Sample Slab Book - How to Order

Last updated: 2025-08-24

Quick order

The book is now available with three different covers. The content is the same, the different covers are a tip of the hat to the 2nd edition, to social media, and to the explosion of different labels that have occurred in our hobby!

Click on the cover you prefer to jump to the correct ordering page:

Jump to ordering the pdf.

About

The Sample Slab book is published in a licensed PDF format and on paper through print-on-demand technology. See the two following sections for the details.

Note: We are aware that the images in the .pdf (and the printed book) are not as sharp as we had hoped for. Many of the older images are small in size and we do not always have access to the slabs to take new photographs. Many contributions have come from cell phone cameras with the high compression and artificial sharpening that those images are known for. Unfortunately this means that what looked OK to good in the database and in the Word document did not always translate as well as we had hoped. We are looking into how to improve image quality.

3rd Edition Volume 1 - NCS/NGC and PCGS

Volume 1 covers Numismatic Guarantee Corporation (NGC) and Professional Coin Gradin Service (PCGS).

This volume includes the small # of samples issued by NCS (NGC's conservation arm) during the period before conserved coins began to be slabbed by NGC.

3rd Edition Volume 2 - the rest

Volume 2 is in preparation, with no release date at present. It will include the other 40 known issuers of sample slabs.

Ordering details - Paper Book - Print On Demand (POD)

POD means that - unlike the 1st and 2nd editions - we don't have to have a hundred copies printed at a time at significant initial expense. We don't have to store them in our living room (and your book doesn't come with a free bonus of cat hair). We don't have to pre-purchase and store shipping materials. We don't have to pack & post the orders.

Quite simply, POD lets us focus on researching and cataloging samples. And it makes it easy to create different covers based on a request from the sample slab collector's community.

Instead - for a fee (which may or may not equate to a savings for you) - the service does it all. You will receive your book just a few days later than if we had it already printed and had to stick it in a box and send it media mail it to you!

The POD service makes available an order page, and we don't have to pay for / host an ecommerce solution

You enter the order, and there's no risk of our mistyping things

When you place an order, the POD prints your book. And only YOUR book. There's no inventory sitting around...

The POD service packs & posts it to you, David and I don't have to make trips to the post office

Order the printed book from Lulu.

Based on a request from the sample slab collector's community, the book is now available with three different covers (another advantage of POD) - click on the cover you prefer to jump to the correct ordering page:

Ordering details - Licensed PDF

After you place your order for the PDF version, we will create the custom licensed .pdf file and upload it to the sampleslabs.info web site. The link will be delivered via email within 48 business hours of your order. If you don't receive the email, please check your spam folder before contacting us.

The .pdf file will be licensed to you for your personal use only. The license terms are generous, there are no limits on how many devices you can download to. We do retain the copyright (and many image files are copyright by 3rd parties and used in the book/.pdf by permission).

Personal Use License Agreement

By purchasing a license and/or downloading this .pdf, you agree to these terms for both the file and the personalized download link.

Your license purchase entitles you to download files containing the copyrighted material and grants you the following:

You may use the copyrighted material for your personal, non-commercial use only.
You may use this file on as many personally owned or used devices as you wish, for as long as you wish.
You may use the licensed file to have a physical book printed for your personal use and at your own expense. You are not permitted to sell or distribute this printed book to others.
You may not redistribute the file or download link, in whole or in part, electronically, in print, or in any other medium, without our prior written consent.
Violation of these terms, including any form of redistribution, will result in the termination of this license, and the licensed file will be deleted from our website without further notice.

PDF - via PayPal Goods & Services

Link to order pdf via PayPal: here.

When you fill out the PayPal order, be sure to give us your name and email address. Phone number is helpful if there are problems or questions.

PDF - via Venmo Friends and Family

Send to @Burton-Strauss

(Do be aware that your entire Venmo purchase history may be publically visible unless you chose to turn it off. See Changing Payment Privacy & Hiding Past Payments or your Privacy settings)

PDF - via Zelle Friends and Family

Send to bstrauss@acm.org