1954 proof withawesome toning

[jallengomez]

Of course you'd be great company! I'd have to loupe the change to keep my eyes off you..

Ha Ha! Nice try; you're still not getting my 55 DDO.

[tinytinkerbell]

Ha Ha! Nice try; you're still not getting my 55 DDO.

Flattery gets me nowhere! lol ... besides, you know better then that.. and P.S. I'm still keeping the change..

[Maineman750]

Cool, I got a hug and didn't have to give away any coins...am I slick or what ?

[BadThad]

"I don't draw a distinction between "natural vs. unnatural"

That's my thinking too,what's the difference if it sat in front of a window for 10,20,30 years or in an oven for two minutes...if it looks the same,it is the same. I'd be willing to bet there are many slabbed coins out there that were AT, if you can actually define AT.

I've been working on a product I call VERDI-TONE™ for a couple of years now. It uses the exact same process as "natural toning", i.e. slow release hydrogen sulfide technology. A coin toned with VT would be 100% indistinguishable from a "natually toned" coin since the process is identical. The advantage of VT is that it releases the H2S faster but not too fast, it will takes weeks or months to tone a coin. Nonetheless, it produces the same end result.

I know someone will ask.....so....

I previewed the product with some before/after pictures a year ago. The collector feedback was quite interesting. LOL The puristists hated me and the idea and the others begged and pleaded me to release the product.....quite a mixed reaction. Since the product development is fairly complicated and time consuming, I've kind of slowed down on it and moved it to the back burner. For now, it's a proof of concept project.....someday I may release the product to the public....just not now. It's kind of a moral issue for me too because I am a collector FIRST. I really hate the idea of people mis-using VT for profit but, on the flip side, it's the EXACT same process as natural toning so it is not "artificial"....so I don't feel too bad.

It all boils down to market acceptability which is why I hate the terms AT/NT. Blantantly, intentionally and improperly toned coins make me sick. I see them all over ebay, it's disgusting that the uneducated collectors pay large sums of money for them. The people selling that crap are exactly the ones I do not want using VT.

[jallengomez]

Cool, I got a hug and didn't have to give away any coins...am I slick or what ?

Yeah...how did that happen? I send the coins and you get the hug.

[Maineman750]

I guess I owe you a thanks Jody

But Thad, you've raised some interesting questions. Do you think it's possible somebody has already invented Verdi-Tone or something similar, and decided it would be more lucrative to sell toned coins ? I know the "purists" would hate me for suggesting, but I really think it would be smarter to release your product before somebody else does. My feelings on toned coins are if you like them, why would it matter how they got that way as long as there was no visible damage and the effects were long lasting.

[liveandievarieties]

I agree with Maineman, Thad. We've gotta remember that there are hundreds of regular coin dealers across the country who are well versed in toning/retoning coins. It's a fairly common practice, in fact when done well, it's pretty much impossible to distinguish, when done conservatively. I don't know much about artificially toning coins, but I've had some get slabbed in regular grade holders before I knew they were artificially colored. My toned set is going to be all raw, sometimes it seems the TPGs can't tell what's real and what isn't.

[Rollem]

Just pulled this one from bag AT no doubt.

[jallengomez]

Flattery gets me nowhere! lol ... besides, you know better then that.. and P.S. I'm still keeping the change..

*mumbles to myself*

[BadThad]

I agree with Maineman, Thad. We've gotta remember that there are hundreds of regular coin dealers across the country who are well versed in toning/retoning coins. It's a fairly common practice, in fact when done well, it's pretty much impossible to distinguish, when done conservatively. I don't know much about artificially toning coins, but I've had some get slabbed in regular grade holders before I knew they were artificially colored. My toned set is going to be all raw, sometimes it seems the TPGs can't tell what's real and what isn't.

And that is exactly why NGC and PCGS are extremely harsh on toned coins today. I've seen it over and over in internet posts, I've seen it many times at my local dealer and I've experienced it myself. Getting ANY toned coin successfully though grading is darn near impossible these days. It's really a shame they didn't catch on sooner because many intentionally (and poorly) toned coins are in slabs today. It was sort of the gold rush for the coin doctors. Now the TPG's are embarrassed and humiliated by them....so they are extra tough. I've seen quite a few in slabs that are so bad it's ridiculous. In the end, it's us collectors that suffer....so unfortunate.

[Maineman750]

Also hear a lot of complaints about ANACS "recolored" designation. My feelings are that the TPG's need to come up with a better solution.If they can't be absolutely sure of AT or NT, then come up with a designation to that effect.

[jfines69]

I like the toning experiment but we can tell it is not natural... There was contamination on the coins surface during the toning process... Also BThad has a good idea on verdi-tone IMHO... It can actually protect the coins surface from further degredation... It is a semi-natural process of the metal protecting itself!!!

[Maineman750]

jfines, that raises a question from me though....couldn't there be contamination on a coin that tones naturally ? BJ mentioned the splotching on my coin at the beginning of this thread and it sounds like people look for that, but I know for a fact that the coin was exposed to humidity....not saying that was the cause, but there are lots of possibilities.

[cents1st]

Original tone from the box issued by the Mint. They were grey cardboard and had quite a bit of glue on the brown tape. It caused the cent to color like yours. This is an original proof.

[Maineman750]

Cents1st, thanks for the confirmation. Although my gut said natural, having some facts helps very much.