I would like your opinion on how to submit US Mint Sets for grading? I have complete sets from 1962 to 1987. I did look through and few of them are very sharp look without any sign of scratch. Should I cut it out and pull the coin then place in holder or leave it in plastic wrap that come with it and submit it? The problem is one perfect coin, but the rest of coins in that set aren't. I don't want to submit the whole coins in a plastic wrap set as other isn't perfect as one can be. What's your experience and suggestion in this situation? Thanks
If you don't want to submit the whole set, cut the cellophane through the seals and submit the coin still in the cellophane. Take pictures just in case they try to claim improper cleaning. Yes, it does happen. (You might also note on the invoice "(In mint cello)" )
Badthad: Why not? I am looking for highest grade possible to strike from this sets. I have one or two penny in the set that showing very red tone. It will look cool in graded case. I am sure some people may have different opinion on that one. Conder101: I didn't think of that. Thank you for suggest that way. I will make sure to write down "In mint cello" in submission form. I am curious, why will they claim any coins from mint set as improper cleaning?
At the why not- Most coins won't cover the fees of having the slabbed if you do decide to resell. If it's just for a personal hobby collection have at it! Post pics when they get back.
I's say take the money that you would spend on the fees & buy the same coins already graded if you want graded modern. 9 out of 10 times the costs you would incure with the submission & postage you could have just bought the coins outright. But heck who am I , If they are yours & you like the way they look or want to know they came from your collection & dont care about costs go for it.
fishwhacker: Sure, I will post them when I got them graded. budgood: I can agree on your perspective with fees and what already slabbed in eBay. I have notice that any penny with rich red tone fetch higher price. I have few pennies in that sets with really rich red tone and I want to slab them. Here's one example from 1964-P... The penny next to cello wrap is my change and it's bright new copper to make a compare between two of them.
A couple of reasons on the cents - because unless you are very, very good at grading yourself, and you are certain that the coins will grade at least MS66 or higher, then the coins will not be worth what it cost to get them slabbed. Also, you note that the cents are toned. But unless a modern cent can get the Red designation, that means it's not toned, it's definitely not worth what it will cost to get it graded. Things are pretty similar with the rest of the coins in the set with the exception of the Franklin halves in the first 2 years of your sets. Those will only need a 65. And you need to understand, the odds are very, very, slim that the coins in your sets will grade high enough to be worth the grading fees. Very slim indeed.
Just my opinion, but I don't see anything extraordinary about that 64 LMC to justify the cost of submitting it.
It has happened. There have also been cases of them coming back bodybagged for PVC (There is no PVC in the mint packaging), there was even one case where someone sent in a still sealed hard plastic case proof set where one of the quarters came back bagged as a counterfeit even though the TPG opened up the OGP themselves. (That was back before genuine slabs an detail grading. I firmly believe that back then if the grader was running behind they would start randomly bodybagging coins to catch up. After all the company still got paid for the bodybags, and the bagged coins would probably be sent in again and they would get paid twice to grade it.)
It's a waste of money, IMO. But it's your money. The TPG's are pretty secretive about their handling procedures. It is entirely possible, if not likely, that the graders don't receive the coins in the mint packaging. It would not surprise me to learn that clerks are responsible for cracking 3rd world slabs that can't be crossed, opening mint sets, and freeing coins submitted in all kinds of crazy packaging. Everything possible to speed up the grading process by their highly paid graders. Lance.
GDJMSP: That mean if penny have red color on it. It's not a tone, but natural color developed and stated as RD? mark_h: Or education purpose and money worth to invest? Conder101: Regarding to PVC, some mint sets I have contained seems as liquid stained inside. It's dry, but you can see it cause shape tone on coins inside. Will that slab as genuine? Ikeigwin: Is it better for me to take coin out of mint and use holder to submit coins?
I would not take the coins out of the sealed cellophane. There's no downside and who knows? Maybe graders get them that way, maybe they've been freed by clerks but they annotate they've come from sealed mint packages. Regardless, grading is always uncertain. I'm sure there are countless incidences of mint-packaged coins coming back in genuine slabs. I would do the math before you spend the money. Grading is not cheap. My personal rule of thumb is if the coin's not worth more than $100 it's not a smart expenditure. But everyone has their own reasons. Those $20 coins you see in graded slabs are usually from bulk submissions where a few lucky strikes make up for the losers. Smart collectors don't spend $40 to grade a $20 coin. Lance.
Ikeigwin: I understand what you mean regarding the value of coin greater than grade fee. I have a degree in IT and we have our own principle on invest security system. The value of information must be greater than cost of implementation security system, but cost for Hacker to break through must be greater than value of information. Thanks for point it out.
If you are thinking of submitting to PCGS then you have send the whole set or take them out and submit in the required safe flips. This is the way I have read their rules and I find a quick rinse in acetone for the silver or clad coins brings out the luster and gets rid of any haze that may be on the coins. I did not rinse the cents when i submitted then as I have heard too many horror stories about them.
For a cent to get the designation Red, 95% or more of the coin has to be original mint red. And original mint red is a specific color, not just any shade of red. So if a cent has toned then it is almost a certainty that it will not get the Red designation. And based on your picture I don't think that cent would get the Red designation.
The graders just get the coin in a flip. They do not see the original packaging. The clerks that unpack the shipments do crack them out and put them in flips. (An exception to this might be crossovers that have to be viewed in the holder to decide whether they are likely to cross. Because if they won't they are returned in the original holders.) But the notation on the invoice gives you an arguing point if it comes back claiming it to be PVC. I have no idea. Could be residue from the mints cleaning of the coins either after annealing or after strike. How the graders approach it might just depend on how they are feeling that day.
Thank you everyone for sharing the feedbacks. I appreciate it and I will try few pennies. Of course it will be education purpose and post my result.
