I don’t always turn to the personal but this week’s post once again has me commenting on my coins and, unlike the last time I did so, I come in here dismayed at what turned out to be a very costly misadventure with them.
For those unaware, one aspect of the hobby is sending off the items you have in your possession for third-party grading. This is a service where someone evaluates pieces on a scale from 1-70, seals them in a plastic holder and, depending on the point, can mean the difference between a coin’s value increasing or dropping hundreds, thousands or hundreds of thousands of dollars. High stakes, but, not the worst if you have faith in your set.
I did, but, as the image above shows, no one can really be too careful.
I sent the items off to PCGS in February, waited with bated breath, and, then, they came back cleaned. This result can drop the value on something by half or more and, when I have been struggling with who I am and what exactly I find fulfilling professionally, it was a real kick in the eyes for something which means so much to me.
“If I cannot even do right in my hobby, what chance does my job have?”
“Should I just throw these in the trash? How often will I be mocked for this by snide people?”
These were definitely thoughts which came through my mind. Ultimately though, I think I will keep them, hope for some balance when I complete the other half of this set and maybe do some upgrades in the future. The bottom line is, be careful what you do, don’t let your passions cloud the picture of reality and, remember, hobbies are fun, but can be crushing if you make a mistake in them like I did with this low-end type set.
Here’s hoping I do better at a coin show I am off to Sunday.
Evan J. Pretzer 