Trade Dollar Experts: Real or Fake

What are your thoughts? Real or Fake? Don't have access to a scale, but at the same time I have seen a few good fakes?

http://xs124.xs.to/xs124/08065/a8d2_1574.jpg
http://xs124.xs.to/xs124/08065/da2d_1319.jpg

 

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With these, the scale is really your best bet.

I never liked Trade Dollars.... are they still technically "demonitizied", ie not legal tender? if so.... it's a simple silver round to me...

That is a nice looking example however. No chop marks...

 

It looks good ,but what is the weight and size?

 

I don't know, something about those fingers holding the olive branch... Definitely get a weight.

Ben

 

I agree, get a weight. I am leaning towards fake though.. Notice the rim on the reverse at 11:00 - 12:00.

 

ill go with Ben that hand dont look right

Jon

 

yup to me too.

 

The enlarged photos are out of focus but I vote FAKE. I see raised lumps in many places - obverse fields, obverse on Liberty's face and above her head in the field, on her left arm and adjacent to her left arm at the field, reverse between the letters of UNITED STATES and the denticles, in and on these letters and along the reverse rim (11:00 - 12:00).

Raised lumps are a tell-tale sign the coin is a counterfeit. It is most likely a Chinese counterfeit.

 

Based on the overall appearance, I'll go along with the "fake" opinions.

If you have a Morgan or Peace Dollar, a popsicle stick, and a pencil, you don't need a scale to check the weight. Trade Dollars are 7.5 grains heavier than US Silver dollars, which is enough to be seen with a simple balance. The great majority of TD counterfeits are lighter than Morgans/Peace Dollars instead of heavier.

 

Er yes they are still demonetized (only US coin that ever has been) so they're not legal tender... but so what? Not like you'd spend one as just a dollar anyway lol... any more than I'd spend a gold buffalo, that is legal tender for $50, as if it were just $50.

 

I see nothing to suggest that the coin is fake.

I am anything but an expert, and the granular nature of the photos make it difficult to gauge what the coin really looks like.

My guess - and it is only a guess - is that the coin is genuine.

That said, this is one series I would NEVER buy raw based on my lack of experience and preponderance of countefeit examples

YMMV...Mike

 

As we know, the Trade Dollar was demonitizied with the act of July 22, 1876.
The legal tender status was re-instated, i.e. remonetized, with the Coinage Act of July 23, 1965.

Or as Wlater Breen states: "was apparently restored to legal tender status". However, Breen is the only source that I have ever seen that states "apparently".

 

Heres one that didnt escape the chops.

 

The trade dollar was never mentioned specifically in that act, so opinions and interpretations differ... however since any given trade dollar has a numismatic value well in excess of one dollar anyway it's a moot point I suppose. Either way I doubt anyone is going to take a genuine trade dollar and try to spend it to test its legal tender status lol...

 

Honestly don't mind a few as long as they're not too distracting... I like a coin that looks like it actually saw some use, just my preference. Not too much, but a little lol...

 

So what do you think of this 1875 CC ? I think its looks cool and i like knowing that its been to china and back. Anthough I wished the chops where more in the feild instead of making the center look like she was beaten with clubs. lol

 

Im no expert but the face and arm looks wrong to me. My guess is fake

 

It's real..

 

Get a scale.. They only cost $10. There all over ebay..

 

Fakes

My Father in Law gave me a couple of dozen trade dollars and about half are fakes. He said to use a magnet to find the real ones. The fakes are slightly magnetic and the real ones aren't magnetic.