just got my new scale and weighed my morgans

correct weight is 26.73, one coin a 1881 was right on the other 19 ranged from 26.67, 26.78, 26.70 26.65, 26.61, is it safe to say these are all fakes?? also did some peace dollars and most are 26.61 are these fakes too?? I really can't tell by looking they all look good compared to a real slabbed coin

 

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Nope it does not mean they are fake - but it does not guarantee they are real. I think those are an acceptable range for real coins. To me weight is only one factor of determining a counterfeit.

 

Are any of the coins circulated? The only one that might throw up a red flag would be the highest weight.

Chris

 

coins weighed are all xf-au

could not see why any circulation would effect this bunch, did have a old worn peace dollar that did weigh less but it was very worn, any hints to look for, this is just crap that you can't trust anyone, I will never buy raw coins again and will stick with silver maples for bullion coins

 

It's extremely unlikely they're fakes. There is a certain weight tolerance, and yours are safely within the limit.

In my experience, counterfeit common-date Morgans are rare, and quite obvious when you do find them.

 

Circulation wear will affect the weight.

Chris

 

You should realize that these coins were not minted to a static weight, but to a weight range and that even after circulation the lightest coin in the group is still 99.6% of the idealized weight. This is a good sign.

 

Now doug, I've seen barber coinage that has lost almost 20% of its weight in wear, mostly on AG coins.

 

Barber coins seem to get really thin looking when very worn.

 

I'm not questioning the veracity of your statement, but what is the tolerance on your scale? .1? .01? .001?

Chris

 

I want to say that weight tolerances are listed in the 2010 Prof. Edition Red Book. Can anyone confirm this?

 

I found it hard to believe but it's true.

 

I would conmsider that hardly any wear at all compared to the barbers I have in mind. But I will admit I did not weigh them on a good scale so i may be way off. They just look really thin sideways and I cant imagine they havent lost signifcant weight.

 

Yes they all look with in acceptable ranges, Most copies would be alot lighter!

 

I read that coins don't lose appreciable weight to wear, but gain some after being circulated because they pick up dirt and corrosion. I tested a new scale with a Morgan (rated weight 421 grains) and it hit dead on. The only really light coin I weighed was a WC that was 1.2 grams. But somebody said it had been soaked in acid. Had good detail left though.

 

This is exactly how I view it. No guarantee either way with those numbers, only a diagnostic towards verifying the authenticity of a specimen.

To clarify - In cases where numbers are significantly awry of tolerance is where concern would be IMO. That said, there are known examples of specimens that do weigh very precisely within tolerance, and have been determined to be counterfeits.

 

The weights you posted are all well within acceptable tolerances for US Mint coinage. Add circulation and the weight will go down by a smidge.

I went through a group of 1973-S Silver Business strike coins which should weigh 24.6 grams and found one which weighed 25.3 grams and one which weighed 23.1 grams.

All were cut from original mint cello and all are authentic US Mint products.