The United States Mint has finally posted a brief statement to the eCommerce section of its Web site, claiming that Ultra-High Relief (UHR) Double Eagles will resume shipping during the week of Feb. 22. Here is the statement in its entirety:
The United States Mint is pleased to announce that we will resume shipping the 2009 Ultra High Relief Double Eagle Gold Coin during the week of February 22, 2009. However, because of production problems with the 2009 Ultra High Relief Double Eagle Gold Coin Companion Book, you may receive only the COIN and presentation box at this time. If you are a customer who receives the COIN without the Companion Book, we will ship the Companion Book to you, at no extra charge, when it becomes available. For information on how this may affect the return of the product if you are not satisfied, please see FAQ #210.
FAQ #210 explains that the coin can be returned without the companion book if the book hasn't been received yet. (The Mint usually requires items in a set to be returned in their entirety if a refund or exchange is desired.) The FAQ also explains that folks who ordered their UHR before Feb. 10 fall under the 30-day return privilege; those who ordered on or after this date have only 7 days to return it.
The fact that the Mint has decided to ship the UHRs out without the books means that the Mint is really trying to satisfy the customer demand, even if it costs them money to do so. I think this is a good step in the right direction, but we still don't have an explanation for the chaos that surrounded the initial sales of this coin, including the multiple shipping dates that buyers received, and why the UHRs are not being sent out in the order in which people purchased them.
When I spoke to a Mint representative today about the shipping date confusion issue, I warned him straight out that this issue is not going to go away. In the past, the Mint has been seen to procrastinate giving answers long enough that interest in the matter eventually fades, but that is not going to happen with this high-profile UHR coin! People are understandably incensed that they went to the time and trouble to fight with the Mint's poorly-performing Web site to get their order placed very early on, only to see others who ordered later get their coins ahead of their own. They want to know why this is happening.
A couple of collectors have written privately to express concerns that they will not be able to get the PCGS First Strikes designation if the Mint waits until April 24 to send the coins out. (April 24 is a date that many collectors who called the Mint's Customer Service Center's 800 number were given.) The last date I have heard regarding my own UHR (which was ordered at 1:15 pm ET on Jan. 22, only because I couldn't get through to the Web site any sooner) was Feb. 18, which has come and gone without any further notice from the Mint nor any charge to my credit card.
It is worth noting that people shouldn't put too much stock in whether the Mint has charged their card or not for a coin. Several readers reported that their card had been charged for the UHR, and then the charge was later removed. The Mint actually uses a two-step charging process, where the first entry you see on your online credit card report is actually a pre-authorization charge, to make sure the money exists on the card. It is sometimes called a "temporary authorization" or "temporary hold". When the coin actually ships, the Mint enacts a second credit card transaction that actually removes the money from your account.
What seems to have happened with the UHR credit card charges appearing and disappearing was that the Mint pre-authorized a batch of collectors' orders, and then found they couldn't ship them out, so the pre-authorization either expired or was rescinded.
As for why the Mint couldn't ship these orders, we must delve into the realm of speculation here, since the Mint has so far refused to confirm the information that their Customer Service Center has been giving out - that most of the UHR companion books were found to be damaged when they opened the cases of them for shipment. A few orders went out because not all of the books were damaged, just most of them were damaged.
Again, this is only speculation, but it seems that the reason why the coins might have gotten shipped out of sequence is because the fulfillment workers did them in batches. A sort of last-in/first-out kind of thing might have happened, where a bunch of orders that all should have gone out on Feb. 6th got grouped into smaller batches. One or two of the batches got good companion books paired up with them. The rest didn't. Rather than go through the laborious process of figuring out which orders really should go out first, the fulfillment folks just sent the ones out that had good books, probably without even thinking about the ramifications of it.
As for what the damage to the books might have been, I've heard them described as "warped" (first posted as a comment here on my site on Feb. 20th by "Disgruntled Mint Customer.") About two dozen calls at various times to the Mint's 800 number got 3 customer service reps to confirm this rumor. 5 others described the damage to the books as "water damage" (although I may have had the same rep more than once during this research, which was conducted over several days.) One rep actually went so far as to speculate that the books were made in China and they "got wet coming across the ocean on the ship." For what it's worth, I doubt the books were made in China; I think this rep was trying to be helpful by expanding on what she had overheard in the lunchroom.
And "overheard in the lunchroom" is not at all a stretch for these reps! When I spoke to a rep last week about why the order tracking system was down, she flat-out stated that she had "overheard the reason on her lunch break" but couldn't tell me what that reason was because it was confidential!
As I've stated in the past, it really irks me to have to publish speculation, even in a blog post, but I know everyone wants answers and if I am fairly certain that the speculation is well-founded, why not share it? The real question is why the Mint is so tight-lipped that such speculation even becomes necessary! (U.S. Mint Director) Ed Moy himself told me that Mint officials, himself included, follow the comments on my site and the Letters to the Editor of the coin-related magazines as a good source for how people are feeling about the Mint, and yet they read and read but never respond. That BUGS me!
Special thanks to a reader named "Mark" who was the first to post a comment regarding the latest Mint statement, and to Tom DeLorey who took the time to email me about it to make sure everyone knew. I would also like to thank all of the readers who have taken the time and trouble to share their experiences and frustrations during this annoying fiasco. I am making a special effort to ensure that the People Who Matter at the Mint are made aware of all of your comments and feedback. You guys rock! =)
Comments
Susan,
Thank you for the information. Unfortunately, I believe that the book excuse is also bogus! I ordered my coin at 12:07 on Jan 22 and specifically deleted the book. I am still waiting.
Further, several customer reps. have told me that shipment dates had nothing to do with the book. I have no idea what the real holdup is with the mint, but I think that the problem is much more profound than what we have been told.
Keep looking!
The penny scam, Not only the pennys are being sold before sellers have them,but the UHR gold coin is on ebay as a pre-sale item . I,ve seen offers of $2,000.00 buy it now and the seller hasn’t received the coin yet.
Susan – If it’s true that Ed Moy regularly goes to your site to get an idea of customer satisfaction, then here is my comment to Mr. Moy:
You are doing a pathetic job running the Mint and I have been disappointed in the Mint over the past few years! With coins left on door steps, loose coins, cracked coin capsules, outright fraudulent marketing, extremely late shipping, etc., how can you claim to be doing a good job? You appear to be setting your standards in the same way that other government entities (the post office, etc.) set theirs – the “who cares” approach.
I posted this on a previous thread. I am reposting it here with several edits because I think it is relevant.
I know others have been told it, but no one puts a charge on your CC just to see if you have the credit. Doing so costs them money, even if they eventually rescind the hold. Almost any charge is pending for a short period. When you use your CC at a restaurant, they put a hold on the bill amount, and then either put it through as is or add in the tip and charge that once you sign. When you use a CC for auto repairs they put a hold for the estimate or some minimum payment, and then finalize things when they are finished. The bottom line is that the hold on your card is not a test. It is an intent to charge.
The pending charge from the mint was not placed just to test your account, it was placed because they intended to ship product and should have when the CC company said the amount was good to go. Once they actually ship, they can go ahead and finalize the charge. All of this CC smoke is just more evidence of the problems at the mint.
Even their new statement on the website that they intend to resume shipping the UHRDE this week is a song. It basically claims that the only holdup has been the book. They had set up to ship the book separately from day one. It had its own product number and its own ship date that was often different from that of the coin. To now claim that they had to hold orders because they did not have a good book to go out is absurd and contradictory. Also, any claim that they did not want to loose any profit by having to ship the book separately is in direct contradiction to their mission as stated in their 2008 annual report. In that report they state that it is their intention to come as close to break even on collector sales as is possible without going in the red. That being so, they clearly have plenty of margin to pay for shipping the book separately. They make no mention of all of the other issues that have confounded us all.
For them to claim that they tied up $1200 of my credit for a week just to see if I was good for it (which some have been told in an attempt to explain the hold), never intending to ship product is just plain bogus. It served no purpose whatsoever unless they actually intended to ship the day they placed the hold. They have to do it all over again now that they let the hold expire. It also seems unlikely that a day came where they decided to ship a large batch of orders, charged a bunch of CCs, got the coins ready, and then and only then opened the boxes of books only to discover that most of them were damaged. Then they spent the time to find a few good books and include them with a few coins and ship to people whose orders should not have been in the first group anyway. At best, only orders from the first hour or two should have been in that first batch of coins to ship. Since the book has its own product number, and has always been reported as a separate item both on all correspondence from the mint, why not just split the order and ship the part that was ready? Don’t they do this all of the time anyway? Why did they give it its own product number in the first place? Wasn’t the book listed at no cost so that they would not have to incur a new CC commission when they were able to ship it?
Communication, and by that I mean truthful communication is still the mint’s biggest problem. They need to learn to stop hiding and start being honest. They are acting like pathological liars, they lie as a first response to any question and then spend time trying to manufacture fresh lies that support the initial one. Eventually, they are spending all of their time making sure that their web of lies makes sense when taken together. I have a suggestion. The truth always works, honesty is the best policy, it is easy to maintain because you just say it, no thought needed to make sure it jives with what you said before. The truth, the real truth, is probably far simpler than all of these lies, and in the end is far more acceptable to the collecting community. We are ready and willing to forgive even silly mistakes if and only if you are ready and willing to admit to making them.
End rant.
I believe the new penny was poorly done!!!None of us can get them anywhere.As cheap as pennies are to make the mint could have made alot of money by letting us order them from them.All of my banks say they don’t even have access to them.
Susan,
I discovered your blog through this particular controversy. I wish I had found you before. You an an excellent resource for coin news! I also think it’s great that you interact with your readers and use their knowledge in your reporting as well. I think I speak for all your fans in expressing appreciation and thanks for all the hard work and dedication that goes in your research and commentary.
Just so you know, I have shared your blog with every customer service rep at PBGS that I’ve talked with regarding this issue. They have greatly appreciated it. They are out of the loop as well.
And I have a message for Director Moy as well if he is reading.
Mr. Moy,
Thank you sir for taking the initiative to develop this wonderful coin, the Ultra High Relief Double Eagle. There are a lot of customers out here that have purchased this unique coin that anxious to get it in their hands.
We understand that sometimes mistakes are made. The majority of us understand that. But, I think the larger problem lies in the lack of communication and misinformation coming from those under your leadership. I kindly ask that the channels of communication be open, especially to the customers. Referring back to the 2008 annual report with a commitment to improved customer service and it’s goals for 2009 would be an excellent starting point.
You have done a wonderful job in your goal to bring back a renaissance of great coin designs. Please help to establish the lines of communication back to the customer and rectify mistakes as they come.
Thank you.
Well said, Clair! Your’s is probably the most spot on commentary I’ve read on this subject since this fiasco began.
Susan, thanks ever so much for the poking, prodding, and digging that you’re doing on behalf of us collectors. It’s a rather pathetic situation that ‘The Mint’ finds itself in these days, and, right or wrong, the finger of blame is being pointed directly at Director Moy. How hard could it possibly be for Mr. Moy to issue a simple, yet honest statement regarding this mess? A sliver of truth is all we’re asking for, that and our UHRDE.
The Mint is now showing a shipping date of May 24th, 2009 for the UHRDE if you order today. Wow!
http://catalog.usmint.gov/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=10001&mpe_id=10104&productId=14708&intv_id=10054&evtype=CpgnClick&langId=-1&catalogId=10001&ddkey=ClickInfo
I have attempted to contact the Mint through the website and by phone to no avail. I tend to believe everything that has been stated about communications, or lack of it. I am going on vacation in 10 days. If my UHR does not arrive before then, it MAY be on my doorstep when I return, but then again, it may be in someone else’s hands (stolen). I cannot even get the shipping address changed on my order at this point. I am disgusted…..
I have a few more bones to pick and I think now is as good a time as any to do it, and this is as good a place as any considering that there is no place on the mint’s web site to enter comments or questions.
The new fulfillment contractor is not spending enough on packing materials. Coins should not be allowed to rattle around in the box they are shipped in. We are talking about some extra wrinkled brown paper here, just enough to keep things in place so the coins stay in their proper place during shipping. We are paying for the fancy boxes, sleeves, COAs, and capsules every bit as much as we are paying for the coins, and we expect that all of it will arrive in good condition. The contractor is going to start seeing a lot more returns for damage if it doesn’t start doing a better job of preparing items for shipment.
The subscription system is upside down. When I subscribe to an annual offering from the mint (and I have several such subscriptions), I am giving the mint a heads up on demand for years to come. I am helping them better plan for the future and in the long run helping them save money. My CC has just had a $19.90 hold placed on it this morning, which is for the Presidential Dollar Proof Set. This set was released for sale fifteen days ago. This stinks, subscription orders should be the very first orders placed when an offering becomes available. They should not be relegated to the second or third wave of production runs, or used to make the sales numbers look like they are holding a high pace up longer than reality dictates. I am in fact being punished for subscribing to annual offerings. When you consider that the proof gold buffalo and both of the silver eagles are available by subscription, and these are coins that collectors and dealers are likely to order a lot of (I suppose dealers are as likely to order many of the basic annual sets too), we should be rewarded for our willingness to provide the mint with such advance notice of income.
In fact, three weeks ago, four days before the set went on sale, I received an email from the mint telling me that my subscription order would be processed in about two weeks and that I should make sure that my account information was up to date. Gee, thanks for the notice. Maybe if it had come two weeks earlier and said that my order would be processed on the first day it would put a smile on my face.
I don’t expect to be smiling in the general direction of the mint anytime in the foreseeable future.
There ought to be a place on the web site where I could actually ask questions so that the FAQs might be based on actual input instead of being made up by contract personnel. There also needs to be a place for me to direct a complaint about the fulfillment contractor directly to the mint person(s) responsible for interfacing with them. The customer service address is at the fulfillment center. What are the odds that a serious, valid complaint is going to ever reach someone at the mint if I send it there?
The United States Mint is pleased to announce that we will resume shipping of the 2009 Ultra High Relief Double Eagle Gold Coin during the week of February 22, 2009. However, because of production problems with the Companion Book, you may receive only the COIN and presentation box at this time. If you are a customer who receives the COIN without the Companion Book, we will ship the Companion Book to you, at no extra charge, when it becomes available.
If you ordered your 2009 Ultra High Relief Double Eagle Gold Coin between January 22, 2009, and February 9, 2009, you are under the 30-day return policy. If you ordered on or after February 10, 2009, you are under the seven-day return policy. The return timeframe for the 2009 Ultra High Relief Double Eagle Gold COIN and presentation box will begin on the date you receive it. If you are dissatisfied for any reason with your 2009 Ultra High Relief Double Eagle Gold COIN, you may send it back to the United States Mint within the applicable return period for a full refund or replacement. If you return your COIN for any reason prior to receiving the Companion Book, we will cancel your shipment of the Companion Book. If you receive the Companion Book within the applicable return period, you must return both for a full refund.
If your Companion Book is shipped separately, the exchange timeframe for it also will begin on the date you receive it and under the same return policy – 30 days or seven days – as applicable. We will make no refunds for the Companion Book; we will make exchanges for damages only.
Customers’ orders will be shipped on a first-come, first-served basis. You will be notified by email when your order has shipped. If you do not receive the Companion Book with your COIN, you will receive a second e-mail notification when we ship the Companion Book.
If you ordered the 2009 Ultra High Relief Double Eagle Gold Coin between January 22 and February 23, 2009, we expect to ship it by April 24, 2009.
If you place your order for the 2009 Ultra High Relief Double Eagle Gold Coin on or after February 24 (and up until March 24, 2009), we expect to ship it by May 24, 2009.
Thank you for your interest in United States Mint products.
Tommy, Where did you see this information? I looked all over the Mint’s website (including FAQ) and didn’t see anything beyond what was already stated in Susan’s blog and on the front page of the web catalog site.
I just found out that what Tommy posted is in emails sent to UHR customers from the Mint. I ordered within the first half hour and ave not received the email as of this posting.
Also, over on the PCGS forums another user has posted pictures of the coin that he received today. The order number is out way past mine and Clair’s. Though it’s good news that these are starting to ship. The Mint is STILL not honoring their “First In, First Out” Policy. That means that those of us who ordered within hours of the first day, may not see our coins until April 24th if they keep doing this. That would be inexcusable in my opinion.
im sorry yes it was an email and i didnt get my order in till probally after two eastern time that day, and i too noticed it said first in first out so will see your suppose to get an email telling you that they shipped so will wait for that, just hope they get them out this week, everyone that ordered the first day……..
Folks,
I got the infamous email, but I also got a direct call. They told me on the phone that my coin/book/etc will probably ship before Friday of this week. The lady was very apologetic and assured me that I would get the UH1 within a “reasonable” time frame.
Hopefully their is some validity to this call. I will let everyone know if it actually happens by the end of the week.
Bye the bye, Mr. Lincoln’s commemorative dollars are due in tomorrow. It is starting to feel like xmas in Feb!
This whole matter of a security breach is due to ineptness. To minimize security issues, the Mint location where the coins are minted should fulfill the orders, not a third party shipper. It is absurd that the Mint ships the orders to another shipper to ship the order to the customer. How many times does something have to shipped?
The coins should be shipped only once–to the customer. The multiple handling of the coins to fulfill an order adds costs to the order fulfillment process. Security risks heighten security risks because so many hands handle the order.
I know that the Mint sends the orders in bulk to the fulfillment center, which then breaks-down the bulk shipment to individual shipments. However, to preclude losses and shipping delays if the Mint sells a coin, then the Mint should handle all aspects of the sale of it. When the coin order ships from the Mint, this is the one time that the Mints will have shipped the coin order–to the customer.
The Mint makes a fortune from its coin sales. What a disgrace to hear that a shipped coin order is left at the customer’s door because the Mint refuses to pay an additional $2-3 for signature evidence that that someone actually received the order.
Another matter, why does it always take forever to receive an order from the Mint for a special coin or coins? Either the Mint has the product or it does not. If not, the Mint should not take customers orders until the product is available for sale and the Mint can ship the order promptly. This is basic business practice. It is asinine to receive different shipping dates for one’s order.
Finally, who needed the book to accompany the UHR coin? This book just adds unnecessary cost to the Mint pricing for the UHR coin. The book should have been sold separately. The cost of the book would be the amount of price reduction of the coin. On the other hand, if the book must be part of the sale, then why does the Mint have problems dealing with the book accompanying the UHR coin order? The Mint has to incur additional shipping and handling expense because the book is not available concurrently with the coin to be shipped. Even this cannot be done competently?
All of the multiple shipping and handling issues along with the inability to fulfill orders timely leads me to the unfortunate conclusion that the Mint is run by incompetents. The Mint acts as if the sale of the UHR coin is the first time the Mint ever sold anything to collectors. If this were the first time, I would empathize with the Mint with its problems fulfilling orders. However, this is NOT the case. What is wrong with the Mint that it cannot handle coin orders efficiently and proficiently after decades of selling coins to collectors?
It seems to me that ebay sellers are learning the ways of the US Mint’s marketing schemes and all of you folks reading here are victimized by it. Open your eyes people! The US Mint is selling you coins they do not have, which is known as PRE-SALE on ebay. who’s the scammer now, ED MOY!
RESIGN MR. MOY. NOW!
Interesting comparison… the Mint and Ebay… There are some differences though. You can’t get the particular coins anywhere else, until they’re made, so the starting point is the Mint. Also, they don’t charge you until they’re ready to ship your item.
The Mint certainly has plenty of holes to plug though. Seems package quality is way down, shipping is haphazard (when it occurs) and forecasting & scheduling are now horrendous. It’s all very inefficient too. I.E. When I order two sets of P&D state qtrs why do they come in two separate boxes… each box having “three” empty slots? Do they ever use more than just two of those plastic slots?…
I had my order in at 12:18pm on the 22nd of January and I don’t care if it was the “fulfillment folks”, Ed Moy, or both that are responsible for this pathetic rollout, they should be relieved of their duties. I still have an unresolved problem with the Hawaii First Day Coin Covers from Jan 6-7 that I can’t get resolved. I’ve had a number of problems with the US Mint and I continually “let it slide, let it slide”. But this time, this is just to much. People should loose their privilege of working at or for the US Mint for how they have screwed this one up! I wonder how Theodore Roosevelt would handle this, never mind, I think I know.
I have had my UHRDE since Feb 9th. I am fairly new to coin collecting and would like some advice from the people that have been collecting for a while and have a lot more experience then I do. I have been reading blogs, articles and such about these awesome coins and have been wondering if I should send it off to PCGS for grading. The problem is I have never had a coin greaded and have NO idea how to do it. So basically would you send it to have it graded or just keep it in the safe collecting dust? Thanks – KTD
KTD – My two cents regarding your question… Collecting dust – If you don’t get it certified the dust collects on the plastic capsule or the box the coin comes in (assuming you don’t crack it out). If you do get it certified the dust collects on the plastic holder the grading company puts it in. It’s still a valuable coin either way.
Personally – and I know some will disagree with this – I think the “1st strike” and “Early Strike” designations should be done away with. They are virtually meaningless and misleading and the whole practice borders on being a scam created by the grading companies to put more money in their pockets. It works because of the greater fool theory. So many fools place a higher value on these coins. 29,000 UHRs were minted before the first order was placed. What if they ran out of planchets and no more are made and all of them are shipped before the “1st Strike” window closes… then every one of them could be a 1st strike. Woo Hoo!!! lol It has nothing to do with being the first coin produced or one of the first ones struck on a new die.
Now I’m going to be a total hypocrite and say this… If I’m lucky enough to get mine soon and the shipped numbers are still low by the time the window gets ready to close, I might consider sending mine in. If this scenario unfolds like that, the fools will drive the value of those certified coins up significantly. So I might be a “fool” not to. It’s still legal right now… and if people still want them then maybe it’s ethically OK as well. They just need to know what they’re buying. Note – Wasn’t PCGS sued over this 1st Strike stuff?
If I do this, I’ll buy another one later on when I can and not have it certified. I want coins I can hold (I know I know… it’s still in a plastic capsule…). I just need certified coins that are locked away in someone else’s piece of plastic when I need validity as to its authenticity or its grade.
In the end I feel it’s everyone’s personal call to do it or not. Is it purely an investment to you, a piece of art, or somewhere in between. For me, I tend to use investment potential as an “excuse” for buying so many coins, but I’ve never submitted one for any grading.
Whether or not people reply directly about this post, I’m sure there are many differing views.
KTD, this is one case where it might be worth it to get your coin graded, only because you can get the “First Strike” from PCGS or the “Early Release” from NGC. Normally, I would not recommend either one of these designations as anything special, but in this case there are likely to be only a very few coins that garner these titles and those coins may see a real increase in long term value. Keep watching to see if large numbers of the coins are shipped before the deadlines for these designations.
Normally, the primary reason to have a coin in your collection graded is because you intend to sell it. Other valid reasons are if you have a coin that might be of significant value and you want to insure it properly, you desire the protection of encapsulation, especially if you want to show your coins a lot, or you simply like your coins to be professionally graded and encapsulated.
I personally have not had any coins in my collection graded/encapsulated. I have actually removed a few from their slabs because I intend to keep them forever and want to get “closer” to them. An old fashioned view, I know, but that’s just me.
I am seriously considering having my UHRDE encapsulated if it arrives in time for the early notation just because of the mint mess up that may significantly reduce the possible number of such coins.
For PCGS grading, you really need to consult a local dealer who has the ability to submit coins for you. For NGC, membership in the ANA gives you access to low cost grading services. ANACS and IGC are more accessible to the casual collector, but slightly less respected in the collecting community. Any other service is probably not worth considering for your purposes.
Review material on their websites, submit questions there if available, and above all seek and consult with a local coin dealer who is a member of ANA.
Dave, buy yourself a few pairs of white cotton coin handling gloves and take those mint coins you admire so much out of their plastic capsules once in a while. You will not regret the added pleasure of viewing them without the plastic in between your eyes and the coin. Those mint capsules may seem sealed, but they are not. They are just very tight fits and a sharp fingernail or utility knife can get in and pry them open without damage. I do this all the time to scan new coins from the mint when I get them. I do a very high resolution scan and then put the coin away.
Question – I know the Mint’s capsules are not sonically sealed like the ones from the grading companies, but removing the coin from the capsule exposes it directly to air – Not just air but our exhaled breath too (God forbid should someone sneeze on one). Removing them seems risky – especially for a proof coin.
Clair, I’d love to take them out hold them but I’m hesitant to do so because of the aforementioned. Thoughts on that?… I’ll bet the UHR would look pretty cool with no plastic between it and us…. but….
PS – I do have the gloves.
I have been doing this for years with no ill effects. I also have many coins that were purchased “raw” and are kept in PVC free, stiff plastic flips, which are nowhere near airtight. If you keep a can of “air” handy to blow dust out of the capsule as you return the coin after viewing, you should not have any issues. Of course, the coin is much more vulnerable while it is out of its capsule. If dropped or bumped, it can be damaged more easily. I am not recommending that everyone do this, I am only saying that I do it and I am very careful when I do it. Any individual coin has only been out of its capsule once or twice for a good look and a high resolution scan, then its put back for safe keeping.
I received an email last night that notified me that my coin has shipped. It had a tracking number, but the tracking on the website has been down all week, so tracking it is impossible. I just hope they don’t leave it on my doorstep like they did my 1/10 oz gold coin 3 weeks ago! One would assume that all gold coins are shipped to the local US post office signature required. They wouldn’t leave the UHRDE on my doorstep would they?
Alan, yout tracking number should work at either FedEx or UPS. If there are two numbers and the second one has 22 digits, try entering it at FedEx. If one of the numbers starts something like 1Z… try UPS.
I’m wondering why anyone who ordered the first day (Jan 22) would have to wait until April 24th for there order to be shipped. If there were 29,000 UHRDE’s already struck before Jan 22nd, and there were around 28,200 orders the first day, then the e-mail they sent make’s no sense to me.
In the first paragraph of the e-mail they say shipping will resume Jan 22nd, but then if you go down to the last paragraph they say “If you ordered the 2009 Ultra High Relief Double Eagle Coin between January 22 and February 23, 2009, we expect to ship it by April 24, 2009″. Does it really take 2 months to ship out 28,200 orders? The coins are already made and the first day orders were under 29,000, I would hope they could ship them quicker than this.
I ordered 32 minutes after going on sale, I have talked with customer service three times. The first two I talked with indicated my order was picked, but twi different dates. The last customer service rep (today) said he did not know what was going on with my order. I guess I will be calling them tomorrow, again.
But my question is, why will it take two months to send all first day orders when they are already made!
If anyone has an answer for me I would sure appreciate knowing it!!
Alan V….If I may ask, what was the first 4 or 5 digits of your order number. I ordered mine within the first 15 minutes after they went on sale. I have not received the email that you spoke of. I recently emailed the White House on this subject. No reply yet.
I guess the mule that delivers the UHR’s died.
I was in stock and reserved since 2/09 and still no movement. 12:09 order time.
Need some oversight at the mint!
Well I did get my coin today and yes they left it under my doormat. It comes in about a 10×10 box (well packaged) due to the nice polished wood case. I just can’t believe that my almost $1200 coin sat there for about 8 hours under a mat that was obviously hiding a fairly good sized item. Ordering bullion from other sources requires a much more secure method of retrieving your stash. I ordered on the 1st day at 10:15 PM with no delays online that evening. My number was approx 30864xxx. My book was not included and I’m told it should come separately. Would there be any advantage to me sending my coin to be graded since I got it so early? I have never done this and would have reservations about sending a coin out, or is it done by local certified dealers?
I forgot to mention it was sent UPS. The tracking number was a 1z… number. It arrived before I had a chance to figure that out.
Susan….not sure if this is a result of your divine intervention, but it appears that the “1st Day Order Dam” has broken! I just received Mint email (@10:07pm/ET) that my #308268xx order shipped today!! Several other Bloggers on another Coin Forum are also reporting having received emails that their UHRDEs shipped today.
Hooray!!
I think we all owe Susan and a few of her esteemed colleagues a sincere thank you. They all probably spent a fair amount of their mint contact brownie points to convince the powers that be that people were seriously concerned about the way the delivery of this coin was being handled.
Thank You, Susan, and thank the others who put pressure on the mint for us as well.
My coin shipped tonight as well. #30827XXX
So much for FIFO. My order # is before all the ones posted and I still have no sign of shipping. I just spoke to the mint and the girl was kind of vague. By april 24th was her answer. She said the book is backordered. On Feb 6th the web site showed in stock and reserved? The plot thickens.
My coin just arrived in Austin 20 minutes ago. Now I just have to sit and wait for Monday. It is only about 40 miles away (I can smell it). So, 16.5 hours from being assigned a UPS tracking number to arrival at the delivery station (oh, how I wish they had Saturday delivery for these). Only 12 hours from leaving Indianapolis to Arrival in Austin. Two plane rides and one truck ride up the Old Chisholm Trail.
I think part of our frustration comes from the amazing feats of transportation and tracking that are delivered by, and we have now come to expect from, UPS and FedEx. When there are examples of organization like these, it is hard to accept that others can not simply follow their lead. Maybe we could talk UPS and Fedex into bidding for the mint fulfillment contract, or maybe Amazon.com could do it.
Dave T and Clair, I thank you for your comments, and I feel the same way you do Dave about the first strike info and think it is bogus and should be striken. I have the paper work that came with my coin with the dates and all from the mind. I purchased this coin for the beauty of it and maybe some day my kids when they get older and open my safe after the lawyers read the “Will” will have that look of awe when I first read about the infamous 1933 DE. Will it be worth 7.2Mil some day? Most likely NOT but what a pleasure it is to have and look at. I am just a man who sits in his basement and enjoys searching thru pennies and other pocket change just hoping that one day I will find that 1909 S, VDB, but for now I am happy just to see pre ’82’s. Life is good and gets better every time I sit at my coin table with my glass of Chard, music going and dream. I wish I could afford to buy Gold and Silver for investment purposes, but just being able to purchase Proof Silver Eagles and maybe a Double eagle every now and then just to keep in my safe for my kids when I am gone, in my simple little mind makes it all worth while.
Hi KTD. Make sure someone else knows the combination to the safe so they don’t have to take a blowtorch to it when you’re pushing daisies. lol Wouldn’t want to damage those pretty coins. (I need to do the same).
I hope this UHR lives up to the hype. It seems too as long as we don’t get one of the duds that quality control is failing to cull. It’s such a shame that the Mint is lowering standards to the degree they are and expecting no one to notice or say anything. The way our voices will be heard is by “returning for exchange” sub-standard coins. If they have to eat enough secondary shipping and handling charges maybe they’ll re-think their current standards. Anyways… I digress.
I started searching through my pennies, looking for errors, but I feared going blind looking at those tiny coins. I need bigger chunks of metal to work with. Maybe that’s why I like the Morgans and Silver Eagles so much. I think the Silver Eagles are one of the most artistic and beautiful coins ever made.
How are you making out over-all with the penny search? I’d get my kids to help out with that more but quite honestly I don’t want to damage their young eyes. I get them involved in the hobby in other ways. I aleady know which of the three will want to inherit all my coins.
Dave-One other person has the Combo so the kids should be ok. I was all set to send the UHR off for grading today until this past weekend I looked at it really closely and noticed that on the edges there are some lines(2) one across from each other, lines caused by the intense pressure from the 3 rings that form the edgeing. I do not know the propper numismatic term but think it is something called “edge flitter” or something like that. Like I said I have a lot to learn. Any way there is NO way that this coin has a chance at being a 70. So in the safe it will sit.
As far as the Pennies go, I have found a bunch of “wheaties” and some blank planchets. Other then that it is rough on the eyes. God knows I have probably passed over a couple of ‘55 double dies. I have tried getting the kids involved but it seems they would rather kill Alien Warsar pact space troopers or something like that. Plus they’d just take the change and buy Yugio cards when I turned my back.
The cutoff date is set for March 11th ok that was from email from pcgs that i got , now i didnt buy this coin to sell on ebay but it does make me mad that i am not going to even be given the chance,i guess i should have ordered it later in the day as that sounds like it worked out alot better, congrats to you who have gotten yours, i am jealous too,and i was one of the first person to ask about sending this coin in to be graded and it appears this isn’t going to happen I wish they would call me and ask about my experience lol im waiting by the phone :{
I just have to add here, after reading all of the horror stories dealing with the mint and their lack of ability at answering the most basic of questions…anyway I noticed Friday that the U.S. Mint called my hose, why the Mint would call is beyond me unless they made a mistake and gave me someone elses UHR and wanted it back, sorry ill attempt at humor there. So I just called the mint to see if I could find out why they would be calling my house. Well wouldn’t you know it, that my call wouldn’t even go thru at the time and I was disconnected. Is the Mint shut down and they are using all the coins to pay AIG and other defunct greedy goverment subsidized organizations, or maybe the Stimulus package?
Bummer KTD… Are the marks on your coin as bad as the abrasions on the one UHR pic posted over at Coin Network? (I assume you’re the same KTD who posts over there). That’s the fear I have with the coin (other than my order getting cancelled). I don’t want to get so excited about getting this coin only to get a dud that I have to return.
I wonder if this has anything to do with the delays… close inspections revealing flaws on the coins and they’re now deciding to send the “least worse” ones out anyhow.
Here’s another nightmare scenario relating to the First Strike debacle… Many people are going to wind up sending in flawed coins to obtain this designation since they know they won’t get a replacement in time. So we’re going to have a bunch of coins in PCGS holders that should be body-bagged. (A stretch… maybe…). A lot of people are going to think “It’s in a PCGS slab so it must be a good coin”. This stuff does not do the hobby any good.
Hmmmmm…. Here’s a thought… The numbers I’m seeing state that 40,000 were sold in the first 4 days and only about 5,000 since. Maybe it’s the “Last Strike” coins that are going to be more valuable. I wouldn’t doubt that PCGS will pick up on that concept soon… another way to create artificial value while putting more money in their pockets.
Dang… this whole UHR mess is making me so cynical. I need to go find a little old lady to help across the street.
No Dave, they are not that bad, barely noticeable, but they are there. I will keep it becasue I do not want to go thru the hassel of returning it to the mint. All in all it is a great looking coin.(that was me over at Coin Network) I could sel it on Ebay for $10,000 since people are trying to sell the new Pennies for $160 plus. Now there is a thought…
LOL… Good luck with that. I’m glad it’s still a great looking coin…. And I’m still looking forward to getting mine.
KTD, I just wanted to make sure that the issue you see on the edge of your coin is not the ridge caused by gold getting into the very small space between the three pieces of the collar. Those three ridges are normal and expected. As long as they are uniform and not excessive, they are supposed to be there. It would not be a good thing if they were entirely absent, it might indicate that the coin was struck at less than proper force. They are shown clearly in the images from the mint.
Clair – I have seen photos of the UHRDE and most have “minor” lines from the 3 piece bands for the edgeing. Since I can actually hold mine and see it better then any picture it may seem excessive to me, I guess I was just expecting perfection. I understand the great amount of pressure that is required in making the UHR and basic physics applied makes sense that if they are using a “3 piece band” for the edgeing, it is understandable that some of the Gold would be forced out of the connecting band cracks. I know it’s not like they have a bunch of “coin polishers” sitting there filing and buffing coin edges. I mean for $1200 what more do we want?
Ordered 2 hours after the GUN on the 22nd. Finally got through to Customenr Service gal (who was nice) today.
Am told they are shipping NOW and I should have it by 4-24-09 (FIFO? – yeah, right!).
They hired a third rate jobber, mixed with a third-rate computer system, in what-is-becoming a third-rate nation. With all due respect, Mr. Moy, try to define the mission, pick great managers, and then JUST get the JOB done right. We should not have a MICKEY MOUSE MINT MR. MOY. M.M.M.M.M.
I’m sorry – , Mr. Moy, but you wait two hours on the phone because some JERK can’t program a security system for the M.M.M.M.M.
I have just posted a message from the mint regarding the Track Order function over in the forums at U.S. Coins, Information from the US Mint. I also posted my feelings about the message there.
first off i apologize for any bad language i used in previous post, i tryed to cancel my order today and got this response NO that my order was already being processed, i explain to them its been that way for weeks, she got the supervisor who said there was no way for them to cancel my order, even thos it will not ship out till march 19 thru april 24, so tomorrow i will head to the bank and cancel my card to stop this. Its crazy she said send it back for a refund, yeah okay how long will that take, im done with the mint. good luck to the rest
Did anyone else notice that when the mint updated the price of the UHR today (back down to $1289) that they removed the first-come, first-served promise? That is how they fix the problem, they rescind the promise entirely. Like they never said it in the first place.