EagleRJO

I considered doing crack outs for some Morgan dollars that are slabbed with a complete collection I am working on where they are almost all raw coins. However, the more expensive ones are slabbed which are more valuable and easier to sell if left in the TPG holders. So, I decided to slab them all with my own NGC style holders for the raw ones and keep them all together. It does create more of a storage issue, but I really like the way the collection is coming out.

That is an Innovation Dollar which are Manganese-Brass, not gold. Coin Specifications | U.S. Mint (usmint.gov) Also, I don't see doubling, which is unlikely with modern single press die production, just blurry pics when I zoom in.

@BobBumblerI also wanted to share with you that one of the most helpful things I did when starting a series collection was to start posting questions and coins I was looking into on this board before I jumped into that. The members were able to look past what may have seemed like dumb questions at the time to really help me to learn about the coins I was interested in and coin collecting in general. It was extremely helpful and much appreciated. I would also highly recommend the references linked above by Sandon and following his advice, which should serve you well. I am continuing to lean, and hopefully that will always be the case. So maybe we will see more of you as you continue with this most interesting hobby. Just my two (Indian head) nickels. 😉

So much for that gift card! But even then, it's usually only a restore or at worst a factory reset/recovery with a back-up. I would give it another try. Attached is a simple back-up drive I use and keep in the fire safe for peace of mind.

@Hoghead515you need to get a computer with a back-up hard drive to keep in that fire-proof safe! [duck]

Yea, I log everything and even write some of it down again with a checklist I keep with the collection after I have the coin in hand and carefully check the condition and grade ... date, mint, description, grade, who graded it, cost, where I got it, etc. But I also keep a short list of less common or more expensive coins I am actively looking for, or a "want list". I forgot to cross this coin off my "want list" which ended with the "unintentional upgrade".

Back on track here with the op's coins. What happened? I thought it was looking good with the feedback being the coins were very valuable.

You're not "special" ... the comment by GoldFinger was in response to that post by Harry! [duck]

Maybe you missed the above QA with your query below.

No one said that. VKurtB said that the toning looked wrong, except that it was only on one side (meaning that's an indication it's legit toning). And I responded that one-sided toning is not always an indicator of legit toning anymore (with an example of one-sided AT posted), and that I was not seeing a good color progression. That is a classic indicator to look for with AT [along with the lack of pull-away Coinbuf was talking about which wasn't apparent] if you were not aware of that, and which is sometimes very difficult to identify. Also, I believe all that were critical at first (myself included) qualified comments that it's very difficult to properly evaluate a coin with just one pic of the coin, and that they hoped it was just the way the pics of the coin were presenting. One thing that was really rubbing me the wrong way was the grainy appearance, but it looks like that was just the pics. [Also, just having a bunch of letters and numbers (AU-xx, MS-xx, AU Details, etc.) without some qualifying info and feedback on why people are thinking that is not as useful imo.]

No need to be embarrassed as mistakes and misconceptions happen to all of us, and just chalk it up to a lesson learned. I just had a total fail with a coin I bid on, which I posted anyway because I felt comfortable that people may just roll their eyes but not bash me and it may be a good reminder to others. And if I looked back at some of my first posts here, I would probably run and hide if I let it get to me. This includes one I do remember on overdates where I was previously incorrectly told it was the result of multiple coin strikes, and the correct info I was being given just wasn't sinking in, as well as at least one other about the grade of a coin where I was way off. I just dusted myself off and plowed ahead. At least you know of a good source of information now, and maybe post some other coins you found or questions you may have. The members here are very helpful and forgiving of people truly trying to learn!

Sorry to say I agree with the others that it looks like a large date cent. The "9" and "8" are distinctly above/below the "1" and "2" and not shaped correctly. If that is hard for you to see rotate the picture so the lettering and date are level, and if needed add a rectangle (so you know it's level and square) to the date. See the attached to see what I am referring to. Also attached is a guide to help, but keep in mind there are a lot of over-hyped junk vids on hitting the jackpot with change/rolls, when the reality is the chances of finding the rare 1982-D copper small date are virtually zero. Also welcome to the forum, and feel free to post any questions you have or coins you are considering submitting. There are a lot of knowledgeable and helpful people on the board that can usually answer questions or refer you to good research sources.

Amen. I purchased some gold coins mostly because I liked the way they looked, but also convincing myself they were an "investment" and they have summarily dropped like a rock recently. Luckily, I purchased some last year at a low point, so they are still up, but others I purchased not long ago at what I thought was a pivot point after the spike leveled are barely a break even and probably somewhat of a loss with the further spot drop and price spread now. Not really such a good "investment" ... but I still love the way they look.

Nice JP! It must be very satisfying to finally find those elusive ones to complete that nickel book. Now you need another book for your second string 62-95 nickels as you find better ones.

He does deserve credit for that, and I edited my comments accordingly.

Interesting find Bill. Too bad it's holed. Just curious why you want to know the composition. Possible melt value if it was silver?

Well, I'm glad it's starting to look like the 1885 Morgan will work out for you, and that the apparent questionable conditions may just be the result of the difficult to photograph appearance of a coin, which is particularly true for toned coins. I take pictures of all my coins for a log and sometimes I look at the pictures and shake my head as it's not how the coin looks in hand, even with a 40x loupe and good lighting looking for things I thought I missed that show up in the pics. That is particularly true with some toned ones, and sometimes flow lines and a frosty surface can really mess with pictures. However, I probably have learned more from kicking around potentially negative comments on coins that I either had or was considering buying than anything else.

Welcome to the forum and my condolences on your loss. There are some auction companies that handle all three of the distinctly different categories of items you inherited (coins, stamps and comics) such as Heritage Auctions, but they are probably not interested in common lower value items. There are also estate sale companies, but they often only want to give you pennies on the dollar as its commonly just a shot in the dark for them or they see a few items they can cherry pick. You might be better off going to local dealers as suggested by others and may find some that handle both stamps and coins. They may ask for a list of items with descriptions first, so you may need to do that. Also be prepared for pretty low numbers or disinterest in many items, particularly with common loose coins and stamp collections, which happened to me when I inherited similar items including a large stamp collection, so I just kept them. Good luck and maybe let us know how it works out for you, or if maybe you decide to keep some of the coins and pick that up as a hobby.

Well, I am glad you finally came to your senses and did an industry accepted test to verify the XRF results and what pics of the edge were showing, which confirmed it was a regular Cu-Ni clad coin with no extra value. Since you did that and removed the listing, I removed my references to you as being a scammer. However, a lot of the negative feedback you were getting was of your own making when very early on people were asking to see pics of the edges or saying that you should do SG tests to confirm the XRF results. You didn't heed the advice and comments of very experienced people and blindly plowed ahead listing the coin for sale. There is a lot of incorrect information, half-truths, unreliable indicators (e.g. tissue "tests") and hyped-up click-bait vids by people who have no idea what they are talking about with the sole purpose of getting views to make money on the web. Hopefully you realize that now and will be a little more skeptical of such things in the future.

Luckily the new one is a better grade with a nicer appearance for a better price, so I am happy with the "unintentional upgrade".

I won a bid on a Carson City mint Morgan earlier that I thought I was missing from my complete set and was pretty happy with myself as I got it for a pretty good price. That is until I realized I had already purchased that coin and had entered it in my digital log, as well as a written checklist/log I keep with the collection but forgot to update my "want list". Doh! [I forgot to follow Santa Clause's lead of "making a list" and "checking it twice" ] Oh well, at least it was a bit of an upgrade. I guess I will be listing the lower grade one for sale which I also got for a pretty good price so it should be no problem selling it.

That's too bad. He had a very easy going naturally fluid style, and you could tell he had a lot of knowledge packed into the attic.

"May" ... you are in deep trouble if the ole lady sees that post!

I have to admit I was also sucked into that one, and actually started conversing with Ricky (although on your behalf) in the "scammer thread".

For whatever it's worth I think the op posted that the XRF was not handheld. However, the results were Cu-Ni which is a dead-on-balls-accurate match with the edge pics, so it really doesn't matter.