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"Buy the coin, not the slab" is an old, and true, numismatic
maxim. Evaluate the coin yourself. Even the top coin grading services listed below make mistakes, occasionally
overgrading coins or slabbing problem coins.
All of the top services today that grade, authenticate, and slab coins "market grade." That is, they
grade a coin according to its technical wear, using industry-accepted standards epitomized by those published in
the book Official A.N.A. Grading Standards for United States Coins and the book Photograde: A Photographic
Grading Guide for United States Coins, and they subjectively factor
in the coin's eye appeal. They weigh positive eye appeal factors such as luster and toning and negative eye appeal
factors such as scratches and spots, all of which affect a coin's market value. A coin grading service's evaluation
of a coin's market appeal, though, may differ from your own. In the minds of some, the coin slabbing services give
too little weight to spots and stains and too much weight to scratches and dings.
The coin and authentication grading services also favor "originality." If a coin looks as if it hasn't
been cleaned, they let other things slide, and it if looks as if it has been cleaned, they're more likely to bodybag
it. Yet the coin slabbing services support the cleaning of coins, if it's done properly, that is, if it doesn't
damage the coin. One coin grading service, NGC, works closely with a coin cleaning service, NCS (see details below
under NGC).
The coin grading and authentication services are also biased toward provenance. If a wealthy, well-known collector
once owned the coin, they typically grade it more leniently. Celebrity coins such as 1804 dollars receive grades
10 or 15 points higher than would be given the same coin type with a different date.
All the mainstream coin grading services offer guarantees that supposedly protect you if you buy a coin in one
of their slabs and the coin turns out to be a lower grade than the grade on the slab's label or the coin has a
problem. You're able to resubmit the coin (depending on the coin grading service, you may still have to pay the
regular grading fee), and if the coin grading service agrees that the coin was overgraded or has a problem, it
will refund money to you, typically the difference between the market value of coin as it was graded and the actual
market value. Occasionally, resubmissions like this generate a sizable refund from a grading company. More often
than not, according to anecdotal reports, the grading companies don't change their minds.
The biggest problem with the established, mainstream coin grading and authentication services is that their standards
appear to be arbitrary and inconsistent, which ironically leads to more revenue for them. You can resubmit the
same coin different times and receive different grades each time, which causes some collectors and dealers to resubmit
coins multiple times, paying a new grading fee each time, until they come back at the highest possible grade. Grading
company standards have also loosened over time, creating an incentive for collectors and dealers to crack out coins
from older coin slabs and spend more money reslabbing them.
Anecdotal reports indicate that coins submitted using a coin grading service's most expensive option -- one-day
service -- tend to be graded more generously than coins submitted though less expensive options. The grading services
also seem to favor large dealers who submit lots of coins, giving their coins higher grades than those of others.
One collector reported buying two 2006 Silver Eagles graded MS-70 by two different grading services from one of
the television shopping networks. He cracked each coin out and sent it back to the same grading service that had
graded it previously. One came back at MS-67, the other MS-66.
Despite these problems, all told, the top coin grading and authentication services do provide value. They provide
a measure of security that a coin is authentic, that it hasn't been tampered with, and that it has market appeal,
which can be worth the premium that you typically pay for slabbed coins. Also, the coin slabs themselves can be
an attractive way to store coins. Coin slabs can be particularly appropriate for older or more valuable specimens
or for those collectors creating "registry sets" with newer coins.
Each of the services below has its strengths and weaknesses, and each can be worth patronizing, depending on the
specific coin. Updates, corrections, and additions are welcomed with any of this information.
First-Tier Services in Terms of Market Acceptance Today
PCGS (Professional Coin Grading Service)
800-447-8848
- PCGS-graded coins have highest retail value of any grading company, according
to the Coin Dealer Newsletter.
- Along with NGC, rated "superior" in a 2004 survey of PNG (Professional Numismatists
Guild) and ICTA (Industry Council for Tangible Assets) members in terms of grading accuracy and ability to detect
altered, repaired, damaged, cleaned, and counterfeit coins. Along with NGC, rated "superior" in a 2006
PNG survey (no service was rated "outstanding").
- Rated the least consistent service of eight major services (others were
NGC, ANACS, ICG, SEGS, PCI, ACG, and NTC) in a 2003 study by Coin World. PCGS's lack of consistency may be deliberate
or not, but it has the effect of encouraging repeat submissions of the same coin, which generate more revenue for
it.
- Coins in older slabs generally graded more conservatively and worth more.
Newest PCGS slabs have blue label; green label older; dot-matrix printed label older still. Detailed breakdown
with approximate dates:
3/02-date: Light
blue label, with barcode, with coin and series numbers
1/99-2/02: Light
blue label, no barcode, with coin and series number
11/98-12/98: Light
blue label, no barcode, no coin and series numbers
Mid 1995-11/98:
Green label, serial number starts at right of left edge of barcode
1/90-mid 1995: Green
(yellow through blue), label serial number starts at left of left edge of barcode
11/89-12/89: Slab
within frame, doily label
9/89-11/89: Slab
within frame, off-white label
1986-9/89: Small
slabs
- Net grades (lowers a coin's grade for minor problems) but does not note
it on the holder.
- Bodybags (doesn't grade) problem coins (major problems) -- no refund
of fee.
- With regular service, coins are initially graded by two graders independent
of one another. If there's disagreement, a third grader grades the coin. If the third grader agrees with one of
the other two graders, the coin receives that grade. If not, sometimes the grading is averaged, sometimes the graders
reevaluate the coin. After these initial evaluations, the grading of the coin-in-slab is verified. Between 2% and
4% of coins are regraded at this point. A final verification ensures that slab insert information is correct.
- Charges $30 for pre-1970 coins for 30-day turnaround, plus shipping and
insurance.
- You can submit coins to be graded through one of its authorized dealers
or by joining the PCGS Collectors Club.
- Guarantee: PCGS, unlike NGC, ANACS, ICG, and SEGS, is not specific about
its guarantee at its Web site. On the phone, a customer service rep said if you buy a PCGS-graded coin and feel
PCGS overgraded it, you can submit it to PCGS for re-examination. Unlike with NGC and ICG, however, you're charged
the regular grading fee for this re-examination. If PCGS determines that the actual grade is lower than the grade
on the slab, it will work with you, either paying you the difference between the fair market value of the coin
at the re-examination grade and the fair market value at the grade originally assigned by PCGS or buying the coin
outright from you.
NGC (Numismatic Guaranty Corporation
of America)
800-642-2646
- Along with PCGS, rated "superior" in a 2004 survey of PNG (Professional Numismatists
Guild) and ICTA (Industry Council for Tangible Assets) members in terms of grading accuracy and ability to detect
altered, repaired, damaged, cleaned, and counterfeit coins. Along with PCGS, rated "superior" in a 2006
PNG survey (no service was rated "outstanding").
- Can be more difficult to get less-than-perfect circulated coins in an
NGC slab than a PCGS slab, depending on the series.
- Newest slabs have fine perforation at bottom of label and small rounded
square hologram on back; older slabs have full-width hologram.
- Net grades but does not note it on the holder.
- Bodybags problem coins -- no refund of fee.
- Offers coin cleaning service through NCS (Numismatic Conservation Service).
NCS will also authenticate and slab coins without grading them.
- Charges $28 for coins over $300 with 12-day turnaround; $15 for coins
under $300 for 21-day turnaround with 5 coin minimum, plus shipping and insurance.
- Registered eBay users can submit to NGC and
get a 10% rebate credited to their eBay account.
- Any ANA member can submit directly to NGC through
this Web page.
- Guarantee: If you buy an NGC-graded coin and feel NGC overgraded it,
you can submit it to NGC for re-examination for free. If NGC determines that the actual grade is lower than the
grade on the slab, it will, at NGC's option, either replace the coin for one at the originally assigned grade or
pay you the difference between the fair market value of the coin at the re-examination grade and the fair market
value at the grade originally assigned by NGC, with the fair market value determined by NGC using "reliable
current market information," which it says do not include Internet auctions/sales.
Second-Tier Services in Terms of Market Acceptance Today
ANACS (Amos Certification Service)
800-888-1861
- Rated "average" in a 2004 survey of PNG (Professional Numismatists
Guild) and ICTA (Industry Council for Tangible Assets) members in terms of grading accuracy and "superior"
in ability to detect altered, repaired, damaged, cleaned, and counterfeit coins. Rated "good" in a 2006
PNG survey.
- Regarded as more liberal with grading in general than PCGS or NGC.
- Good choice for problem coins. Notes problem on slab label and gives
both technical and net grade. Sometimes, however, problems noted on the slab can be more visible than the problems
on the coin itself.
- Physical slab holders are smaller and less attractive than slabs of other
mainstream grading services.
- Only mainstream grading service that offers an authentication-only option,
though it doesn't mention this on its Web site or charge any less for this. You check a box on the submission form.
NGS, known mostly as a coin conservation service, also offers an authentication-only slabbing option.
- Provides helpful service at national coin shows, informally grading and
authenticating your coins, though it doesn't guarantee that you'd receive same grades if you formally submitted
the same coins.
- Charges $12 + $10 for return shipping and insurance = $22 + $9 extra
for five-day service = $31.
- Without five-day service, turnaround five to six weeks.
- Guarantee: If you buy a gold or silver ANACS-graded coin and feel ANACS
overgraded it, you can submit it to ANACS for re-examination for a $15 fee. If ANACS determines that the actual
grade is lower than the grade on the slab, it will refund your $15 fee and pay you the difference between the fair
market value of the coin at the re-examination grade and the fair market value at the grade originally assigned
by ANACS, using "the most accurate pricing guide(s) as determined by ANACS." On the phone, a customer
service rep said that another option you have is to request that ANACS buy the coin outright from you.
ICG (Independent Coin Grading Co.)
877-221-4424
- Rated "average" in a 2004 survey of PNG (Professional Numismatists
Guild) and ICTA (Industry Council for Tangible Assets) members in terms of grading accuracy and "superior"
in ability to detect altered, repaired, damaged, cleaned, and counterfeit coins. Rated "good" in a 2006
PNG survey.
- Uses Intercept Shield slabs designed to protect coins from toning and
other environmental damage (dealers can opt out of using Intercept Shield technology).
- Criticized for being too liberal with PR-70 and MS-70 grades and for
overgrading modern coins, particularly with grades MS-65 and higher.
- Net grades but does not note it on the holder.
- Bodybags problem coins -- credits fee to your account with exception
of $5 processing fee.
- Charges $30 for coins over $300 for nondealers for 15-day turnaround,
plus shipping and insurance; $15 for coins under $300 for 21-day turnaround with 5-coin minimum, plus shipping
and insurance.
- Guarantee: If you buy a non-copper ICG-graded coin and feel ICG overgraded
it, you can submit it to ICG for re-examination for free. If ICG determines that the actual grade is lower than
the grade on the slab, it will, at ICG's option, either replace the coin for one at the originally assigned grade
or pay you the difference between the fair market value of the coin at the re-examination grade and the fair market
value at the grade originally assigned by ICG, with the fair market value "determined solely by ICG."
Other Grading Services
New grading services pop up all the time. Some may be bona fide attempts to create legitimate, industry-respected
operations. Nonetheless, caveat emptor (buyer beware). Many of these services appear to be deliberate attempts
to fool inexperienced collectors by "certifying" the practice of overgrading. They grade coins more leniently
and sometimes far more leniently than published standards such as those in the Official
A.N.A. Grading Standards for United States Coins and Photograde: A Photographic Grading Guide
and more leniently as well than the standards used by legitimate grading services. Most of these services appear
to be "self slabbers"-- small operations run by a single coin dealer. The holders, or slabs, of most
of these services provide no more security or market value than a dealer marking a grade in pencil on a 2x2 cardboard
coin holder. As with all slabs, however, the slabs themselves can be an attractive way to store coins. But with
U.S. coins, it's generally safer to go with one of the above four reputable and established coin-grading services
(PCGS, NGC, ANACS, or ICG).
eBay enacted changes in 2007 to discourage the sale of certified coins through its auctions that are in the slabs
of grading companies other than PCGS, NGC, NCS, ICG, and ANACS, prohibiting their numerical grades from being mentioned
in auction headlines or descriptions and being referenced to a price guide. Working with the new consumer-minded
president of the American Numismatic Society, Barry Stuppler, eBay is trying to eliminate the practice of some
sellers using no-name grading companies to sell significantly overgraded coins at inflated prices. This move is
a step in the right direction but it will need to be tweaked to allow, for instance, for the small but well-respected
Canadian grading company ICCS and any grading company that exists now or will exist in the future that grades according
to commonly accepted standards.
Foreign Coins
ICCS (International Coin Certification Service)
416-488-8620
- Small coin-grading service in Toronto respected in the Canadian market.
Robert Matthews Coin
Authentication
- Specializes in authenticating British milled coins.
Ancient Coins
ACCS (Ancient
Coin Certification Service)
- Service of David Sear, author of the Greek
Coins and Their Values, Roman
Coins and Their Values, and other standard ancient numismatic
attribution works.
- Authenticates and attributes but does not grade or slab. Coins are accompanied
by black-and-white photo and certificate.
- Charges $35 for basic service or $45 for detailed service. Detailed service
includes extra information about the coin's historical significance.
- Turnaround two to three weeks. With express service, which costs an extra
$20 per coin (three coin maximum), turnaround time is three working days.
- Does not offer guarantee of coin's authenticity.
ICG (Independent Coin Grading Co.)
877-221-4424
- Slabs are considered attractive coin holders to some ancient coin collectors,
though most, unlike with modern coin collectors, prefer to handle their coins and view their edges, which slabs
prevent.
- Slabs ancients along with authenticating and grading them.
- Most active U.S. slabbing company with ancient coins.
- Only authenticity service that guarantees the authenticity of ancient
coins, though its guarantee applies only to coins not made of copper.
- More precise in its attributions of ancient coins than other slabbing
companies.
- Uses the U.S. grading system, which is more liberal than the grading
system typically used for ancient coins, so the grade on any given slab will typically be higher than the grade
that an ancient coin dealer would have given the same coin.
- See above description for further details about ICG.
NGC (Numismatic Guaranty Corporation
of America)
800-642-2646
- Web site indicates that it doesn't slab ancients, though you see ancient
coins in NGC slabs.
- Attributions are often more general than those of ancient coin dealers,
dating a coin for instance by the ruler who initiated the series rather than when the particular coin was issued
even when the difference is hundreds of years. Labels Alexander the Great tetradrachms "Coins of the Bible"
when they have only a very tangential relationship at best to the Bible, with most not minted in the Levant or
having ever circulated there.
- Uses the U.S. grading system, which is more liberal than the grading
system typically used for ancient coins, so the grade on any given slab will typically be higher than the grade
that an ancient coin dealer would have given the same coin.
- See above description for further details about NGC.
ANACS (Amos Certification Service)
800-888-1861
- Web site indicates that it grades a selection of ancient Roman coins
and that you should phone for details.
- Same issues related to slabbing of ancient coins as with NGC and ICG.
- See above description for further details about ANACS.
IBSCC (International Bureau for the Suppression
of Counterfeit Coins)
- Service of the International Association of Professional Numismatists.
- Based in Switzerland.
- Authentication available only for dealer members of IAPN (International
Association of Professional Numismatists). Works with more than 100 outside experts.
- No certificate issued.
- Does not offer guarantee of coin's authenticity.
The British Museum,
Department of Coins and Medals
- Authenticates.
- Charges only return postage.
- No certificate issued.
- Does not offer guarantee of coin's authenticity.
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