Are they actually fake coins? I've bought a roll from comebacknowyall on there and those coins were good. Had 1859 AU IH and a VDB showing, turned out to be a nice grade 09 which appeared to have an s on it. Sold it on eBay as a 09P VDB Those are the actual coins I seen when I bid.
Look, you seem like a nice enough person and you are from Michigan, so that rocks. I am just telling you what most collectors know, and you will find out: The wheat rolls are the #1 scam, regarding coins, on ebay. -My name is Greg, and I approve this message.
Yep... those $20 rolls are "seeded"... a bunch of 40's and 50's (worth a few cents each) with teasers on the ends. Probably worth in the $6 to $10 range. Not exactly a "scam", but stretching the truth a little by using terms such as "unsearched" (do you really think the seller doesn't know what's in the roll?). These auctions have been going on since I first started buying/selling on eBay in 1998, the only difference is now there are thousands of "unsearched" rolls being sold daily. It's amazing how that "special" coin (whether it be a flying eagle, indian head cent, VDB reverse, Barber or Mercury dime) always ended up on the end(s). These type of auctions have been discussed in depth here on CT.
Thanks Greg, I just bought the rolls because she was selling them with the 2 V nickels. I figured if those are real the wheats could be a crap shoot and I'd still be up. I'll let you know what I find inside those.
Yes I read an article on here about the odds of 2 IH tails showing on both sides on 1500 rolls. But a 1909s 1922(no mention of a d) and 2 flying eagles is clearly worth the shot for $80 IMHO
This is when you need to step back, and not take a gamble. It's like buying a raffle ticket to the Mafias lottery. You are not going to win. Instead, look for a nice flying eagle by itself. In the long run, you will be much happier with a nice original FE worth what you paid, instead of having 2 damaged, cleaned, or otherwise problem coins. Just something to think about. Never buy a collectible coin without seeing clear images of both the front and reverse. Also, take the book values and throw them out the window.
I understand your thinking on this, and that's why these auctions are thriving. It would be nice if someone actually got value for their dollars spent... here's hoping you do!
Well, let's start by saying the '12-S is heavily counterfeited by our Chinese friends, and done quite well in some cases. Examples struck on laser cut dies appear genuine to an untrained eye, and can even fool some dealers. The example you show has terrible photos, so judging is very difficult. I agree with Tom that (to me anyway) both the "S" and the date appear to have some deviation from the norm, and that should be enough to throw up some red flags. Again, when you receive the coin, post some good photos and hopefully we'll be able to help out a little better.
When i first started buying on ebay i bought the penny rolls also The picture showed an indian head on one end and a wheat back with vdb on the other. The seller would list it as possible vdb s. Never did get an s after buying more than 20 rolls. As others have posted the coins inside the rolls are junk and some even show a dime on the end of rolls. I think we all know how tight money was back in the day as these sellers are trying to convince you that they were from. Anyone knows that the coins would have been hand rolled and no one would put a dime in just to make a full roll. Good luck and by the way ive read a few times in the dealers feed back that someone got a roll with an s inside it.. I still cant belive that. When you see them say unsearched rolls the only time it wasnt searched will be by you.
Okay, so I think they're all fake. Here's the rolls I got too. Too good to be true I'd say for sure. That's right, a BU 09s probably vdb 22 no d BU and 2 1856 Flying Eagles. :-/
Wow... unfortunately, Tom B. was correct. Mushy details are a dead giveaway (compare them yourself to readily available high definition photos). This should be an easy one for a dealer to verify (hopefully you have one locally).
Hooray for Buyer Protection. Please report these as counterfeits to eBay, rather than just returning them. Most likely, eBay will return your money, and not force you to return them to the seller (who would, of course, just pass them off on someone else). It will be important to leave negative feedback specifying "counterfeit coins" for the seller, but I usually wait to see how things unfold before doing so.