Getting rid of the slabs

[MikeKing]

I've got this compelling fantasy to crack all of my coins out of their slabs and put them in a coin box so they can actually be picked up and held and looked at like a REAL coin. Does anyone else have this desire?

[BillJones]

No, cracking out you coins is too expensive and too dangerous if you are satisfied with the grades on the slabs. Getting coins graded is like playing roulette. Sometimes you get the grades you deserve; sometimes you get more than you deserve; and sometimes you get the shaft.

 

There is no consistency in the slab grading game. And for that inconsistency, you have to pay from $15 to over $100 a shot. AND there is the possibility that you “no problem” coin will come back in a worthless body bag for no reason other than the graders’ stupidity or mean spirited attitude . Believe I’ve “been there and done that,” and it makes you “mad as hell” to steal a phrase from the movie “Network’s” favorite newscaster, Howard Beal. You have no recourse, and all they do is take your money.

 

Besides, if you are like me, your coins would be in Capital Plastic or Eagle holders and albums if they were not in slabs. So if it’s going to be in plastic anyway, why take it out?

 

[291fifth]

I've had the same thought many times but my coins are still slabbed and will stay that way. The slabs do protect the coins, especially the high grade mint ones. The slabs also increase the marketability of the coins, again, especially in the case of the high grade mint ones.

 

Raw coins, especially today, are a real snake pit. If it is valuable enough to merit being slabbed and isn't there is usually a reason. Slabbing has also cut down on counterfeit and altered coins...a very positive thing for collecting.

[gmarguli]

If I collected lower value coins ($200 and under) then I would probably like them raw. However, for expensive coins I like the added protection of the grading guarantee and the air tight slabs. Lots of added protection for very little extra cost.

 

I remember the good old days when most coins were raw. I can't saw that most people were happier being able to touch their coins back then than they are now. I own coins because of their history and beauty. I don't need to touch the actual coin for this.

[jom]

I've got this compelling fantasy to crack all of my coins out of their slabs and put them in a coin box so they can actually be picked up and held and looked at like a REAL coin. Does anyone else have this desire?

 

Every ..and I do mean EVERY... time I look at my collection. That feeling of "go get the hammer" will NEVER go away...

 

jom

[Leothelion]

I've got this compelling fantasy to crack all of my coins out of their slabs and put them in a coin box so they can actually be picked up and held and looked at like a REAL coin. Does anyone else have this desire?

 

If only the slabs were smaller, about half the size of an ANACS holder. This would really sell along with a album to hold them. The ANACS slab is the right size for quarters and up but what about the smaller coins. It's just way too much plastic for half dimes, 3 centers, full step nickels etc. Compact all that neat info and bar codes onto one nifty 1" by 1.5" and make one, all purpose denomination album to hold the blessed things. Anyone got a quarter mil to get the ball rolling? Oh! And yes, I have thought about it. But it's the money that I have into having the coins certified in the first place that keeps me from doing so. And the initial reason to having the coins slabbed was to see how well I could grade coins with the grading companies.

 

Leo

[Oldtrader3]

I cracked slabs on several PR68/69DCAM Kennedy's and Ike's to build a Capital Holder set. I know that the submission game (it is a game!!) is a [!@#%^&^] shoot, but I wanted the set displayed, not a pile of plastic.

[MikeKing]

Thanks for your replies.

I know what you mean.

I saw a picture of CC Morgan Dollars once in a coin magazine this past year. They were all in air tite holders, and I forget if the plastic ring around them was white or black, but they made a nice contrast with the silver. The fact that they were round and about the size of the coin was very appealing. It made me want to do the same thing. Looking at an entire 'set' laid out with a nice backdrop seems like a nice thing. Unfortunately, I worry more about the coins oxidizing because I don't think airtites are airtite at all. Maybe I'm wrong. Whatever the case, I'm just tempted to do just that, but I don't think I'd crack out an MS67 anything for fear I'd chance losing a lot of money.

 

I store my slabs in Intercept Shield holders/boxes and that makes it even more ugly.

 

But slabs just don't do it...do they...

 

 

[Leothelion]

I suspect the white and black rings. They feel sticky and sometimes will stick to the plastic. So I tested them with a couple of original brilliant low grade coins and after a couple of months or so, check the attachment for the results. In the lower pic I used a toothpick to remove some of the film. So that's not the way to go and I'm told by dealers that the eagle holders will turn yellow over time.

 

Leo

[MikeKing]

Thats amazing. And they're supposed to be completely inert! I've got a whole bunch of Modern Canadian silver mounted in them. Damn.

[GDJMSP]

Leo - a question

 

What makes you think the film you mention is not the result of something that was on the coin or the coins previous method of storage ?

 

I ask this because I have a great many coins that have been in AirTites - with ring - for several years. And not a one of them has any film on it.

 

Now I'm not saying coins won't tone in Airtites - they can if exposed to the right conditions as the containers are not airtight. I have some Silver Eagles stored in AirTites that are beginning to tone. But I do not store them in ideal conditions. I also have some Sackys stored in AirTites - in ideal conditions - that show no toning whatsoever after 3 years. And typically Sackys will tone easier than silver or clad.

 

Anyway - that's what makes me ask the question.

[Leothelion]

Hi GDJMSP

The coins were brilliant white. They came out of cardboard mylar flips. Whether the rings were the problem or the airtites were not airtite. I believe the rings have something to do with the film. I called it film because it didn't appear to be toning. Before I put most of my collection into another type of holder, I get very curious on how safe some of these coin supply gadgets really are. I should do another test and compare the results of the direct fit holders with the ring included airtite holders in 3 different enviorments; a plastic 2x2 box, a cardboard 2x2 box and an old radioactive sewage site. Any suggestions for a 3rd test?

 

Leo