A fake coin in a genuine PCGS holder?

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The color seems a bit dark, but then, silver tarnishes.

Hey, you're the dealer ! "Deal" us in !! No substantiation ?

 

I agree the date looks funny, but it could be lighting from those awful pics. The rest of the coin looks correct, along with the luster.

 

I think it's just the pics. The lighting on the OP coin is coming from the 6 o'clock direction.
Coin in question:


3 examples from PCGS Coinfacts:

 

Here is another look at the date compared with one of the "Coin Facts" pieces.



I believe that the coin is genuine, but you are certainly wise to not take every offering in a TPG holder for granted. Here is an example of who you should keep your eyes open.

Here is a counterfeit 1881 Trade Dollar in a fake PCGS holder.



And here is the real coin. The crooks stole the serial number from this slab to make their counterfeit. Looking up the slab serial number on the PCGS site and matching just the number is not enough. Not all PCGS coins are photographed so that you can match them. You also have to be able to spot the fake coin.

 

While fakes have found their way into TPG holders, I'm don't think that this is one of them. Loss of detail on fakes doesn't scale down with the coin's size. This means that the detail on a half dime should be pretty bad compared to the detail on fake dollar, and the detail looks pretty good. The lighting is also playing tricks on your perception of the digits.

You have both the eBay "forever" (figuratively) return policy and a TPG guarantee to back you up if you buy it and it's bad. The Steve Crain half dime reference set is also online so that you can verify the validity of the die marriage.

 

I've seen worse counterfeits in fake holders. Check this "beauty" in the "MS-65" grade.

 

I am not a half dime collector, but @Paddy54 should be able to comment on this coin

 

I don’t understand why someone would go through the effort to counterfeit a slab for such a poor quality fake, and to assign a proof cameo grade when the details are EF at best. A lot of us are afraid of Chinese counterfeiting but I think sometimes we give them too much credit.

 

No one will pay market value for it. But if some sucker decides he has nothing to lose and pays $20, I'm sure the Chinese can produce them cheaply enough to make a profit.

 

There are a lot of people who couldn't grade a coin if their life depended upon it. They come to believe in slabs, and if you offer it to them at "bargain price," they will take a run at it. Just look at the bids the bad counterfeits get on eBay before or if the juck is taken down.

There is no gold or silver in this junk. The Chinese can make it on the cheap. In the 1980s, it was AU coins marketed as "MS-65 investment quality" scams. Now it's Chienese Junk.

Take a look at this "American Silver Eagle thing." It's in a genuine mint package with the Certificate of Authenticity, but the artwork is really crude.

 

Why would anyone go through all that trouble to counterfeit that?

 

The dime is very suspicious to my eyes given the images to work with. The numbers do not look correct they are to perfect cut as the 1864 dates.
With only 48 000 pieces struck in Philly, 90,000 at the San Francisco mint..
The coin in question would be a hard pass.....as I'm sure the price would be quite steep.

 

Why do the Chinese counterfeit common date Morgan Dollars in circulated condition? They can make money at it.

 

Because they can