Credit Suisse Gold Bars

Discussion in 'Bullion Investing' started by JustSomeDude, Jan 5, 2021.

  1. JustSomeDude

    JustSomeDude New Member

    I was talking with the owner of a local shop I had never been in the other day and the topic of gold bars came up. He told me there are tons and tons of fake Credit Suisse gold bars out in circulation. He seemed like a very nice and reputable guy who was honestly giving me information. I also realize that he is a dealer and basically only wants me to buy from him instead of a local gold pimp hawking his wares outside of a 7-11.

    While I’m not necessarily in the market for gold right now, I would like to add some eventually. Does anybody have any tips or tricks to snuff out these fake bars?
     
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  3. YoloBagels

    YoloBagels Well-Known Member

    Buy from a credible source that you know will give you a refund if you find out their product is a fake. Chances are the guy at 7-11 is selling plated gold and won't be around the block tomorrow.

    Brick and mortar shops are almost always credible, they usually have bullion testing kits/machines.
     
    Kentucky, capthank, Two Dogs and 3 others like this.
  4. medoraman

    medoraman Supporter! Supporter

    I agree, and it goes for everything. I usually do not buy bars simply because there are no hard metrics to make it easier to identify real versus fakes, (specific diameter, thickness, coin design, etc). When I do buy bars, they are only old fashioned Englehards from reputable sources because I find them cool looking. However, anything can be faked, so buy from someone with a money back guarantee. Saving $20 on a premium means nothing if its fake, right?
     
    capthank and YoloBagels like this.
  5. JustSomeDude

    JustSomeDude New Member

    Thanks guys. So that advice should carry over to show purchases as well? Unless I can confirm they are a top end dealer?
     
    capthank likes this.
  6. Collecting Nut

    Collecting Nut Borderline Hoarder

    Buy from a reputable dealer
     
    Two Dogs likes this.
  7. fretboard

    fretboard Defender of Old Coinage!

    Agreed and don't be a sucker to an offer with great savings, especially on gold! :D
     
    capthank likes this.
  8. Collecting Nut

    Collecting Nut Borderline Hoarder

    Definitely
     
  9. Two Dogs

    Two Dogs Well-Known Member

    It seems that the consensus is that there are a significant number of fake gold bars out there and there's a danger of getting a fake when purchasing bars. To me that also means I'll have more trouble selling gold bars especially in one of those "if the crap hits the fan" scenarios. Why not stick with gold Eagle, Maple Leaf, Krugerrand coins? Yes, you have to be careful with them too. But for not much more, you can also get certified gold coins in MS69 or PR69 condition. All it takes is getting burned once and the small premium for such well known coins that are certified does not seem so high. When I have sold gold, the dealers take my eagles, Krugerrands and Maple Leaf gold coins with just a quick look, but if I offer them a bar, they say "wait a moment" and get the scanning machine out to check it.
     
    capthank, medoraman and YoloBagels like this.
  10. Spark1951

    Spark1951 Accomplishment, not Activity

    I have one I inherited. @JustSomeDude ...

    It weighs 31.98 grams. It looks exactly like a authentic ounce bar but has a larger, laser cut serial number. The authentic bars from Credit Suisse have a stamped serial number in smaller numerals.

    Googled. Found these are gold plated brass or copper, mine was copper. They are called souvenirs. It is essentially a replica of an authentic bar, but to me is fraud because they are stamped “1 ounce pure gold”, with all the normal designs of Credit Suisse.

    I took mine out of its plastic case and scraped a tiny bit of the plating off one of the corners, revealing the copper. I’m going to use mine as a fishing sinker. I know eventually I will lose it but for $3.12, who cares....jmho...Spark

    edited to correct: grams not oz.
     
    Last edited: Jan 6, 2021
  11. Herberto

    Herberto Well-Known Member

    I am not deep into this, but I would suggest to stay away from gold bars and stick to only 1 oz Canadian Maple Leaf (and from trusted dealers for sure). The radial line and the laser mark with year production like this:

    1-oz-gold-bullion-dna-coin-security.jpg

    It would be very difficult to make a fake of such a bullion coin like above.

    Other here might disagree of course.
     
    Two Dogs, Spark1951 and capthank like this.
  12. runninghorse1

    runninghorse1 Member

    I've been very happy with my purchases of Secondary Market 5 gram gold bars from APMEX. I don't want the assay / packaging. I put my "loose" bars in cardboard flips and add them to the stack. When I need to liquidate them or my wife does after I'm gone, the LCS with the bullion tester can very quickly scan them and verify that they are real. I don't buy gold from anyone except APMEX or a dealer at the coin show that I attend regularly.
     
    FryDaddyJr likes this.
  13. juris klavins

    juris klavins Well-Known Member

    PAMP Suisse bars are sealed in plastic cards with a QR code and individual serial number - an iPhone app or PC software enables you to verify the authenticity of any Veriscan gold bar - of course, there are fakes, but running the verification procedure will keep you from getting scammed.

     
    runninghorse1 likes this.
  14. JustSomeDude

    JustSomeDude New Member

    I guess this post is what I’m getting at. I would assume these are sealed much in the same way that a coin is sealed in the grading process. Meaning it’s virtually impossible to remove it from the slab without damaging the outer plastic. Can a dealer (or bullion testing machine) still run a test on the metal while it’s inside the plastic? Or would it need to be removed first to be 100% sure?
     
  15. fretboard

    fretboard Defender of Old Coinage!

    Yes, it's done all the time with an XRF Spectrometer, here's a pic! :D

    xrf scanner.jpg
     
    john65999 and Bob Evancho like this.
  16. crazyd

    crazyd Well-Known Member

    Does this protection apply to the RCM silver bars ?
     
  17. Herberto

    Herberto Well-Known Member

    Sorry for the late respond. I almost never participate anymore.

    Never heard of the RCM silver bars until now. I'm not deep into this as mentioned before. The reason I mentioned the Maple Leaf is simple because of the radial line and laser mark. Especially the firstmentioned stands out. One will never understand how the the radial line feel like until you touch it with your nail.
     
    crazyd likes this.
  18. mpcusa

    mpcusa "Official C.T. TROLL SWEEPER"

    By from a reputable dealer like Jm Bullion to start, I dont think you can
    go wrong there :)
     
    FryDaddyJr likes this.
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