Coins Graded Vs Not Graded

Most collectors should be buying graded coins to avoid a lot of the pitfalls. That said whether or not you break even or make money is a matter of timing, quality, what you bought and when ect. Especially newer collectors, that is where the biggest rip offs with raw coins get passed onto.

Think about the other hobbies people have: video games, movies, fishing, shooting, cars, models ect. Think about the activities most people enjoy such as eating out, going to a bar, going to the movies, going to a sports game ect. You're essentially never going to even sniff breaking even on many of those and you especially won't make money unless you're a professional. Coins are no different. The fact that large portions of a purchase can be recovered makes it one of the better hobbies from that standpoint by far where you get to enjoy things and unlike a dinner at a restaurant or a movie it isn't a total financial loss.

I buy primarily graded coins -- I like the protection the slab offers and the authentication that comes with it. Having a grade on the slab is nice because it represents the opinion of someone more knowledgeable and reputable than I will be when it's time to sell it. Despite what we often say in this forum, some people still do buy the slab and not the coin.

As for buying for profit, there's no way to really know what will be more valuable in the future. Some coins will gain, some will inevitably lose. If profit is your goal, either you're in the wrong hobby or you need a lot more experience. In the meantime, collect what you like, don't overpay, and expect that not everything will eventually be worth a fortune.

For me at least, just carl has said it all.
Profit is not one of my motives.
I haven't sold a coin in 30 years.

I have been collecting almost 40 years now and I have yet to become a seller to improve my collection. I do this knowing full well I will probably never get out what I have put in. It is a hobby for enjoyment. It is not something to make me or my heirs rich.

Best to just not worry about selling.

I see two schools of thought.

Type I:
The person who enjoys not only the coins, but researching about them, identifying fakes, learning to grade, etc. They want to grade their own coins (which may or may not mean its important to them to compare their ideas to the established system), how to conserve coins, how to ID fakes etc.

Type II:
The other is a person who just wants to enjoy the coins themselves and will be content letting other people grade their coins for them. A display of organized, slabbed coins is a really nice sight to see.

Type I has pitfalls of being fooled by fakes - although the remedy is there - research and study.

Type II has the hidden pitfalls of spending a lot more money out of pocket to enjoy the hobby. It all adds up and can get expensive:
- membership fees for getting deals on slabbing prices
- slabbing fees vary according to value, desired designations are extra, etc.,
- higher prices paid for collected coins.
- marketing trends driving up prices such as now the trend has become to ask more money when the grading service's opinions are evaluated and a sticker affixed (CAC)
- marketing trends such as registry sets have driven slab collectors to seek better and netter labeled coins and so the prices on these have been driven up even higher.

Remember grading is not a dead-sure science - it is subjective. And different companies even have have different standards! If a slabbed coin is broken out of the slab, it is never guaranteed the same grade again. This is why you find the following (in context) from the founder of PCGS (link follows):

"Hall has one more surprising 30th anniversary revelation: 'We never imagined someone would send in a coin more than once," he admitted.'"

https://www.coinworld.com/news/us-c...irm.all.html

When the price people will pay for the next highest grade level is significantly higher, people can crack out their coin and pay to resubmit as many times as they are willing to gamble at getting the better grade printed on the label.

As a newer collector, learn to ID/grade coins for yourself and you can have the best of both worlds. As CCF members say over and over, buy the coin and not the slab. Don't go on blind faith these companies are infallible. Understand they provide a service some people totally enjoy, but these companies are totally optional for others who have always gotten along without them and can continue to do so.

After all, how fun can a hobby be if we decide we will let others tell us how we should be enjoying it?





As has been wisely said, a dealer will offer less b/c he needs to make a profit.

Its not a matter of time overall, it is a matter of learning. As an example, as of recent I started looking at Walking Liberty halves more seriously. I did a lot of enjoyable background reading about the varieties out there. I spent about 2 months looking over ones I could find (mostly ebay sold and available sales). I got an MS 1944-D FS 901 for less than half of going trends. I posted here to CCF for people to verify it being MS.

And.. from other such deals of bought and sold items, this item was technically was free. Research, study, peruse online sources for grading like PCGS photo grade and registry set pics,etc. Overall my hobby pays for itself - but I have a lot of time on my hands also.

There are many more pitfalls than just this, but your two schools weren't accurate at all to begin with.

Anyone who thinks fakes are the only danger to the raw crowd when it comes to coins of value, or classic gold or really any older gold among other series are the people that need grading the most. If you just want low grade Indians yea you don't need them, but if you wanna play in the deep end or gold end raw well....

It is impossible to be an expert in everything for a collector and the most elite and knowledgeable collectors of our time realize that and utilize the grading services.

In the end the collectors thinking they know better than the graders for everything and they don't need them only hurts the collector themselves.