Hi Ken,
I have been keeping all the ones that come to me for since 2019 now in their original shipping cartons because the cabinet I bought to keep my coins in originally (in 2007 or 2008) became full, so I started doing this accidentally.
These cartons are starting to take up a lot of space in the room. A Con.
I started seeing people selling “unopened cartons” on ebay and such, not sure if before or after I started keeping them in their cartons. The first time I saw that kind of thing previously was “unopened” “Magic the Gathering” boosters or sets. It is a psychological thing, the excitement and mystery of not knowing what “treasure” might be inside. For coins the treasure is the “grade” the coin “might” achieve. A Pro.
Remember that while the tracking number is on the receipt inside the box, how will you be able to prove to your potential buyer what is inside the box without opening that box unless you keep a Mint email tying the tracking number, carton, and product together?
You can skip this next paragraph if you do not or will not ever have a lot of cartons at once.
One thing I have been doing is writing the date it was delivered and the “product number” (23RH, for example) the mint uses on the carton. I didn’t want to make it obvious to a petty criminal that there is something valuable inside. The Mint sends me multiple emails for every order, but at least one I make sure to keep in my Mint folder in my email inbox. The one saying “delivered” is probably the best. I would have to go to the Mint website eventually to look up what product matches the “product number” since I can’t memorize them all (I find it faster to find the email when I know which coin it is. The tracking number is lower down and less prominent in the emails). The date helps me narrow down the email search in the Mint email folder (I tend to keep almost all they send me). I never see the product number in the emails, so you cannot “search” your folders that way. If I put the email with the carton immediately, I have announced what is inside to a potential thief again. The only other thing I can think of is you had best be sure your heirs or family members know not to open the boxes accidentally. Also make sure to explain (spoken or in writing) how they can tie everything together and match up paperwork with carton if you pass unexpectedly or you will have wasted your time (because they will just open the cartons to determine what is inside).
Not all of my cartons have remained unopened. Every once in a while on this site, a coin will generate a lot of quality control complaints. I tend to open those. If a coin is known to have more than the average quality control complaints (like the new Morgan Proofs) everyone might be more reluctant to buy an “unopened” example in the first place. A Con.
You should probably only do this for the rarer, more expensive coins. I am not sure if anyone would want to take even a slim risk on getting a bad coin for a premium if the coins do not sell for very much anyway and are easily available.
It also seems like unopened cartons grow more valuable as more time passes, so it depends how long you are planning on holding onto them before selling.
A Pro would be that if the coin ends up being a poor example the buyer is still paying a premium for it, so you get more money than you would have gotten if you had opened it.
Hope I was helpful, and maybe Bubba can add some more info (if he is paying attention) if he thinks I have forgotten something, got something wrong, or if he is actively selling unopened cartons, which I have not done yet.

Bubba I saw where you mentioned you weren’t going to open them up. I think you are talking about the cardboard box they are shipped in? What are the pros and cons of such strategy. I have started leaving some of mine in their box after a local coins store said it could increases value. Just interested in y’alls thoughts.

That is terrible. I hate doing returns of anything, but I probably would here. 22 out of 25, man. I really do not know much about error coins, but there are some that are considered valuable that I think to myself “really?” I am uncertain as to the one you say is scraped.

Hi Bubba,
I am not an expert on this by any means, but I would think any scratches or gouges will always subtract value, while anything that happened during the manufacturing process to make a coin appear different than its peers will add value. I still think the coins John Haney got for example, would be worth more not less. I could be wrong, there does not seem to be a consensus so far. His pictures and the comments are somewhere above, if you didn’t see them. Were you subscribed or did you order yours later? Maybe you got someone’s returns. Yeah, a lot of us have been lamenting the Mints quality control lately.

You are welcome. I am glad I could help.

Kids and Teens are why collectors sometimes find unexpected treasures amongst the circulating coinage. I got that 1996-W dime Antonio keeps (amusingly) complaining about with a fingerprint on it, out of a vending machine at work as change in the early 2000s. No fingerprint! But I put it in my 5 gallon plastic water jug that I toss old circulating coins in. I knew it was unusual, but was not into collecting until a few years later. It probably isn’t scratched yet, since the jug hasn’t been moved since before I added that one to it.

Good one!

I went through all 25 coins. 5 had the same scratch between the one and dollar.
1 had some scrapes which was unique to the box. 17 had the same gouge to the E in STATES. 3 coins did not have either problem. So 22 out of 25 have an issue. I think these should be varieties since there seems to be so many with the same problem.