Coin Grading Problems

Back in the 1970's the coin collecting world sort of went crazy - coins were being slabbed in plastic and graded by "experts".  I was personally aghast, but I could understand - most people can not grade a coin.  My coins are always mint state - yours are almost uncirculated, at best.  Chaos actually rules the coin collecting world.  If you can find an honest coin dealer, hold onto them because they are rare!  Just frustrated used car salesmen ...

Through the decade, the slabbing craze has sort of died down.  Now days I see high grade slabbed coins but just as many unslabbed.

So, I thought, "Hmmmmm, I wonder ..."

Now one of the first companies to offer grading was PCGS, professional coin grading service.  I have been looking for a nickel graded as proof - 65, PF65.  All of the grading services grade from 1 to 70, so nothing special about a 65 and it was not expensive for that reason.  Now a 70, well, that is a bit expensive!

So, I found a PCGS PF65 nickel very cheap back in March, sent it in to NGC, numismatic guaranty corporation - a very conservative grading company.  Just for fun, I was looking to see how closely the two would grade the same coin ...

NGC sent the coin back and said they would not regrade a PCGS coin.  Uhm ... okay, so I broke the nickel out of its PCGS case and sent it back to NGC, still scratching my head over that one ...  Snobbery?

The nickel came back yesterday, yeah, they regraded it alright, they gave the nickel their highest grade!  A common 1989 nickel, I was just playing with to see how these companies compare ... well, it also came with a written offer to by this nickel for $650!  OMG!!!!!  For a nickel?  In the end, grading and mailing twice came to $41, the original coin I had spent $4 on, so for $45 I ended up with a gem of a coin.  What are the odds?

No, I am not going to make a practice of regrading PCGS older graded coins, after all, what was the odds?!?  Though, I might carefully consider them for being poorly graded and if they look like a gem and are cheap enough! ... !  Hmmmmm ...

So, how did this nickel end up so poorly graded?  Well, I am not bashful and I called up PCGS to chew on them over this.  They were nice enough to look up the coin, found out it was part of a roll of proof nickels that had been sent in for grading, they went back through the photographs and concluded that the grader had was a lazy oaf and had just averaged the grades of the coins in the roll and gave them all PF65's!  I have to admit amazement.  It does not surprise me, I had heard rumblings about PCGS for years, and they admitted an massive error from long ago.  So, they have my admiration for honesty.

And what was with NGC not regrading a PCGS coin?  Second phone call and it made sense.  The grader assigned the coin had taken one look at it, slipped it under a scope and saw that this might be the best 1989 proof nickel to exist ... so what to do?  He could have recracked the case and done the regrade but their policy is only to do that if they agree with the PCGS grade for the coin.  So, straight across no problem, but an obvious error and they really do not want to get caught up in a he said, she said fight over a coin's grade.

Makes sense, I guess.   I am really just pleased to know I have a sale if I need the money, but I still need to find a proof 65 nickel ...