Are They Really "Unsearched" Lots Of Coins?

A simple answer. No.

It means that coins are "unsearched" by YOU!

The rolls of "wheat pennies" with crazy coins at the end (gold, silver, etc) are a straight up scam. Mixed lots of "unsearched" US coins are likewise probably stacked so the seller wins every time.

Your chances get better the further you stray from people's comfort zone. Lots of world coins were probably searched for silver, but not for anything else. Ancients very often get unloaded in bulk by clueless inheritors or dealers, and very valuable stuff can be picked from lots of junk.

But yeah, the odds of getting a solid roll of quarter Eagles in a penny roll is zilch.

The "unsearched" scam is a handy way for unscrupulous sellers to dump problem coins that would never sell by themselves by "salting" rolls with cleaned, cull, damaged, and counterfeit semi-keys and key dates.

Even estate-sale collections are almost always thoroughly searched and cherry-picked with the best items offered in private sales, long before the average collector ever sees the leftovers.

If you want to see truly-unsearched coin collections, your last remaining sources are from family members and heirs dumping Mom or Dad or Grandpa's collection at the local pawn shop or coin shop. This is why some of the most impressive, deepest collections are often held by dealers and ex-dealers - they get first crack at obtaining coins before the market ever sees them.

Unsearched is a big fat lie.

I take a bit of different viewpoint. Now, I figure any coin lot offered has indeed been searched prior to me acquiring these coins. If I "search" a group of wheat cents for only dates and mintmarks, then that batch of coins is unsearched by me for any error coins that may be there. When I state this fact(truth) in the context of selling these coins as "unsearched", then this is true, isn't a lie (Sap!). Over the past four years I have purchased more than 27,000 wheat cents in bulk from a variety of sources. Included in these purchases is one " unsearched" roll sold on ebay just for grins, knowing it would be all common dates, it was of course the same as we pull CRHing bank boxes.

Were all my purchases just skunks? No. Most 1000 bulk LWCs had ratios of 4% to 19% of the teens through thirties and those were more common date/mm's. Average overall was 7% 10's-30's and 93% of the 40's/50's. Now, one time I did receive what I considered a truly "unsearched" batch...there was 53% 10's-30's including (5) 1909VDB, (1)1926S, (2)1922D, (1)1910S & (1)1915S plus a large amount of 1931/P/D, 1932P/D 1933P/D which I NEVER saw in any other batch bought. I thought I'd hit the jackpot, found a wonderful source.( guy wasn't coin collector, just bought LWC's from his customers at trade shows) So, ordered two more batches, seemed like it took longer to receive it. These two were the absolute worst of any purchase, ever! 3%, mostly 1936,37,38,39pP's and 97% 50's D mints. I'm assuming what happened was he sold all he had at first, when I ordered more he went to a dealer and got the trash there to fill the order! Risky business buying bulk coins, most often buyer gets taken.

Agreed.

For some reason "unsearched lots" remind me of this exchange on Game of Thrones...



Any lot which must be described as unsearched is not truly unsearched.

I didn't search them.