Cracking Out Coins is Risky Business

Lately, we have seen an increase in the number of coins submitted to NCS with the hope that conservation can help remedy the results of an improper cleaning or amateur conservation attempt.

In many cases, the coin was previously submitted to NCS in a major grading service's holder and rejected as not suitable for conservation. Regardless of NCS's expert opinion, some of these coins are cracked out of their holder and cleaned by the owner who then submits them for grading only to receive lower grades or a "body bag" in return.

NCS then receives the coin with a letter explaining the situation and begging us to try and help salvage what has been done so that the coin can get its original grade again or be suitable for grading.

More often than not, the damage is irreversible and the coin cannot be helped with conservation.

For this reason, we ask that you carefully consider whether conserving the coin yourself is the best way to go, especially if it has already been rejected for conservation during the NCS evaluation process. Keep in mind that one of the major problems with amateur conservation efforts is that the damage is not reversible.