Found Treasures: The Myth of MS60

[EZ_E]

Found Treasures: The Myth of MS60

[font:Century Gothic]By Stewart Huckaby[/font]

 

As a numismatist, if you've looked at the popular grading guides, you've no doubt seen listings for coins in common grades, often Good, Very Good, Fine, Very Fine, Extremely Fine, and About Uncirculated - or their numerical equivalents. If you're unfamiliar with the grading system used for coins, you might click here for a primer and a few rules of thumb.

 

A quick look through the Red Book shows that for all but the most recent coins, Mint State grades are given in MS60, as well as MS63, sometimes MS65, and even MS64 for Morgan and Peace dollars. The Coin Dealer's Newsletter shows Mint State grades in MS60, MS63, MS64, and MS65, expanding that a little for Type gold and Morgan and Peace Dollars. Coin World Trends, which covers the widest variety of grades of any price guide I know, includes MS60, then a series of grades, depending on the coin, starting from MS62 or 63 and increasing from there as high as it makes sense to go for the particular piece.

 

In my opinion (which is not necessarily that of my employer), the prominence given MS60 coins in the price guides is a waste of ink. Here's why:

 

1.

 

MS60 coins are generally not common. In fact, except for some poorly produced or well circulated gold coins, they can hardly be considered to be typical uncirculated coins, even typical low grade uncirculated coins.

 

Let's take a look at some population figures for a few key date coins, which are used here because they are more likely to be submitted to grading services in any grade.

 

Coin Pop in

MS60 Pop in

MS61 Pop in

MS62 Pop in

MS63 Average

MS Grade

1893-S Dollar 3 11 11 16 63.0

1916-D Dime 6 33 85 117 63.5

1856 Flying Eagle Cent 5 10 36 42 63.0

1909-S VDB Cent 22 96 436 1341 64.0

1916 Standing Quarter 13 46 124 237 63.5

1885 Nickel 7 9 55 91 63.7

1911-D $2.50 104 761 1162 725 62.4

The figures above include all designations such as Red, Red and Brown, Brown, Prooflike, Deep Mirror Prooflike, Full Bands, and Full Head, as well as the four 1911-D Weak D quarter eagles to have been certified with a mint state grade. Undoubtedly, the figures also include resubmissions as well; such is the nature of the submission game. But consider this: there are at least twice as many MS61s as MS60s in six of the seven cases - enough to show how much more common the MS61 grade is even if we assume that every MS60 has already been upgraded to an MS61. Similarly, MS62 is at least twice as common as MS61 in five of the seven cases.

 

Again, these coins are keys, which means that the population figures for less desirable coins are likely to not include lower uncirculated grades. But this leads into...

2.

 

MS60 coins are generally not desirable. An MS60 coin is a coin that is technically Mint State, but is likely to have significant deficiencies including one or more of excessive or unusually prominent bagmarks, poor strike, and/or poor luster. For all but the most extreme rarities, chances are that you will be able to find the coin more easily in a slightly higher or slightly lower grade (AU58 coins are also far more common than MS60 coins) depending on your budget, likely with better eye appeal regardless of which direction you go. For a common coin where cost is less of a factor, why search around for an MS60 when an MS63 is readily available?

3.

 

Because MS60 coins are so unavailable and as such rarely traded, the prices listed in the guides are essentially theoretical. You aren't getting an MS62 coin for MS60 money, at least not if you're dealing with any of the dealers I know. Why not list the price for a grade that coins exist in?

 

MS62 is a far more typical a grade for a low-end uncirculated coin, and would be an excellent choice for the guides to list instead of MS60. MS62 coins generally come with reasonable eye appeal, and are usually available unless the date is a condition rarity. Keep in mind that a "typical" uncirculated grade varies from type to type and even from coin to coin.

 

A note about Heritage's grade listings is in order here. The numerical grade to be found on coins offered on the Heritage website is that given on the slab, and an MS60 coin encapsulated by NGC, PCGS, ANACS, or ICG (the latter two only if no problems are noted), is that rarity - a real MS60 coin.

 

However, if the coin has problems noted - it's been cleaned, damaged, etc. - then the following rules apply. If the coin is in an ANACS slab with problems noted and a net grade, we use the net grade. If a coin is in an NCS, ICG, or ANACS slab with a problem noted but only a details grade given, we will use the details grade. In practice, problem coins virtually always sell for a significant discount to their price guide listings.

 

This means that often when you see an MS60 coin in a Heritage auction, it will be in a "problem" holder with either a net MS60 grade or a grade given as "Uncirculated Details" or "Mint State Details". Make sure you look closely at the listing for the coin and at the holder before bidding on such a coin. A quick look at the listings in the current Summer FUN auction confirms this: of 97 coins listed as MS60, only 37 are not noted as having problems. Most of the problem-free MS60 coins are gold, which due to its softness is more often found in MS60 - and often more desirable in the grade - than coins made from other metals.

[World Colonial]

Excellent article, especially point #2. I would rather own an AU-58 than an MS-60. I would also generally prefer an AU-58 to any low MS grade because they are cheaper and look the same or even better.

[MarkFeld]

Excellent article, especially point #2. I would rather own an AU-58 than an MS-60. I would also generally prefer an AU-58 to any low MS grade because they are cheaper and look the same or even better.

Actually, in many cases, nice AU58's sell for more than low mint-state grade examples, and justifiably so.

[EZ_E]

Here's an exception, I think, of a MS60 graded coin with exceptional eye-appeal.

[TomB]

MS60 coins are generally not common. In fact, except for some poorly produced or well circulated gold coins, they can hardly be considered to be typical uncirculated coins, even typical low grade uncirculated coins.

What the heck does a well circulated gold coin have to do with the MS60 grade?

[Oldtrader3]

The MS60's market is a dead end for most series. The coins that end up with MS60 grades are almost always hammered Unc's or lusterless, marked but otherwise nice AU58's. It is a dead end grade that never performs nearly as well as either the AU58 or MS62 coin market which you can often buy for little premium over MS60. MS60 is a graveyard for dead end Unc's and pushed AU coins unless the coin is an exceptionally rare or much sought after date.

 

I have only one MS60 coin plus one MS61 gold coin. They are both better date, hard to obtain denominations that I could afford to purchase and the best buy found in this date. I would have had to pay 2X+ for a MS62 coin of this same date. I do not expect to make much money on these two coins. However, I bought them slabbed for a few dollars over melt, in a pretty scarce date. Additionally, they have decent color, strike and no major problems. Certain half eagles, eagles and T-1 or T-2 double eagles, MS60 coins can be a winning purchase, if they are bright, decent, legitimate coins for date and grade.

[jtryka]

The exception to the article as Stewart admits is gold, but even there the population of MS-60 grades is almost nil. I have 3 double eagles that are in MS-60 slabs and the majority are better dates.

[Oldtrader3]

Almost all of the 1862-1868 dates in MS60 would be a good buy in most gold denominations, if you could find the coins.

[jesbroken]

While a coin with a little more color to it is more my direction, this MS60 is almost proof like, especially the fields, which makes it very desireable in my opinion. I really do not understand why this coin garnered such a low grade, but then I'm not a grader.

Jim

 

[Oldtrader3]

Scan looks fine. Is it a slider?

[cpm9ball]

The only thing I see that looks distracting is the rim hit between 10 and 11 o'clock.

 

Chris

[kbsig106]

Here's a MS60 PL Morgan - I was scratching my head with the PL on the lowest end of the Unc. Not sure if there are many of these, but happy to have the PL and makes it much better than a plain MS 60 Morgan.

 

[Oldtrader3]

Lots of small ticks and luster breaks on this coin seem to be what has held it back.

[James_OldeTowne]

MS60 coins are generally not common. In fact, except for some poorly produced or well circulated gold coins, they can hardly be considered to be typical uncirculated coins, even typical low grade uncirculated coins.

What the heck does a well circulated gold coin have to do with the MS60 grade?

Although I think there was some sort of typ-o, I actually think the statement has merit. Gold coins I've been seeing in slabs as MS-60, 61 and 62 ARE circulated!

 

(Maybe not "well" circulated though.)