$100 Gold Striking Error - Where Does Mike Byers Find This Stuff?

Something was going on in 1985...

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1985-Canada...272038994856

back door job no more no less

Since first viewing Mike Byers UNIQUE Errors about 15 years ago, I have always been curious who his Contacts are (and how most of these errors escaped the Mint)..

Mike Byers just uses ebay to advertise his error coins, not really sell them. Price them HIGH, then state:

"We sometimes accept offers on items that are less than the listed price. This depends on the value of the item, the length of time the item has been in our inventory and whether it is a duplicate or a unique piece. If you are serious about purchasing an item and would like to make an offer, please contact us."

The ebay fee plus PayPal fee on a $100,000 sale would be quite high. This gold coin error listing has no "make offer" feature, so one can guess what happens when someone contacts them. I notice they have only one item sold (apparently for the last YEAR), but lots of listings.

At the recent Halifax RCNA, was chatting with the famous BC error dealer collector and mentions to me he has purchased a full set of nickel dollar double strikes and flip strikes that were precision made from a US person, as I waited found out he was outbid by Canadian Coin, boy was he angry, not quite the right term. A few weeks latter went to CCC and asked to see the coins, turns out they were just sold to a US dealer for over six figures, one can sort of guess who the US dealer is, as for these two coins, the RCM seems to not take kindly to precious metal errors and might try to retrieve these coins as there is little chance these coins could have made it through the regular distribution system, but they are cool like the Manitoba gold dollar coin, just not a 100,000 US cool.

I would think that is insulting to Mike Byers, and other established major error dealers. Fred Weinberg, Jon Sullivan and other error experts/dealers also attract some very impressive errors.

When you establish yourself as a major error dealer in the US, or become an expert in this aspect of the hobby (and consult to NGC and PCGS), this stuff naturally gravitates to you... Most coin dealers really have no clue on the legitimacy of errors, or what they are.

There are not error collectors with pockets deep enough in Canada to acquire these sort of errors - that is why they are in the US (also avoiding seizure by the RCM might be another factor). In Canada, it is orders of magnitude less. I only do two shows (Nuphilex in Montreal and Coin Expo in Toronto), but most dealers now stockpile and bring their errors to me at these shows, because they know I can help them identify their oddities and find homes for them... that certainly does not make me a "fence"... regardless if said coins were real errors to escape, or had a 'helping hand' to escape from the mint.

I would think that is insulting to Mike Byers, and other established major error dealers. Fred Weinberg, Jon Sullivan and other error experts/dealers also attract some very impressive errors.

When you establish yourself as a major error dealer in the US, or become an expert in this aspect of the hobby (and consult to NGC and PCGS), this stuff naturally gravitates to you... Most coin dealers really have no clue on the legitimacy of errors, or what they are.

There are not error collectors with pockets deep enough in Canada to acquire these sort of errors - that is why they are in the US (also avoiding seizure by the RCM might be another factor). In Canada, it is orders of magnitude less. I only do two shows (Nuphilex in Montreal and Coin Expo in Toronto), but most dealers now stockpile and bring their errors to me at these shows, because they know I can help them identify their oddities and find homes for them... that certainly does not make me a "fence"... regardless if said coins were real errors to escape, or had a 'helping hand' to escape from the mint.

Have to agree with SPP on this one.