What confuses the most???

[Hoot]

Think of when you were entering the hobby. What were some of the most confusing things to you? This can be anything: terminology, how to find out what you were interested in, grading, etc., etc.

 

Here's one for me... I was confused for quite awhile about the differences between varieties and errors. After all, many varieties are expressions of errors that occurred before a planchet entered the coin press.

 

What confuses??? What questions are posed to you by newbies in the hobby?

 

Hoot

[Wihlborg]

Hoot,

 

For me, the most confusing thing was learning the subtle nuances of what makes one coin grade a point higher than another. Marks, strike, luster, and even toning come into play when grading a coin and learning to recognize how much weight to give each of these attributes when comparing one coin to another takes a good deal of experience.

 

For instance, when I was first learning to grade, I couldn’t understand how a coin with one or two more marks, or a more noticeable mark could grade the same or higher than a coin with fewer marks. It took awhile for me to learn that marks alone do not make a grade, and that if a coins other attributes are good enough they can make up for an extra mark or two.

 

Great question

 

John

[Bruceswar]

I know for alot of people they have a hard time grasping the mintage vs grade...

 

like say try finding a vf 30 barber coin....

[spy88]

To be perfectly honest, the first thing that came to my mind was "How did I get into collecting again after having quit for over 35 years?"

 

But to answer the question posed, I would have to agree with John. It was, sometimes still is (and probably will always be, depending on the coin), a continual give-and-take/back-and-forth conversation with myself trying to see why a coin is graded as it is. It is by no means an exact science, because if it were, there wouldn't be any disparity between all MS65s or whatever the grade.

 

Learning the many nuances to grading is probably the hardest and most confusing aspect I can think of.

 

Excellent question, Mark!!

[Leothelion]

It was, sometimes still is (and probably will always be, depending on the coin), a continual give-and-take/back-and-forth conversation with myself trying to see why a coin is graded as it is. It is by no means an exact science, because if it were, there wouldn't be any disparity between all MS65s or whatever the grade.

 

Learning the many nuances to grading is probably the hardest and most confusing aspect I can think of.

 

Excellent question, Mark!!

 

I've given up on all that hocus pocus because it's impossible! There are too many varables to sort out. And when you think you have some idea what critera's should be met to warrant a MS grade, along comes another group of coins that disrupt that thought process. It would be like sorting people, placing 6 billion coins into 70 catagories. If the coin fits your bill then buy it!

 

Leo

[TomB]

The thing that I see most people struggle with is a weak strike vs light wear.

[DonHeath]

For me, it was learning the difference in cabinet friction and wear. Learning to see wear in the fields and away from the devices, and learning to see the color of wear. I'm sure there's a better way to phrase that, but sometimes there are luster breaks on the devices from ordinary cabinet friction with no wear evident elsewhere on the coin. Washington's cheekbone comes to mind. On a coin with 100% satin luster and a dark spot on the cheek it's easy to understand, but on a Bust half with rub on the curls and rims with some toning, it's tougher to get your head around.

[Hoot]

Thanks, everyone, for the replies!

 

One of the things that I see again and again is a look of confusion with people who are just learning the value of their coin collection or hoard. This seems particularly true with folks who have inherited collections. And if the coins have been assembled in some fancy way, say in Littleton packages of various sorts, then the confusion is all the worse. Anger can easily follow and a disgust with even the most honest dealers, as if they are trying to shark the individuals.

 

So, there's a lot of confusion about monetary worth because the coins are "old," made of precious metals, and also carry a fair emotional worth. I think that getting emotional worth confused with monetary worth happens all the time.

 

Hoot

[Oldtrader3]

The nuances of:

Color, strike, mint bloom and luster breaks (vs. rub) are the attributes that were toughest for me. Particularly with gold.