Featured Counterfeit Morgans: hands on with a high quality Chinese fake

Bob,
thanks for that informative post...I'm going to save a pic of this fake.

 

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Fakes like this are dangerous; they would never fool a TPG or a collector with some basic knowledge and a loupe, but they can sell easily on eBay with the standard smallish photos, at flea markets and roadside auctions. In other words they only have to be "good enough".

 

The problem is the fakes a getting way better and are fooling collector's and dealers with more then basic knowledge

 

Wow, these are pretty well done. I've never bought a Morgan, for I have my three from my Grandfather after he passed. Plus my Mom said she got me a 'coin' from a 'mint' for Christmas. That scares me a bit, but I'll wait until then because i really don't want to ruin the surprise. Any-ho, the coin, like i said above, is pretty well minted, but the flaws i found were;

1. Nostril is a little too tilted.
2. Lip looks off a bit.
3. Liberty on the tiara is to deep.
4. CC is a little chunky.
5. This weighs 26.72g, while it should weigh 26.73g.
6. Small dots and gaps are on the face.

Excuse me if I'm wrong with any of these, I'm new to grading and appraisals.
Thanks

-John

 

This is the best analysis I’ve come across thus far. Thank you for taking the time to share your knowledge!

 

The sad thing is that there are plenty of chumps out there that would gladly pay $53 for that coin thinking they were getting the deal of a lifetime and the seller is the stupid one. It kind of reminds me of the 1933FH gold dollar with a blurry picture that sold on E-Bay for $150 or thereabouts a while back. There were a whole bunch of bids on that gem.

 

Here's another fake for your educational purposes. Paid $17 for this one but knew up front it was not genuine.

 

When did you buy it? and from whom? what's with the spike above Anna's hair?

 

Is the Morgan silver? and how much does it weigh in grams.

 

eBay. Search "fake Morgan dollar" and you'll find and overseas seller listing them as fakes.

Looks like the spike is a crack of some sort. There's a similar one over the O on the reverse.

Denticles are weak in some areas. Also some of the lettering is not consistently strong. Overall it's very weak and "soft" compared to a real coin. Lack of detail in the area of the hair and on the eagle as well. Side by side with a real Morgan in similar condition and it's very easy to tell the difference.

OPs coin is a better fake than this one.

 

Unknown yet. Does not attract a magnet.

I'll weigh it tomorrow.

I purchased it to be destroyed. Have a sort of project I wanted to do and couldn't bring myself to sacrifice a real Morgan. I'm all too happy to ruin this one.

 

Thanks Mike, good to know about this garbage.

 

It's also very easy to identify it as counterfeit on its own; really, it's quite poor. With that said though, it is good that you've posted it. The more available for people to see the better.

 

23.95 grams

 

Difference of 2.78...that should be a clue.

 

I'm surprised we are talking about knowingly buying and selling counterfeits. Is that legal? Is it legal to hold a coin that you know is counterfeit?

 

Possessing one and selling it as genuine are different.

 

I keep a complete reference set. in a 2x2 Whitman blue box well marked as counterfeits. When teaching, there is nothing like the real fake thing to educate. Must have several hundred.

 

I have been interested in VAM Morgans over the years, even though attributions are cumbersome and difficult. But now that I see the quality of the fake Morgan posted here, I am thinking to buy VAM Morgans only. The counterfeiters are obviously skilled but I think it would tax their abilities to counterfeit VAMs. So maybe the VAM Morgans are the safest to avoid counterfeits. Thoughts?

 

Thanks for your information Bools B4Coins and David. Now I won't be so concerned that I am holding a counterfeit 1928 Peace Dollar. I was tipped off about the larger eight before considering to sell it. Tried to send a photo but I'll need more help to do that