How do you as a collector define “Rarity”?

[mrvster]

John, Love the topic....

i like your scale.....going to take a shot...

1 = unique
1-3 = impossible
3-5 = ultra rare
5-10 =very rare
10-30 =rare
30-50 =scarce
50-70 =tough
70-100 =very difficult
100-200=difficult
200-500=tougher
500-600=less common
600-1000=common


1000+ why bother

[Baseball Rarities]

Here is the scale that has been used in the coin market for years:

■R-8: This is a unique coin; only 1 exists
■R-7 High: A coin that’s excessively rare; 2 to 3 exist
■R-7 Low: An extremely rare coin with 4 to 12 remaining known
■R-6: A very rare coin with 13 to 30 known specimens
■R-5: 31 to 75 coins exist, classifying it as rare
■R-4: A very scarce coin with 76 to 200 examples left
■R-3: With 201 to 500 estimated pieces, this is a scarce coin
■R-2: A coin that is not common, with 501 to 1250 coins in existence
■R-1: With at least 1251 coins remaining, this is a common coin

[barrysloate]

Kevin,
I know of a slightly different scale that is used for large cent varieties so the coin hobby may have more than one:

R8+: unique
R8 : 2 known
R8- : 3
R7+ : 4-6
R7 : 7-9
R7-: 10-12
R6+: 13-18
R6 : 19-25
R6-: 26-30
R5+: 31-45
R5 : 46-60...

And it continues on to R1, which is 1500 or more known of the variety. Maybe different areas of the coin hobby have their own scale.

[Baseball Rarities]

Barry,

I just copied the coin scale off of the internet. I am not sure what year it is from - I was just showing an example of the coin industry's take on it.

I think that it has basically stayed the same over the years, except that they have broken down each of the numerical categories - R8+, R8, R8-. The orginal Sheldon scale from the 1940's or 50's just had R1 through R8 with no subcategories. I think that the scale that you are referencing is the most up to date.

[Exhibitman]

Yeah, Jeff's pretty much got it right...

It's kinda like porn; I know it when I see it.

I'd define "rare" in terms of how hard it is to get the card for my collection, money and condition notwithstanding. If a card shows up once every few years, that's rare. If I can buy a specimen tomorrow if I want to complete a set, that's common. Everything else is degrees. The T206 Wags and Plank [common back] are not rare; the error Doyle and Cobb/Cobb are. I can't afford any of them but if I had the cash I'd have a Wagner or a Plank, but I'd probably be sitting around waiting for the others to show up.

I don't consider "condition rarities" to be rare, for reasons I've blathered on about repeatedly in the past: subjectivity establishing the 'grade', lack of true population vs. graded numbers, etc.

[barrysloate]

That's probably it Kevin. Over time the +'s and -'s were added to make it more precise.

[atx840]

The R rating seems about right to me, however should sample size be considered(coins minted vs cards printed)?

For T206's Im not sure any card is considered rare outside of the Doyle, maybe a few of the errors (ghosts, test strips).