The facts that I've stated are self evident facts.
There's no reason why I should or would think that these facts are just a matter of opinion...they are not.
It is a fact that NGC and PCGS can not and will not try to determine which coins are struck first with the FS, FR, or ER dsignation. They don't even claim that they can or do (
http://www.pcgs.com/firststrike/ ) (
https://www.ngccoin.com/coin-grading/designations/ ). No where in these descriptions do they claim that they can or will determine that the coin they are sent is one of the first struck by the mint.
Another way we can know what I'm stating is true and factual is because in fact there is a service that NGC provides which they dramatically differentiate from ER and FR designations and assert that through official documentation, the coins they receive are certified by the issuing mint itself to be the coins first struck by that mint.....that service is called "Numbered First Struck". It is very different from the FS, ER, and FR designations because of what might be called the chain of custody and the official documentation.
Yes, some collectors are not smart and don't think everything through very well....why would that be a shock to anyone? I'm sure there are collectors who don't actually know what those labels mean and don't mean....I have come across plenty of
not smart collectors over the past 3 years. And then of course, there are always the newbies whom I'm not expecting to know everything immediately. It took me months at least to realize what those labels actually meant and didn't mean. I, like many new collectors I believe, had assumed that the labels mean what they were designed to dishonestly intimate or invoke. I mean, why would I assume that "First Strike" doesn't actually have anything to do with a coin being struck first and why would I assume that "Early Release" actually means a coin postmarked within 30 days of going on sale ONLY.....not a coin that was "released" early by the mint. That's a term designed to manipulate people. If the TPG's were honest about those labels' meaning, they'd fit the terms to the meaning not try to manipulate the meaning to fit the term. They could easily state "Received 30 Days From I.D.A." (IDA = Initial Date of Availability). There would be nothing deceptive or gimmicky about that claim because it's an accurate claim which portrays nothing other than that claim.
But not all people who buy ER and FS labelled coins care about the coin or the label, but instead only care that they can flip a product for profit. Perhaps most people who buy those gimmicky labels are of this flip for profit mentality. Those people who buy only to flip are not just individuals, but also high volume sellers and dealers. Many of these types of sellers and dealers operate with this one mentality....they don't care one bit about the product, only whether they can sell it for a profit....period.
TPG's will likely not end a process that is profitable for them (gimmicky labels) and they carry part of the blame. But if they wouldn't have anyone to buy those gimmicky labels, then those labels would not survive or exists....so yes, most of the blame goes to the consumer.
I can't fix the world. My protests to NGC will fall on deaf ears. I don't use NGC to get gimmicky labels. I use them for the service of authentication, grading, and professional slabbing (and once in a blue moon, for restoration of a coin)....that's it. It's not my job to change NGC's policy on the use of labels that I see as sales gimmicks. The services that I use them for I think are valid and important to me as a collector.
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