Wondering if there is a view which is best for Canadian Maples? Also out of interest which of these 2 does the Perth Mint use on its Lunar coins? Anyone know?
I bought lighthouse versions for Lunar 1s, they don't fit in the box that came with my full Lunar I series. Anyone know which ones the perth mint uses for Lunar 1s? Slam
Perth Mint uses their own in-house capsules. I prefer Air-tites over Lighthouse as they are of better quality and the seal is a lot better than Lighthouse.
Agree with Slam... I recently opened up a bag of encapsulated coins to find a mint gold coin floating loose - the Lighthouse capsule had popped open. Luckily no apparent damage to the coin. Went through the rest and found a couple that clicked shut - they were loose.
I think it is the Lighthouse ones that i'm referring to... I haven't had any issues (yet) with them coming loose but i don't like the overhanging rims on the edge. The best looking ones are the capsules that i got the silver pandas in - but it is convex on the surface so doesn't stack as cleanly. I also like the look of the ones with the foam inserts but they are unnecessarily bigger, hence more volume to the stack.
I had heard anecdotally that the Perth Mint ones are Air-Tites... but never had an Air-Tite to compare. I have a bunch of Lunar Series I capsules that need replacement. Pretty sure that the current Koala/Kookaburra capsules fit Series I as they're the same diameter - I have the full 1oz silver bullion Series I set (well I will after Sunday), and I would like to get my hands on a complete set of new capsules to stick it in a presentation case. The existing capsules are either scuffed, or cracked around the edges (all the Perth Mint capsules seem prone to edge cracking).
I agree with the panda ones, the surface is much more shiny and smooth. I believe the plastic is thicker on the panda coins. I havn't had any issues with the lighthouse ones so far, I'm going to put some eagles in tonight. I'm still trying to source replacements for Lunar 1s, if anyone knows where to buy original perth mint ones (or quality remakes) let me know. Slam
The modern Panda capsules have those lovely little internal indents which support the coin. You need a crowbar to open them.
That depends on the mint, some Panda capsules don't have them. There are at least 3 mints who make Pandas and capsules.
The 40mm Air-tites fits the series 1 lunars/kooks/koalas just fine. However, it will not fit snuggly into the lunar display case. The individual pocket in the display case is a tad too deep and wide for the Air-tites capsule. And I have to agree that the perth mint capsules are too brittle, it cracks or chips off easily on impact. I had a lunar set in display case shipped to me and all the coins dislodged from their individual pockets during transit (seller did not add a layer of bubble wrap within to prevent coins coming loose). So all the coins were tossed around inside the case. until it reach me. You can imagine my horror when I undo the package, amost every capsule were cracked and there were bits and pieces of capsule fragments inside the case! I have to replace them all with 40mm Ait-tites and thats when I discovered that it dont fit into round pockets as nicely as the original perth mint capsules. Here are some pictures comparing the perth mint capsules (koala) with the air-tites (kook)....
Actually, at last count there were three different mints & about 500 allied Chinese medallion factories.
Thanks silverybay. So I wonder if getting hold of a bunch of modern Kookaburra/Koala capsules would solve the problem for Lunar I display cases.
Yes, you can just swap the koala/kook capsules with the damaged series 1 lunars and fitting issue with the display will be resolve. Than maybe use the airtites (or lighthouse if you prefer) for the kooks/koalas.
