Rare Coins For The Collector and Investor - To Slab Or Not To Slab

The older coin collector-investor can remember the days before slabbed coins. A slab is a coin that has been graded and certified by an expert? Rare coin grader. Usually, rare coin grades are subjective to the buyer’s eyes. With a lot of time and thousands of rare coins, one can become a rare coin grader. Some grade with the naked eye, others with a microscope. How much detail do you need to have a fair grade on your coin?

PCGS and NGC are two of the biggest grading services.

You send in your rare coin and they have an expert grade it for a fee. Then they send it back in a slab and record the info in a database that is a public record. As you can see, if a coin is in a lower grade, ie: good to extra fine it is usually not worth the cost and time to get it graded. However, if it is a rare coin with few known examples then it may be worth the cost.

The grading system used for rare coins or gold coins is a scale of numbers...0-70 with 70 being the most perfect coin. Collectors had to learn the grades themselves in the past. Today, investors and new collectors rely on the grading service or slabbed coins. 

In the 1980s and 90s, investors jumped into the rare coin market and didn't know how to grade or care to learn. Buying anything that was sold to them. When the boom was over and they tried to sell the coins many found they had lost great deals of money. This is part of the reason we have slabbed coins today.

A big uproar ensued and the US Govt. was ready to set some rules down unless the coin industry did something to correct this grading problem. They did... Coin grading and slabbing were born.

Now, remember, just because a coin is graded does not mean it is that grade level. Many very smart collectors and dealers saw coins they felt would grade higher than the grade it was at. Ripping the coin out of the holder and sending it to a different service might and in some cases did result in a higher grade coin...This means 100's of dollars difference in price.

As we all know the mint makes gold coins on machines and then they roll along a conveyor and drop into a bin. This causes what we collectors call dings. This is an imperfect coin. Now a Proof coin is different.

Proof coins are usually minted in lesser quantities and are handled carefully. The proof coin is struck twice with the press using special dies. It causes a highly polished shine to the coin. Proof coins are then handled by hand and placed in special containers and display boxes, thus commanding a higher price.

As a collector and not an investor, what are we to do?

Well, we can buy a few lower graded MS60-Ms62/3 rare coins in our price range and add the raw or unslabbed coins along with these to form a nice collection. Raw coins from dealers and flea markets can and do yield some great finds. You can look through junk boxes and lots of raw coins and find a few good deals. This takes knowledge and that is why I am writing you. I want you to know all you can before you buy the coin.

With all the books and other learning from coin mags and the internet, there is no reason for you to make bad buys on the coins you want.Yes, silver, gold, and platinum are at higher levels but I believe these markets are just now starting to move. 

You must remember from the start of time gold and silver were and are desired as precious. They also preserve your wealth and buying power over time. Slabbed coins are here to stay and have a place in our coin hobby, so don't overlook them but also be on the lookout for the great bargains in raw coins. To lab or not to slab...that is the question