Coin Update News complained, and PCGS listened … kind of. Beginning August 1, 2010, PCGS “Plus” (+) designations will be awarded at no additional charge “for all qualified coins submitted in the Regular, Express and Walkthrough service levels,” according to a news release this week. For many PCGS members, this truly qualifies as “The Big […]
PNG Adopts Coin Doctoring Definition
The Professional Numismatists Guild (PNG) has created a definition of coin “doctoring” and officially included it as one of the prohibitions in the organization’s By-Laws. This follows statements applauding and supporting the efforts of coin grading services NGC and PCGS to combat doctoring. “The deliberate and unacceptable alteration of a coin in an effort to […]
Crossover, “Cross-under” or “Cross-out”?
Let’s begin by referencing an article by Susan Headley in “About Coins,” concerning “[h]ow online auction sellers use coin grading services to defraud coin buyers,” the subtitle of her piece, which can be found here. In it, she links to a company that specializes in MS60-70 coins. Most readers of “Coingrader Capsule” know the top […]
Cracking Out Coins
WARNING: Cracking out coins (removing them from sealed third party grading holders) can be dangerous, both to you and/or your coins. Michael Bugeja and Coin Update News take no responsibility whatsoever for any damage to yourself, others, your property, possessions or coins should you attempt to break open a holder to retrieve a coin. This […]
The Breakout and Crossover Game
There are rules to the breakout and crossover game–cracking open a holder to free and re-submit a coin or sending the coin in its holder to a different grading company. Even if you follow those rules, you always won’t get the grade or the result you wanted. In future “Coingrader Capsules,” we’ll discuss how to […]
VAMs Sharpen Coin Grading Ability
For a long time I was reluctant to become a member of VAMworld because so many varieties of Morgan Dollars and Peace Dollars exist. I just couldn’t imagine my searching for them all and adding more designations to labels, especially since major grading companies now include stars, plus signs and stickers on their holders. Then […]
In Praise of PCGS
I’ve been pretty harsh on my grading company of choice in my last several posts, criticizing its Secure Plus program, touting NGC’s, and complaining about PCGS “genuine” holders, which seem to have increased in frequency over the past year or so, and probably for good reason: PCGS never liked returning coins in body bags and, […]
NGC “Plus” Earns a “Star” Over Insecure PCGS Plus
The above title–“NGC ‘Plus’ Earns a ‘Star’ Over Insecure PCGS Plus”–pains me to write, as I am a member of PCGS’s Collector Club and for many years preferred its grading to NGC in the latter’s “body bag” days when every fourth submitted coin seemed to earn that defeatist designation. Then PCGS came out with its […]
Crossing Over Morgan Dollars from ANACS to PCGS
My local coin dealer is one of my best friends and, at times, business partner, as we buy and sell to each other in his shop or our coin club auctions. But two things he said to me recently caused me to change how I collect when it comes to grades and holders. He doesn’t […]
Show-and-Tell Holders
At coin clubs, shops and shows, I meet collectors and dealers who complain about bad grades by the top four grading companies–NGC, PCGS, ANACS and IGC–keeping suspect slabs for show and tell. “Look at this Morgan dollar!” a collector might say. “Why did it grade AU58 when it is obviously uncirculated?” Well, mistakes and misgrades […]
