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 Replies: 14 / Views: 1,203 |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
5855 Posts |
I recently purchased an 1856 Half Cent on ebay to fill a hole in my 7070 album. The pictures provided by the seller looked like this: << Images Disappeared >> The seller didn't grade the coin, but I figured it looked about an VF20 or so (The "LIBERTY" was worn, but there was a lot of detail in the hair]. I paid $61 for it and figured I did OK. When I actually got the coin in hand, I was shocked at how much brighter and shinier it looked in person. I've tried to capture the shine with my camera (my scanner never picks up shine), and these are the best I can come up with:   Even these pics don't really do the coin justice. I mean, we're almost talking a proof like shine, as if the coin had been plated or something. Any thoughts? Dipped? Whizzed? Plated? Something else? And is it worth the $61 I paid for it? |
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
10045 Posts |
To my eyes, it looks like it was put under a buffing wheel.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
6387 Posts |
I presume your photos are superior for showing the coin the way it looks in hand. The color is very unnatural and the coin has clearly been vigorously cleaned if not polished. I don't think you got an acceptable deal and the seller appears to have drastically "improved" his photographs to attract bidders.
I'd send it back for a refund if possible.
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Moderator
 United States
23522 Posts |
It's been machine-buffed so hard that device details have actually been removed. Even if the seller has no return policy, this coin would qualify for an ebay complaint of "Substantially Not As Described" (SNAD). Give the seller the chance to do the right thing first, of course. Three takeaways for the future: 1) Any image which doesn't clearly illustrate the coin (and these certainly qualify) can mask things you really don't want to know about the coin. Bid accordingly. 2) I see four gouges on the obverse auction image - two near the star at 8:00, two near the bun at 3:00. Any low-quality auction image which shows gouges so clearly indicates those gouges are dealbreakers on the real coin. And they are, even if it weren't buffed. 3) The dark spots on the reverse, differing so drastically from the surrounding color, would have told me immediately that this coin had almost certainly been cleaned. Such spots can appear on 19th Century copper, but they're a value reducer at best and a big red flag if the rest of the coin's color appears "normal." |
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
5855 Posts |
All right, thanks guys. I figured something was up when I saw it in person. Good thing it was "just" for my type album and not for investment, eh?
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Moderator
United States
23522 Posts |
As someone relatively new to the hobby you should know: what happened here is a deceptive, malicious act against you, and if the seller has any knowledge of coins whatsoever he'd know what he was selling; he chose to do so anyway, with images which hid the deception. This seller would be immediately ostracized from any group of numismatists who uncovered him in their midst; I know I'd ban any CCF member caught doing stuff like this instantly.
This is the equivalent of a criminal act, as far as I'm concerned. You should be outraged.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3283 Posts |
 wholeheartedly That is why this place is great, We have moderators with ethics like SuperDave. Well said!  |
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Rest in Peace
United States
9104 Posts |
Those carbon spots would be a dealbreaker 4 mi.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3276 Posts |
Well said Dave! It does suck buying on ebay sometimes. Sometimes sellers want to sell a crap coin for good money and take an awesome photo that does not reflect the actual coin. I agree with Dave, to me this is fraud, and it disgusts me. I can't tell you how many times I get a coin from ebay and am like "what the heck, is this the coin I bid on". Hopefully you can return it! |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1151 Posts |
I hate buying from a seller who will do anything to sell any coin to anybody.
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
10045 Posts |
too--the lighting on the ebay pic was deliberate. The seller's name should be listed in our "hall of shame". |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
5855 Posts |
Well, if anybody wants to see the actual auction, it is here. It looks like the seller operates under a whole bunch of different names. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
968 Posts |
I know of that seller but never dealt with him. Mostly I know of him because he sells big lots of SLQ's and I'm always checking them out to see if a dateless 1916 slipped past them (since the markers can be pretty subtle). They know how to properly photograph a coin if they want. Write back to them saying that the coin is obviously cleaned and that it was not clear in the photographs or description they provided. Chances are they will refund your money, especially since they have a return policy that says if you aren't completely satisfied you can return it for a refund. I'd recommend not accusing them of being intentionally misleading since they are much more likely to be cooperative if you are polite. Once you get your money back if you want to complain about them feel free!
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3755 Posts |
I cant say thats deliberate, but the odds are it was. The original pics still showed a polished coin, way too glossy given the dark color in that pic. Regardless, you got ripped and I would certainly complain to the seller because that coin has been buffed a LOT.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2207 Posts |
I had the same experience last week with an ebay 1853 Half Cent. The photo in auction showed a nice light mocha-colored AU/BU coin. But when it arrived, it was obvious that the coin had been severely cleaned. The details were that of an AU coin, but the shine it gave off was very unnatural. I contacted the seller and told him that I was going to take it to my local dealer to confirm the cleaning, and if it was indeed cleaned I would be asking for a refund. Long story short, it was indeed cleaned and I sent it back. The seller was pleasant and promised a full and prompt refund. I'm giving them the benefit of the doubt--since they're not a large outfit it's possible they didn't realize it was cleaned, or that no one would care. (My dealer even said that it would be a nice type coin for a collection. No way! A cleaned type coin? Yuck!) Anyway, I think it's difficult to capture the cleaning "sheen" in a photograph. I definitely received the same coin as in the photo; but the color was completely different. Edited by jpsned
08/16/2011 1:01 pm
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Replies: 14 / Views: 1,203 |
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Posted 08/14/2011 9:00 pm
