Coin Dealer Stickers On Holders

[MarkFeld]

To those of you who care about the hologram - what are your reasons? Thanks.

 

I care about the integrity of the holder and hologram because of liquidity concerns and aesthetics.

 

Even though I, personally, am not overly concerned with the aesthetics, I can understand it. And I imagine, that if enough potential buyers place a lot of emphasis on that, liquidity can be affected. But it sure seems that if the coin is all there (and in an NGC or PCGS holder), the liquidity should be unaffected.

[TomB]

To those of you who care about the hologram - what are your reasons? Thanks.

 

I care about the integrity of the holder and hologram because of liquidity concerns and aesthetics.

 

Even though I, personally, am not overly concerned with the aesthetics, I can understand it. And I imagine, that if enough potential buyers place a lot of emphasis on that, liquidity can be affected. But it sure seems that if the coin is all there (and in an NGC or PCGS holder), the liquidity should be unaffected.

 

I believe that the value of an intact, attractive, desirable holder is inversely proportional to the value, eye appeal and absolute scarcity of the coin in the holder. Think about it; if you are looking for a gorgeous, crusty, original, mid-grade 1839-O Reeded Edge half dollar and you find one in a holder that is scuffed up, missing part of the hologram and chipped then you will buy the coin anyway and have it reholdered, if needed. However, if you have a client want list or simply would like to add an attractive MS65RD 1909-VDB Lincoln cent then you may think twice about buying one in a holder that is scuffed up, missing part of the hologram and chipped in favor of finding one in a pristine holder since you would not want to sink the reholder expense into the coin and you know your clients would pass on the coin in a beat up holder, too.

[lehigh96]

I am going to have to agree with Tom. Buyers care about the entire holder. I recently had a buyer return a toned coin because the holder was chipped all the way down the right obverse edge.

 

 

I guess he could have been lying an simply not been happy with the color, but I doubt it.

[coinman1794]

I am serious, with modern printers, a clear substate micro-dot could be employed for data scanning later and lacks being obtrusive or ugly. Maybe then even the buyer can usefully scan the data later with lot numbers and auction data and use it themselves. Maybe make something useful out of a dissatisfier.

 

There's a barcode printed right on the slab. All they need is a barcode reader, and they could set up a database. However, I've never in my life seen a dealer with one of these. Could it be they don't know what its for or how to use it? Or could it be that no one is tech-savvy enough to figure it out.

 

Then you have to bring that technology with you, everywhere you go, so you can access the digital info that previously would have been on the sticker. It makes sense for big dealers like Heritage, and few others.

[PerryHall]

When selling coins mail order, is it important to describe any damage on the slab?

[physics-fan3.14]

To those of you who care about the hologram - what are your reasons? Thanks.

 

Especially for slabs where the actual slab is the collectible (early generations and such), I want the hologram to be complete and prefer the slab to be pristine. I want the nicest example of the slab itself, and that means the hologram must be intact.

[Kenneth F]

I am going to have to agree with Tom. Buyers care about the entire holder. I recently had a buyer return a toned coin because the holder was chipped all the way down the right obverse edge.

 

 

I guess he could have been lying an simply not been happy with the color, but I doubt it.

 

Wow, I wouldnt have returned this one, just would have sent it to NGC for reslab.

[JStull]

To those of you who care about the hologram - what are your reasons? Thanks.

 

I care about the integrity of the holder and hologram because of liquidity concerns and aesthetics.

 

Even though I, personally, am not overly concerned with the aesthetics, I can understand it. And I imagine, that if enough potential buyers place a lot of emphasis on that, liquidity can be affected. But it sure seems that if the coin is all there (and in an NGC or PCGS holder), the liquidity should be unaffected.

 

I believe that the value of an intact, attractive, desirable holder is inversely proportional to the value, eye appeal and absolute scarcity of the coin in the holder.

Except the holder is not the coin. If the coin is intact, as Mark pointed out, and appears to be what the opinion on grade states on the label, the holder should have no bearing on the value or potential value of the coin contained within.

 

Buy the coin, not the slab!

[TomB]

To those of you who care about the hologram - what are your reasons? Thanks.

 

I care about the integrity of the holder and hologram because of liquidity concerns and aesthetics.

 

Even though I, personally, am not overly concerned with the aesthetics, I can understand it. And I imagine, that if enough potential buyers place a lot of emphasis on that, liquidity can be affected. But it sure seems that if the coin is all there (and in an NGC or PCGS holder), the liquidity should be unaffected.

 

I believe that the value of an intact, attractive, desirable holder is inversely proportional to the value, eye appeal and absolute scarcity of the coin in the holder.

Except the holder is not the coin. If the coin is intact, as Mark pointed out, and appears to be what the opinion on grade states on the label, the holder should have no bearing on the value or potential value of the coin contained within.

 

Buy the coin, not the slab!

 

That is your opinion based upon what you value, but as we are all aware; not everyone's opinion will be the same on every topic. You may not agree with it and your certainly do not have to understand it, but many folks value the holder, too, and in those cases an intact holder helps the liquidity and perhaps even value of what we call the coin.

[coinman_23885]

Buy the coin, not the slab!

 

I agree with the coin being the most important part, but I don't want a holder which is beat up or that otherwise looks "dumpy" either. If there is a coin I like that is in such a holder, I will still buy the coin, but I will factor in the cost and inconvenience of having the coin reholdered. In short, this is annoying for the older holders where some potential buyers will pay more for the old holders. This is no longer an option on resell if the coin is reholdered. As such, I do appreciate companies who take the time to preserve the coin and the holder.

[RWB]

Why no just log coins by the bar code? It's already on the slab and is unique to that holder.

[Oldtrader3]

Good question Roger, about using the existing bar code and adding as required to the dealer database. I realize that many coin dealers do not seem overly concerned about appearance of slab surfaces to customers. This topic has been discussed o this board before. I guess I am curious that so many collectors are so concerned about minute luster breaks and marks on coin surfaces, why would it make any sense that these same collectors are any less fussy about holder appearance than they are about the coin in the slab?

 

Kind of a rhetorical question about a collector population subset which are almost OCD about coin condition on every dicker that they enter into, but not about overall slab appearance? Doesn't make sense frankly.

 

One of the more disturbing aspects of collecting, at least for my tastes is the surface condition of the coin viewing window on NGC and PCGS slabs. I have sent a few back to be re-slabbed because the plastic was cracked or worn opaque when I bought them. We have to live with the plastic encapsulation as safeguards of our grading on coins. Why is surface window integrity, especially over the visible coin surfaces any less important? Just thinking out loud?