Buying ugly toned high grade coins

[prudden]

Hey all,

 

what if you came across a coin which is one you've been looking to have.It is graded very high but has really ugly brown toning on it. A white specimen could be worth $1500.00. or more.This one might not reach $400.00. Would you guys buy it and dip it yourself or buy it and send it to NCS or skip it altogether?Thanks

[MarkFeld]

Hey all,

 

what if you came across a coin which is one you've been looking to have.It is graded very high but has really ugly brown toning on it. A white specimen could be worth $1500.00. or more.This one might not reach $400.00. Would you guys buy it and dip it yourself or buy it and send it to NCS or skip it altogether?Thanks

It's difficult to imagine a toned one selling for that much less money. I'm guessing that at least one of those figures is off.

 

Either way, don't crack it out an dip it, because if you do, it might down-grade. If you don't like it as is you should probably either pass or have NCS try to make it beautiful for you.

[PCcoins]

It's all about eye appeal when pricing comes into play IMO. You can have a common date coin in a common grade sell for crazy money all because of the toning.

 

Or you can get some amazing deals off ebay when the coin is fugly toned? It's a personal thing, but yeah I guess you could dip the coin and get it regraded?

[prudden]

It's all about eye appeal when pricing comes into play IMO. You can have a common date coin in a common grade sell for crazy money all because of the toning.

 

Or you can get some amazing deals off ebay when the coin is fugly toned? It's a personal thing, but yeah I guess you could dip the coin and get it regraded?

 

well,the pictures aren't great,but the toning looks like heavy brown chocolate syrup covering 3/4 of the obverse.. I've seen the common dates with incredible toning go for silly money,but this one is as you say "fugly"

I've also see the other side.Ugly toning killing the price.

[Arizonadesertrat]

A coin in the $1500 price range is not likely to be rare, so I would opt for waiting for a decent-looking one to come your way. Settling for a coin with little eye appeal will mean future unhappiness. Be more patient.

[gmarguli]

A white specimen could be worth $1500.00. or more.This one might not reach $400.00.

 

There is no way poor eye appeal (ugly toning) could reduce the value that much. I can't imagine that a coin would be worth more than 1/3 less just because it was ugly. There is always the wholesale sightunseen market and there is probably a bid out there for the coin at $1,000 if a decent one is worth $1,500.

[C.I.]

From what you have said, this is one ugly toned coin. I would have a problem putting $$ down on one described as this. Dipping may help, it may not, just as Mark mentioned. If other potential buyers see it as a $400.00 coin, it probably is.

 

If you are buying it to resale, you might take the gamble. If you are thinking of adding to your collection, I would pass. Think you would be dissapointed in the result.

 

Chet

[kryptonitecomics]

Typically heavily toned coins like your describing can not be successfully dipped as too much of the surface metal has to be removed to make the coin white again and that takes the luster with it. I would pass..........

[okbustchaser]

Without a specific example I can't state this as a universal truth, but I suspect that if an otherwise 1500 dollar coin is available for only 400 dollars that it isn't the ugly toning that is holding it down--it is what bidders suspect is hidden under that toning.

[JIM F.]

It depends if you are a gambler or not. The coin below, now resides in a PCGS PF-65 DCAM.

 

[okbustchaser]

It depends if you are a gambler or not. The coin below, now resides in a PCGS PF-65 DCAM.

 

 

Yes, but when it sold at Heritage back in 2003 did it go for 25% of what an untoned coin in the same grade would have sold for? What it would currently sell for in an upgraded holder is irrelevant.

[JIM F.]

I bought it for about 60% or so of what untoned PF-65's were going for at the time.

 

[BillJones]

I'd pass.

 

Dark, ugly toning is often so deep into the metal that trying to dip it off only makes the situation worse. Quite often such coins end up splotchy, or if you do get down to an layer below the toning you get a dull, lifelss coin with no luster.

[Walkerfan]

Good Question. I would go go for it if it was an ultra rarity, say $15000, and have NCS conserve it. For a $1500 coin, I agree with Arizona Desert Rat, it wouldn't be worth it and doesn't constitute a rarity. It would also be a gamble, b/c I don't know what's underneath the tarnish and even after NCS conservation it could look dull and washed out. It may not have the luster that you had hoped for and this may be even as unappealing as the dark ugly tone. I would just look for a better example.