Just bought 20 BU 1898 P Morgans

[Codysutterfield]

I'm still a novice collector and new to coin grading (6months of practice) so Im a bit scared to send in 20 Morgans as that's a huge chunk of change. I took a top shot of all 20 and a close up of 9 randoms front and back. A few have a few rim dents but all in all I believe there all ms. What do y'all think? Any help would be great as to submitting them or not. Sorry pics are not better....

 

 

 

[AHFreak]

Being relatively new to numismatics myself, my advice would be to put it on the shelf for now. .. meaning, the fact that you are having to ask whether or not you should send them should mean that you should not send them. .. not YET anyways. As your eye develops, you can then go back and inspect these coins to answer your own question for yourself. Do not rely on anyone else's answers because often they are incorrect anyways based on my exp. (I'm talking specifically about asking if this it that coin should be graded, in an open forum like this) obviously if you could have a dealer you trust look at them in hand, that would be a diff story. I see alot of people waste alot of money because they send coins for grading before they have developed their own eye/skills/exp/etc... learn to see a coin first, then learn to grade one, then do or don't send if it does or doesn't make sense.

 

That said, the pics are not good at all (no offense) but based on what I think I can see, I would say DO NOT SEND FOR GRADING. I see issues, possibly polished/cleaned coins, At the very least they all look lightly circulated at least.

 

Good luck on your coin journey my friend.

[bsshog40]

The pictures are actually too poor for any reasonable grading guesses. They look as though they are 1898's which would not be worth grading in my opinion unless they are ms65 or better. You can probably look on line for some pictures of grading photos that may help you. Pcgs also has an app called Photograde that is helpful.

[Codysutterfield]

They are surly very poor pictures .....I know their all BU for sure and feel safe enough to grade to a few points but no closer. I will get some better pictures. How do think they might be cleaned or polished?

[Codysutterfield]

I picked one at random as their all really close in grade..

 

 

 

[MarkFeld]

I picked one at random as their all really close in grade..

 

 

 

 

That coin looks AU to me. I say that based on the flatness on Liberty's face and the fact that portions of her face and neck, as well as the eagle's breast, are darker than other areas. In other words, they appear to show rub.

 

My guess is that the other coins are either AU or very low grade unc examples. Based on the initial images, I also think that some of them might have been cleaned or polished. Perhaps you can post a few other close up images of some of the others?

[Raisethis2]

I agree with Mark, that coin in hand shows some obvious brightness on the eagles breast feathers that might indicate some rub. It should be a creamy consistent color (the feathers appear complete but the luster seems missing).

 

If they are still in roll form get some 2"x 2" plastic holders and segregate them from further damage.

 

What you may want to do is become a Premium Member here at NGC. For $125 you get 5 free submissions. Then for the cost of handling and minimal insurance get the nicest 5 (cleanest cheek and neck) graded and see what you have. One MS 65 in a holder is worth $200.

 

I'm curious however, where did you get these? If they came from someone knowledgable they've probably been sorted through for anything outstanding.

 

 

[MarkFeld]

I agree with Mark, that coin in hand shows some obvious brightness on the eagles breast feathers that might indicate some rub. It should be a creamy consistent color (the feathers appear complete but the luster seems missing).

 

If they are still in roll form get some 2"x 2" plastic holders and segregate them from further damage.

 

What you may want to do is become a Premium Member here at NGC. For $125 you get 5 free submissions. Then for the cost of handling and minimal insurance get the nicest 5 (cleanest cheek and neck) graded and see what you have. One MS 65 in a holder is worth $200.

 

I'm curious however, where did you get these? If they came from someone knowledgable they've probably been sorted through for anything outstanding.

 

 

At this point, I wouldn't recommend spending any money on grading. If better images can be posted and/or the coins be shown to a dealer, it should be known whether the coins merit grading. Based on what I have seen thus far, I would bet no.

[Codysutterfield]

I am a member at ngc I have sent in hundreds of coins for grading. I'm just more of a moderns guy that has swapped to silver dollars in the last-half year. I might just pick the worst out and send them the icg and see where they grade at, if they do fine I might send them the rest to ngc. I will also grab some more pics. I have a lot of ms 62's and 63's from pcgs and ngc and they seem better and worse . I will make another go at the pictures as well. I hate the idea of them rubbing in a 20 coin plastic tube but I'm out of flips and am waiting for some more in the mail..

[Codysutterfield]

I bought them on eBay from hsturn who appears to be legit. Even the few nut or neg say he takes returns. I just wish I could take a better picture.

 

Item number 361160768602

 

Better pics on eBay

[Hack]

If the coins were sold as BU and you have a mix of AU coins, I would ask for a refund before it is too late. As noted the coin in hand, appears to be AU. Your photos are not good enough to grade, but I noticed on some of your coins the lettering and stars around the edge of the coin appears shinny and the field is a dull color that would give me concern that the coin is AU.

[MarkFeld]

I bought them on eBay from hsturn who appears to be legit. Even the few nut or neg say he takes returns. I just wish I could take a better picture.

 

Item number 361160768602

 

Better pics on eBay

 

I know nothing about that seller. But I do know there are sellers of badly over-graded coins who allow returns and have 100% positive feedback. That's largely because the buyers mistakenly think they are getting good deals and don't find out otherwise until it's too late.

[Mark T]

The way I see it , you paid $850 or $42.50 each for a common date Morgan . The coins appear to be mostly AU and may have been cleaned. Let’s say for sake of discussion they were all to grade MS 63, average selling price for a certified Ms63 is $60. Now figure in the cost to have them graded and you will probably be losing money. Now let’s be more realistic and figure that most of these are Au – they are worth maybe $30 each

[Codysutterfield]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[MarkFeld]

 

 

 

 

 

 

The large obverse image shows an MS62 coin, at best. It could be AU and/or cleaned.That, along with the other images, as well as the price paid for the group, leads me to think the purchase is a losing proposition. If you can return them, I would do so. Or you could waste grading fees to try to show it was a good deal.

 

 

[Codysutterfield]

Thanks for the help everyone.... Idk...it's just nice to have outside input for a change. I have no idea why I did not join the forum sooner.

[bsshog40]

I agree with the rest as I would try to get my money back. I think it would be a waste of money to have any of them graded.

[jpcienkus]

Thanks for the help everyone.... Idk...it's just nice to have outside input for a change. I have no idea why I did not join the forum sooner.

 

I agree with the other posters. The coins looked AU and some of them looked cleaned as well.

 

FWIW, Mark Feld used to grade for NGC, so I would pay close attention to his comments. There are many other very knowledgeable numismatists and collectors on this site as well.

 

Welcome to the Forums! Hope you stick around!

 

I collect Morgans as well. I know it's a common coin, but I love the design, size and historical times in which they were minted. If you are serious about this series, at a minimum, buy the Whitman book on Morgans. If you like die varieties, also buy the VAM book and/or register on the site. There is lots of good information about the series and it should help you when purchasing coins for your collection.

[Codysutterfield]

I'm not one to take returning things lightly, in this case I asked for a refund and the seller was really cool and is even paying return shipping. Even I know these are far from choice bu I just did not want to believe it....

[MarkFeld]

I'm not one to take returning things lightly, in this case I asked for a refund and the seller was really cool and is even paying return shipping. Even I know these are far from choice bu I just did not want to believe it....

 

Glad to hear you can return them for a refund. And good for you for not being defensive about your purchase.