Magnum Opus, Pro Or Con?

to CCF. If you are buying the holders that coins come in then maybe you did ok? But if you are interested in the coins,then you overpaid IMHO. https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_fr...H_Complete=1
John1

"Magnum Opus" is just one of many custom labels used on PCGS coins; it does not indicate a coin of superior condition vs. others of the same grade or extreme rarity.

The PCGS web site states that 500 of the 1986 30th Anniversary ASEs were placed in holders with the Magnum Opus insert/label - it appears that only coins graded MS-70 were placed in the holders. A customer can request this; submitted coins that did not grade MS-70 may have been placed in different holders or returned to the customer raw.

PCGS has graded over 305,000 1986 ASEs. Of those, more than 205,000 have been assigned the grade MS-70. That works out to better than 2 of 3 getting the grade of MS-70 -- definitely not a rare coin. You can buy a 2016 MS-70 ASE in a regular PCGS holder for $35 (at the time I posted this there was a link to such a coin on the PCGS web site).

So, if you can find another collector who collects ASEs by labels you might be OK price-wise, but collectors of the coins (w/o regard to the label) will not pay $400 for such a common coin. It's just not worth it.

I'll let you do the homework on the other coins you purchased, but you are likely to find similar stories.

There were 37,701,500 2016 bullion ASE minted, not 100. PCGS may have packaged 100 with that particular label, but so what. There's nothing special about those coins. Unfortunately, you got ripped off. PCGS and whoever sold you the coins made big money. My opinion is that if you're trying to make money off of coins, you're more likely than not going to lose. Take it as a learning experience and move on. If you want to collect, learn to enjoy the coins and don't worry about the 3rd party grading. 3rd party grading does have its place, but common high grade modern coins isn't one of them.

This phrase really bugs me. Why? Because it is simply not true. A coin is actually worth what a knowledgeable collector is willing to pay a knowledgeable seller based on current market values.

Let's just say that someone has suddenly inherited some coins from a relative who has recently passed away. One of the coins is an 1893-S Morgan dollar in a PCGS XF45 holder. This person knows nothing about coins, so I offer them $200 for it. Let's say that they are really happy to get this amount for just a $1 coin. Does that mean this 1893-S Morgan in XF45 is worth only $200? Of course not. This is a 5-figure coin in XF45. It takes both parties being "in-the-know" to bring about a realized price that reflects its true value.

If my 2019-S ERP ASE comes back from PCGS with a signed COA, and someone says they are willing to pay me $3000 for it, will I take it? Of course not. It will be worth much more than that to other collectors. So, just because that person is "willing" to pay $3000 for it doesn't make it worth only $3000. The market has shown that this coin with a signed COA is 5 figures.