Should some series graded by top TPGs be treated as raw?

[Zoins]

Given that even the most respected TPGs are lenient in allowing net-graded problem coins for some older, harder to find series, do you treat coins of certain series and dates as raw, even when they are slabbed by the top TPGs?

[okbustchaser]

I treat ALL coins as raw...regardless of which TGP if any. I simply on principle refuse to pay a plastic premium. Why shouldn't I? As soon as a coin becomes mine it is going to BE raw.

[bsshog40]

I buy as if raw but it is nice to know the grade so I know how much I will allow myself to spend on a coin. Sometimes the guessing game can be hard to do on coins I'm not very knowledgeable of.

[coinman1794]

It is important to buy an given certified coin based on its own merrits, regardless of what the holder says. Thus, I treat every coin as a raw coin and apply my own grading skills, using the certified grade as a guide only. If the coin does not live up to the certified grade, then I won't buy it at that grade.

[James_OldeTowne]

Should some series graded by top TPGs be treated as raw?

 

Given that even the most respected TPGs are lenient in allowing net-graded problem coins for some older, harder to find series, do you treat coins of certain series and dates as raw, even when they are slabbed by the top TPGs?

Yes - ALL of them, in fact! That's the underlying principle of "buy the coin, not the holder".

 

The third-party grade is a great opinion with which to start, but you ought to grade each coin for yourself, just as if it were not certified.

[shirohniichan]

I treat ALL coins as raw...regardless of which TGP if any. I simply on principle refuse to pay a plastic premium. Why shouldn't I? As soon as a coin becomes mine it is going to BE raw.

 

Yea, verily.

 

EAC collectors can surely relate to this. The coin is still the same, whether it is graded VF35 raw or AU58 in plastic.

[JRocco]

The coin is still the same, whether it is graded VF35 raw or AU58 in plastic.

 

This is such an incredibly easy concept and it makes soooo much sense, yet that Kool Aid drinking mentality is so pervasive. I have seen people post coins that are common $30 coins and at least one of the first few responders will chime in with a "slab that baby" ridiculous comment. Why

 

I love the fact that many of my coins are in slabs---take my 55DDO--no question, buy that coin in a slab for protection, but if I need a TPG opinion that a 32 CBH is a 45 or a 35 to determine if I will like the coin or not----- time to start buying exclusively from the mint.

[lkenefic]

I'll look at the opinion on the label of the slab. If it's a series with which I'm unfamiliar I'll look at alot of slabs and do alot of reading before making a decision about any particular coin. There are certain series with which I'm quite familiar and I buy raw or slabbed [and then make them raw ;-) ]. In my opinion, TPGs have a hard time grading early copper coins. I'll look at the grade that someone assigned...I'll smile...sometimes I'll laugh out-loud...gaffaws rarely but it has happened once or twice. The last Large Cent (1856) I purchased slabbed came in PCI plastic at EF45...I graded it VF30 (weak strike) net 25 for faint carbon spots on the reverse.

[LuvToCollect]

It all goes back to the axiom of buy the coin not the holder. As a relatively new numismatist myself, I do sometime rely on the TPG's assesment, at my own peril.

[MercP]

I agree that you should always buy the coin not the holder. However, the holder does provide a level of security and comfort. If I were looking a two coins that were similar I will always go for the slabed coin over the raw. I know this situation will never happen but you get my point.

[michael]

yes!!

 

good-----only buy coins in holders where the coin is worth the same out of the holder

 

better ---- coins worth the same out of the holder and with great eye appeal and extra special qualities

 

best -----is when the holder is a negative(coin monster and undergraded/under designated and extra special for what it is) and the coin is worth mote out of the holder than in the holder

[michael]

wake up and smell the coin

 

not the plastic........................

[MikeInFL]

wake up and smell the coin

 

not the plastic........................

 

Classic!

[James_OldeTowne]

I have some followup comments.

 

The laziness of collectors in this current environment of easy profits in coins has led to frequent total reliance on certified grades. While I realize the original objective of certification was to make just that a reality, the reality is that it hasn't happened. Third party grades are STILL ... ONLY ... OPINIONS. They are not absolute "facts".

 

Only a fool would based his whole numismatic experience exclusively on OTHER people's opinions.

[PerryHall]

wake up and smell the coin

 

not the plastic........................

 

Classic!

 

If you can smell the coin, it's probably a product of a coin doctor.

[SlumLord98-migration]

Since the consensus is that TPGs can't be relied on for a consistently accurate opinion, and since the risk of great financial loss is possible if one buys the label without knowing the coin, when do the TPGs run the risk of a product liability lawsuit? I hear more and more that TPGs tighten their standards during a slowdown and loosen them during a boom.

 

What is a likely time frame for the first lawsuit?

[Houston Investor]

For retail pricing, I price the coin and where it falls in the grade range whether its slabbed or raw. If I do not agree with the grade on the TPG holder, I either resubmit it to get a higher grade or liquidate the coin on the sight unseen market.