Cybercoins.net's Professional Research Services

Providing the best research possible over the web.

For a professional appraisal at our physical store location in Pittsburgh where we can examine the items in person and in detail, we charge $30.00 and up, depending on the items to be researched. The appraised amount is also our offer to buy. If we tell you your coins are worth $3.00 or $300,000 it means we are ready to cut a check for that amount. Technology hasn't quite progressed to the level that we can use our full knowledge and abilities to perform formal appraisals over the web, but it has advanced to the point that we can provide a similar service to a formal appraisal that may be equally beneficial to you.

Here is what we can do for you:

We can give you information on basic values, identification of your coins, grade or condition considerations, how to determine mint (where the coin was made, which may add considerable value), and other varieties in your coins. We can also provide diagnostics on determining the authenticity of your coins, advice on how to market your coins, and many other bits of information appropriate to your particular case.

How does this benefit you?

It keeps you from getting cheated. Let's say that you have a group of silver dollars made between 1878 and 1921. Those are Morgan series and any dealer will pay you at least $5.00 for each one. Many dealers will NOT tell you that there are some very rare dates and varieties in the series that even in low grades will bring $100, or more, each. And if one of your 1921 dollars does not look like the other dollars made between 1878 and 1904, it could be a "Peace" dollar and if it is a "plain" it is worth at least twice the value of the 1921 "Morgan.” As another example, you have two Standing Liberty quarters both dated 1923. If one is a "plain,” it has a base value of about $10.00, but if it is an "S", that base jumps to almost $200.00! It would be nice to know, wouldn't it?

Knowledge is power-- empower yourself. Let us help you do it.

We have been bombarded by “appraisal” email to point where one of our staff was working full time answering these questions. So it is clear we can’t do this for free.

However, since we cannot do everything we could do in person, we have decided to reduce our usual fee to a reasonable base of $10.00 that can be charged to your Visa, MasterCard or Discover. Rarely will more than this base fee be required (unless you send us a large list of coins or a two hour videotape showing "your collection," which has actually been done on a couple occasions). If the appraisal amount will need to exceed the $10.00 value, you will be contacted for permission before any other fee is assessed.

Who do we do appraisals for?

Individuals
Families
Estates
Attorneys

Are there things we cannot do over the web? There sure are.

We cannot put your coins under a microscope or weigh them by specific gravity to determine that they are beyond a doubt authentic, but we can give you information you can use to evaluate what someone else tells you.
We cannot give you an exact grade, but we can give you information that will allow you to do a close approximation for yourself.
We cannot guarantee you an exact amount for your coins should you decide to sell them to us, but the information supplied to you will be used to make a final formal offer which may, or may not, differ from the values supplied. Once you ship them to us and we accurately grade, and authenticate them, our offer may be modified. If we buy your coins, you get your 10 bucks back!

Are there coins we cannot identify or questions we cannot answer? Sure! And if so, your payment is returned.

There are things you can do to help insure yourself the best answer possible.

Be exact in your questions. Give dates, mint marks, exact legends, and good descriptions.
If you don’t know if your coins have any significant value, please ask before sending images. Send us quality photocopies or pictures whenever possible. If you send us images as email attachments, use the jpeg format and please limit each file to no larger than 200k. Files larger than this are automatically rejected. If you wish, you may send us hard copy photos via the U.S. Mail.
Be prepared for us to ask for more information. We would rather exchange a couple of pieces of email than give an incomplete response.

Things to remember! Please note:

Don’t clean your coins! This almost always reduces the value. Collectors prefer coins in the natural state, rather than tampered with.
Possibly you may not need our Professional Research Services. Please check the Cybercoins FAQ page first. Your questions may already be answered there.
Handle your coins carefully. Only handle the coins by the edges, not by the face. If an expensive coin has a fingerprint mark, it could significantly lower the value.
To maintain our ethical standards you must be at least 21 years old with photo identification to sell any collection to us.

Suggestions for shipping your coins:

Use an “inner package” such as a zip lock bag or smaller box to hold your coins.
Use an outside package about twice the size of what you are shipping to allow space for protective material such as newspaper. Distribute the weight evenly and use enough protective material (such as crumpled newspaper) to prevent movement.
Be sure your outside package is strong enough and use the proper kind of tape to seal it.
Put your address and our address on a sheet of paper inside each of the inner boxes/bags and inside the outer box.
Insure your package for the full value you assign or the estimate from our “Research Services.”
Shipping charges are the customer's responsibility both to and from us. If the coins are sold to us and the value exceeds a minimum of $100.00, we will return your shipping cost and the “appraisal” fee!