victim to the "buy the shiny coin" syndrome every now and then no matter how much I try and stay disciplined.

However there are many collectors that enjoy collecting in this way and I'm sure that I have offended a few peeps over time with what may have been perceived as a flippant comment which I did not mean that way but came across that way.

Copper coins are tough to categorize due to the reactive nature of copper and the threshold each collector has for the different color designations.   A red coin to one may be thought of as red/brown to many others, and so on.   Tarnish on coins creates vast differences in reactions from each collector, it is what makes collecting both interesting and conversely difficult.

On 3/9/2022 at 11:53 AM, Coinbuf said:

I think your logic is sound, I prefer to think of it as a bad buy or a good buy...

I think this is a much better way to describe it.  I made this post because I whitnessed a reaction (or two) to me calling coins "bad".  I know I made another collector (or two) feel bad about their coins (and I was not talking about their coins).  That makes me feel bad.  

I never want to be "that guy" who puts-down another collector's coins.  I want to be a collector that encourages others at every level of this hobby.  I cringe when I hear collectors say, "The hobby is not getting the traction from the younger people because of iPhones/Video Games." But, then see that same collector shred a newer collector that is excited about finding a coin in change.  I am not saying that we should delude or pacify people, but I have seen where seasoned/expert collectors (knowingly or unknowlingly) have turned newbies away from the hobby by making very direct, and sometimes pointed comments toward collectors that really don't know and are just starting out.

Therefore - I was hoping that my explanation of "good" vs "bad" would help any others I encountered and maybe got a bad taste from me.  I can assure you that I am only talking about "good for the grade" in my own personal collecting strategy.  

Again - I apologize to anyone who may have felt bad a a results of my words.  I should have said the coins were a "bad deal" for me, and not that the coin itself is "bad".