• When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.

coinsbygary

Member: Seasoned Veteran
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    1,513

  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    4

 Content Type 

Journal Entries posted by coinsbygary

  1. coinsbygary
    The history of Liberty on our coins in a nutshell and remembering the meaning of the Fourth of July.
    The fourth of July is a perfect time to reflect on the freedom and liberty we enjoy in the United States. The themes of freedom and liberty are an integral part of the designs of our coinage since their first minting in 1793. Our nation founded on western ideals has its origins in ancient Greek and Roman philosophies and religious freedom. To understand our coinage, we need to understand its origins.
    Libertas, Latin for Liberty, long being a Roman deity along with other personified virtues, became a goddess in 238 BC when Tiberius Gracchus ordered the construction of her first temple on Aventine Hill. Ever since then she has been appearing on coinage from around the world.
    Symbols associated with the goddess Liberty is the pileus, Phrygian cap, and the rod. When a Roman slave became free, he shaved his head and wore a pileus, a conical felt cap much like the Phrygian cap associated with freedom and the pursuit of liberty. During the ceremony with which the former slave was declared free, the lictor of the magistrate laid a rod on the head of the slave and with certain formal words declared him free. This ceremony known as ?Manumissio vindicta? is Latin for ?freedom by the rod.?
    As a fledgling Democratic Republic, our founding fathers wrestled with what designs our coins should have. Coins featuring reigning monarchs were prevalent at that time and there was a consensus that our coinage should not have images of living persons. Therefore, our first coins minted in 1793 featured Lady Liberty with a cap and pole. Since then the obverses of all our circulating silver coinage has featured an image of Liberty (except for the silver three-cent piece) until the Washington quarter in 1932. The reverse of our coins often featured a bald eagle, symbolic of strength and freedom in flight. Frequently, the eagle has arrows and an olive branch in its talons. The olive branch represents our desire and preference for peace while the arrows symbolize our willingness to go to war to defend liberty.
    The picture collage below features four representations of Liberty. The first, a 1795 half-dollar, features a young and vivacious Liberty with the wind of freedom blowing through her hair. Therefore, this design is named ?flowing hair? and currently it is a favorite among collectors, including myself. The second coin, Jefferson?s Liberty, features a more mature image of liberty. After complaints to the mint about the ?flowing hair? design this ?draped bust? design was adopted. The third coin, Jackson?s Liberty, features Lady Liberty wearing a Phrygian cap and is called ?capped bust?. The fourth coin, Van Buren?s Liberty features a ?seated liberty? design. Liberty dressed in a Roman toga appears seated and at rest or at peace. In her left hand, she holds a pole with a Phrygian cap on the end and symbolizes the emancipation of a large group of slaves. Liberty?s right hand supports a shield with the word ?Liberty? brazen across it showing that while at peace, she is vigilant and ready to defend liberty at any time. Throughout the history of the United States, our coins have been endearing symbols to remind us of the virtues of freedom and liberty.
    Over the course of human history, freedom has been the exception, rather than the rule. Political and religious freedom has often come with the shedding of blood on the battlefield and is never free. Many people living on the face of the earth today do not enjoy the freedom we do, and we should never take it for granted or we may lose it. Today take time to reflect on the brave men and women in our armed forces as many of them are spending their July 4 on foreign battlefields defending liberty. God bless the USA! Happy 4th of July to all!

  2. coinsbygary

    Fond Memories

    By coinsbygary,

    Getting back to my roots and remembering why it is I collect coins.
    The recent post ?HEY BUDS----- YA GOT ANY PICS?? by Six Mile Rick is refreshing in that Rick exhibits his true heart and passion for collecting coins. Part of what I find refreshing is Ricks collecting passion for Morgan Dollars. One thing I can always count on is Rick attaching a photograph of one of his Morgan Dollars to each of his posts. The aforementioned post, while short on information, is loaded with passion. It?s Rick?s display of passion that causes me to think about my roots and passion, giving me a good shot in the arm. Reading Rick?s post evokes fond memories of my earliest days as a coin collector, when I was a teenager.
    Money to purchase coins was always a challenge for me as a teen, especially since I earned $2.10/hour busting suds and $1.50/hour working at the hardest job I ever had on a farm. Whatever earnings my parents didn?t make me save, I spent on coins. Though I do not collect Morgan Dollars today, my very first coin purchase was an 1881-S proof like dollar for $12. I still smile when I think about that first purchase. As a type collector, I desired to purchase a dollar minted at the Carson City Mint. This branch mint has always intrigued me because it is reminiscent of the wild, wild, west. I had an opportunity to purchase my Carson City Dollar when the LaVere Redfield hoard of 407,000 silver dollars became available for purchase. Having a low mintage of 228,000 I choose to purchase the 1885-CC Morgan Dollar for about $95. Since then I have had this coin certified by PCGS as MS-64.
    Today, I am posting a picture of my 1885-CC dollar so that Rick can have his ?fix? for the day! Enjoy the post my friend, you deserve it! Now for Rick, I offer this bit of trivia. The Morgan Dollar has the distinction of being one of four coins known not for their designs, but for their designer! The other designers are Charles Barber, Augustus Saint- Gaudens, and Christian Gobrecht. For the most part, I?d say that George T. Morgan is running in good company! Now for all a reminder, when the US Mint annoys you or the economy restricts your purchases, go back to the heart of the matter and remember why it is that you collect, and I am sure you will be encouraged!

  3. coinsbygary
    Good editing between photographing your coins and posting your coins is an important part of the process.
    With a fair degree of frequency, I have noticed a number of journal posts on the subject of coin photography. Most of the posts I have read seem to focus on lighting and cameras. These issues are very important, and I agree to be central to good coin photography. More often than not, I have had to take a picture up to a dozen times to get the effect I desire. Issues I contend with are holder glare, highly reflective surfaces, shadows, and focusing. Coin luster diffuses light in different directions and introduces different problems with which to contend. One of the coins in my collection is a proof French coin commemorating the international year of astronomy and the 40th anniversary of the moon landing. To make matters worse this coin has a concave reverse and convex obverse. The shape of this fascinating and beautiful coin has made photographing it next to impossible. All these issues, while important, are on the front end of the equation.
    In between taking the picture and posting it, is editing the picture. There is any number of software packages with which to edit and prepare your photos for posting. Adobe Photoshop is one of the best software packages with which to edit your pictures. However, this software is expensive and in my opinion, over kill. Frankly, I?d rather spend my money on coins than on software. There are several free downloads that will work quite nicely. The software I use is Picasa 3, developed by Google. This software has many features that I like. Before I do anything to enhance my picture, I crop the picture, rotate it, and straighten it. Then, I typically use the auto-fix features to adjust my lighting and color. If I choose, I can do these edits manually also. I may choose up to twelve effects to accent my pictures in a pull-down menu. With this menu, I often choose the sharpen feature to sharpen the details on my pictures. Next, Picasa 3 saves both the edited and original pictures on my hard drive. Finally, the export feature allows me to resize my pictures to just the right size for posting. Additional features allow me to do collages.
    Overall, I am pleased with this software; however, there are idiosyncrasies with how Picasa 3 saves export files that annoy me. Try it; you can hardly go wrong seeing that the software is a free. Then go and spend the money you save on that next coin you want. I am posting a photo collage of my latest purchase, a 1907-O MS-61 Barber Quarter. I took the pictures with an old Kodak Easy Share ?DX6490? 4 megapixel digital camera using incandescent lighting.
    Finally, there is no substitute for taking the best picture possible, the old adage garbage in, garbage out applies here. However, for minor flaws, a good software package enhances the picture and covers over a ?multitude of sins?. Happy collecting all!

  4. coinsbygary
    An interesting comparison between two population reports.
    Many of you are aware that I collect the Netherlands ?Queen Wilhelmina I? 10 Gulden gold coins issued between 1897 and 1933. This past week I upgraded my 1917 NGC MS-66 coin with a PCGS MS-67 coin. Naturally, since this coin is in the registry, I spend a significant amount of time studying the population reports and fortunately, PCGS allows free access to their world coin population report. While comparing the two reports, I found a distinct disparity between the grades assigned by NGC and PCGS through the entire series. Interestingly, NGC only grades two coins in the series at MS-67 with none higher, the 1917 being one of the two 67?s. However, on the PGGS report, PCGS grades a whopping ?770? 1917 coins at MS-67 with seven higher at MS-68.
    To illustrate my point, the 1917 has the most POPs of both grading services with NGC having 755 MS graded coins and PCGS 2011. From there I calculated the percentage of the total population in each of the mint state grades. Hoping to find equality between the services, I found disparity. Check these figures out:
    NGC/ PCGS
    MS-62 .4% 0%
    MS-63 3% .7%
    MS-64 36% 2.3%
    MS-65 54% 5%
    MS-66 6% 53%
    MS-67 .1% 38%
    MS-68 0% .3%
    What?s amazing is these populations are mirroring each other shifted by one and that this example is typical of the rest of the coins in this series. From this comparison, I can only conclude that either NGC?s grades are correct and PCGS is over-grading, or PCGS grades are correct and NGC under-grades. Another thing that strikes me is that PCGS has a reputation of being more conservative with its grading. Now I do not dispute that, but these numbers seem to show otherwise, at least in this case.
    What does my gut tell me? Examining, both coins side by side, the NGC coin seems to be every bit the PCGS coin and may grade MS-68 by PCGS standards. So what is the truth? The only way I can know for sure is to crack out my NGC coins and submit them to PCGS. Clearly, I am not about to do this, so the world may never know. What I do know is that I will populate my set with the highest-grade coins I can buy and that my PCGS MS-67 coin is a fine acquisition. Therefore, for numismatic fodder I am attaching a collage of both coins so that you may judge for yourself. Unfortunately, because of luster and lighting issues, these photos may not be easy to compare with the PCGS coin being the one on the right. In the end, is not all grading subjective? Happy collecting!
    Gary

  5. coinsbygary

    Eating My Words

    By coinsbygary,

    How other Society members help me to become a better collector and enjoy coin collecting all the more.
    In an April 4, 2009 post, I talked about the joys of building a signature set. Now six months later as my collecting interests are developing I am finding that I have to eat a few of my words from that post. It is not that I enjoy building signature sets any less, but it is more about expanding my horizons and discovering by experience the joys of collecting in other areas.
    Today I stand by the opinion and comments of that post with the exception of one. In a comment about signature sets vs. registry sets, I stated ?Filling slots determined by Collectors Society, while fun is mechanical and non-flexible.? For that comment, I was mildly rebuked by another Society member, in it he said, ?While it might seem mechanical 90% of the time I would encourage you to check out some of the 2008 'Best Presented' sets. They're competitive sets, but they definitely have a lot of extra work put in and a lot of character.? Subsequently, I did check those sets out and saw what he meant. However, some things you can only learn by experience. This experience came with building a registry set of my own.
    Type collecting is what I cut my numismatic teeth on more than 35 years ago and today remains one of my key interests, so it was only natural for me to start in the registry by building type sets. One of the type sets I am currently working on is the 20th Century set. With many of the coins being recent and in good supply, I can fill most of the slots in this set with coins grading from MS-63 to 66 for less than $100 per coin. Even at this, I still cannot compete, but the coins in my set are handsome and attractive. Maybe the fact that I could not compete, spurred my previous comments.
    My stated reason for loving Signature sets is that the coins represent my personality and what interests me, and that is still true. My error in thinking was that I could not express myself in a registry set because ?Collector?s Society? defines the slots. Now I am finding that I can express myself within the coin comments. If a coin has storied history that interests me, I can include that in the comments and if it is the coins historical context, I can state that. Furthermore, if a coin has special significance to me, I can include that also. For instance my set has a 1913 MS-62 ?type 1? Buffalo nickel. Now I realize that I can get a better example of this coin for relatively little cost, but this particular coin I received as a gift for my high school graduation.
    Yet another thing I found that has a profound impact on me as a collector is the conversation and input I have from other collectors within ?Collectors Society?. The honest input of other collectors is serving to make me a better collector. Because of input I recently received, I will soon be making improvements to the aforementioned registry set. My hope is that others can glean things off my knowledge and experience to become themselves, better collectors.
  6. coinsbygary
    My experience building a Netherlands 10 Gulden registry set.
    First, I wish to offer my thanks and kudos to NGC and Collector?s Society for introducing new registry sets featuring small European gold coins. Collecting small European gold coins can offer real value as the demand for these coins in contrast to their US counterparts is significantly lower.
    My interest in small European gold coins started when I added several examples of them to my ?Inspirational Ladies? signature set. Then early in May, NGC introduced two ?Netherlands 10 Gulden? registry sets. The one of particular interest to me was the ?Wilhelmina I? 1897 to 1933 set. Many things attracted me to this set; first, I have admiration for Queen ?Wilhelmina I? of the Netherlands as one of the great world leaders of the 20th Century. Next, this series with only 11 coins allows me to add small gold coins to my collection, many for as little as $50.00 over spot gold price. These factors made it almost impossible for me to resist, and I decided to start the set.
    For all the fees E-bay charges its sellers, buyers pretty much get a pass. For the savvy, patient buyer, there is a fair amount of good buys on E-bay. Searching E-bay for coins to populate my set, I quickly added six graded coins to my set, two graded MS-66, three graded MS-65, and the key date, an 1898 10 Gulden graded MS-63, a good grade for this particular date. Soon after this, certified examples for auction on E-bay dried up.
    At this point, my options were to either wait for graded examples to come up for sale or buy the coins raw with the hope of getting favorable grades on my submissions. Over the summer months, I purchased the remaining five coins raw. As many of you know, purchasing raw coins on E-bay can be risky, but there are ways to minimize your risk. First, as best I could, I tried to buy my coins from sellers I knew to be reputable dealers. Buying from dealers is a little more expensive, but if a particular coin lists for a long time without a buyer, often a dealer will snap up your best offer. This occurred on one of my raw purchases. Where this is not possible, I had to make my judgment based on the photos of the coin. I looked for mint luster, strike, and contact marks to determine if the coin was cleaned or a counterfeit. This is where the risk comes in, in the absence of a reputable dealer to make that judgment for me, is my judgment sufficient to protect myself from being ripped off? I would find this out soon as I prepared my raw ?10 Guldens? for submission to NGC.
    This week my coins cleared quality control and my heart was racing as I clicked on the link to see my results. My submission showed three coins grading MS-63 and two coins grading MS-64. While I had hoped for MS-64s and 65s, I am in no way disappointed with these results. For the most part, I have found that ?Mint State? raw coins sold on E-bay are often poorer in quality.
    Now with my set 100% populated, my next goal is to upgrade my set with MS-65 or higher coins as they become available. With lower grade coins to sell, I should be able to upgrade my set inexpensively. Please enjoy my photo collage of the four major obverse designs in this series. Happy collecting!
    Gary

  7. coinsbygary
    The results of an NTC experiment and ANACS & ICG cross-overs.
    This past spring, in a journal post (?My worst Numismatic Nightmare? 3/21/09) I put forth a plan for an experiment to cross over the coins in my collection certified by NTC (Numistrust Corp). In this experiment, I would submit half the coins in their holders and the other half cracked out of their holders. Now I can report with some finality the results of that experiment and show a clear trend.
    I suspected that many of my NTC coins were over-graded, but I was taken aback by the large number of coins NTC graded as non-problems that turned out to be problems. Of nine cracked out coins in two submissions six coins had problems. Another coin, an 1831 half-dollar was a problem with both services. Just one coin matched grades, a MS-64 RB 1909 VDB cent. Two other coins, a 1923 NTC MS-65 Peace dollar and a 1971-S NTC MS-67 Eisenhower silver dollar graded NGC MS-64 and MS-65 respectively.
    Two of three submissions sent to NGC in their holders, an 1877-S Trade dollar and an 1881-S Morgan dollar are returning improperly cleaned. The third coin a 1921 NTC MS-64 Morgan dollar is crossing over to NGC MS-62. In summary, out of four coins crossing over, one coin matches, another is one point lower, and the other two are two points lower. This trend seems to show that the NTC graders had no clue about identifying problems (even I was suspicious of a few coins), and they seem to over-grade their coins by one or two points. It is no wonder they are out of business. Beware of any NTC coins that are still available in the marketplace and periodically show up on E-Bay. Going forward, because NGC is detail grading, I think I will crack out my remaining NTC coins, submit them to NGC, and let the chips fall where they may.
    Of note, my recent submission also had two ANACS and one ICG crossover sent to NGC in their holders. A 1906 ICG MS-58 Barber dime crossed over to NGC MS-58 and a 1912 ANACS MS-55 Indian Head half eagle crossed over to NGC MS-55. The other coin, an 1854 ANACS MS-55 type one gold dollar with a small gash on ?Miss Liberty?s? neck was correctly judged as damaged by NGC. The reason I originally sent the coin to ANACS was that I expected it to be details graded. I was surprised when ANACS graded the coin, because I had always considered them among the best in identifying problems. I was not surprised though when NGC did not grade the coin. This goes back repeatedly to NGC and PCGS being the best in the industry for third party graders. Even at that, grading is somewhat subjective to the individual grader suggesting that as well as NGC and PCGS are at being consistent they are not perfect, because graders after all are human.
    Happy Labor Day and may you be satisfied with all your submissions!
    Gary
  8. coinsbygary
    Gearing up for an exciting fall season!
    Late August, or the dog days of summer, signify an upcoming change of season. This time of year finds many of us preparing for another year of school. Some of us have kindergartners getting ready for their first year of school, whilst I have a son entering his senior year of college and a daughter finishing graduate school. Summer with its long days keeps most of us busy outdoors either working around the yard or partaking in some form of outdoor recreation. Summer is also the time when most of us take our vacations away from home.
    Fall with its shorter days signifies a shift from the outdoors to the indoors, a shift from working in the yard to working in the house. Recreation shifts indoors to and I find myself preparing to spend more time working on, and improving my Signature and Registry sets. Numismatically speaking this summer has been slower for me. I have added fewer coins to my registry, and I have had fewer submissions. Research on my coins for owner comments in my sets has been slower to.
    This slowdown in activity though does not mean that the summer has been idle. Blessed with a steady, good paying job I have purchased quite a few raw and certified coins for my sets. These coins range from Anna Harrison and Letitia Tyler first spouse coins, to coins for my Netherlands Queen Wilhelmina 10 Gulden registry set. Included over this past summer were purchases for my Type and Britannia sets to. I even purchased the Tuvalu Barbie 50th anniversary dollar to commemorate my daughter in my ?Inspirational Ladies? signature set.
    Now with fall arriving, my first order of business is getting my raw and crossover coins graded. About a week and a half ago, I made my first submission in about three months. I sent in a World modern, US modern, and crossover submission. The World modern with a few Britannia?s and my Barbie coin is currently in quality control. The status of my NTC and ANACS crossovers is received. These I am having NGC hold until September 1, just in case there are any problems with the coins in their old holders. I am not too concerned about ANACS, but I have had problems with NTC certifying problem coins as non-problems.
    My US modern submission, however, has cleared quality control, and I must say that I am rather pleased with the results. One coin, a MS-67 1971-S silver Eisenhower dollar cracked out of its NTC holder before I submitted it, as expected graded MS-65 by NGC. Two other coins, 1999 P&D SBA dollars from a mint set returned as MS-66?s, this being the only disappointment in the submission as I had hoped for 67?s. However, two other coins, the first spouse proofs, both returned as PFUC 70?s. These two coins made the whole submission more than worth it as I joyously entered all the coins into their respective registry and signature sets. This fall should turn out to be an exciting one as I make more submissions and work on my owner?s comments and photos.
    Finally, taking nothing for granted, I am thankful for my job in these tough times and the ability to add more coins to my collection. That being said, my prayer for you is that you all have meaningful jobs so that you may provide for the ones you love with enough left over to add to your collections to! Happy collecting! Gary
  9. coinsbygary
    After sleeping on it and reading other opinions on the issue of NGC detail grading, I can see the bigger picture.
    Thank you Society members for chiming in on the issue of details grading. After reading up on the issue and sleeping on it, I am thinking clearer on the subject.
    Our coins are national treasures and an important part of our nation?s history. As hobbyists, whether we realize it or not, we are entrusted with continuing a legacy for future generations by ensuring our coins are preserved. Even a raw Mercury dime set that I own with coins grading mostly good to very good is housed in an intercept folder. To the extent that detail grading encourages coin conservation, I am all for it.
    In Numismatics, there is a finite supply of coins for a larger demand. Generally, this is a good thing because it increases the value of all our coins. However, this great demand and increased value encourages counterfeiting also. To the extent that detail grading promotes encapsulating whatever raw coins are left in the marketplace and discourages counterfeiting, I am all for it. In fact, I think this is a win, win proposition. Normally, an increased supply brings down prices. I would argue that the demand for non-problem coins would always be higher than that of problem coins, maintaining the value of the non-problem coin. With increased supply come options for those with budgets that are more limited. Rather than buy raw coins, the person with a limited budget can buy a problem coin at a discount rate. This protects the seller and buyer alike and decreases the demand for raw coins and potentially counterfeit coins.
    The portion of this new policy that leaves me a little hesitant is the 50% points. I think my desire to populate my registry sets with the best coins I can afford fuels this hesitancy. On the other hand, as I was checking the points I could have with my problem coins, I stand to gain a lot in terms of overall points. Now this is my dilemma, do I take the purist stand or do I take the benefit. After giving this some thought, I concluded that it is in our nature as humans to compete. This is what NGC and PCGS are encouraging with their registries. NGC, understanding human nature, effectually goes a long way in establishing and maintaining a numismatic legacy for future generations. There are some super sets out there, and I thoroughly enjoy perusing those sets and dreaming of what I could do with a little more money. Coins at 50% value will never challenge the top sets, but will allow wannabes, such as myself to complete a set or two. The more complete registry sets that there are, the greater the legacy we leave behind, regardless of the coins that populate the sets. Besides, I cannot compete with sets that are 30-50% complete either, so I might as well try to complete as many sets as I can and upgrade them when my budget allows it. In summary, I think I will take the benefit.
    Pictured below is ?the Charlie Brown Christmas tree? of coins, my genuine ANACS Dahlonega half eagle. This coin though butchered deserves a place in the registry, if for no other reason than that it is an important piece of our numismatic heritage from an obscure branch mint. Thank you NGC for recognizing this.
    Gary

  10. coinsbygary
    September 1, 2009 brings details grading to NGC
    September 1, 2009 NGC, will details grade all problem coins and allow 50% points in the registry. This news comes to me with mixed emotions. If my registry goal is to compete, then having problem coins in my set is not for me. However, if my goal is to complete my set, the picture changes dramatically for me.
    Now for the first time, all the expensive problem gold coins I own in ANACS holders will cross into NGC registry sets. For instance, I have an 1846 Dahlonega half eagle details grade fine that is plugged, tooled, and whizzed. Now I know this coin is a fright, but Dahlonega mint non-problem coins are very expensive. This opportunity allows me to NGC encapsulate my coin and include it in the registry for my mintmark type collection. Another benefit of this is to catalog my problem coins in my Collector?s Society coin list.
    Then again, another part of me is of the purist mindset that this represents a slippery slope to shoddy registry sets. Regardless of my opinion, this is the direction the industry is moving, recently evidenced by PCGS going with genuine holders.
    I think in the end I will cross over all my problem coins and insist on buying non-problem coins in the future. This announcement must make all the E-Bay sellers of problem raw coins jump for joy. Now my fear is that the market place will be flooded with these coins, but then again I?m all for encapsulating coins to protect the coins from further damage and their owners from fakes.
    I?m interested in the Societies take on this; let me know what you think. Here is the link to the announcement:
    http://www.ngccoin.com/news/viewarticle.aspx?IDArticle=1288
  11. coinsbygary

    NGC Photo Proofs

    By coinsbygary,

    My experience with a photo proof submission and a cool find in my change.
    I have recently had the pleasure to submit some of my coins to NGC for photo proofing. Using a five free deluxe photo proof certificate, I selected five coins from my ?Inspirational Ladies? signature set. At the deluxe level, this service is very limited. Coins eligible for submission are all US issues, Canadian coinage since 1858, and British coinage since 1662. The submission form is different also, with Amy having to mail me a special photo proof submission form to fill out. This service is expensive too, chiming in at $50 for the deluxe level. That said, I found this service worthwhile for those special coins in my collection, and I will be using it for select coins in the future.
    One of the coins in that submission was a British 1872 ?St George? Sovereign grading MS-61. This coin is one of my favorite coins, thinking it would grade AU-58, I was pleasantly surprised when it returned graded MS-61.
    When I got the photo proof of my sovereign back from NGC, I got a laminated folded four-page folder. The cover is very attractive with a picture collage of high-grade coins, and my coin pictured in the title banner. This folder comes personalized with my name and the collection my coin resides in on the bottom of the cover. The inside cover has two large photos of the obverse and reverse of my coin against a black background with insets of my coin at actual size and two select blow-ups to accentuate die varieties. The next page has a write up of my coin?s history, including an inset with a professional description of my coin. Information in the inset includes comments on toning, population statistics, and eye appeal. NGC described my coin as handsome and scarce in MS condition. You can imagine how I felt when I read this description of my coin for the first time! The back cover continues the history of my coin and has my coin?s specifications, although you get specifications for US coins only. Included on the back cover are the bibliography and the copyright information. All told, I am very impressed with this service and recommend it to anyone for that ?special coin?.
    Of note, I received my first ?Lincoln Birthplace? cents as pocket change at a restaurant last week Thursday. While I do not collect Lincoln cents, I still found it cool to get three of these in my change. When I got home, I could not wait to show my family. I plan to save these cents, probably never submitting them, but preferring to buy them already certified. Pictured below is my prized Sovereign, I hope you enjoy it and as always ?Happy Collecting?!

  12. coinsbygary
    One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind and no commemorative from the US Mint.
    40 years ago today seemed larger than life to me. As an eleven-year-old boy, I remember exactly where I was at the pinnacle of what was perhaps mankind?s greatest technological triumph. At a carnival picnic sponsored by my father?s employer on July 20, 1969, I heard an announcement over the loud speaker that we had landed on the moon. The reaction to the news on that warm summer afternoon was a rousing cheer from the crowd in attendance at the picnic.
    I have always been fascinated with space and space travel. As a boy I remember wanting to be an astronaut when I grew up. My favorite plastic model was the Saturn V rocket. To satisfy my curiosity and interest, I did all I could to find books, information, newspapers, and television news and documentaries on all the Apollo missions. I was certifiably a space nut, my favorite television show at the time was ?Lost in Space? and today I have most of those episodes on DVD. With my heart so set on being an astronaut my mother told me, why go in a rocket, one swift kick, and I?ll be on the moon! Of course, my mother was only jesting with me!
    Fast forward 40 years and I lament with ?Neverman? and ?Raresov?, why no official commemorative to mark the occasion? This year is a perfect year to run a commemorative on Apollo 11, seeing as there are so few commemoratives scheduled for release this year. Now I have nothing against Louis Braille and Abraham Lincoln, but none of us was alive when these men, worthy of commemoration lived. With an event like man walking on the moon, a large portion of the public that witnessed this monumental event is still alive. Certainly, this should make for a sure seller from the US Mint, simply because people can readily identify with the moon landing. Perhaps, that the event is already commemorated on the Eisenhower and SBA dollars is the reason why there is no commemorative now. At any rate, I think the Mint is missing an opportunity.
    With other countries recognizing the importance of this event, it appears that I will have to look towards other countries to satisfy my collecting desires, much like ?Raresov?. In the past, the Marshall Islands have been very good in recognizing our space accomplishments, and I know there are 25th anniversary issues out there too. It is simply a shame that an event built largely on good old-fashioned Yankee ingenuity and innovation is not commemorated on coinage from the United States.
    Enjoy this photo of the reverse of my 1999-P Proof 70 Ultra Cameo SBA dollar fashioned after the official Apollo 11 patch worn by the astronauts of Apollo 11. Happy collecting all!

  13. coinsbygary
    My latest acquisition that takes my collection off in yet another direction.
    Most of you that know me and keep up with my journals know my love for signature sets, especially my ?Inspirational Ladies? set. At times, it must seem that I am a ?one? dimensional collector, yet the truth is my collecting interests are wide and varied.
    The main reason I love collecting are all the interesting and beautiful designs found on coinage. This is the primary reason for my love of type -collecting, to have a sample of all the major US designs, denominations and mints.
    With a love of coinage designs, I am naturally attracted to commemorative coins. If I can match a good commemorated event or person with a good design, I will usually buy the coin. This even if I do not have a slot for it in either my competitive sets or my signature sets.
    This is the case with my latest acquisition. I love anything to do with aviation and flying so I recently acquired a French 10 Euro coin that commemorates the 40th anniversary of the Concorde. This coin that has yet to find a place in my collection, I bought for the simple reason that I love the design.
    Now all the coins in my collection must fit into my collecting goals. With this in mind, I may be starting a signature set that has as its theme aviation and flying.
    So many interests, so many coins, this is why this hobby never gets boring. Happy collecting to all of you and enjoy this picture of my latest purchase.
    Gary

  14. coinsbygary
    Strategies for building inexpensive sets with key dates and having fun doing it.
    Not all my collections are contained within my registry or signature sets. For instance, I have a complete date and mint Mercury Dime set housed in an intercept shield folder (less the over dates). Most of the coins in this set grade good or very good, with higher grades in the later years. One coin in the set, the 1916-D, is NGC certified AG-3. The design for the Mercury dime is one of my favorites and plugging holes in an album took me back to my early years of collecting and the fun I had.
    Most series of coins have key and semi key dates, and the Mercury Dime series is no exception. While I could justify not buying the over dates, there is not getting around the 1916-D. When I started this set, I had to decide how I was going to handle this key date. I decided on purchasing the 1916-D first, buying the best specimen I could afford. The advantages to this strategy are:
    1. I get the hard coin out of the way. The coin I purchased on E-Bay cost me $415. Buying the key date early allowed me to save money with a higher quality coin. Today I see coins grading FR-2 offered on E-Bay for $550.
    2. If I ever decide to upgrade, I can do it for less by buying the higher-grade coin and selling the lower-grade coin.
    3. I usually insist on purchasing key coins that are certified to guarantee the authenticity of the coin I buy. With the 1916-D this is very important since this coin is frequently counterfeited.
    Having the 1916-D, I purchased the folder and populated it with the loose dimes I already owned. Next, I bought a 200-coin lot of un-searched dimes for $60 and populated 30 to 40% of the slots in my folder. With the duplicate coins, I assembled a few short sets and resold them on E-Bay. This left me with having to purchase a few common dates and the scarce dates such as the 1921 and 1921-D dimes.
    After I completed the set, I went through and graded each of the coins according to an old grading guide in my library; ?New Photo Grade, a Photographic Grading Guide for United States Coins? by James F. Ruddy. In 1972, this book was the official grading guide of the ANA. This gave me hours of fun while helping me to develop my grading skills.
    In all I had a set that gave me hours of fun at relatively little cost. My only problem is that I have one empty slot in my folder, the 1916-D. You can have 80 coins in a folder, but when you look at it, all you notice is the empty slot. I guess that I will have to get over it or crack the coin out of its holder (this is not going to happen).
    Some time ago, I thought to start an Indian Head Penny collection. Currently, an 1877 Indian Head Penny, PGCS graded AG-3 is waiting in my collection for me to start. Happy collecting everyone!
  15. coinsbygary
    Winning my first Teletrade lots and buying "certified" vs. buying "raw".
    Many of you may be surprised, but in 35+ years as a coin collector, I made my first purchase through Teletrade last Sunday. To be fair to myself, I have been a collector for longer than Teletrade has been in business, but barely, a mere 12 of 35 years. In fact, until I joined Collector?s Society, I had never heard of Teletrade and only heard of Heritage in passing. Because of your enthusiastic reviews of Teletrade, I thought ?Why Not?? and established an account. Last Sunday, June 21, I participated in my first auction.
    Perusing Teletrade?s lots, I thought it good to place bids on two of their more inexpensive lots. When placing bids on coins, I use NGC?s Fair Market Value as a guide even though I think this guide is over-priced. If I can get a coin at FMV or less, I consider it a good purchase. With this in mind I placed my first bid on a very attractive Red/Brown 1908 PCGS MS-64 Indian Head Cent that I felt should have been Red. I won the coin and with buyer?s fees and postage, I acquired the coin for slightly less than FMV. To maximize value, I try to buy coins that will cross over into multiple registry sets. With the 1908 Indian Head Cent, I have a quality coin for both my 20th century type set and my basic US type set.
     
    My other lot, a bi-centennial 1976-s PCGS MS-67 silver quarter, half and dollar, I won for 54% less than NGC FMV. Tallying the registry points on these three coins, I had a whopping 1074 points for my type sets at slightly over 18 points for every dollar I spent. Talk about value, this was it.
     
    I got to thinking about the second lot. Had I purchased the coins raw and submitted them, it would have cost me more than what I paid on Teletrade, especially considering I had no guarantee of a MS-67, a high grade for these coins. Now I enjoy submitting coins for grading, but this gets very expensive, AND I have been disappointed in the past by some of the grades I received. When I can, I always buy certified coins for my sets. The advantage of this is that you get a known coin for a known price, no body bags here. However, some certified coins are quite scarce. This is especially true for my Britannia and Wilhelmina 10 Gulden sets. In these cases, I have to try to hand pick the best examples I can and hope for the best. This can be expensive and frustrating, but as I chronicled in past journals it can be exhilarating also. With great risk comes the possibility of great gain.
    Now with a successful Teletrade transaction under my belt, I can say with surety, I?ll be back doing business with them again. Happy Collecting! Gary
  16. coinsbygary
    My first year as a member of Collectors Society
    Many of us have heard the clich? ?what a difference a year makes.? This saying, though a clich?, has a lot of truth to it and my first anniversary on May 31, 2009 as a member of ?Collectors Society? is no exception. A year ago, I joined Collectors Society with the express purpose of directly submitting my raw gold coins to NGC for grading. Now a year later, my collection resembles nothing of what it once was.
    I have been a coin collector for about 35 years. In that time I focused mainly on US type set collecting. Having a large number of raw coins, I wanted to enhance my collection by certifying my coins. In the past, I had ignorantly submitted my coins to lower tier grading companies. Having done a little homework I found that NGC and PCGS were the only legitimate choices I had. Trying PCGS before without renewing, I decided to try NGC.
    I remember my first submission, three out of the five coins in my free submission, returned as PFUC-70?s. To say I was delighted was an understatement. As a percentage of coins in a submission grading 70, this submission stands as my best. Now a year later, I have 11 coins that grade either PFUC-70 or MS-70. These coins reside in a special signature set called ?Gary?s 70?s.? Though I have purchased many 70 graded coins, ?Gary?s 70?s? is only for submissions.
    For my first two to three months in the society, all I concerned myself with were submissions. Then towards the fall of 2008, because of my fascination in the beauty and imagery of ?Lady Liberty? I started a signature set called ?female images on coinage from around the world.? At that time, my set concentrated solely on designs. As I began to research and compile the history of my coins, my collection started to focus more on allegories and the persons commemorated in history. This is when I changed the name and focus of my set to ?Inspirational Ladies.? Since then NGC has honored me by naming ?Inspirational Ladies? the ?most creative? set of 2008. The beauty of this set is that it is still growing, and now has over 50 coins. From this set, I have spun off a number of registry sets, namely ?Gary?s Britannia?s? and ?Gary?s Golden Wilhelmina Guldens.? Other signature sets include a bird themed set called ?For the Birds? and a set commemorating famous African-Americans called ?Prominent African Americans.?
    One of the features I enjoy about Collectors Society is the journals. I enjoy reading about others who share their passion for collecting coins. Many of the tips and insights I read about, I have integrated into my own collection. Because of the contributions of others within the Society and my love of writing, I started to share my own experiences with the Society through journaling. Since January 2009, I have made 27 of my own journal posts. My hope is that as I receive enjoyment and insight from other journals within the Society, that others experience the same from my journal posts.
    As I stated earlier, I had many of the coins in my type sets graded by lower tier grading companies. To be included in my NGC registry sets, I had to get them crossover graded. Unfortunately, many of those coins turned out to be problem coins. Now I find myself having to purchase new coins to replace my problem ones. The silver lining in this is that though expensive, I will eventually have a type set populated with quality coins.
    I think the greatest benefit of the past year for me is that membership in Collectors Society has helped me to organize and catalog my collection. Registry sets provide the benefits of both organization and fun competing with other collectors.
    I do not know what the next year holds for me in terms of coin collecting, but renewing my membership for another year, I am going to find out. Happy collecting all!
    Gary

  17. coinsbygary
    Collecting Britannia's part three and other joys and laments.
    On my April 28, 2009 post, I reported submitting three 2009 Britannia?s for grading with all three returning as MS-69?s. As of today, the NGC population report still only shows four coins graded at that level. That submission proved to be very profitable for me. The first of the three coins filled the 2009 slot in my Britannia registry set. The second, I traded to another collector one for one, giving me a coin I needed at no extra cost. The third coin I sold, netting nearly $30.00 in profit. Numismatically speaking, I hit the jackpot.
    My latest foreign submission, revealed only a few days ago, left me disappointed. Of the five coins I submitted, three returned something less than I had been hoping for, the other two, a pair of French 10 Euro coins returned PFUC-69?s. While I expected the Euros to grade 69, I was hoping for 70?s. It almost seems as if NGC is hesitant to give foreign coins a 70 grade, maybe there are not enough graded foreign coins for a large number of 70?s, or perhaps, foreign coins are not of the same quality as US coins. Maybe the truth is somewhere in between, who knows? The problems I have are with the other three coins.
    A few months back on the recommendation of another member, I thought it good to purchase a Chinese 1997 10Y coin featuring two peacocks. While shopping for the coin, I found MS-69 examples on EBay selling for about $90.00. This seemed a little more than I wanted to spend so I searched for raw coins and found them selling for half as much. Before I purchased the coin, I researched it on the NGC population report finding 18 MS-69?s and 2 MS-70 examples. Based on the strength of the population report I thought, hey buy the raw coin, and I am almost assured a 69. When I received the coin, I examined it and knew I would not get a 69, let alone a 70, I figured 68 and got a 67. Fortunately, I intended for this coin to populate my MS-65+ ?For the Birds? signature set, rather than a registry set. What really annoys me about this though is seeing my lone 67 among the 69?s and 70?s on the population report.
    The one coin on my submission I understand the least is a 2007 Britannia. Before I sent the coin to NGC, I closely examined it for any marks or weaknesses and found none. Expecting a MS-69, I got a meager MS-65, thus upgrading my registry set from a 64 to a 65 and netting 9 points. I wish I knew what NGC saw in this coin that I did not. I know NGC is in the business to certify coins, meaning the more coins they certify the more money they make, but I wish there was some kind of bullet point list of what they are looking for when they certify these coins. With such a list, perhaps I can avoid sending sub-par coins in for certifying to begin with. The best option as always continues to be for me to train myself.
    The last coin on the submission I sent as a filler coin to round out the five coin minimum submission. I sent in the best 1998 Britannia I had, hoping for a 68. What I obtained was a 66, meaning I got one point less than the 67 I currently own. A total waste, this was the last thing I wanted to do. I should have been more patient and waited on my submission until I had the coins I really wanted to send. Of all the lessons I have had to learn, patience is the hardest. If only I could wait for graded coins to come on the market, I would save myself a lot of trouble.
    Britannia?s, unlike SAE?s are far scarcer in grades MS-69 and 70. Having a collection of Britannia?s entirely populated by 69?s is saying something. Maybe this is why I go to the trouble of submitting raw coins; it says more of my skill in choosing coins than simply buying all ready graded coins. It?s the old adage that with increased risk comes increased rewards. Therefore, in closing, I keep pressing on, looking for quality raw coins, while at the same time keeping an eye out for all ready graded coins I need. If I see a 69 on the market I need, I?m going to snap it up. Happy collecting all! Gary
  18. coinsbygary
    How the diversity of collecting brings richness to our hobby!
    What is it in the mind and heart of the individual collector that causes them to collect one variety of coin over another? What is it that draws some people to this year?s Lincoln cents and others to choose First Spouse gold coins? Of course, value and cost have something to do with it, but I would argue that what motivates the individual collector most are their individual tastes regardless of cost. In my case, I?d go head over heels to buy the next First Spouse coin, but I have no desire to collect this year?s Lincoln cents, even though I like the designs. In fact, just in case I cannot continue with the gold versions, I currently collect the medals also.
    What I can answer with certainty is with the diversity of coins available to collect, there is something for just about everyone who loves to collect. There are coins to fit everyone?s tastes and budget, all that one need is a love to collect.
    One of the things I enjoy most is reading the journals of other collectors who share their collecting passions. From reading past journal posts, I get the feeling there are many people who love the new Lincoln cents, people who cannot wait to get their hands on the next MS-67 variety. Although I may not be interested in their collecting interests, I do share their common passion for collecting. Collecting passion, the common link that joins us all together, makes reading about their next purchase and submission enjoyable.
    Half a year ago, I donated a number of coins to a church yard sale to raise money for a mission trip. Most of my coins at that sale sold, with the bulk of them going to a single buyer. Yesterday our church sponsored another yard sale with that buyer returning hoping to find other coins for sale. Recognizing him from the last sale, I remembered that he collected Morgan Dollars and we struck a conversation. From last fall, I remembered that his prized Morgan was an 1893-S PCGS certified example in G-06 condition. We started talking about that coin and then about other coins in the series he was hoping to acquire. After a while, we covered issues of concern to all collectors, regardless of collecting interests. Of those issues, we talked about grading companies, coin cleaning, counterfeits, and buying coins on E-Bay. I even went on to share summaries of recent journal entries I read.
    Though I personally do not collect Morgan dollars, I noticed a certain joy and gleam in my friend?s eyes as he talked about his collecting passion. This comradely and diversity among collectors is what makes this hobby so much fun. A new purchase without sharing it with others takes a bit of the pleasure out of the hobby. For this reason, I am happy to be a part of Collectors Society and their collecting community. I enjoy reading of other collector?s purchases and submissions, and hope they enjoy my journals also. I am so thankful for the diversity of collecting interests found in coin collecting and soon I will be sharing my experiences with my latest interest and registry set, ?Gary?s Golden Wilhelmina Guldens?. Try to say that 10 times fast, I bet you can?t! Happy Collecting!
    Gary
  19. coinsbygary
    I have notice my coin is on the way after ordering it May 6!
    On May 6th I decided to order the Anna Harrison First Spouse gold coin from the Mint. Today I got my e-mail notice stating my purchase is on the way! When I ordered the coin I thought I'd be doing good if the mint got the coin to me next month, but eight days? That must be close to record time! Even at that it is a little odd because I ordered the Harrison dollar coin and medal set early last month and I am still waiting on that. Oh well, I'll gladly take what ever I can get from the Mint. Happy Collecting!
    Gary
  20. coinsbygary
    Building a top rated registry set is more difficult than I had anticipated.
    One of the most intriguing registry sets in my collection is the current First Spouse gold coins. Two features about this series captivate me. The first being, since the coins feature our nation?s First Ladies, they fit nicely into my ?Inspirational Ladies? signature set. The second is that they contain ? oz. of pure gold. Moreover, there is something appealing to me about that yellow metal. To say I have gold fever is an understatement.
    I originally intended to collect the First Spouse coins that featured the allegorical ?Lady Liberty?. Then I started purchasing other coins in the series because I liked the designs. Finally, seeing this as an opportunity to methodically add gold coins into my collection, I decided to collect them all despite them being so expensive.
    Now, since I am collecting this series, I thought I might like to have a top rated registry set. Nevertheless, to compete in this registry, my set must consist entirely of PFUC-70 coins, since there is a fair supply of PFUC-70 coins in the marketplace. With this in mind, I began to develop strategies for obtaining PFUC-70?s to populate my set. My strategy includes purchasing raw coins from the mint and submitting them to NGC, purchasing already certified coins, and playing the gold market to sell my 69?s and purchase 70?s.
    The first thing I did was purchase a 2007 PFUC-70 Jefferson?s Liberty to replace a 69 I already owned. Because of this coin?s mintage and the fact that it was issued when gold was much cheaper, I could acquire this coin for a reasonable price. To free up funds to purchase the 70, I sold the 69. Since I did not own the Martha Washington or the Abigail Adams coins, I purchased them raw and submitted them to NGC for grading. Martha Washington returned with a 70, and I added her to a PFUC-70 Dolley Madison already residing in my collection. Mintage figures on these coins also made them relatively inexpensive. Later, I purchased a PFUC-70 Abigail Adams for a reasonable price and I intend to sell the 69 soon. While this worked well with the 2007?s, the 2008?s are quite another story.
    Currently, I have two remaining PFUC-69?s in my collection, Jackson?s Liberty and Louisa Adams. Both coins I purchased directly from the mint. The problem I have with these coins that I did not have with the others is that the price of gold is much higher, making these coins much more expensive. Secondly, the mintage numbers on these coins make them scarcer, adding to their value. Another problem that I did not anticipate is the disparity in value between 69 and 70. Where this disparity is $100 or less, there is no big deal, but with Louisa Adams, the disparity is $500.00. Now follow me through this scenario and you will find like me that it is insane. Purchase coin from mint, $629.00, Submit to NGC, $15.00 plus postage, upgrade to 70, $1100.00, sell 69 at something less than cost. For the cost of upgrading, I could just about buy another coin from the mint, hoping to hit the 70 jackpot! The truth is, now I am in the big leagues, and I cannot keep up. To be a 70?s slave, I cannot afford.
    For now, I will wait and see what happens as I focus on my other more inexpensive sets. As time passes, the values will likely settle down and make upgrading to a 70 reasonable again. It is amazing that I can even keep up with this set at all. Regardless, I currently own a fine set with nice coins, and as I buy more coins from the mint, I am sure to hit more 70?s along the way. Oh and by the way, I ordered Anna Harrison before the mint raised her price. I think I like the mint's new pricing scheme.
    Happy collecting to all!
    Gary
  21. coinsbygary
    A picture is worth a thousand words
    Old Green Holder or OGH refers to a previous generation PCGS holder. I am not sure of the dates these holders were used except that it seems the holder itself is a collector item and commands a premium in the market place. For the life of me it seems the holder is almost more important than what is in it, kind of backwards, isn't it. Rattler refers to the first generation PCGS holder. At any rate I am posting of a picture of a coin I bought for the coin that happened to be in an OGH. Always buy the coin and not the holder is the prevalent advice from most collectors that I pretty much adhere to.

  22. coinsbygary
    Two beautiful coins that will grace my collection.
    I receive a free newsletter in my E-mail featuring numismatic news and information from numismaster.com. Periodically, they feature articles on foreign coin designs and provide links to foreign mints. Frequently, the Perth Mint buys advertising space on the newsletter. Many times, I have perused the Perth Mint?s website to see what?s cooking in Australia.
    One particular newsletter highlighted coin designs from France and provided the web link to ?Monnaie De Paris?, France?s mint. The coins featured in the newsletter were of no particular interest to me, but I was curious as to what I would find on the website. Checking through the site, I found two really cool coins that would fit well in my ?Inspirational Ladies? signature set. Still, another coin on the site commemorating the ?Concorde? I may have to buy just because I think it?s neat.
    Because the design of these two silver coins about the size of a US silver dollar was so striking, I decided I wanted them for my signature set. The first thing I did was check E-Bay for any on sale. After going through E-Bay?s listings proved fruitless, I decided to buy the coins directly from the mint. For the most part, I am somewhat hesitant to establish accounts with any firm I am not familiar with on the Internet. Nevertheless, after consideration and the recommendation from numismaster.com, I decided to establish an account and purchase the coins.
    Well, the coins arrived this week, and they are stunning. My two proof coins were well packaged and struck. I cannot wait to send them into NGC for grading; I think that at least one of them has a chance of grading PFUC-70.
    The obverse of the one coin features Marianne as ?The Sower? and the reverse commemorates the 50th anniversary of the European Court of Human Rights. On the obverse of the other coin is a bust of the goddess ?Europa?. The reverse commemorates the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. With the Brandenburg Gate as a backdrop, the wall is crumbling down, changing into doves flying free. The denomination of each of these silver coins is 10 Euros.
    I am providing pictures of my recent purchases, and I hope you agree with me on the beauty of these coins, especially the ?Europa? coin. If anyone is interested in the ?Monnaie De Paris? website, write me a few lines, and I will send you the link. Wishing all of you a happy collecting experience, Gary.

  23. coinsbygary
    My continuing journey to a top Britannia registry set and putting these tough times in perspective.
    Despite all the bad that is happening, there is some good too. I had this post on Britannia collecting ready Sunday, but because of all that is going on within the Society, I felt the timing was not right. For those going through adversity I have encouragement.
    In January I came across adversity of a different kind, while traveling in Brazil on a mission trip, I took seriously ill. I was hospitalized there with a potentially life threatening illness. Due to gall stone blockage, I contracted pancreatitis. By the grace of God, this condition was quickly diagnosed and my healing rapid. Thankfully, I was released from the hospital four days before returning home.
    While in Brazil I pulled a 1 real coin out of circulation, that coin will always memorialize my stay there and what God has done for me. I sent the coin to NGC for certification and it pulled a grade of MS-64. This coin is not worth the $2 I claimed on my submission, but in terms of sentimental value, this coin is worth much more. The coin will eventually go into my signature set and if you wish to see a photo of it, the certification number is 2756113-009 and you can view it on NGC?s certification verification.
    I make no bones that I am a Christian, so I want to use a Bible verse to illustrate a point. The verse, Romans 8:38-39 states, ?For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus.?
    Now for the illustration, if you have to sell a portion of your collection to get by, do not let this fact crush your collector?s heart. Remember, what does not crush you will only serve to make you stronger. Keep the fond memories you forged building the collection to encourage you. Continue to add to your collection, as I said my Brazilian coin of little value means much more to me than how much the coin will fetch at auction. I am sure you all have coins in your collections that mean more to you than filling a slot in a registry set. Do not let this economy separate you from the joy you have in collecting coins. During economic tough times, focus on these things. The economic pendulum will eventually swing back and we will once again be vigorously adding coins to our collections if we just do not lose heart. Had I died in Brazil my collection would have went to my wife and eventually my children, who have vowed to liquidate the entire collection. Now that is putting things in perspective. Hang in there Mr. Thompson and do not lose heart.
    Now a portion of the good news I have to share with my collecting community:
    Almost two months ago, I opined on a journal post about collecting Silver Britannia?s. Since then many things have changed including the first NGC coin grading MS-70. Additionally, there are changes within my registry set worthy of commenting on in a journal post.
     
    One of my strategies in building a competitive registry set is to purchase large lots of coins and submit them to NGC for grading. I decided to start replacing the lower grades in my set first, and then work from there. Recently, I purchased five 2009 Britannia?s, three 2008?s, and three 2006?s. Inspecting the coins I found two 2009?s and one 2006 with the characteristic scuff marks on the queen?s cheek. It seems because of the high relief on the obverse, and the coins moving in their holders, scratching is frequent on the high points of this coin, especially on the queen?s cheek. Since MS-69?s are my goal, I decided to leave those coins out of my submission and instead focus on the three 2009 Britannia?s, three 2008?s, and two 2006?s.
    Last Friday my coins cleared quality control, and I must say I am happy with the results. All three of the 2009 Britannia?s made MS-69, one of which will plug a previously empty 2009 slot in my set. Of the three 2008 submissions, I have two MS-67?s and one MS-68. For whatever the reason the NGC population report shows the highest grade for 2008 Britannia?s is MS-68, so for now the MS-68 will do nicely in my set, upgrading a previous MS-64. Of the two 2006 Britannia?s, one was MS-67 and the other MS-68. Of course, I would have liked a 69, but more importantly, the MS-68 upgrades a MS-62 in my set.
    Another strategy I employ that makes upgrading easy is purchasing existing certified coins. Last week I purchased a 2002 PCGS MS-69 Britannia on E-Bay. The advantage to purchasing certified coins is that I do not have to purchase large lots of raw coins. This spares me from having to spend money to buy the coins and then get them graded. I used this coin to upgrade a MS-67 in my set. All told, I boosted my points total by 432 points!
    From here on out, the going gets a little rougher. Next on my list for upgrading are two 67?s and a 64. After that, I have five 68?s left to upgrade. To spare myself a large expense I will have to be more discreet about the coins I submit. I do not want to submit three coins to upgrade a 68 and have them return as 67s. Along the way to upgrading my set, I have to hope for the elusive MS-70 in one of my submissions. Knowing that such coins exist only encourages me to try to find one for myself.
    Gary
  24. coinsbygary
    Chiming in on the hot issue of the day
    I am not judging the merits of what "namvette68" is proposing. Neither am I unsympathetic to the plight of other collectors forced to sell their collections to make ends meet. The economy is as it is and we are all in it together. All of us, if we are not selling coins to live, have at least thought about the circumstances that would force us to sell. What I am suggesting is that Collectors Society has other forums where this kind of thing should be taken up. The chat boards seem designed perfectly for the back and forth dialog that will be needed to get this thing off the ground. If what namvette68 is suggesting gets going there will need to be significant off line discussion of how the plan is administered. To get things started I do not fault namvette68 for using a journal entry to get the "word" out. But after getting the word out, things need to move to a more appropriate forum, where haggling over the details can be done. For what it's worth I do appreciate the points CPM & C made regarding community.
    Gary
  25. coinsbygary
    I'm getting better at predicting the grades I get on my submissions!
    I always enjoy preparing my raw coins for submission to NGC, especially my latest submission. Before sending my coins in, I usually take photographs of them and try to predict the grade each one will receive. Especially enjoyable, is predicting what grade my proof coins will receive, knowing that they will likely be either PFUC 69 or 70.
    Recently, I purchased four proof First Spouse gold coins, Martha Washington, Abigail Adams, Elizabeth Monroe, and Louisa Adams. My ultimate goal for collecting the First Spouse series is to build a complete registry set with PFUC-70 coins. Furthermore, these coins fit nicely into my ?Inspirational Ladies? signature set.
    I believe the most cost effective way to build this set is to buy the coins directly from the Mint, hoping that they grade 70, rather than purchasing already graded 70?s. The exceptions are Martha and Abigail; I purchased them for less than what the US Mint currently charges for First Spouse coins. The coins that I submit and return as 69's, I can always upgrade later. If, for some reason, I cannot continue to purchase the gold issues, I can always build a registry set with the medals.
    As a coin collector, I am continually working on developing my grading skills. What better way to develop these skills than to compare myself with professional numismatists. Trying to predict coins that grade between MS-63 and 67 are the most challenging for me, and I admit, I have a long way to go. Predicting coins that will grade between 69 and 70 are a little different. Knowing that a coin will likely not grade below 69, I look for features on the coin that will put it over the top.
    In my dreams, I would love to spend a day in Florida with one of NGC?s graders on the job. I would probably ask them their reasoning for the grade they assign each coin certified that day. More often than not, the feature I think they look at most is the sharpness of the relief, especially on proof coins with no bag marks. You can tell the difference between a sharply struck coin and one that is not. My guess is that the difference in this instance is the difference between 69 and 70.
    With the sharpness of the relief in mind, I assigned my grade to each of the coins. Martha, Elizabeth, and Louisa get 70?s, and Abigail gets a 69. Of the four, I thought Louisa was the strongest candidate for a 70. Yesterday my coins cleared quality control. Excitedly, I pulled up my submission to find I got three of four predictions correct. Martha and Elizabeth got a 70 and both Adams got a 69. I was a little dumbfounded, the candidate I thought was the strongest, got a 69. Oh well, back to the drawing board, the day I stop learning and growing is the day I?ll probably be bored with coin collecting and give up. On second thought, to be fair to myself, NGC?s graders have seen hundreds of these, while I have only seen one. Three out of four, not too shabby I would say.
    In all I have two 70?s from this submission that do not have to be upgraded, and of eight coins I own, half are 70?s. Happy Collecting to All!
    Gary