Coinery

Just took a quick peek at CGS, they've even got 165 DECIMAL pennies slabbed out there! Somebody is even the proud owner of a 2010 1p. They have got an awful lot of SH*TE bolstering their 'population reports'.

Nobody in the whole wide world would pay money themselves to slab the coins you can actually see available slabbed by CGS, I think they slabbed a whole load of low-value coinage for some other grand plan (numbers slabbed possibly etc???). There are endless coins slabbed well under the cost of slabbing! I agree that cgs should know these things, but I've even had a coin returned with a so-called CGS variety (no serif on 1 of date) dated incorrectly, by 4 years...1 and 5, not an excusable 3 and 8, or 8 and 9 etc.

Couldn't you just throw away an old pair of trainers and keep the collection? The space would be comparable, surely? You should definitely find a way to keep your collection if you'd really like to!

It looks brass in colour and certainly isn't bronze. I don't know whether it's been tested though. My verdict is taken from the TPG label on the slab (by CGS). Shame it's been slabbed - the weight would be a clincher. Good point. I checked the CGS record for the slab but no weight is recorded. I'll bet the plastic slab, rubber insert and labels, are relatively consistent in weight, would it be worth asking cgs if they'd mind weighing up a couple of blanks and labels for you to check? Failing that, there must be a few people on here who have slabbed pennies about? It would be interesting to gather some weights in to check consistency (I presume most 20th century pennies would be a consistent high-grade [weight] if they're slabbed). If there was very little difference, it could be a simple matter of then weighing your slab and calculating the variation...maybe?????! How many grams difference would there be between a brass and bronze penny?

Thanks, Peter, I know it's always pressure-on being the first to post a grade on something like this! Much appreciated!

Anyone fancy a stab at the grade, I'd really appreciate the opinions? I always, always, overdo it with hammered! If I have a little breeze through a couple of auction catalogues (London Coins a favourite), I always end up shocking myself...their grading mostly being under my guess by half a grade! My GVF is always their VF, and so on! It is a good way of adjusting your eyes however. I'm thinking GOOD FINE myself...any ideas? I promise I'll not ask for grading advice ever again! ;-)

I find many of Bucks Coins' photos seem to have a milky white softness about them ... Also, his background is PINK! So unless he's a particular fan of that colour, I'd say, from what little knowledge I have on the medium, that his white balance is all to cock anyway, meaning the coin could be toffee, dark chocolate, or After Eight's, for all we know :-)

I guess though that most people who are in the market for one of these, really ought to know about the American grading system? I guess we'll all be hand led and spoon fed once eBay collaborates with the grading companies. It'll be like listing a mobile phone soon, where you HAVE to check various boxes to even get it on...unless you want to list it as a fobile moan or something. :-)

I had to dig out my old pink floyd albums after looking at that! ;-)

Thanks, Rob, conclusive I think! That spacing and size is typical of the images I looked at today!

Far out Man! http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/STUNNING-HIGH-GRADE-1797-GEORGE-III-CARTWHEEL-TWO-PENCE-COIN-/110862944100?pt=UK_Coins_BritishMilled_RL&hash=item19cff24764 B) B)

I think I've answered the over-mark question. In all of three reverse images I've just looked at, the hand spans the entire field. The wrist is right against the P, and the fingers as near as damn it touching the leaves of the longcross! So I'm inclined to think NO for the Tun over Hand! Still open to gradings, pictures of shilling hands, and thoughts on the privy mark!

Your points highlight the same issues troubling me about it. I also can't decide if that's a thumb or a tun double-strike? Do you think it likely that there would be just the one Tower Mint 'hand' puncheon for the shilling? I note from BCW that many of the punches were used unchanged for years (in service for 30 years in some cases), the reverse Lis and lions in the quarters being an example of many. It would seem possible therefore that a privy puncheon having a service period of only 2 years, may likely be the only one? Any thoughts? To know this would then simply require a hand measurement from another Elizabeth shilling (anybody have one, and a micrometer?) and a straight forward comparison to mine.

Nice rims for the grade too!

I had a better one nicked by our lovely postal workers and it was only £30. I think the dark areas make your (non won) coin look better than it is. Bad luck with that, bastardos! I think you could be right, but it had that magic element for me...not enough magic to shell out more than £120 mind you!

I did look at this one, but just couldn't live with the reverse weaknesses, and the 'uncertain' obverse left field and, possible chin weakenss, not at £130-a-side anyway. I did win this http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/280862913440?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649 at £24 per side...well, £48 a side, really, as the reverse isn't worth a penny. I love the bust though, I think I'll cut it out with my Serif PagePlus software and start a photographic record of the various bust types...might be more useful than the drawings that exist. One of my favourite busts is 3C, but you'd barely recognise it from the catalogue drawings (slight exageration, I guess, but they really aren't that good).

I'd very much like grading opinions on the below shilling, and also whether anyone thinks this could possibly be a Tun over Hand on the reverse? I've recently bought a copy of Brown, Comber and Wilkinson, from Rob, allowing me to attribute this coin as follows (narrowing it down to two possibilities, depending on the outcome of the Tun over Hand question)... This is obviously a 1592-4 6th coinage (bust 6B) shilling. But, using Elizabeth I by BCW to fine-tune a little, we have 3 Tun reverses (and two Tun obverses) to navigate around. I've reduced it down to two reverses, on account mine has the unrepaired lis (46) and lions (designated73), leaving the last remaining identifier the privy mark - namely, is this a Tun over Hand or not? Not surprisingly, the plain Tun is the most common pairing with the obverse here. So, it's either: BCW TN-2:a (tun over hand rev) or, BCW TN-2:b1 (commoner variety) Any help, or better images of tun over hand would be appreciated. Thanks to all for the help in getting my images up here!

Many thanks, Nick, Peckris, and Mr Tom, Lets try the Photobucket variant first... So, as I said, this coin was from the US at just under £140 with postage so, in some way returning to an element of the thread, it has me thinking there are still bargains to be had from overseas occasionally. Rather than hijack this thread any longer, I'll attempt the 'Peckris upload suggestion' in a new thread, as there is a couple of questions I'd like to invite responses on! CRIKES! I THINK THEY NEED TO BE SMALLER!

Unfortunately, the picture uploads don't appear to have worked?

I thought £121.09 would be enough for an admittedly amazing penny! Obviously not! 360449829669

You should see what some Americans charge UK buyers for postage. $32 isn't cheap either I've just bought a hammered coin from the states, with postage charge $16 - not bad I thought, but in his listing he writes: "USPS International Registered shipping takes 1-2 months to arrive so if this time frame does not work for you do not bid". Not that friendly a statement, so I queried it, thinking he must mean 1-2 weeks...nope, he means 1-2 months! I still bought it anyway...it hasn't arrived, yet! It's arrived, costing me £139 with postage, which I think is superb value! I'd really appreciate opinions on grade, the pictures are an honest view of the coin. I did have some more 'dramatic' pictures (I'm sure you all know the kind), but thought I'd keep it real! So Grade, any thoughts, please? Grrr, files too big...will post them as soon as I can! OK submit, how do you do it? I've zipped the files, which are originally 1.6MB. I tried to upload the zipped files but still too big! When checking the properties of the zips, I discovered they are still 1.6MB...any ideas? JPEG is an efficient format that does not compress well. The only options are to reduce the size/resolution of the pictures or to host them externally on PhotoBucket or the like. Thanks Nick, I presume resolution can't be changed once the pictures have been taken? Resizing the picture does exactly that. Got you! Will have a play in a bit. Many thanks!

I've asked to see the other side. A nice looking face is just as important as a good tail! I take it the 'other side' was stunning, how the smeg did it go for £109?? Did you buy it Debbie?!! I don't know how some people bid, but, I note it "shot off" in the final seconds..... Unbelievable! If you didn't win it Debbie, don't worry! Seeing what is went for, I've dug out my old hobby engraver! Just need a mirror now! That's staggering, I really can't believe the price!

A love token too! :-) I've picked up on the MP thing along the way, was there a thread on it? I'm intrigued as to the details! ;-) Its quite a touchy subject, but in short, don't buy from him unless you really want to loosen the purse strings and get something thats cleaned/overgraded and has a helpful push along the way from his friends....... I get you! I did think as much!

You should see what some Americans charge UK buyers for postage. $32 isn't cheap either I've just bought a hammered coin from the states, with postage charge $16 - not bad I thought, but in his listing he writes: "USPS International Registered shipping takes 1-2 months to arrive so if this time frame does not work for you do not bid". Not that friendly a statement, so I queried it, thinking he must mean 1-2 weeks...nope, he means 1-2 months! I still bought it anyway...it hasn't arrived, yet! It's arrived, costing me £139 with postage, which I think is superb value! I'd really appreciate opinions on grade, the pictures are an honest view of the coin. I did have some more 'dramatic' pictures (I'm sure you all know the kind), but thought I'd keep it real! So Grade, any thoughts, please? Grrr, files too big...will post them as soon as I can! OK submit, how do you do it? I've zipped the files, which are originally 1.6MB. I tried to upload the zipped files but still too big! When checking the properties of the zips, I discovered they are still 1.6MB...any ideas? JPEG is an efficient format that does not compress well. The only options are to reduce the size/resolution of the pictures or to host them externally on PhotoBucket or the like. Thanks Nick, I presume resolution can't be changed once the pictures have been taken?

You should see what some Americans charge UK buyers for postage. $32 isn't cheap either I've just bought a hammered coin from the states, with postage charge $16 - not bad I thought, but in his listing he writes: "USPS International Registered shipping takes 1-2 months to arrive so if this time frame does not work for you do not bid". Not that friendly a statement, so I queried it, thinking he must mean 1-2 weeks...nope, he means 1-2 months! I still bought it anyway...it hasn't arrived, yet! It's arrived, costing me £139 with postage, which I think is superb value! I'd really appreciate opinions on grade, the pictures are an honest view of the coin. I did have some more 'dramatic' pictures (I'm sure you all know the kind), but thought I'd keep it real! So Grade, any thoughts, please? Grrr, files too big...will post them as soon as I can! OK submit, how do you do it? I've zipped the files, which are originally 1.6MB. I tried to upload the zipped files but still too big! When checking the properties of the zips, I discovered they are still 1.6MB...any ideas?