Hello all, Just wonder if any of you have ever thought or even tried to find out if the paper money you just purchased from a shop or you just received from ebay delivery is a genuine one? I am trying to check with the experts here if any of you do anything to your newly acquired paper money just to verify that it's a genuine one. Is there a way or procedure to check? It will be interesting to learn something here. Many thanks in advance. Best regards,
I try to purchase from reputable dealers when raw and/or expensive, and I buy mostly graded notes when buying from strangers. The graded notes are authenticated as part of the grading process. When notes are inexpensive, under $25, I just go by experience.
If it's inexpensive and the seller is known to be reputable, go for it. If it's expensive, only buy graded paper.
Two excellent companies in the paper money field are Executive Currency & Denly's of Boston. They both have websites and are trusted dealers in all sorts of currency, both old and new.
I use one of those pens you can buy at Walmart.. Sorry, couldn't resist. I usually will examine a note under a loupe and check the feel of the paper (if possible). A true note was printed using intaglio presses and forces the paper into an engraved plate where it receives the ink thus leaving a slightly raised area where the ink is. Most counterfeits will have the ink just laying on the surface with no texture or relief.
This applies only for notes printed with intaglio presses, of course. Many are not, and of course it is up to the buyer to know what type of printing to expect for the particular issue.
When I lived in the Boston area(50 + yr.) I visited Denly's and can say they are a legitimate concern.
Hello everyone, Thanks for all your reply. They certainly provide me a good guidance and experience is definitely a big plus! I just wish that there is an easy way to verfiy Best regards
It is hard to fake United States currency, when you know what to look for it is near impossible. As for most other paper items, world notes, wildcat bank notes, confederate, checks, etc etc, I would not know if they came off the color copier five minutes ago. This is why I stick with US currency, mostly small size. The only fake notes I have were purchased as such. I don't even want to go into coins. I have worked in metal most of my life and I cannot begin to tell you how easy it is to fake and alter coins and how hard it is to detect. You need to examine any moderately important coin with a 45 power binocular microscope and know just what you are looking for. Not my idea of fun.
