1853 Braided Hair Large Cent Worth Grading?

If you want it slabbed just b/c you like slabs, then go for it.

But if you are concerned about losing or making money, then the fun begins.

To make an educated guess you need to get an idea of the grade using something like photograde and comparing your coin to the pics. Then find what that coin in same condition is selling for on ebay SOLD auctions (and/ or Heritage auctions).

I would suggest you do this for more than one grade level close to what you think yours is.

Then do the homework to find out the costs the companies will charge you to grade. Don't forget the membership fees for NGC and PCGS since these fees are not trivial.

Then compare the total outlay for the service to the values you found before.

And...then realize that grading is based on nothing scientific at all. Watch videos of dealers (who know their business) getting slabs back from grading companies and wondering what in the world went wrong (or "right" sometimes!). It is a gamble. In fact if you break a coin out of a slab and resubmit it, even to the same company it came from, it is never guaranteed the same grade.

A lot of people who do not understand the above lose money over coin slabbing.

I personally don't see this going higher than AU55, and the surfaces make me pause. If you do decide to send it in, please post your results.

Your shipping cost plus slabbing and return shipping!?
How could it be done for that amount?
Not even sure ANACS could do it.

I think its MS as far as sharpness.