Black Coins. Your Thoughts?

[blu62vette]

I dont normally like black coins. This one is the darkest I own by far and I like it but have no idea why. Does not match anything else I own.

 

 

 

 

 

[BROADSTRUCK]

I dont normally like black coins. This one is the darkest I own by far and I like it but have no idea why. Does not match anything else I own.

 

blu62vette, That's just darkly toned... Not black.

[blu62vette]

Yep....I just said it is the darkest I own. I dont have any deep black ones.

[Kamillion]

I apologize. I was using a common phrase and attributed it to a coin. I am a fan of toned coins that are richly dark. Like how cobalt shimmers with a rainbow tone even though it's black. Therefore, they are one of my favorite varieties, and "I'll never go back" from liking them. I'm afraid you read too much into it, and I didn't mean to offend anyone with my comment on said variety with a slight overtone of adult humor. I honestly thought that being such an intelligent brood of collectors, everyone would get it-and perhaps even giggle to themselves. I once again apologize, next time I'll look for dust in the room before I begin to blow my hot air.

 

Don't sweat it. Some people just get spun up easily. If the criteria for staying on topic was enforced, half of the posts on this board would be deleted. Some people prefere a cold stainless steel enviroment void of all humor and humorous comments and some prefer color.

 

sad but true

[TomB]

I'd have to see your coin in-hand, but I imagine if it has good luster it would be attractive. At one point I owned a 1950-S WQ with a jet black obverse and blast white reverse. I adored the coin, but no one I ever showed it to liked it very much. PCGS graded it MS65, which was too low, in my opinion, and likely held it back because of the dark obverse. In hindsight, I sold the coin for too little.

[Oldtrader3]

Tom, I did the same with a variety of 1845 (no drape), O over horix O, AU58, half (Pop 1) that turned from cobalt to black in the slab within six months of being in a gun safe with a gold bar humidity control. It is the only coin in a slab that I have ever had turn dark that completely, that quickly.

 

I also sold the coin at a loss in disgust and should have kept it. That is one of the reasons that I am so concerned about coin surface contamination as a serious discussion.

 

You are a scientist, whereas I am an engineer not a chemist, but I believe that you understand my concerns on this topic.

[Chris1976]

Hypothetically,and I know this may be off the origional topic, has anyone considered the idea that maybe some coins change colors while in protective plastic slabs could be caused by the plastic itself? Plastic is a mixture of resins, hardners, and other chemicals. Some are syntheticly made and others are oil based. There could of been a variation in the chemicals used to produce the plastic in question while it was being manufatured or different suppliers using different materials.

 

Even at average room temperatures plasics are able to release fumes, some you can smell and others that we might not be able to. Maybe its the unknown fumes that are causing some coins to turn colors while in the plastic slabs in addition to how they were handled prior.

 

Again, sorry for side tracking, but thought it still had some realivance to the subject of black coins.

 

-Chris#2

[TomB]

The coin I had was purchased by me as a raw piece and it had truly wonderful luster and life even though the obverse was so jet black. Again, because of the wonderful luster I should have kept the coin.

 

Others have expressed it, too, but I have a fear at times that what might be in a slab or what might become of the decomposition products of a slab may hurt a coin during long term storage. I have no evidence to suggest that this happens and have never had it happen to a coin in my possession, but it makes me wonder.