Question about Silver Eagle Grades & Labels

[Colorado68]

I've been looking at buying a 2011-S MS70 Silver Eagle but confused with spread in prices. They are anywhere from $50 BIN to folks bidding at $250.

Some holders say 25th anniversary, some say first strike, others say early release and then others are just a plain MS70 label.

If it says they are a MS70 and 2011-S , aren't they all the same coin just different label?

I've been told hundreds of times, buy the coin not the label.. would this be an exception?

 

[bochiman]

Registry and completeness.

 

Mint will sometimes release coins in sets that have been released elsewise by them. So, to get them "labeled" correctly for the set, 1st strike, etc, they will have to be sent in a certain time period (and possibly unopened). Costs more, etc.

So, not everyone does it.

 

Leads to many different labels that, once you crack out the coins, you can't tell which is which, which is why it is all about the labels. However, certain labels do bring higher values BECAUSE of the need of collectors to have everything labeled a certain way.

 

There are others that get even more confusing....the 50th annv Kennedy sets now...with all the myriad labels......

[cpm9ball]

I've been looking at buying a 2011-S MS70 Silver Eagle but confused with spread in prices. They are anywhere from $50 BIN to folks bidding at $250.

Some holders say 25th anniversary, some say first strike, others say early release and then others are just a plain MS70 label.

If it says they are a MS70 and 2011-S , aren't they all the same coin just different label?

I've been told hundreds of times, buy the coin not the label.. would this be an exception?

 

My personal opinion is that special labels for "First Strikes" and "Early Releases" is nothing more than hype. For one thing, out of, say, the first 100,000 coins you have no way of knowing which coin is the 1st, 1,000th, 10,000th or 100,000th shipped.

 

As for the grade, if you can't tell the difference between an MS70 and an MS69, then you are better off buying the MS69. It will save you a heck of a lot of money if you are attempting to build the set. However, if you intend to build a top-ranked Registry Set, then be prepared to spend a lot more money.

 

Chris

[RWB]

Buy a color printer and print your own labels.....that is all you would be paying for anyway.

 

PS: You can print other things with the color printer, too, unlike the plastic slab.

[Conder101]

If it says they are a MS70 and 2011-S , aren't they all the same coin just different label?

That's correct, and if you take it out of the holder, it's just bullion. For these coins pretty much ALL of the value is in the paper label.

[messydesk]

If it says they are a MS70 and 2011-S , aren't they all the same coin just different label?

Yes.

I've been told hundreds of times, buy the coin not the label.. would this be an exception?

Only if you collect labels and not coins.

[jom]

My personal opinion is that special labels for "First Strikes" and "Early Releases" is nothing more than hype.

 

I like to think of as "product" (rather than just hype). PCGS seem to have the need to put as many different products as possible to create interest in certain niches. This, over time, will create more submissions for them.

 

If I were the OP I'd find a nice MS69...far cheaper for the same "product". Or, better yet, find a raw piece in its original package.

 

jom

[Colorado68]

I appreciate all the replies.

Another piece of advise I'd been given was to buy the best grade you could afford, so the reason I was looking at a 70 vs 69 grade. Just wanted to make sure there wasn't something I was missing and had to ask.

I'm in the buy the coin not the label camp.

[jpcienkus]

I appreciate all the replies.

Another piece of advise I'd been given was to buy the best grade you could afford, so the reason I was looking at a 70 vs 69 grade. Just wanted to make sure there wasn't something I was missing and had to ask.

I'm in the buy the coin not the label camp.

 

I think that's good advice, but I would do that in non-bullion pieces. I collect mainly non-bullion and use this as a guide, but I also buy ASE's and Maple Leaf's because I like them.

 

As for bullion, I think it really depends on what you want to do with your coins. It's hard to predict what's going to happen in the future for the bullion market. There are still so many coins that haven't been sent in for grading, it's bound to increase the population of MS/PF 70 coins in the future, which should reduce their value.

 

On the other hand, there are also a lot of registry collectors that want the top pop for their collection, so there will likely be a market for them in the future. The question that's hard to answer is how long will the popularity of bullion collecting last? Is it worth spendin 2x, 3x and even 4x more for MS/PF70 coins?

 

Before you spend the extra money, you might want to look at mintages, current auction prices, price guides and try to formulate your own opinion as to what's going to happen.

[RWB]

The Authentication companies provide certain services and the little cut labels are receipts for those services. McD gives out receipts, too...."Wan' friz wid' 'at?"

[GoldFinger1969]

I appreciate all the replies. Another piece of advise I'd been given was to buy the best grade you could afford, so the reason I was looking at a 70 vs 69 grade. Just wanted to make sure there wasn't something I was missing and had to ask. I'm in the buy the coin not the label camp.

Chiming in late here, let me give you a value investor's approach to the excellent information you received on this thread.

 

ULTIMATELY, a coin -- let's say silver -- is worth the bullion melt of the coin, 1 ounce of silver. Coins always sell for a bit more, let's say 10-30% on average for uncirculated, ungraded coins. That initial 'coin' premium has to be overcome to make a profit, along with the bid-ask spread (let's assume it's nominal for these purposes).

 

Then you have graded coins, which adds another level of premium costs. You're paying a premium just for the certitude of the grade, because if you were to purchase 100 uncirculated coins directly from the mint, odds are that about 20 would be MS-70, about 65 would be MS-69, and maybe 15 would be MS-68 (approximation, not saying that would be the exact break-down). Yet even an MS-68 would probably sell at a nice premium if in a slab as opposed to the lowest-appealing coin from that mint order of 100 coins.

 

So the question is: how much of a premium do you want to pay ? For completing a set...for a gift....for a special coin where you really like it and/or want the highest grade...it might pay to pay-up for an MS-70 or MS-69.

 

OTOH, if you were going to buy 100 silver coins as an investment, I doubt you'd want to buy all MS-70's or even MS-69's, because God Forbid tastes change in the future you never know if the premium paid to silver (bullion) content will dissipate. That's even more true with "First Strike" marketing baloney, at least an MS-70 coin actually was MS-70 to a 3rd party grading service.

 

Asking myself if I want to pay $125 for a coin that might ultimately only be worth $20-$21 is a very good question I often ask myself. Or the same logic -- focusing on the premium -- with other coins or metals.

[KMAG100]

My recommendation is to look more closely at the labels, and specifically the coin....The 2011-S unc was only struck for the ASE 25th anniversary set along with the 2011 P RP. With that said there was no way to get the 2011 "S UNC" unless you purchased the 2011 ASE 25th anniversary set from the mint. Because of this the 2011 S unc. saw a mintage of 99,882 coins for the set. Thus the coin can be easily identified by the mint mark "S", While I have not looked at a lot of coins in this year under this label, however the ones I have has always identified the S unc as a 25th anni and they have been between $350-$450. Conversely the non mint marked 2011 were about $50-$100 and the label did not say 25th anni, and the non mint marked unc coins have a mintage number of 409,809. these are the coins I am guessing you are seeing at 50 BIN.