Marked coins

[Johnny5]

I, going thru a box of halves and I noticed most of them so far are marked. They have a scratch/gouge between the last two digits of the year. Has anybody noticed these markings?

 

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[Johnny5]

New England

 

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[Owassokie]

I've seen this exact thread rehashed numerous times over the years. I understand why it's irritating to receive marked coins, especially if it's a coin you have interest in keeping. I wouldn't directly encourage anyone to do it. That said....

Probably 20% of the people reading this thread have marked coins. I think everyone is just staying quiet to avoid the name calling I dated a bunch of coins back in the day. It helped me determine certain things...it was very helpful. If you stated it won't help...you're just wrong. It may not help help you, depending on the circumstance and knowledge of your courier/coin services...but it helped me. Not all regions are handled the same, in terms of courier service and whether coins are re-rolled by a bank, a courier, or returned to the fed. Determining the appropriate bank to buy and dump, be it a local, regional, or national bank can make a huge difference in your success rate.

 

[LooseChange]

I've seen this exact thread rehashed numerous times over the years. I understand why it's irritating to receive marked coins, especially if it's a coin you are interest in keeping. I wouldn't directly encourage anyone to do it. That said....

Probably 20% of the people reading this thread have marked coins. I think everyone is just staying quiet to avoid the name calling I dated a bunch of coins back in the day. It helped me determine certain things...it was very helpful. If you stated it won't help...you're just wrong. It may not help help you, depending on the circumstance and knowledge of your courier/coin services...but it helped me. Not all regions are handled the same, in terms of courier service and whether coins are re-rolled by a bank, a courier, or returned to the fed. Determining the appropriate bank to buy and dump, be it a local, regional, or national bank can make a huge difference in your success rate.

Yup, it has been hashed and rehashed. What people do not understand is that the only feedback/data that ever matters is how productive your system is. There are scenarios where dumping into your source stream improves your productivity. If you follow the logic, the only possible decisions you could make after marking a bunch of coins are the same decisions you should make without marking.

1) You are getting good productivity and not finding any of your marked coins -> continue with current system (but increase your volume)
2) You are getting good productivity and finding some/few of your marked coins -> continue with current system (but increase your volume)
3) You are getting good productivity and finding tons of your marked coins -> continue with current system (but increase your volume)
Sure, you could dump somewhere else, but it might very well be your dumps that are stirring the waters and pushing keepers your way. Don't fvck with a working machine.
4) You are getting lousy productivity and not finding any of your marked coins -> scale back current system and change it up with other sourcing strategies
It would be stupid to stick with a crummy system just because you know you are not getting your dumps.
5) You are getting lousy productivity and finding some/few of your marked coins -> scale back current system and change it up with other sourcing strategies
6) You are getting lousy productivity and finding tons of your marked coins -> scale back current system and change it up with other sourcing strategies
You could change to a different dump scheme, but that will just put you in scenario #5 which has the same corrective action as this scenario.

The presence or absence of your dumps is meaningless all the way around. You should always be attempting to increase/vary your supply side to find the most productive solution. When a particular supply strategy is productive, exploit it. Otherwise, find an alternative supply.

 

[Owassokie]

Yup, it has been hashed and rehashed. What people do not understand is that the only feedback/data that ever matters is how productive your system is. There are scenarios where dumping into your source stream improves your productivity. If you follow the logic, the only possible decisions you could make after marking a bunch of coins are the same decisions you should make without marking.

1) You are getting good productivity and not finding any of your marked coins -> continue with current system (but increase your volume)
2) You are getting good productivity and finding some/few of your marked coins -> continue with current system (but increase your volume)
3) You are getting good productivity and finding tons of your marked coins -> continue with current system (but increase your volume)
Sure, you could dump somewhere else, but it might very well be your dumps that are stirring the waters and pushing keepers your way. Don't fvck with a working machine.
4) You are getting lousy productivity and not finding any of your marked coins -> scale back current system and change it up with other sourcing strategies
It would be stupid to stick with a crummy system just because you know you are not getting your dumps.
5) You are getting lousy productivity and finding some/few of your marked coins -> scale back current system and change it up with other sourcing strategies
6) You are getting lousy productivity and finding tons of your marked coins -> scale back current system and change it up with other sourcing strategies
You could change to a different dump scheme, but that will just put you in scenario #5 which has the same corrective action as this scenario.

The presence or absence of your dumps is meaningless all the way around. You should always be attempting to increase/vary your supply side to find the most productive solution. When a particular supply strategy is productive, exploit it. Otherwise, find an alternative supply.

LC, I understand what you're saying about dumping into your own source potentially helping your finds but if you (and other CRHers) are dominating that "source", I don't really see that as helpful. So it depends on the situation. I don't believe it fit my situation. I figured out that I was frequently receiving my coins back from 1 particular national bank and never from 1 regional bank. If you're searching $16 to $20k a month, this has the potential to be valuable information. An important note....prior to this marked coin test, my logic was the opposite...I figured the regional bank would recirculate the coins "regionally" or close to home. Anyway, this gave me the push I needed to change things up a bit. I began to order heavily from the national bank and dumping at the regional bank. I was rewarded for this change as my silver finds picked up significantly.

I understand the counter argument here is 'I don't know what would have happened if I would have done the opposite'. This is true...I don't know. But like all of us, I just gathered as much information as possible and made what I felt was the best decision. It seemed to work out for me but you always wonder "what if".

OO

 

[TimZim]

There was a guy years ago that painted ?? 500.000 coins with spray paint. Many colors Like the rain bow!!! Timzim

 

[Megalodon]

What people do not understand is that the only feedback/data that ever matters is how productive your system is.

If you follow the logic, the only possible decisions you could make after marking a bunch of coins are the same decisions you should make without marking.

The presence or absence of your dumps is meaningless all the way around. You should always be attempting to increase/vary your supply side to find the most productive solution. When a particular supply strategy is productive, exploit it. Otherwise, find an alternative supply.

I've deleted the scenarios #1 thru #6 in the original post because these other statements are sufficient and because I agree with them. The assumptions necessary to learn from marking dumps make perfect sense - but only if working in an information vacuum. I don't mark because I have learned enough about my banks and the couriers who serve those banks with coins packed at different sorting centers at the present time. For me, marking does not increase that knowledge. Situations change, contracts with couriers are not renewed and the whole situation is fluid. Paying attention to what is going on in your hobby in your own area - with each area being different, is more useful than marking coins, IMO. The information gained from casual conversations with tellers is very useful. Some even speak freely during bag changes and volunteer information about courier details that probably should be kept confidential.

I completely agree with increasing and/or varying the supply side to achieve the optimal results.

 

[Megalodon]

There was a guy years ago that painted ?? 500.000 coins with spray paint. Many colors Like the rain bow!!! Timzim

There is an expression that some people "have more money than common sense". That guy had more paint than common sense.

 

[Omega]

There was a guy years ago that painted ?? 500.000 coins with spray paint. Many colors Like the rain bow!!! Timzim

Pictures??