Sword

I wouldn't bother trying to tone the obverse side if I am going to sell it. Toning takes too long and the two sides of the coins will always look (very) different. I brought a coin described as 1902 crown AU from W&W when I first started collecting. It turned out to be a cleaned matt proof. It has been toning for six years on my sunny window sill and this is what it currently looks like.

Very good advice! I too would return the coin if the option is available. But it's no big deal if you can't. A decent example would cost about twice the price you have paid and so £85 sounds OK. The obverse is less than UNC IMO after the coin has been cleaned like that. The person probably realised he has damaged the coin after cleaning one side and so refrained from cleaning the other?

For me, I am quite certain they were 1947 florins and shillings. I remember putting aside George VI coins during my early teenage years . Never came across any "silver" coins in circulation. The George VI I got from circulation were always fine or below.

Didn't get anything this time and was under bidder on one lot. There were a couple that sold for less than what I would have paid. Might be should start attending auctions rather than just leaving commission bids...

And Welcome to the Forum!

Nothing to worry about I think. Had a quick look on the web and it appears that the certificate for that coin doesn't have a white box and number. https://thelondoncoincompany.com/epages/4d237887-b78a-4f19-8c94-ebc46654c578.sf/en_GB/?ObjectPath=/Shops/4d237887-b78a-4f19-8c94-ebc46654c578/Products/SPBRIT10-01000

I didn't realise you can take the coin out without damaging the packaging. No problem if that's the case.

I think auction houses ought to be satisfied with the money they get from the combined buyer's and sellers's commission, which in Warrington's case is 32.75%+VAT. Trying to get extra profit from charging excessive postage / storage is just unscrupulous. They are only harming themselves by these tactics.

I think it's quite likely that a batch was made before anyone noticed the problem. In the meantime take care of it. Shouldn't have taken it out of its original packaging. Put it in a coin wallet. Handle only by edge if you have to and don't put fingerprints on the surfaces. Lucky you.

Awful portrait and outrageous price. But at least the seller said it was silver plated.

I have saved eight so far from change. 3 are of the first "type", 4 of the second and 1 of the last.

This might not be so inappropriate .... Harold and Pax are on opposite sides of the coin. So when you can see Harold, you won't see Pax.

We have all heard about an ebay dealer attributing any coin with an illegible legend as Richard III. What an opportunity for him! He can pretend that that the first coin is an extremely rare error with year 1066.

This has been confirmed by Check your change (which I think is written by Chris himself) http://www.checkyourchange.co.uk/1-coins-in-circulation/2016-one-pound/ "I know of about 50 so far and as it’s hard to spot without a magnifying lens, there are probably a lot of others out there."

In terms of actual artistic merit, do you think Pistrucci’s St George and dragon design is so brilliant so that the Royal Mint is still using it after 200 years? I used to like the design a lot and it was undoubtedly very innovative and refreshing at the time. However, I now think it is very much an amalgamation of three figures (naming St George, the horse and the dragon) rather than one organic composition. St George’s torso is far too big in my view and is out of proportion with the horse. The dragon is too small to put up much of a fight. The wings of the dragons are so small and it is doubtful whether the beast could actually fly. I think the design is great only if you look at one figure at a time. Which engraving of St George and Dragon do you like best? I do like W Wyon’s (which is the one used on the front cover of Davies). Photos of Pistrucci’s and Wyon’s are shown below for comparison.

The 2005 Sovereign 2012 Sovereign

I am thinking of just an ordinary customer account. Looks like they are not that bothered about references which is good.

Nice to hear about successful bids. Although an auctioneer is within his right to "reverse" a hammered decision, I think it is bad taste and against etiquette to do so. Spink's T&C states: "Subject to the auctioneer’s discretion, the striking of his hammer marks the acceptance of the highest bid, provided always that such bid is higher than the Reserve". I have been tempted to leave commission bids in the past but I noticed on their website that new clients need to supply bank and trade references. Bank references are no problem but trade references can be tricky for me as I normally buy at other auctions houses (and I doubt they are that keen to give references). Are references a strict requirement to open an account with Spink?

Pay your money and make your choice. I am currently very happy with quadrum and so I don't need to look any further at present.

I know this have been discussed before but I still need some advice. What is the safest way to store a high grade coin so that it can withstand some “rough handling”? We all know the conventional wisdom is to use a coin cabinet, wear gloves, don’t talk and control humidity. However, I am just not the careful type and have picked up some bad habits from my childhood days when I was collecting modern proofs sealed in plastic. I have a habit of looking at my coins during TV adverts and sometimes even on the garden table when the weather is nice. Initially I tried coin capsules but immediately realised that even with less than 1mm of extra space, the coins can rattle a bit and might pick up high point friction. I have read some nice things about quadrums. However, the foam holes also come in 1mm increments and so in theory the coins won’t be held totally tight either. I confess to using CGS when I was buying high grade coins from LCA. However, we all know what happened to CGS and it is no longer an option. Currently, I am using 2x2 self-adhesive coin holders. I like the way the coin is sealed in. However, the problem is that the coin stands proud of the card holder and I am worried it rubbing against surfaces. So to be safe, I would cut up another coin holder, remove the plastic windows and stick the two halves on the original holder. This way, I have double the thickness of the card and the coin is no longer proud. Am I just paranoid about friction? Are coin capsules and quadrums 100% safe even if there is a tiny bit of movement?

What I am concerned is the lack of quality control. You can be 100% sure that NGC get their plastic slabs from a reliable manufacture (whether in China or USA). NGC would undoubtedly be testing their slabs regularly to make sure they are up to standard. Otherwise, they would have to compensate if coins are damaged by harmful substances due to the degradation of plastic slabs. They can't afford to take that risk. I had a look on the web and it seems that the only places you can buy PCCB slabs are ebay and AliExpress. No one will take responsibility if things go wrong and so there is little incentive for quality control. Rather unfortunately, there is a profit for using inferior materials and faking even the cheapest of objects. You are not probably aware of a scandal a few years ago in China when people were selling ... wait for it ... fake chicken eggs. They look like the real thing too. Each fake egg can be made at half the price of a real egg. http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/11/06/how-to-make-a-rotten-egg/ I am not trying to scare you and the PCCB slabs are probably fine. But I just want to be cautious.

I think Quadrum Intercept is the more expensive version which is supposed to prevent the coin in the slab from tarnishing (for up to 15 years). They are claiming that the foam "neutralizes harmful atmospheric substances inside the capsule, so that the coin is stored in a non-corrosive micro-climate." For now, I think I will stick with the standard version as I only collect silver and not bronze.

I didn't know about them and thanks for mentioning. They do look nice as they allow the edge of the coin to be viewed. And yes, they do look very much like ngc slab. My major worry is that they are made in china and not by a manufacturer I have heard of. Quadrums are made by Leuchtturm / Lighthouse and one can be confident that they use inert materials. How can you be so certain that the PCCB materials are safe with coins in the long term? I think all the sellers are in China and counterfeits (using inferior materials) can be a potential problem.

Just to say I have now put all my non-slabbed coins into quadrums and I think they are the best things since sliced bread. The black foam can stretch quite a bit and a 28.5mm florin fits nicely into a 28mm quadrum. 37.6mm crowns fit into 37mm quadrums. I think the best way to put a coin into the foam is to have the coin on a flat surface. Bend back the foam and put place over the coin to ensure that half the coin is in. Then I stretch the foam over the other half of the coin. I don't have to worry about coins moving slightly in holders now. Many thanks for recommending quadrums!

I would be surprised if that was a genuine positive feedback.