I almost bid on this "pig in a poke"

[RGT]

A few days ago I was searching through the Heritage Long Beach online auction that closed tonight. Among the coins that I put on my watch list was this one.

 

1853-O H10C Arrows AU58 ANACS

 

If you check the auction you will note that this auction had no picture. I checked the listing last night to see if they had added a picture and to check how the bidding was going. I found no picture but I noticed it was listed as a Breen 3280. I decided to check what this was since, like most of you, I don't have Breen's memorized. That's when my interest was peaked.

 

Breen 3280 is an 1853-O dime, not half-dime. With no picture I wasn't sure what I would have been bidding on. Now, if you check the Heritage history on 1853-O dimes you will find very few sales. It seems this date is quite scarce in grades above VF, with a big price jump.

 

The coin was setting with one bid and waiting for the reserve of $149 to be met. As a half dime I thought that was a decent price, if the coin wasn't ugly. But as a dime it was quite the bargain.

 

Well, in the end, it picked up a couple more bids and I wasn't willing to gamble on it. I may have missed out on a really scarce seated dime at a huge bargain. I also may have avoided a really ugly overpriced half-dime. I would like to know what it really was though.

[HaydenTubbs]

Heritage seems to have been having a number of problems lately.

[RGT]

I decided to run a little experiment. I posted this same message this afternoon across the street. I didn't even get the token courtesy reply that Hayden gave me here.

 

I did learn something from this experiment though. It's not that you guys are just ignoring me here. It's just that I don't have anything interesting to say.

[midwest]

actually first you have to make it a flame war thread. Then you'll get 50 of these guys After that the flame war will begin for 12 pages

[Hoot]

Well, RGT, I reckon it was two things combined that stopped me from responding:

 

1) No phot, so it was utterly impossible (visually) to answer this: "I would like to know what it really was though. "

 

2) I don't know squat about seated half dimes or dimes from anything past 1840, so.......

 

I had to go look it up in Breen...

 

What I found was kind of interesting. Heritage not only called it a half dime with the wrongly attributed Breen #, but they also quoted the mintage for the half dime (2,200,000) and not the dime (1,100,000). Now, the Breen 3280 is not considered the "rare" variety by Breen, rather the 3281 is.

 

I was more intersted still to find out that in terms of the past auctions by Heritage, the coin sold right on target for a Breen 3066 half dime in AU58. Given that this could have been a dime (worth 2+ times as much as the half dime), there might have been a great deal at hand. On the other hand, given its category and (minimal) description, I'd say the likelihood was that it was a half dime that was mistakenly given the wrong Breen # by ANACS, and Heritage just passed on the misinformation.

 

How'd I do?

 

Hoot

[IGWT]

actually first you have to make it a flame war thread

 

How'd I do?

 

Hey, Hoot, why did you help Randy; what's in it for you? Something smells like rotten fish. Rotten eggs, too. You obviously have a secret agenda -- just like the NCA (when it helps an elderly person who has been ripped off) and F. Weinberg (when he posts a CPG update). Please don't expect us to believe that you responded because you're a <gasp> nice person who's trying <double gasp> to help a collector.

 

 

Randy -- I try to refrain from posting unless I can contribute to the discussion. It's not lack of interest; I'm just reluctant to hazard a guess when a person is looking for good information.

[RGT]

Hoot, I think you nailed it. No one knows or cares about the oddball stuff that I find interesting. Perhaps if I had posted about how Heritage screwed up a listing for, say, a Capped Bust Half, I would have gotten more comments.

 

Well, I didn't really ask a question. I was just sharing a bit of the drama I put myself through trying to decide if I wanted to gamble a bid on this, whatever it is. I did wonder if someone on this forum or across the street may have been the winner and would step up and let me know what it was.

 

The 3280 is the common variety, but it seems any 1853-O dime in AU is scarce. I don't collect the seated dimes either so this was news to me.

 

You did propose one possibility (and now I think it's the most likely) that I haddn't thought of. I may have been ANACS that screwed up, not Heritage. I just assumed Heritage listed the wrong Breen number or put it in the wrong category. That makes me feel better. I'm glad I didn't bid since I would have likely paid a strong price for an ugly half dime.

 

Ooops. Sorry to ramble on when I have nothing of interest to say. Maybe I'll just shut up and post some more pictures.

[EZ_E]

Perhaps you should judge the quality of the post by how many hits it gets in addition to the quantity of comments? I found it interesting but could by no means make such an intelligent post as Hoot did. Remember, "Even a fool is considered wise if he refrains his tongue."

[HaydenTubbs]

Perhaps you should judge the quality of the post by how many hits it gets in addition to the quantity of comments? I found it interesting but could by no means make such an intelligent post as Hoot did. Remember, "Even a fool is considered wise if he refrains his tongue."

 

Usually my problem