Coin Grading 101 2 2

[J P M]

Hi Guys . So we went shopping and I hand picked some of the better looking Morgan's from the (Goody Grab Bin) for $31 a pc .Ya cant go to wrong. I got a 1921 S that is kind of a smoke yellow tint maybe from hanging around in Vinny's card room it looks like it has some bumps and scratches but mostly real nice. I wanted to grade it higher the reverse is really nice  but I give it a MS62 because of the light scar on her forehead and a light mark at 3 o'clock . Here are some shots of the 21S with the phone and the USB Microscope which I think shows way more than a loupe can.  Please tell me your thoughts if you think I am getting better at this you all know better than me. 

[J P M]

Now this is the other Girl. 1921 D I grabbed this hoping it was not a wiz job It has a mirror background. Now on getting it home and looking at it better with the USB it is scratched and all the scratches are very light and all going the same way like a buffing tool would clean it I would think. Or is just normal where and tear because of the mirrored background ?? I would like to give it a MS but let me know if you think it is tooled. 

Edited May 23, 2021 by J P Mashoke

[RWB]

The top coin is AU. There is obvious wear on high points and in the fields. (Look for a change in texture around lettering and the relief - clear sign of wear. Should never appear on an uncirculated coin.)

The bottom coin has been harshly cleaned. Bullion value.

PS: "Tooled" means that someone moved metal around to make the coin look better, or has more detail, than was really present.

[J P M]

Thanks for the info RWB and for taking a look both you and Woods.  The top coin is  good enough at AU for $31 .But I had a bad feeling about the other one and when I turned on the USB  it was like Oh my gosh  When silver goes up I will get my money back on that one LoL

[MarkFeld]

3 hours ago, RWB said:

The top coin is AU. There is obvious wear on high points and in the fields. (Look for a change in texture around lettering and the relief - clear sign of wear. Should never appear on an uncirculated coin.)

The bottom coin has been harshly cleaned. Bullion value.

PS: "Tooled" means that someone moved metal around to make the coin look better, or has more detail, than was really present.

Agreed about AU on the first coin and harshly cleaned on the second one. But both are worth a good percentage over bullion value, which would currently be about $21.

[Alex in PA.]

Amazing isn't it that one can find an AU Morgan Dollar, no slab, in the 'wild'?  I wonder how many more are out there.

[JKK]

Just now, Alex in PA. said:

Amazing isn't it that one can find an AU Morgan Dollar, no slab, in the 'wild'?  I wonder how many more are out there.

As long as there are methletes filching from kindly enabling relatives who don't keep their coins in safes, there will be random finds of unslabbed coins spent or bartered for their next highs.

[Alex in PA.]

33 minutes ago, JKK said:

As long as there are methletes filching from kindly enabling relatives who don't keep their coins in safes, there will be random finds of unslabbed coins spent or bartered for their next highs.

Sad but true.  Don't forget those loving juveniles who take those coins from daddy's collection to the nearest store for treats or smokes.   

[RonnieR131]

1 hour ago, JKK said:

methletes

1 hour ago, JKK said:

 

I've got to use that one, funny.

 

[MarkFeld]

1 hour ago, Alex in PA. said:

Amazing isn't it that one can find an AU Morgan Dollar, no slab, in the 'wild'?  I wonder how many more are out there.

Considering how many Morgan dollars were produced and that the large majority of AU’s wouldn’t be worth the cost of grading, I don’t find it amazing or even surprising. There are still large quantities of uncirculated bags out there, too. And there are more than enough perfectly legitimate sales by the owners of both the circulated and the uncirculated ones.

[bsshog40]

I'm a little late to the party but looks like the same answers are going out. S is AU and D is badly cleaned. 

[J P M]

Thank you all for your candid comments it is a big help. Getting better at grading is important in this hobby. I heard through the grape vine that RWB is the Peace Dollar Guru. I was given this 1922-S and I want to get a opinion. Any of you all please say what you think. Woods and I both think it has been cleaned but not ground down like that last Morgan . Can I squeak a VF40 or is it scrap silver all day long. Any comments please.  

[MarkFeld]

Yes, the 22-S looks cleaned.

[J P M]

48 minutes ago, MarkFeld said:

Yes, the 22-S looks cleaned.

Thanks MarkFeld.I have heard you have seen a few coins in your job. LoL

[MarkFeld]

52 minutes ago, J P Mashoke said:

Thanks MarkFeld.I have heard you have seen a few coins in your job. LoL

A few.😉

[Mr.Bill347]

JP et al, my latest arrivals. The 1972 proof set, a nice 1932 quarter and a 1957 Ben please let me know your thoughts. TIA

billh347

Edited May 24, 2021 by Mr.Bill347
Missed pictures

[VKurtB]

21 hours ago, Alex in PA. said:

Amazing isn't it that one can find an AU Morgan Dollar, no slab, in the 'wild'?  I wonder how many more are out there.

Literally millions. 

[Alex in PA.]

1 hour ago, VKurtB said:

Literally millions. 

Really?  Never ran across any except in a couple pawn shops and they were no longer worth of the name Morgan.  I guess I'm just too picky.

[VKurtB]

I have just myself seen hundreds of thousands of raw Morgan dollars in AU and above. You need to get around and go places.

At one auction in York, PA last year, there were over 200 solid date BU ROLLS of Morgan dollars. 
 

You’ve got to hunt ducks where the ducks are. 

Edited May 24, 2021 by VKurtB

[Henri Charriere]

43 minutes ago, VKurtB said:

You need to get around and go places.

I am obliged to agree with you on this.  The coins are not going to come to you; it's like game hunting: you're going to have to go where the coins are.  Smart strategy.  (Considering the scarcity of roadside stands in Alabama, you can take the man out of Pennsylvavia, but you cannot take Pennsylvania out of the man) Just be careful driving!

[J P M]

3 hours ago, Mr.Bill347 said:

JP et al, my latest arrivals. The 1972 proof set, a nice 1932 quarter and a 1957 Ben please let me know your thoughts. TIA

billh347

The mint set looks fresh no fogging that's a BIG plus. I love the 34 toned George that is a sweet piece. But my 57 brother Ben looks like he has had a bath or 2 ??  

[VKurtB]

20 minutes ago, Quintus Arrius said:

I am obliged to agree with you on this.  The coins are not going to come to you; it's like game hunting: you're going to have to go where the coins are.  Smart strategy.  (Considering the scarcity of roadside stands in Alabama, you can take the man out of Pennsylvavia, but you cannot take Pennsylvania out of the man) Just be careful driving!

The internet will not show you even 1/20th of the material out there to be had. I call the entire Internet, when it comes to coins and collectibles, “the 5% solution”.

Edited May 24, 2021 by VKurtB

[Alex in PA.]

20 minutes ago, Quintus Arrius said:

you're going to have to go where the coins are

But, but, but isn't that why Al Gore invented the internet?  

[J P M]

1 hour ago, Alex in PA. said:

Really?  Never ran across any except in a couple pawn shops and they were no longer worth of the name Morgan.  I guess I'm just too picky.

I love it when the coin shops have the goody grab bin. That 21-D was in a pile of 30 0r 40 Morgan's and he had another pile of Peace Dollars . I should have looked a little bit harder at it you can only see the scratches when it is on a 45% angel and with USB and good light.. my bad. the dealer is a cool guy if I bring it back he will treat me right. No mater what it is silver.

[VKurtB]

1 minute ago, Alex in PA. said:

But, but, but isn't that why Al Gore invented the internet?  

Imagine a thick Scottish accent: “The Internet is crrrrrap!”

[Alex in PA.]

1 hour ago, VKurtB said:

You’ve got to hunt ducks where the ducks are. 

I got a laugh this morning.  In 25 minutes the US Mint Morgan Privy Dollars were........."Currently Unavailable".

[VKurtB]

4 minutes ago, Alex in PA. said:

I got a laugh this morning.  In 25 minutes the US Mint Morgan Privy Dollars were........."Currently Unavailable".

I managed to snag a CC privy, just to prove the old boy can still play in this world. I think these will be a total bust long term. Too many flippers. Flippers be scum. 
 

By the way, the U.S. Mint’s Internet web site is ESPECIALLY scum. Unbelievable how bad they are. 

Edited May 24, 2021 by VKurtB

[J P M]

2 minutes ago, Alex in PA. said:

I got a laugh this morning.  In 25 minutes the US Mint Morgan Privy Dollars were........."Currently Unavailable".

Ya  I am still waiting for the new Eagle and that may not have a date yet I was told at a top dealer  Saturday

[VKurtB]

2 minutes ago, J P Mashoke said:

Ya  I am still waiting for the new Eagle and that may not have a date yet I was told at a top dealer  Saturday

Go on www.usmint.gov and check the release dates for yourself. 

[Alex in PA.]

6 minutes ago, VKurtB said:

Unbelievable how bad they are.

Yes.  It was crashing within the first five minutes of the sale of those Privy Dollars.  You got lucky.  I'll wait until October but I'm not interested in the 'Privy' marked coins.  One Morgan and 1 Peace just to have them is fine.