PCGS Says Counterfeit But NGC & ANACS Have A Different Opinion

On June 26, 2023, I submitted (6) Lincoln cents to PCGS for grading. They graded all the coins counterfeit. Over the course of 20 years l purchased 3 coins from reputable coin dealers and found two coins in circulation. I find it hard to believe PCGS did an accurate assessment of my coins.

I've been collecting Lincoln cents for over 70 years. I am not an expert but I believe I can tell if a coin is counterfeit or if it has been altered or if the impressions on a coin were man-made, or if they are mint errors. Before I submitted the coins to PCGS I attempted to recreate the errors but they cannot be made without damaging the rim or changing the shape, thickness or weight. The coins I submitted to PCGS were 1974 D error, 1982-D unplated, 1983 D plating error, 1990 unplated, 1994 unplated and 1995D unplated. After receiving the counterfeit grad from PCGS I decided to spend the money to send the same coins to NGC and ANACS for grading

I decided to send the same coins for grading (3) to NCG, and (3) to ANACS.

NGC graded the 1974-D AU 58 BR, 1982-D mint error MS62 BR,1983-D AU details-bent BR.

ANACS graded the 1990 N9 not genuine, the 1994 N9 not genuine the 1995 D 58 struck on an unplated blank.

Is it possible that PCGS could make such a gross error in grading all of my coins as counterfeit? Or did they do a rush job, found one that was questionable and labeled the rest counterfeit.

This is not the first time I had a issue with PCGS. In 2006 I purchased a complete set of MS 69 Silver eagles from 1986 to 2006 all graded by PCGS from a dealer on ebay. He had a good reputation and the photos of the coins looked good as far as I could see from the online pictures. I paid $650. But when I inspected the coins the front and back were covered in a spray of white dots. It was as if someone spit on the coins. I attempted to return the coins to the seller but he insisted they were as described a set of MS69 silver eagles. I called PCGS and asked how could they give an MS69 grade to the coins when the aesthetic look was ruined with white dots visible to the naked eye. Eye appeal is by far the most important characteristic of a coin. I relied on PCGS to verify the grade of the coins.
PCGS response was too bad, if you don't like the coins you shouldn't have purchased them. PCGS stands by their grade and he hung up. I used ebay return policy and received a refund from the seller.

Will PCGS give me a refund of the $250 I paid from them. It may seem foolish to spend the extra money to have NGC and ANACS grade the same coins. But based on the results I feel it was well worth the time and money I paid to have (4) genuine coins that PCGS labeled as counterfeit.

Can you really trust coin grading services or is coin grading subjective and all this hullabaloo about coin grading just a bunch of malarkey


Tony