The Crack-Out Game: Should You Resubmit OGH + CAC Coins for a Higher Grade?

Sometimes the plastic holder is holding the coin back. Let’s talk about the risks and rewards of trying to upgrade this piece across grading services.

I’ve been cracking coins out of holders for over two decades now. It’s a niche within a niche — part art, part science, and part gambling. And right now, with the market for OGH (Old Green Holder) coins carrying CAC stickers reaching absolutely stratospheric levels, I’m getting more questions than ever from collectors and investors who want to know: Should I crack this out and resubmit to PCGS for a shot at a higher grade?

The short answer? It depends. The long answer is what we’re going to explore today. Because the intersection of vintage holders, CAC verification, and crossover potential is where some of the most fascinating — and most profitable — decisions in modern numismatics are being made.

The OGH + CAC Phenomenon: Why “Green on Green” Commands Such a Premium

Let me start by acknowledging what every serious collector already knows: the combination of an NGC Old Green Holder and a CAC green sticker has become one of the most powerful value multipliers in the hobby today. Forum members have been tracking this trend for years, and the numbers are staggering.

Consider this: collectors are reporting that common-date Morgan dollars in PCGS MS-64 rattler holders with CAC green beans are being listed at $400–$450. Let that sink in. A coin that might retail for $150–$200 in a modern holder is commanding nearly triple the price simply because of the holder and the sticker. As one forum member put it, “Back in the day collectors were into coins. These days many are into stickers and the plastic slabs. The actual coin, not so much.”

And it’s not just silver dollars. The phenomenon spans every major series:

• PCGS Rattlers (serial numbers 1080xxx): Commanding $10,000+ for gold coins
• PCGS Rattlers (108Xxxx): $1,000+ premiums
• Type coins in Rattlers: 3–4 times standard retail
• $1 Silver Eagles in Rattlers: $1,000+
• PCGS Doily labels: Starting at $500 above the coin value
• Early NGC slabs: “Crazy” pricing, as one collector noted
• Out-of-business holders: Prices “way up” across the board

The “green on green” combination — an NGC OGH with a CAC sticker — is particularly prized. As one collector eloquently stated, “I like green on green and believe it will pay off when it comes time to unload later on down the road.” The visual appeal is undeniable. The white NGC holders can look discordant with certain coins, but the green label of the OGH paired with the gold-and-green CAC sticker creates an aesthetic that many collectors find irresistible.

Understanding the Market Dynamics: When MS-66 Beats MS-67

Here’s where things get really interesting — and where the crack-out decision becomes most complex. Forum members have observed that certain MS-66 Saint-Gaudens double eagles with OGH + CAC are selling for more than some MS-67 examples. We’re not talking about rarities here. We’re talking about mid-1920s common-date Saints and even 1908 No Motto pieces.

Why does this happen? It comes down to two factors:

1. Holder premium: The OGH itself carries significant collector demand independent of the grade.
2. Perceived quality: A CAC sticker on an OGH signals that the coin is a premium example for the grade — what the community calls an “A” or “B” quality coin rather than a “C” quality borderline piece.

This creates a fascinating market inefficiency. If you have an OGH + CAC coin that you believe is undergraded, the potential upside of a successful crossover or upgrade is enormous — but so is the risk of destroying the very premium you currently enjoy.

The Crossover Question: NGC to PCGS and Back Again

As a professional crack-out artist, the question I hear most often is about crossovers — specifically, whether an NGC-graded coin can “cross over” to PCGS at the same grade. This is the foundation of the crack-out game.

How Crossovers Work

When you submit a coin for crossover to PCGS, you’re essentially asking PCGS to grade the coin as-is in its current holder. PCGS will examine the coin through the plastic and assign their own grade. If their grade meets or exceeds the current grade, the coin crosses over. If it doesn’t, you’ve wasted your submission fees and you’re left with a coin that still needs to be resubmitted raw for a regrade attempt.

The NGC-to-PCGS Reality

In my experience grading and crossing coins over the years, here’s what I’ve found:

• NGC gold coins in OGH holders have a reputation for conservative grading, particularly in the MS-63 to MS-65 range. This is precisely why the CAC sticker rate on NGC MS-65 gold coins is so low — CAC is confirming that these coins are already solidly graded.
• PCGS tends to be slightly more generous on certain series and grade ranges, but this is not a universal rule. Every coin is different.
• The success rate varies dramatically by series. Morgan dollars, Peace dollars, and Saint-Gaudens gold all behave differently at the grading table.

One critical point that forum members raised: the percentage success rate of CAC with gold MS-65 coins is quite low. This means that when you do see an MS-65 gold coin with a CAC sticker, it’s a genuinely premium example — and the market reflects this with substantial premiums.

Identifying Undergraded Coins: The Crack-Out Artist’s Eye

Not every coin is a good candidate for cracking out. In fact, most aren’t. The key is developing the eye to identify coins that have genuine upgrade potential. Here’s my framework:

Step 1: Evaluate the Coin, Not the Holder

This sounds obvious, but you’d be amazed how many people get seduced by the holder and forget to actually look at the coin. Before considering any crack-out, I examine:

• Strike quality: Is the coin fully struck? Are all design details sharp and complete?
• Surface preservation: Are there minimal marks, hairlines, or other detracting features? Are the marks in non-obvious areas?
• Luster: Does the coin have original, undisturbed luster? Cartwheel effect? Frosty or prooflike surfaces as expected for the type?
• Eye appeal: This is the intangible factor. Does the coin “sing” to you? Does it look like a coin that should be in a higher-grade holder?

Step 2: Compare to Known Standards

I maintain extensive photographic records of coins at every grade level for the series I work with. Before cracking out an OGH + CAC coin, I compare it side-by-side with coins I’ve seen at the next grade up. If my coin is clearly superior to known examples at its current grade and comparable to known examples at the next grade, it’s a candidate.

Step 3: Consider the CAC Factor

Here’s a nuance that many collectors miss. A CAC sticker on an OGH coin tells you that CAC has already evaluated this coin and determined it to be a solid or premium example for its current grade. This doesn’t necessarily mean the coin is undergraded — it means the coin is a top-tier example at its assigned grade.

However, CAC does sometimes sticker coins that I believe are undergraded. The key is to look at the coin’s characteristics relative to the next grade up, not just its current grade. If the coin has the surfaces, strike, and eye appeal of the next grade, the CAC sticker may actually be confirming quality that the original grader missed.

The Risks: What You Stand to Lose

Let me be brutally honest about the risks, because this is where many collectors get burned.

Risk 1: Downgrade

The most obvious risk. You crack out an NGC MS-65 OGH + CAC, submit to PCGS, and it comes back MS-64. You’ve now destroyed a coin worth potentially thousands of dollars in its original holder and replaced it with a coin worth a fraction of that amount. This is not a hypothetical scenario — it happens regularly.

Risk 2: No Cross, No Upgrade

Even if the coin doesn’t get downgraded, it might simply not upgrade. You’ve spent submission fees, shipping, insurance, and time, and you’re back where you started — except now your coin is raw and needs to be resubmitted.

Risk 3: Damage During Crack-Out

Cracking coins out of holders is a physical process. Despite my best efforts and years of experience, coins can be damaged during removal. Edge nicks, hairlines from friction, and even toning disruption are all possible. This is why I only crack out coins where the potential reward significantly outweighs this risk.

Risk 4: Market Timing

The OGH + CAC premium exists right now. If the market shifts — if collectors move on to the next trend, or if economic conditions change — that premium could evaporate while your coin is out of its holder being resubmitted. You’re essentially betting that the premium will still be there when you’re done.

When the Crack-Out Makes Sense

Despite all these risks, there are scenarios where cracking out is the right call. Here’s my decision framework:

1. The coin is clearly undergraded. Not “maybe” or “I think so” — clearly. The coin has no business being at its current grade based on every objective criterion.
2. The grade jump would be significant. Going from MS-65 to MS-66 on a common-date Saint in an OGH + CAC holder could mean a difference of thousands of dollars. That’s worth the risk. Going from MS-65 to MS-65+ would not be.
3. The coin has strong eye appeal. Grading is subjective, and eye appeal matters. Coins with exceptional eye appeal tend to do better at resubmission.
4. You can afford to lose. If a downgrade would be financially devastating, don’t do it. The crack-out game is for collectors and investors with the bankroll to absorb a loss.

The Auction Factor: Where Premiums Actually Materialize

One important point that came up in the forum discussion: where you sell matters as much as what you’re selling. As one member noted, “Unless you sell them on the BST [Board Sales Thread] and then no one wants to pay a premium. To get the most, you have to go to auction — otherwise everyone just wants to beat you up.”

This is absolutely correct. The premiums we’re discussing — the $450 for a common-date rattler, the 3–4x retail for type coins — these are auction premiums. They’re driven by competitive bidding between motivated buyers. On the open market, in private sales, or on dealer buy lists, you’ll rarely see these kinds of numbers.

This has direct implications for the crack-out decision. If you crack out an OGH + CAC coin and successfully upgrade it, you’ll need to sell it at auction to realize the full benefit. If you’re planning to sell privately or to a dealer, the calculus changes significantly.

Case Study: The 1875-P Trade Dollar Anomaly

One of the most fascinating examples from the forum discussion involves an 1875-P Trade Dollar — PCGS XF-45 with CAC — that sold for more than AU-58 examples. This seems counterintuitive until you understand the market dynamics at play.

As one forum member pointed out, there was an even more extreme example: an 1877-S Trade Dollar (TDV-36, doubled die reverse, die 2, chop mark) in PCGS AU-58 that sold at Stack’s Bowers for roughly 3–4 times what a similar coin might be expected to fetch.

What drove this result? Several possibilities were discussed:

• Variety confusion: The coin may have been mistaken for the much scarcer FS-801 instead of the FS-802 due to the use of TDV numbers instead of FS numbers in the listing.
• Population report complexity: There are multiple PCGS specification numbers for the same variety, which can create confusion about true rarity.
• Simple passion: Sometimes two bidders fall in love with a coin and the price goes to levels that defy rational analysis.

The takeaway for crack-out artists is this: variety attribution and holder type can sometimes matter more than grade. Before cracking out any coin, make sure you understand the full context of what you’re holding — including variety, holder type, sticker status, and market demand for the specific combination.

The Gold CAC Factor: A Special Category

Forum members have noted that gold coins with CAC stickers command an especially high premium. As one collector observed, “The percentage success rate of CAC with gold MS-65 coins is quite low, so the premium is often substantial on all the gold coins.”

This creates a unique challenge for the crack-out artist. On one hand, the low CAC stick rate means that a gold coin with a CAC sticker is genuinely exceptional — and therefore more likely to be a candidate for upgrade. On the other hand, the premium for a gold CAC coin is so high that the risk of cracking out is correspondingly greater.

I’ve seen collectors like Seth at Witter build entire collections around CAC-stickered gold slabs — 24 double-row slab boxes worth. That’s an incredible concentration of premium material, and it speaks to the long-term confidence that serious collectors have in the CAC + holder combination.

My Personal Philosophy: The Coin Comes First

I’ll leave you with a thought that one forum member expressed beautifully: “I have quite a few gold coins in Old Green Holders, some CAC. For me, that is the most visually appealing combination of coin and holder. The white NGC holders look discordant to me with certain coins. Potential resale value isn’t everything to me.”

I couldn’t agree more. While I make my living cracking coins out of holders and chasing upgrades, I never lose sight of the fact that these are coins first and investments second. The history, the artistry, the craftsmanship — that’s what drew most of us to this hobby in the first place.

That said, I’m also a realist. The market is what it is, and understanding the dynamics of OGH + CAC premiums, crossover potential, and crack-out risk is essential for anyone who wants to navigate this market successfully.

Conclusion: The Crack-Out Game in the Age of OGH + CAC

The convergence of vintage holder collecting, CAC verification, and crossover grading has created one of the most dynamic and potentially profitable segments of the numismatic market. The premiums being paid for OGH + CAC coins — particularly in gold, Saints, and Trade Dollars — are not a passing fad. They reflect a fundamental shift in how collectors perceive value, quality, and authenticity.

But with great potential comes great risk. The crack-out game is not for the faint of heart, the undercapitalized, or the emotionally attached. It requires a clear-eyed assessment of the coin’s merits, a realistic understanding of grading probabilities, and the financial resilience to absorb a downgrade if things go wrong.

If you’re considering cracking out an OGH + CAC coin, my advice is simple: do your homework, trust your eyes, and never risk more than you can afford to lose. The plastic holder might be holding the coin back — or it might be the most valuable thing about it.

In the end, the crack-out game is about one thing: finding the truth of a coin’s grade beneath the layers of plastic, stickers, and market hype. That’s what I do, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything. RGDS.