Grading the Gold Sovereign (Part I)

WEAR ZONES ON THE AUSTRALIAN SOVEREIGNThe highest zones of a coins design wear away first. In order to assess a coin's grade, examining these zones with a good eyeand a magnifying glass is essential. Nevertheless, for the uninitiated, determining the wear zones of Australia's sovereigns sometimes requires a bright lamp, a couple dozen sovereigns for comparison, and a good deal of patience. In point of fact, I havedone some of the work for you and highlighted the wear zones on all* the main sovereign types; a short commentary accompanies each illustration.Sydney Mint (1857 - 1870)On the obverse, Victorias wreaths generally wear first. Lustre remains in the legends of above average coins. The reverse of the Sydney Mint sovereign is generally hardwearing. However, its open fields are susceptible to detracting marks and other imperfections. The crown and its devices, as well as the pair of encircling wreaths are the first to show wear. Coins in Very Fine generally exhibit lustre about the wreathes and in the legend. Shield Reverse (1871 - 1887)The Shield obverse wears in similar pattern to the St George obverse. Contrastingly, the reverse is hard wearing, and tends to wear generally evenly when it does. Lustre usually predominates the reverse, even on pieces in Fine. The Harp of Ireland (highlighted) wears first; however, that zone on the shield is poorly struck on some dates. Unfortunately, eBay does not allow more than ten images per guide, so I had to cull the image of the Shield obverse. Nevertheless, the wear zoneson the Shield obverse are similar to those on the St George Young Head obverse (image below) except that the Victorias bun on the Shield obverse is not as susceptible to wear.St George Reverse (1871 - 1887)As a relatively flat and simple design, the Young Head obverse wears somewhat evenly, beginning with those zones highlighted. Lustre remains in the legends in average coins. Contrastingly, the reverse shows considerable signs of wear after some time in circulation, beginning with St Georges chest and the dragons prominent wing. On both verses, fields are relatively susceptible to detracting marks. Jubilee Head (1887 - 1893)An intricate designed coupled with a rather filling effigy results in an obverse that wears very easily indeed. Australian Jubilee sovereigns are also notorious for bagmarks; genuine Choice Uncirculated pieces are scarcer than their Uncirculated Young Heads cousins. At the end of their lives, Jubilees are so worn that only Queen Victorias worn-down silhouette is visible.Veiled Head (1893 - 1901)The Veiled Head obverse wears in zones as indicated above. Because the effigy fills much of the obverse, the design wears somewhat easily. Sometimes Veiled Heads exhibit light wear on Victorias cheek, accompanied by detracting marks and other imperfections. The Veiled Head is also called the Old Head and Widow Head by some collectors.Edward VII (1902 - 1910)The obverses of sovereigns minted during the reign of Edward VII are shallowly struck, and feature the smoothed-skinned and lightly-bearded head of the King; these obverses wear rather evenly. The first zone to exhibit wear is the tip of the Kings beard as well as the base of his neck. The hair follows suit quickly, as do the eyebrows. George V Standard and Small Head (1911 - 1931)The first place to look at a Large Head George V obverse is the tip of the effigys moustache. If it is flat, the coin has most likely been in circulation and experienced some wear. The same can be said for the Small Head, which exhibits wear with greater ease than its predecessor. Average coins are worn from the tip of the effigys moustache and right over the kings side burns.* * *CLICK HERE TO READ PART II.Notes*Unfortunately, I did not have a Type I Sydney Mint sovereign on me at the time of writing; I therefore have not included it in this article; I expect to put it in soon.

BINDEEZ - What are they and how do you use them?

Feb 2008 - Bindeez are coming back. They are about to be re-released with a new name BEADOS! Watch my store for new products, expected soon.Friday Nov 9th - 4pm The final returns process has been completed. Please visit the web address below for full returns and refund details. All your questions should be answered and the details you need to return your products for refunds are available here. This is for AUSTRALIAN PRODUCTS ONLY - www.bindeezrecall.comThursday Nov 8th - 1.30pm The final returns procedure is still being finalised by Moose Enterprises. I have spoken with them again today and I understand that refunds will be issued for ALL products, with or without a receipt. I have also been advised that refunds may be issued on goods that have been opened and used, however I have not seen this information in writing. We will need to wait until that final process is announced. The contact details below are still valid and you can call the Bindeez Enquiry Line and leave your details, and someone from Moose Enterprises will call you back. (remember that there will be a LOT of people for Moose to call back, so the call back may not be immediate)Wednesday Nov 7th - 2.30pm Moose Enterprises has released a statement advising that all returns and refunds will be handled by Moose Enterprises directly. A Bindeez enquiry line has been created and the number is 1800 303 895. Alternatively you can email your details to returns@moosetoys.comThe exact process on how items can be returned HAS NOT been finalised and it is expected to be finalised within 24 hours. PLEASE NOTE - AS AT NOVEMBER 6TH 2007 - The New South Wales Government has temporarily banned the sale of all Bindeeez Products. Magic Beads that join with a spray of water.No Heat, No Glue, No MessSome of the Bindeez products that are available are as follows:Starter PackPrincess Starter PackActivity CentreSuper StudioUltimate Bead PackPortable PackContainer PackVarious Themed and non themed RefillBindeez is the new art and craft craze that is taking the world by storm. They are a fun and educational tool that encourages the development of finer motor skills, colour recognition and children are only limited by their imagination.At the 2007 Australian Toy Hobby and Nursery Fair, Bindeez Super Studio won the following awards:2007 Toy of the Year2007 Australian Development Award2007 Craft and Activity Category WinnerTo make a Bindeez design, all you have to do is make, spray and stay.MAKE - Using the templates provided or create your own design, fill up the unique Bindeez Pen with the beads. Press the button on the side of the pen to release the beads onto your Bindeez tray. SPRAY - Spray your design with water using the Bindeez sprayer.STAY - Once dry your Bindeez are ready for play or display! With the new Tray and Spray packs you get keyring danglers so your completed Bindeez can be added to your mobile phone, bag, pencil case, keyring or more.

Dating Hummels - A Guide to Hummel Backstamps

Hummelfigurines are highly sought after, with some pieces attracting very high prices. Condition and rarity will affect the value, however, so when buying a Hummel product look carefully for the two marks of its authenticity; the M I Hummel signature on the side of the base and the Goebel backstamp. Whether buying or selling Hummels on Ebay,it is to your benefit to understand the marking system used by the Goebel company on M I Hummel items. There are some excellent publications that give accurate and lengthy information about these highly collectible figurines, which includes current market prices, butthis guide is only intended as a general introduction to the Hummel Goebel trademarks to assist your trading on Ebay,.Trademark 1The crown markwas used on Hummels produced in 1935. The earliest figurines had this incised on the underside of the base, with the letters W G, which stood for William Goebel, one of the founders of the company intertwined beneath it. Occasionally the Crown Mark if found both incised and stamped and this is known as a double crown mark. Figurines also had M I Hummel incised on the side of the base. Trademark 2In 1950 the Goebel Company incorporated a Bee in a Vee, beginning with the incised Full Bee followed by the stamped Full Bee. These were followed by several variations, which attracted their own identification terminology,The High Bee - The Small Bee - The Baby Bee - The Vee Bee, but all are accepted as Trademark 2.Trademark 3In 1957 the Stylized Bee was introduced in 1957 and used until 1964.It came in two sizes, referred to as the Small or Large Stylized Bee. The Large Bee had the words W Germany placed to the right, while the Small Bee has these words underneath. In addition,the words West Germany occasionally appeared elsewhere on the base.

Intro to Cigars, sizes, history of some Cuban brands

An introduction to Cigars includingsizes, wrappers, factories, history.THE STRUCTURE OF A CIGARA cigar has three components: the filler, the binder and the wrapperFillerThe biggest mass of a cigar is the filler and in the case of hand made cigars it is usually strips of tobacco cut to the length of the cigar. This is known as long leaf. Short leaf indicates smaller, cut-up pieces normally used for machine-made cigars. There are three different types or styles of leaves in use for the filler blend: Ligero, Seco, Volado.

Too good to be true? A guide to no reserve auctions

I have been using ebay for a number of years now and find it a fun and convenient way to find goods at an oftenunbeatable price. It is the place to go to first for online bargains. I have purchased everything from jocks (new of course!)to CDs, and have even usedebay to help find a friend a car. I often search for cars and car parts on ebay to see what is around as I am quite the enthusiast.One thing I have noticed though is that sometimes people who are new to ebay will list an item at an extremely low staring price and with no reserve. Some of these auctions seem too good to be true. This is because they are. Oftenthese people are not awareof the rules and list the item withouta reserve even though theyhave a minimum sell price in mind and are not prepared to accept anything less. This is my experience...I was searching through various car parts and came across a clever personalized number plate 'IXIIIX' (929 in roman numerals) and thought that these plates would look good on my Mazda. Starting bid was about $5 and there was no reserve. Seeing a brand new set of personalized plates retail for around the $500 mark, I was very keen and placed a proxy bid for $200.Anyway, I returned from work one night, checked the auction and foundI had won the plates for an unbelievableprice of only $51 plus postage. An absolute bargain!I contacted the seller and asked for banking details so I could arrange payment. What happened next still sickens me!The seller, strick929,replied to me by saying they were expecting the plates to sellfor more so were relisting them on ebay starting at, wait for it, $200. I was furious! Ihad won the plates fair and square and regardless of what I was prepared to pay for them originally, they were rightfully mine.I sent several emails with out reply. Enough was enough. I contacted ebay who put me on to square trade. Unfortunately they were unable to resolve the issue as the seller did not reply to them either. Thankfully no money changed hands, but this was still not acceptable. This seller is no longer a registered user under the name strick929, but could still be using under a different name.I have seen cars up for auction worth around $60,000 with ridiculously low starting bids, a 'buy it now' option for what the car is worthand no reserve. Sellers, please understand the rules before placing items for sale. Buyers, if an auction looks too good to be true, ask the question, don't assume. It will save a lot of frustration later on.I'm sure I wasn't the first and I doubt I will be the last!Happy ebaying!xdionx

Cheaper to buy costumes online than hire!

Fancy dress costumes are amazing, you can be whoever you want to be!And now, with the ability to buy affordable, quality costumes online, it is often cheaper to buy than to hire a costume!Benefits are:~You don't have to worry so much about damaging it or spilling your drink down it, which would often result in charges from the hire shop you got it from! There's no hurrying to get it back to the hire shop the morning after the night before! And it's far more cost-effectivesince after your event, you get to keep it for use time after time after time!There is now an incredibly wide range of costumes available to purchase, to suit all pockets and tastes, ranging from budget costumes to quality deluxe costumes and accessories Sometimes all you need is a fake tash, beard, mask, and/or hat to achieve the desired result! I hope that this guide was of some help to you.Read my other guides

How to report sellers sending perfumes illegally.

This guide follows on from our previous guide:Perfumes are a dangerous good - postage restrictions In light of Australian State and Federal laws, International conventions, and the recently announced eBay Australia policy, which prohibits businesses/sellers from utilising Australia Post services to send fragrances without a consumer commodities dangerous goods contract, it is important for consumers to know that businesses/sellers who use Australia Post without this contract are putting public safety at risk, and they should be reported to the relevant authorities.This guide will briefly explain to you what the packaging requirements are for Class 3 Flammable Liquids (Perfumes/Colognes) and how to go about reporting violators. This guide has no bearing upon alcohol-free fragrances which can be sent via all methods, however, part 3) of the packaging requirements should be followed for all liquids to ensure that any spillage is contained and other mail isn't damaged as a result.When we received our contract with Australia Post we were advised of what the packaging requirements are for our products, which include:1) The packaging has to withstand a sustained drop from a height of 1.5 metres2) The packaging has to withstand a weight of up to 15kg being placed on top of it3) The fragrance and fragrance packaging has to be secured in such a way that if a breakage was to occur, the majority of any spillage would be contained. This is usually done via the use of a sealable bag and/or multiple layers of wrap and packing beads or absorbent paper.Below is an example of how a fragrance should be packaged for delivery with Australia Post. (For delivery, the various boxes on the eParcel label would be completed with delivery and return addresses, barcodes and a few other bits and pieces)