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Author Topic: De-slabbing coins - describe methods here.  (Read 2456 times)

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Offline Sosius

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De-slabbing coins - describe methods here.
« on: September 25, 2013, 05:40:30 pm »
With apologies to Michelangelo:

I saw an angel in the slab and hammered until I set her free.

Setting this coin free was surprisingly easy.  I stood it on its end, put a regular head screwdriver in the groove at the top, and gave the screwdriver handle a few controlled, but firm, whacks with a hammer.  Once the plastic weld started to to crack, separating the front and the back, I worked the screwdriver around the edge of the slab, twisting it slightly to pry the pieces apart.  Took less than 3 minutes.  

Sosius
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Offline Jay GT4

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Re: De-slabbed!
« Reply #1 on: September 25, 2013, 05:50:01 pm »
Excellent!  I freed mine the same way!

Offline Sosius

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Re: De-slabbed!
« Reply #2 on: September 25, 2013, 07:17:37 pm »
This time with apologies to Lynyrd Skynyrd:

But if I stayed in this slab, girl,
Things just couldn't be the same.
'Cause I'm as free as a bird now,
And this bird you can not change, oh, oh, oh, oh.

Sosius

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Offline Mat

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Re: De-slabbed!
« Reply #3 on: September 25, 2013, 07:36:10 pm »
"Thank god almighty, free at last!" +++
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Offline Sosius

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Re: De-slabbed!
« Reply #4 on: September 25, 2013, 08:29:57 pm »
Quote from: Mat on September 25, 2013, 07:36:10 pm
"Thank god almighty, free at last!" +++

Ha!  I almost used that quote, but I was afraid to go there!
Sosius

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Offline Anaximander

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Re: De-slabbed!
« Reply #5 on: December 14, 2021, 11:19:19 am »
Happily, I've liberated a slabbed coin from its case, with no damage to the coin or myself. This was my first slabbed coin and my first effort to crack one open. It was easier than I expected, taking less than one minute. My confidence was bolstered by posts like this one (a little old, but still useful).

I've learned that there are some differences in cases among the grading firms, potentially calling for different techniques. My case was from NGC, and looked remarkably like the one that initiated this discussion thread.  Hammering lightly around the edges works for NGC slabs.  No special tools are required.  All I needed was a conventional hammer, the anvil (in my case, a bench vise with anvil), and a flat-head screwdriver. The coin case was wrapped in a thin dishtowel, and light hammer blows applied on all four sides. It opened like a clamshell. The coin was then popped out of its foam insert and placed in a ready coin flip, along with the paper tag. 

If I had one of the harder, and more brittle cases, I'd have used tile nippers (plan B: bolt cutters) to bite through the sides closest to the coin.   

Offline cmcdon0923

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Re: De-slabbed!
« Reply #6 on: December 14, 2021, 04:49:14 pm »
From your description and picture, it sounds like you had one of the older style NGC slabs.  They are/were much simpler to open than the new style

The old style was basically two pieces placed together and then sealed down the side edge.  Break the seal at a few places, and it popped open, or at least was easy to pry apart.

The new style appears to be a top piece which now fits down inside a raised rim of the bottom.  So just tapping around the edges may not work, or requires a more "aggressive" level on hammering.  I personally use a piers to grab the small lip and bend it down until it pops off.  Do that around enough of the perimeter until you can safely access the coin.

Again, that's my process, your mileage may vary.


Craig

Offline PMah

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Re: De-slabbed!
« Reply #7 on: December 14, 2021, 08:38:14 pm »
Three words: Dremel rotary tool
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Offline Ron C2

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Re: De-slabbed!
« Reply #8 on: December 22, 2021, 07:54:54 pm »
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Offline Ron C2

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Re: De-slabbed!
« Reply #9 on: January 31, 2022, 06:41:26 pm »
Le sigh... another one to do.



And....

FREEDOM!

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Offline Anaximander

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Re: De-slabbed!
« Reply #10 on: January 31, 2022, 07:56:38 pm »
Nice work+++  With my one de-slabbing job behind me, I am confident I can do this again, and am now willing to buy slabbed coins. They won’t be slabbed for long  ;).

Offline Virgil H

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Re: De-slabbed!
« Reply #11 on: February 01, 2022, 11:16:56 pm »
I was a nervous wreck deslabbing my first two, thinking I was doing something horrible as well as worried about coin damage. It was so easy in retrospect and mine were more recent "tamper resistant" slabs. I think it is clear that slabbing is done to increase prices and give legitimacy to a coin, so I look at that, too. But, now I at least consider buying slabbed coins if the price is right. I do keep the little tags that comes with them.

Virgil

Offline Ron C2

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Re: De-slabbed!
« Reply #12 on: March 11, 2022, 06:03:53 pm »
Stickying this topic for all instructional discussion related to de-slabbing ancients - pls discuss methods here to guide others in not damaging their coins through the de-slabbing process.
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Offline Serendipity

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Re: De-slabbed!
« Reply #13 on: September 10, 2022, 04:38:38 am »
From your description and picture, it sounds like you had one of the older style NGC slabs.  They are/were much simpler to open than the new style

The old style was basically two pieces placed together and then sealed down the side edge.  Break the seal at a few places, and it popped open, or at least was easy to pry apart.

The new style appears to be a top piece which now fits down inside a raised rim of the bottom.  So just tapping around the edges may not work, or requires a more "aggressive" level on hammering.  I personally use a piers to grab the small lip and bend it down until it pops off.  Do that around enough of the perimeter until you can safely access the coin.

Again, that's my process, your mileage may vary.


Craig

Yes, that’s the method I use to remove coins from their sealed plastic slabs.

Offline Virgil H

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Re: De-slabbing coins - describe methods here.
« Reply #14 on: September 10, 2022, 01:29:07 pm »
I have de-slabbed quite a few coins now and my method is simple and does not require hammering (which always worried me). I just slowly push a screwdriver into the side crack and twist. One or two spots does the trick. And, to continue the quote theme, from Kris Kristofferson via Janis Joplin:

"Freedom is just another word for losing the slab case."

Virgil

Offline Virgil H

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Re: De-slabbing coins - describe methods here.
« Reply #15 on: June 14, 2023, 06:50:39 pm »
I just got an ANACS slabbed coin and these small cases are much harder to break open. If anyone has some hints on these, I would appreciate it. So far, I have tried the screwdriver method, but that didn't work. This one is much harder than the NGC slabs. I have to admit, it is also a nicer slab.

Virgil

Offline Callimachus

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Re: De-slabbed!
« Reply #16 on: June 14, 2023, 08:58:55 pm »
Stickying this topic for all instructional discussion related to de-slabbing ancients - pls discuss methods here to guide others in not damaging their coins through the de-slabbing process.

See also this page:
https://www.forumancientcoins.com/board/index.php?topic=130886.0

Offline Virgil H

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Re: De-slabbing coins - describe methods here.
« Reply #17 on: June 14, 2023, 09:15:06 pm »
Thanks for the link. That was also about NGC slabs. This one had me worried at first, but I got it done on the ANACS slab, the trick with these is the screwdriver has to go in from the top of the slab. Insert, twist, use another screwdriver once you have an opening and it will pop open. I have found that NGC slabs you can go in anywhere on the slab. The bad thing about the ANCAS is the info is glued to a plastic spacer, with NGC, the info paper things are not attached to anything and I can put them in my 2 x 2 trays with the coins. Not sure about where I will store this one. Coin was far cheaper than the slabbing was, but I like to keep this stuff.

Virgil

 

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