Seems like we have
TPG grades edging up and CAC approval rates going down. Maybe a statistician could find whether there is any correlation. It is baffling.
If CAC is growing stricter, then the date of CAC approval might be important in the opposite way it can be important with
TPG graded coins. Generally a seller of a
PCGS coin in an old green or early blue holder makes note of it to imply the coin was graded before grade inflation began occurring. In other words, the earlier the better. But if CAC is growing stricter over time, then the later the better, and an earlier CAC approval would be less meaningful than a later one. But I don't think there is any way to tell because the beans aren't numbered. (I do recognize that any CAC approval is a beneficial confirmation of grade).So, it's just food for thought.
In my own experience, I am the very proud owner of two very similar coins: an 1837
PCGS ms63
half dime and an 1837
PCGS ms63 dime, both Liberty Seated without stars. The
half dime has a cud protruding from Lady Liberty's head that looks almost like a tiny pair of devil horns. It also has a CAC sticker. The dime does not, and I have no reason to believe it was ever submitted.
The two coins are identically toned steel gray. Neither has any distracting marks. The
half dime has a little more luster, the dime a little better strike. Both show some evidence of early cleaning in the form of light parallel scratches, the
half dime more so than the dime. My point is that to me at least, neither coin stands out from the other. Given that the
half dime was CACd I believe the dime is equally deserving. But it sounds like I would be lucky if the dime beaned.
Oh, well, I won't bother trying to guess which of my coins might CAC. If I see a coin I like with a bean, I will view that as a positive, but non-determinative factor.
Posted 10/23/2018 10:29 pm
