The Fun of Self Slabbing

[Houston Investor]

Self slab supplies are readily available on Ebay. The Chinese make a product that is very similar to the old ANACS slabs which is easy to work with and stacks nicely. At a recent show, a fellow had a whole case of these he had put together. He said "Hey I have been grading coins for over 30 years and I feel my opinion is as good as theirs. Afterall, grading is just an opinion - 5 people may disagree on the grade of a rare coin" The slabs looked very impressive (he said they cost him 32c apiece) and he had printed off some nice looking labels (from excel). I don't believe he was trying to emulate a grading service but simply had the name of his business on the label and felt these were a nice venue to display his coins. The are inexpensive, easy to prepare and will hold together well without being glued or heat sealed. They also open easily (a small flat head screwdriver from my model RR toolbox did the trick - just stucked it in the small slot on the side and turned) allowing removal of the coin or changing the (grading) certificate. Eventually many nicer raw coins will find their ways into these holders (and unfortuantely some cleaned / problem ones as well). Frankly, they look a lot nicer than staple 2 x 2's so here is a venue for a seller to display his nicer raw coins.. The key is preparing sharp looking slab inserts. Do you plan to self slab any of your coins? Will novices be fooled by these and then get ripped? Will the day come that the bourse will be made up of so many self slabbers that the TPG's become lost in the haze.

[Zoins]

Are they all Chinese? Capital Plastics, Coin World and others sell do-it-yourself slabs but I'm not sure if theirs are all made in China.

 

Self-slabs with printed labels can be more attractive than cardboard 2x2s with pen scribblings on the edges and more useful than capsules which don't really give you a place to write down notes.

 

They can be used to mislead but there's also a reason TPGs went with them in the first place, they are useful.

[Houston Investor]

The ones I purchased (out of curiosity after seeing them at the recent Houston Collectibles show - Crown Plaza near Houston Intercontinental Airport) were made in China. The Chinese appear to have used the old ANACS type holder as a design model which in my view is far superior and much less expensive than the Coin World do it yourself holders. I have seen sellers on ebay offering 40 for $25. They are easy to work with, the coins do not rotate, they stack easily, and fill a gap for raw coins that are too nice to display in an ugly, staple, 2x2. They are great for circulated, bullion, or modern coins under $25. However, the dealers at shows I have seen doing this do not claim to be a grading service as their business name appears on the insert which also appears on their sign at shows. I see this as a venue to display raw coins or set aside coins later intended to have slabbed by one of the four major TPG's (ANACS, NGC, PCGS, ICG). Many dealers at shows are starting to do this as a way to better market their raw coins. One in particular will be advertising that he is a buyer of his self graded coins at CDN Bid less 5% and a seller at CDN Bid plus 10%. There has also been discussion of a new consortium who will offer the same spread on their stickered coins (which must be ANACS, ICG, NGC, or PCGS) and one name that has been kicked around as a name for this group is Collectors Financial Group (CFG). Many of the members are concerned about what they consider the outrageous overpricing of coins in the marketplace, especially toned and pedigreed coins. The goal is to do to pricing what the TPG's have done to grading. Interesting concept but there are many issues that will need to be worked out.

 

Considering I can have coins slabbed for as little as $10 by one of the major 4 TPG's I do not see myself putting many coins into self slab holders. And even then many coin buyers only will buy products slabbed by either NGC or PCGS. I am simply trying to point out here these are an inexpensive quality product for your raw coins. Having a snazzy insert is key.

 

The Chinese are moving into many USA hobby areas producing quality products. In my other hobby, model railroading, they have produced finely detailed locomotives and rolling stock, especially in HO scale. I model the CNJ in a 1950's era setting in HO scale.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Keleum]

Is there any kind of slab that holds airtites? Something that holds a snazzy insert and an airtite size holder.

[jesbroken]

Are there any dealers selling the slabs as a mixed batch or each-all the ones I have seen are multiples of the same type-cent, $, nickel, etc. I wouldn't mind having 2 or three of each, but wouldn't want a load of $ or whatever.

[Houston Investor]

Are there any dealers selling the slabs as a mixed batch or each-all the ones I have seen are multiples of the same type-cent, $, nickel, etc. I wouldn't mind having 2 or three of each, but wouldn't want a load of $ or whatever.

 

Yes there are 2 dealers selling mixed batches of the slabs that I know of on the bay. I bought mine from a place called Coyote's Coins and Collectibles and another one has larger batches plus a program for making super labels (which I have also purchased) - Monnaie Unigrade Coins (Canada). They have a neat chart which shows which slab sizes fit which diameters (helpful for world coins). If I am not mistaken, I believe French Roosters will fit in the cent size. I know that Mexico Silver 20 Pesos do as I slabbed some last nite that are MS 66 - I had a really nice roll of these. These coins look nicer slabbed than in a 2 x 2.

 

If a coin is expensive enough to justify the $10 or $12 slab fee of one of the major TPG's I will submit - but cheap coins, bullion, and mods I believe a lot of dealers will be slabbing these with the company name. Its all a matter of space management and marketing in a showcase however, there is nothing that takes up less space than the old 2 x 2. Self slabbed coins, if done well and graded accurately can nicely complement a dealers TPG slabbed material. Grading modern US Mint products should be no mystery - 95% or more should be either 69 or 70 - afterall this is how they come from the mint!

 

 

[jackson64]

I seem to be in the vast minority in your poll. I have a whole box of generic slabs. I simply use them as holders. I have many registry sets and I also still collect albums for fun. One album I recently finished was a nice Franklin Half Set. I struggled with wanting only BU coins but I also love the Frankie proofs. So I bought a box of 25 slabs for about $15 and am putting together a set of Frankie proofs for my own enjoymeny. They look nice in my Eagle Binder/notebook. I don't assign grades though --only a comment on the cameo level....I recommend self slabbing for short sets in lieu of albums--no plastic slide overlays scuffing your coins, no acidy cardboard either. They are not "sonically sealed" but they work great and display easy..

[okbustchaser]

Will novices be fooled by these and then get ripped?

 

Probably, though I hope not. I still say, however, that a little homework before purchasing any collectable at a price that will sting (whatever level that may be for that individual) would overcome this and should be considered HIS responsiblilty.

 

Will the day come that the bourse will be made up of so many self slabbers that the TPG's become lost in the haze?

 

I may be in the distinct minority, but I certainly hope so.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[just-john]

I heard a rumor that if you self slab to much you will go BLIND

[Zoins]

I thought you'd go blind if you drank too much slab koolaid?

[carson city]

Self indulgence is a wonderful thing--------Paris Hilton

[Houston Investor]

I heard a rumor that if you self slab to much you will go BLIND

 

Ok John, I will go easy on it, but I am having so much fun!

 

 

 

[cpm9ball]

Self indulgence is a wonderful thing--------Paris "Silver Spoon" Hilton

 

Isn't it amazing what the family fortune can do for a dumb blonde!

 

Chris