Slabbing

[Sylvester]

My biggest gripe at US grading is two things;

1] They grade considering eye appeal. Which when all said and done is not actually anything to do with the grade. Personally i wouldn't find any Churchill Crown eye appealing in any condition does this mean that because i find them repulsive that they really shouldn't get grades above MS63? A grade of a coin is it's condition not how nice it looks afterall one man's idea of beauty is another's idea of a coin that needs a good long dip to get rid of the fake looking rainbow tone.

2] Net Grading; We're not talking sensible net grading here the likes of which are practiced in much of the coin collecting world. Normal net grading would be something like giving a coin a grade of VF when the obverse grades aVF and the reverse grades gVF. Instead of classifing them separately they average it out, that we're used to.

US net grading also takes into account cleaning and edge knocks amongst other things. Instead of grading as follows;

gVF Cleaned with slight edge knock.

they grade thusly, VG-8; VF-35 details.

Which means dealers sell the coin at very low VF prices (as per damaged coin) but buy at VG price.

The US grading and Slabbing industry is set up with the dealer in mind. Doesn't help the collector much. Of course they peddle off a ton of rubbish about how it's good for authentication and all that twaddle. But lets face it Slabbing companies have slabbed fakes by accident and people have also make fake coins with fake slabs to go with them.

[Rob]

I bought a coin last week that's just arrived this morning. Nice piece of 18th century gold. At the moment it is sadly slabbed, i've just posted a few question in various places asking the best way to crack the coin out of the damn slab.

This is only the second slabbed coin i've ever owned and i must admit i simply don't like slabs at all. The last one was that nice sovereign i sent your way, the slab irritated me to the point where i sold the coin. This new coin i'm dying to get my hands actually on the coin but the blasted plastic is in the way. If i am going to keep it it's going to have to come out... If i can't get it out then i'll have to either get someone else to crack it me out professionally and pay them for it or sell the coin on.

Get a pair of heavy duty pincers, the ones that form a complete outer curve with a broad blade and cut the corner off. Then work your way down the inside rims of the slab a bit at a time. Eventually it will come apart. You need a heavy duty pair to make a cut at one point rather than shatter the plastic and potentially damage the coin. The plastic is quite workable if you do in steps of a few mms. In case you were thinking of it, a hammer or a bigger hammer is not appropriate.

[Rob]

The differences between MS63 and MS64 are minute. There is a guide somewhere that I read that states how many bag marks MS coins are allowed to have and where they're allowed to have them. It's great to think that you can make an exact science out of coin grading, a wonderful idea thorey. But with so many contributing factors it doesn't always work satisfactorily.

Like this you mean. The brown one was PCGS MS64BN! (overgraded IMHO). The red one is NGC MS65BN (bigger !! as the colour is graded incorrectly with only the purple patches showing light toning. The obverse incidentally has nearly 90% lustre). Two allegedly close grades separated by a bigger gulf than the differences between English english and American english. Sorry I had to chop a picture, but the file size was too big. Second image to follow this posting

[Rob]

The differences between MS63 and MS64 are minute. There is a guide somewhere that I read that states how many bag marks MS coins are allowed to have and where they're allowed to have them. It's great to think that you can make an exact science out of coin grading, a wonderful idea thorey. But with so many contributing factors it doesn't always work satisfactorily.

Like this you mean. The brown one was PCGS MS64BN! (overgraded IMHO). The red one is NGC MS65BN (bigger !! as the colour is graded incorrectly with only the purple patches showing light toning. The obverse incidentally has nearly 90% lustre). Two allegedly close grades separated by a bigger gulf than the differences between English english and American english. Sorry I had to chop a picture, but the file size was too big. Second image to follow this posting

And again. It's actually a bit redder.

[Chris Perkins]

The first one is not at all bad for those, but MS64 is outrageous!

[Geordie582]

You guys are talking double Dutch to me (or should it be double Yank?) when you throw these M grades about. Where do you get a definative list of these grades? (not that I'd ever use them!)

[Emperor Oli]

You guys are talking double Dutch to me (or should it be double Yank?) when you throw these M grades about. Where do you get a definative list of these grades? (not that I'd ever use them!)

It's called the Sheldon Grading System, with a grade ranging from a 1 to 70. They are prefixed by letters, denoting the rough grade - eg. AU50 for about uncirculated. However, the US AU is different to the UK AU.

[Chris Perkins]

The conversion goes something like this:

http://www.predecimal.com/grading_standards.htm

[Coppers]

My few experiences with slabbing some GEF's purchased from the UK ended up with grades of MS-64.

[Emperor Oli]

My few experiences with slabbing some GEF's purchased from the UK ended up with grades of MS-64.

We don't like to boast

[Coppers]

That's not a boast -- simply an indication that one shouldn't give too much credence on the grade that is assigned to a slab. All in all, I prefer the current British grading system to the one we (here across the pond) have developed.

[Sylvester]

That's not a boast -- simply an indication that one shouldn't give too much credence on the grade that is assigned to a slab. All in all, I prefer the current British grading system to the one we (here across the pond) have developed.

I don't generally agree with grades on slabs all that often.

I saw one Queen Anne shilling graded at MS63, personally i wouldn't have graded it above NEF, infact it was a slider between GVF and AEF.

Bad day i'd say GVF+, most days i'd be nice and have said AEF.

[Sylvester]

Same with that Ducat of mine, they say AU, i'd hedge my bets on AEF again. Maybe EF on a good day, but i honestly seem to think it needs the A.

[Geordie582]

The conversion goes something like this:

http://www.predecimal.com/grading_standards.htm

Thanks for that! My first guess was right, I won't be using the system!!

[Guest choccycat]

Got a slabbed coin today, high grade but mucky looking. Slabs are horrible & weighty & had to see what's in them.

Very easy to crack a slab, I used a 1930's adjustable wrench (amusing name stamped is "King Dick"). Tighten the jaws onto the top of the slab and bend the rest. Cracks very easily, Then do another at the right edge (avoiding the coin area) and crack again.

Then the smelly white plastic bit slides out easily. Fo it to smell so strongly, it'll affect the coin.

Coin went straight into a Whitman, not ideal, but you can at least look at it!

[Chris Perkins]

I've got a chunky iron King Dick somewhere! A very old neighbour gave it to me in the 80's. I expect he had it from new. They don't make 'em like they used to.

[Rob]

Coin went straight into a Whitman, not ideal, but you can at least look at it!

Make the most of its good looks now, because Whitman folders aren't made of acid free paper, so being a nice tight fit gives perfect edge corrosion in time, particularly if it is a copper or bronze piece. Whitmans should be banned like slabs. I don't have a slab insert to hand, but think it is probably silicone sealant (bath sealant). If that is the case, the smelly vapour present is usually acetic acid. Not so good if the insert is freshly made prior to slabbing, but if left to cure long enough in a heated environment it should outgas sufficiently to eliminate the acetic acid.

[Chris Perkins]

Yes, whitmans are awful for preservation. i don't know why so many people still want them.

[Geordie582]

How about the State Quarters of the US? I have the album printed for them and have all up to date, the folder gives the full issue to 2008, so is a good reference to wants. There are clear plastic slides that isolate the coin from the card pages, - but what are they made of????

[Chris Perkins]

Who knows! Ask the manufacturer for something in writing.

[Diaconis]

On 10/14/2004 at 5:24 PM, Guest Peter said:

What is slabbing? Heard it mentioned a couple of times!

Made me smile. Remember those innocent good old days, before the plague really took hold ⚰️ (couldn't find a perspex coffin)

 

[1949threepence]

On 8/3/2005 at 7:33 PM, Sylvester said:

I bought a coin last week that's just arrived this morning. Nice piece of 18th century gold. At the moment it is sadly slabbed, i've just posted a few question in various places asking the best way to crack the coin out of the damn slab.

This is only the second slabbed coin i've ever owned and i must admit i simply don't like slabs at all. The last one was that nice sovereign i sent your way, the slab irritated me to the point where i sold the coin. This new coin i'm dying to get my hands actually on the coin but the blasted plastic is in the way. If i am going to keep it it's going to have to come out... If i can't get it out then i'll have to either get someone else to crack it me out professionally and pay them for it or sell the coin on.

14 years later I know, but I use the same method as the guy in this video

[oldcopper]

15 hours ago, Diaconis said:

Made me smile. Remember those innocent good old days, before the plague really took hold ⚰️ (couldn't find a perspex coffin)

 

If they found a way to make the plastic non-reflective of a light source they'd be onto a fortune. So you'd actually be able to see the coin (especially if it has reflective surfaces) properly.

[PWA 1967]

"onto a fortune" i dont think they are doing so bad Peter with the two main companies having done nearly 90 million already  ,think they are only interested in their name on the label and not bothered about the coin thats in it 

[1949threepence]

I know some people like them, and I concede they very much have certain positive attributes, but they're not for me. I like the feel of the actual coin itself.