Tweet
First off, I apologize for the length of this post. I believe it needs to be be said though.
This post is aimed at the individual who emailed me and complained that the $3 per coin attribution fee charged at coppercoins was ‘way too much’ and the work was hardly worth spending money on.
First of all, your words and tone really made me angry. Your lack of knowledge on the attribution process is probably at fault, but your people skills really need a bit of work. For your benefit, and those who may not know what goes in to attributions, the following steps are used for attributing ONE coin. If you send a package, then multiply this by the number of coins you send. The following is used for coppercoins.com. Other attributers may do it differently.
When a coin is received, a quick examination under the scope will first determine if the coin is a candidate for further inspection. Some times, we can immediately disregard a coin if it ends up being post mint damage, or any of the other anomalies not associated with varieties. Once that is determined, we try to determine the class of doubled die or RPM. This is done based on our experience. We really do try to make this process as easy and quick as possible. However, circulated coins may lead to a longer examination period.
If the coin shows a relatively well known variety, we normally are able to attribute it to a number pretty easily. If it is not well known, this is where the research comes in. Many attributers own libraries of books to help identify a coin. Some of us use the internet or our own libraries for this purpose. Either way, our goal here is to see if it has been previously been reported, and assigned a number. This step may take a SIGNIFICANT amount of time. Some dates (1960D for instance) contain almost 200 known varieties. An RPM for this date will require quite a bit of time to narrow down. If we find a likely match, we must try to match markers to make absolutely sure.
Let’s say that all of our research shows that this variety has not been reported before, and we wish to list it. Each coin is examined for markers used to help identify a particular coin. Photographs are taken of the anomaly, and markers. Those photos then need to be edited to fit the format of our filing system. Once the photos are edited, they are uploaded to the site, and then the die data needs to be added. This includes the die description, assignment of a number, research of pricing data, and identifying the marker info. Once this is all put together and loaded on to the site, I can say I am done. This was all for ONE coin.
The normal time per coin can vary greatly, but normally, it can take ˝ hour to 45 minutes to perform all theses steps. Some coins take minutes; I have had others take more than an hour. So, if I can do 2 an hour, I just made $6. (I do believe that’s a bit below minimum wage). Keep in mind that I also do this in my spare time. I work a full day, then come home and work on coin attributions.
You can ask any one of a number of people on this forum if they feel the $3 fee was worth it. You can also ask these same people how many times I have actually charged full price. When I schedule packages, the dialogue some times includes a deal of some sort. Other times it may be full price. Either way, you are free to select whoever you want to attribute your coins. Each and every club charges fees for this service. I will not knock any of those other clubs. As a matter of fact, I am a member of almost all of them. Coppercoins.com offers the ability to see a new addition to the files the fastest. When I complete the evaluation, the coins pics and data are available immediately.
So basically, maybe you now have a better understanding of the process. If you feel the $3 per coin attribution fee is still overpriced, feel free not to deal with us any more. We made coppercoins.com so you would have the ability to attribute your own coins. You are more than welcome to go about it that way.
To everyone else out there, I apologize for this long post. Some of the newer folks may now have an understanding of how the attribution process works.
This post is aimed at the individual who emailed me and complained that the $3 per coin attribution fee charged at coppercoins was ‘way too much’ and the work was hardly worth spending money on.
First of all, your words and tone really made me angry. Your lack of knowledge on the attribution process is probably at fault, but your people skills really need a bit of work. For your benefit, and those who may not know what goes in to attributions, the following steps are used for attributing ONE coin. If you send a package, then multiply this by the number of coins you send. The following is used for coppercoins.com. Other attributers may do it differently.
When a coin is received, a quick examination under the scope will first determine if the coin is a candidate for further inspection. Some times, we can immediately disregard a coin if it ends up being post mint damage, or any of the other anomalies not associated with varieties. Once that is determined, we try to determine the class of doubled die or RPM. This is done based on our experience. We really do try to make this process as easy and quick as possible. However, circulated coins may lead to a longer examination period.
If the coin shows a relatively well known variety, we normally are able to attribute it to a number pretty easily. If it is not well known, this is where the research comes in. Many attributers own libraries of books to help identify a coin. Some of us use the internet or our own libraries for this purpose. Either way, our goal here is to see if it has been previously been reported, and assigned a number. This step may take a SIGNIFICANT amount of time. Some dates (1960D for instance) contain almost 200 known varieties. An RPM for this date will require quite a bit of time to narrow down. If we find a likely match, we must try to match markers to make absolutely sure.
Let’s say that all of our research shows that this variety has not been reported before, and we wish to list it. Each coin is examined for markers used to help identify a particular coin. Photographs are taken of the anomaly, and markers. Those photos then need to be edited to fit the format of our filing system. Once the photos are edited, they are uploaded to the site, and then the die data needs to be added. This includes the die description, assignment of a number, research of pricing data, and identifying the marker info. Once this is all put together and loaded on to the site, I can say I am done. This was all for ONE coin.
The normal time per coin can vary greatly, but normally, it can take ˝ hour to 45 minutes to perform all theses steps. Some coins take minutes; I have had others take more than an hour. So, if I can do 2 an hour, I just made $6. (I do believe that’s a bit below minimum wage). Keep in mind that I also do this in my spare time. I work a full day, then come home and work on coin attributions.
You can ask any one of a number of people on this forum if they feel the $3 fee was worth it. You can also ask these same people how many times I have actually charged full price. When I schedule packages, the dialogue some times includes a deal of some sort. Other times it may be full price. Either way, you are free to select whoever you want to attribute your coins. Each and every club charges fees for this service. I will not knock any of those other clubs. As a matter of fact, I am a member of almost all of them. Coppercoins.com offers the ability to see a new addition to the files the fastest. When I complete the evaluation, the coins pics and data are available immediately.
So basically, maybe you now have a better understanding of the process. If you feel the $3 per coin attribution fee is still overpriced, feel free not to deal with us any more. We made coppercoins.com so you would have the ability to attribute your own coins. You are more than welcome to go about it that way.
To everyone else out there, I apologize for this long post. Some of the newer folks may now have an understanding of how the attribution process works.
Comment