Quote: (04-05-2015 09:58 AM)Quintus Curtius Wrote:
Tarquin:
Is the PCGS system of grading the same as the MS system? They seem to be...if I'm wrong on this, please let me know.
Yes, all of the Third Party Graders now use the Sheldon Scale. Typically the grades are not written out longhand, but rather they are abbreviated.
Take a look at one of my favorite series, the Morgan Dollar:
http://www.pcgs.com/photograde/#/Morgan/Grades
They have (in descending order): MS, AU, XF, VF, F, VG, G, AG, FR, and P. Remember, there is a numerical component as well, so that the entire list (in ascending order) is this:
1 poor
2 fair
3 about good
4 good
6 good
8 very good
10 very good
12 fine
15 fine
20 very fine
25 very fine
30 very fine
35 very fine
40 extremely fine
45 extremely fine
50 about uncirculated
53 about uncirculated
55 about uncirculated
58 about uncirculated
60-69 mint state
70 mint state (perfect coin with no flaws)
Coins in Mint State have individual numbers from 60 to 70. I didn't explain that so it may have confused you. There is a difference between an MS64 and an MS65. Sometimes there can be very large differences in value between one number based on a condition rarity.
You may have seen a few other distinctions based on the individual coin and the series. I briefly touched on this, but not in depth. For example, some Morgans have a PL or DMPL designation. These stand for Proof Like or Deep Mirror Proof Like. These coins exist because some business strike dies were over-polished when they were being prepared for use. This resulted in a very reflective fields (the smooth background of a coin) and frosty devices (the objects on the coin). This can be very difficult to show on film, but basically the DMPL are an even more distinct level of reflectiveness in the fields.
I think I should point out that most ancient collectors use a slightly different manner of grading coins. QC, are you interested in ancients at all? If you are, this is a great resource for getting started: http://www.forumancientcoins.com/numiswi...ting%20101
I have considered getting into that area, but the amount of information is just so damn daunting.