PCGS First Strikes And NGC Early Releases

PCGS First Strike $50 American Buffalo

Many coin collectors are confused by the grading companies’ use of labels like first strikes and early releases. The PCGS grading service uses the label First Strike on certain of its graded coin slabs. The NGC grading service uses the label Early Release on its graded coin slabs.

PCGS was the was the first coin grading service to designate coins are first strikes. PCGS began using this designation on 2005 and 2006 bullion coins. The 2005 and 2006 American Eagle Coins were the first coins to be marketed this way. And then the 2006 24-karat proof and bullion American Buffalo Gold Coins also received the designation.

When I see these coins on sale at Ebay, often the sellers highlight the fact that the coins are First Stikes or Early Releases. But should buyers care whether a coin is a first strike or early release?

PCGS gives this designation to coins that are submitted to PCGS for certification within thirty days that such coins first go on sale from the US Mint. Likewise, NGC also gives this designation to coins submitted to it within the first thirty days of release by the Mint. But, is there a reason to pay a premium for the first coins “released” from the US Mint?

I don’t think that buyers should pay a premium price for first strike coins or early release coins. But, let’s examine the topic a little more.

The US Mint I think agrees with me. After these designations started to show up on American Eagle Gold Coins and American Eagle Silver Coins is 2005 and 2006, the US Mint release a statement concerning these first strike coins. The US Mint stressed that its quality contol process assures that all coins are struck with good dies. The US Mint stated,

Our manufacturing facilities use a die set as long as the quality of resulting coins meets United States Mint standards, and then replace the dies, continually changing sets throughout the production process. For bullion American Eagle and American Buffalo Coins, the United States Mint makes an average of about 6,000 coins from one die set. For proof versions of the 2006 American Buffalo Coins, the yield is an average of about 1,500 coins per die set. For proof versions of the American Eagle Coins, the yield is an average of about 300-500 coins per die set. This means that coins may be minted from new die sets at any point and at multiple times while production of a coin is ongoing, not just the first day or at the beginning of production.

With only an average of 6,000 American Eagle uncirculated bullion coins being made from each die, I would bet that the US mint has more than 6,000 American Eagle uncirculated bullion coins ready to ship when it makes these coins available for sale. If that is the case, assuming that there is a difference in quality between the first strike with a die and the 6,000th strike, then a “first strike” coin could be the first coin struck with a die or the 6,000th coin struck. This designation seems to me to be a meaningless marketing ploy.

What do you think about this issue? Should the PCGS first strikes and NGC early releases? Are you willing to pay a premium price for them? If you would like to read more about this topic, there is a great thread over at the CoinTalk Coin Collecting Forum.

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