Auction vs. eBay/ Slabbed vs. raw

[shirohniichan]

Whenever I buy a coin sight unseen, I'm taking a gamble-- that goes for eBay as well as auctions.

 

I bought an 1876 20 cent piece in ANACS VF-30 from a Bowers & Merena auction recently and even more recently bought a raw 1876 20 cent piece with no grade via eBay.

 

The B&M catalog said the ANACS coin was "well-struck," so I was a bit disappointed when this arrived.

 

 

Today I got this coin from an eBay seller and was, on the contrary, quite pleased.

 

 

For about the same price as the ANACS coin I got a raw coin in one full grade better. My grading set is filling out quite nicely now.

 

I guess the moral of the story is that a carefully cataloged coin from a reputable dealer's auction is not necessarily a better deal than a raw coin from eBay. Sure, there are more risks when buying via eBay, but I guess my gamble paid off.

 

I grade the bottom coin EF-45. What do you think?

[truthteller]

Bottom coin is XF plus. Top coins looks like a marginal VF but the color is just not right.

 

TRUTH

[crito]

Surfaces on the bottom one look a little grainy. Probably had some verdigris removed. Nice details though. Top one may be lower grade but doesn't seem to have any problems. Except maybe a light staple scratch around 3 o'clock, if it's not on the holder, that is.

[shirohniichan]

The graininess is probably from my scanner.

 

Here's the other one I got from the same seller.

 

 

If I would have know the coin would be as nice as they are, I would have bought more. She had a number of double dimes for sale, but I didn't want to buy too many from a seller I didn't know. BTW, I got this one at retail VF price.

[Hoot]

Just a general comment (and BTW, nice coins Shiro!): I think it's hard to find trustworthy sellers on eBay. There are a few here, readily identified from the boards, but obviously, you have to look far and wide on eBay to find the coins you want.

 

Now that you've found a good seller Shiro, maybe your luck will be even better!

 

Hoot

[Oldtrader3]

I agree, Hoot. It seems that EBay raw-coin grading has gotten even worse. I have noticed recently that there are a couple operators that list hundreds of raw coins per week, all badly over-graded, or cleaned. I certainly would buy raw EBay coins from some of the Board Members here, but that is about all.

[shirohniichan]

Just a general comment (and BTW, nice coins Shiro!): I think it's hard to find trustworthy sellers on eBay. There are a few here, readily identified from the boards, but obviously, you have to look far and wide on eBay to find the coins you want.

 

Now that you've found a good seller Shiro, maybe your luck will be even better!

 

Hoot

 

Unfortunately the seller has since been NARU'd.

 

There are a few sellers I've run into that offer great service (quick shipping and refunds) but absolutely crappy coins. Cleaned VF coins magically become "choice AU." Harshly cleaned and bent coins are "problem free." I don't like to mention names, but one seller's name starts with "s" and ends with "cardinal."

[RGT]

There are a few sellers I've run into that offer great service (quick shipping and refunds) but absolutely crappy coins. Cleaned VF coins magically become "choice AU." Harshly cleaned and bent coins are "problem free." I don't like to mention names, but one seller's name starts with "s" and ends with "cardinal."

 

! Nothing like being subtle. I'm a bit late with a reply, but I've been away for a few days.

 

I've bought one coin from this un-named seller. I had the sense to not buy any raw coins from him since the do seem overgraded and he only shows one side. I got an NGC MS-63 Liberty nickel from him that he stated "looked better". Well, it looks like an MS-63 to me. I guess he's used to looking at NTC coins so all his NGC stuff looks undergraded.

 

[goose3]

who is this seller on ebay? It would be nice to know of some that sell nice stuff!

 

By the way, all 3 of those coins are pretty darn nice, esp. the 2 raw ones! nice!