What to expect from Atkinson's preowned?

[Guest]

I'm looking to buy a 1/4 oz gold coin (all I can afford this month) and by buying preowned at Atkinson's I can save £15 to £20 per coin. Is there any risk associated in buying preowned? Sorry if it's a silly question but I've only bought brand new so far. Thanks.

[Paul]

bullion is bullion - just expect the worse and hope for the best.

i have been pleasantly surprised over the years from pre owned things from Atkinsons and HGM also, occasionally not so. hay ho, some you win some you loose 

[sixgun]

In general i have been pleased with the coins i have bought from Atkinson in the pre-owned section.

i have tended to buy proof coins. They have been exactly as i would hope for.

Recently i bought a load of sovereigns - some were ok and then i could see one had been in a clasp.

I would say, in general i have been happy with what i have got. It is not always that much cheaper though. Sometimes they have a recent preowned which they sell new and the new one works out cheaper.

The 4 types of pre-owned 1/4 oz gold they have available at the moment are all basic bullion coins. The Kruggerand is likely to be an older coin. i bought a 1/2oz proof Kruggerand not that long ago and it was 1966 i think.

[Sovereign]

I bought a 2002 sovereign few month ago of atkinson's

was all scratched up spoke to they live chat 

asked me to send it back and they replaced with a better one ! 

That's because they had it in stock !

 

[Pete]

Pot luck really as neither Atkinsons or HGM will screen coins but you should not receive a bad coin or one that has obviously been mounted in jewellery.
I have received a few "very poor" condition coins but they were replaced without charge or hassle with an apology that the coin(s) missed its usual QC checks.
At the end of the day you are purchasing bullion and even brand new can be disappointing as many mints often don't take too much care in mass produced coins.
If it doesn't leave the mint in a capsule then expect scuffs, dings and marks - fortunately not all the time; so smile if you get a good looking used coin.
I've had a few stunners - near perfect proofs sold as bullion.
I use an ultrasonic cleaner bath with hot soapy water to clean my bullion gold coins and they come up a treat once all the ingressed crap has been removed ( mainly from older sovereigns ).

[Cornishfarmer]

Everybody here knows I had a dog of a coin from atkinsons and that was a new one, as Paul says bullion is bullion..........,,. but some charge more than others for bullion.    

[Guest]

If they are scratched, can they be sold at weight price? If not, it's not worth saving a couple of tenners. 

[sixgun]

Anything can be sold if someone is willing to buy it.

If i see a damaged coin i will give it a miss. There is a thread on the selling forum where some silver Queens beasts are for sale. They are cover with milk spot or some white haze. They are not worth any more than spot to me. I will not buy RCM coinage b/c of the issues with milk spot. i don't want damaged coins if i can help it. There are lots of coins out there so why buy something damaged? If it is a few quid more then i am happy to pay to get a nice coin.

A new bullion coin should be pretty much perfect. There is more variety and the chance the coin will not only track the spot gold price but the coin will appreciate. 

I got some $20 and $10 pre-33 American coins from HGM. I paid spot + 3%. They were in good condition. I was really pleased with those coins. i have bought half a dozen of these American coins from HGM and they were all good. I got a good lot and the next time i saw them i clean them out. i was lucky.

i made an instant profit on these b/c i think i could sell them for more. 

For a few quid i would get a new coin you really like and has collector potential. If you just want bullion for the gold you might as well buy from Atkinsons.

[Ravinella]

Atties bullion price always very good in my opinion and free postage a big help.......they are purely a bullion outfit I reckon and a waste of time for collectable numismatic coins.......If I want bullion I nearly always get it from them,collectables they dont even figure in my thinking as to where to look................

[sixgun]

49 minutes ago, Ravinella said:

Atties bullion price always very good in my opinion and free postage a big help.......they are purely a bullion outfit I reckon and a waste of time for collectable numismatic coins.......If I want bullion I nearly always get it from them,collectables they dont even figure in my thinking as to where to look................

 

Out of interest where does figure in your thinking when it comes to collectables?

[Ravinella]

E-bay,trusted sellers I've had dealings with before,like goldenguinea,BucksCoins.........................Chards,Baldwins.......last two are top retail price remember but are open to haggling with and couple of others who I'd have to kill you afterwards if I told you.................If your new to collectables,shop around and bear in mind that you are going to be paying way more money per coin than bullion soverigns for instance.

Derpends what suits you I prefer to buy 1 or 3 really good collectables pure year than a dozen bullion valued coins,but thats just me.......got to do what suits you best.

 

[sixgun]

3 minutes ago, Ravinella said:

and couple of others who I'd have to kill you afterwards if I told you.................

 

1

Tell me i have nine lives .................

i have some collectables but they tend to be lower tier coins which i think will become more collectable. I collect potential. 

I got a proof 2017 sovereign from Chards who were offering them a bit under the Royal Mint price. I haven't dealt with the others before so thanks for pointing them out.

[Ravinella]

No problem VITAL though if you dont mind me saying so.....The 2017 Proof is a good buy cos it is in excellent quality( well should be but always a risk with anything the Royal MInt knock out)...............Remember with collectables the quality of the coin is vastly more important in making it collectable to serious collectors.

Ie even if it is rare or has an error or other collectable virtue it isnt worth anything like as much as you may think unless it is  of good quality and higher grade.Dont buy Fine or less than Fine when it comes to collectables............buy at least gVF,VF or preferably gEFor EF..................... UNC,FDC obviously,but wont be cheap.

Condition is vital with collectable coins...................CANT STRESS THAT ENOUGH.I am probably teaching you how to suck eggs but alot of people often forget this and end up very dissapointed.

Way above my league of buying, but just have a look at John Blyth site or his e-mail shop to get an idea of what I am talking about.

[walesdave]

I've had a dozen bullion Krugs and a couple of Brits in the last 6 or 7 months. All have been decent enough - same with a couple of Krugs off HGM; some newer, some older, few scuffs and handling marks but no scratches or dings.

End of the day, bullion is bullion - you're effectively buying and selling just based on weight, but HGM and Atkinsons are decent companies and it's often been mentioned that they will swap coins that have actual damage rather than just showing their age.