Please list our mistakes ... to help us learn.

"Fantasy piece"...

Hey, what's good for one...

 

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You ARE a naughty bugger, ain'tcha? We need the "time traveler's coin", a Roosevelt dime with an 1800's date on it. "Incredible foresight!" Or maybe kill two stirds with one bone - the 1800's dated Donald Rumsfeld golden dollar.

 

The first thing I noticed were the stars...the points didn't look right, then the dots on the stars, then the denticles; they were not uniformily spaced and weak. The rays on the Peace were too weak for the rest of that coin, looking further saw more weakness in the tiara and other elements.

I learned how to look for this from Coin Talk over the last couple months. Kudos! to CT.

 

btw, Gill and Alan, what city do you live in there in UK? My brother-in-law and his wife live near RAF Lakenheath. I live on Whidbey Island in Washington State, near Seattle.

Hope this doesn't violate CT rules, if it does I apologize in advance.

Spark

 

Hello Spark, We're down in sunny Cornwall, at Perranporth.
Thank you for your comments, I'm going to check out the tiara and try to see what you you've spotted.
I agree, this is an excellent site, and the responses we've received from those who know, when paraphrased, certainly got the 'fakes' seller communicating. He's been around for 4 years, and with a feedback score of 100% (for the last 12 months anyway) lulls you into that warm confident feeling when bidding and 'benefit of the doubt' thoughts when we first received the 'coins'. He's now listing 'collectors grade' items, so I think he's learned a bit of a lesson!
Once we get our refund, we still feel obliged to give negative feedback, so there may be more to this thread to come ...

 

Even honest dealers occasionally accidentally sell bogus items especially if it is from a country that is foreign to them. Best to judge them on how they respond to complaints. If they refund on request give them the benefit of the doubt. Hold off on posting feedback. If you see them relist the fake coin again not saying it is fake alert ebay and coin talk members then post negative. If you change your mind about a negative it can not be removed. If you accidentally put the negative on the wrong person like happened to me it can not be fixed. The guy apologized and filled out the forms at ebay but it is still my only negative of 2000+ transactions. He blamed it on his bifocals.

 

I appreciate your point, and having talked it over with Gill, we'll take your advice and hold off.
To qualify how it's gone so far - first we said we had an issue with authenticity.
He responded with a refusal to take back - I never said it was real, response.
Then we said, we have confirmation it's a fake ...
His response was silence.
So we asked CoinTalk for advice, and messaged saying again "not as described" it's a fake and here's why.
He finally sent the messaeg with the ... 'send me back my fakes' and 'when I receive them, I'll refund you'
We're waiting to see if ebay intervene.

 

Sounds like you've done the right thing so far. Keep on the high road. You can always post negative later detailing all your complaints. If he gets them back and still fails to refund get your money back from ebay and nail him to the wall.

 

Post my mistake..... Well I just received one. I wanted a Type 1 standing liberty quarter. I located one graded MS65 in an NGC slab. I asked for photos. The photos were taken under a very bright light which made the coin appear almost blast white. Did the transaction and received the piece last week. What the bright lighting did not show was a very unsightly black toning around the rim of the piece. This wasn’t pretty toning. It appears as a black grunge. The coin is actually quite unappealing to look at. I don’t think I was swindled, but in hindsight I wish I would have asked for additional photos that weren’t under a bright light.

 

@Randy Abercrombie, did the seller offer returns? You certainly could do that because the coin was not as advertised.

Steve

 

Yes..... It is a reputable dealer I had been trying to create a relationship with. And in fact after fifty years of collecting, was the first premium piece I purchased without physically inspecting. Been debating that thought. It was a premium purchase to be certain. I don’t believe they were trying to conceal this unappealing toning and it is a graded and slabbed piece. I’m sure I can. Not real certain I will just yet.

 

I was in a similar situation with a high grade Barber quarter, the most I had ever paid for a coin. There was a scratch on the jawline that was not evident in the photo. A very reputable dealer. I didn’t return it, but every time I look at the coin my eyes are drawn to the scratch.

Sort of like John Candy in “Uncle Buck” when he tried to avoid looking at or saying something about the Principal’s mole.

Steve

 

Just a brief update: Fake coins had to be returned to seller, however PayPal holding the money in escrow until proof of delivery recorded. Negative, but polite & accurate feedback left. Hopefully other buyers will now be more vigilant than we were, and the seller will be more cautious with what he lists. Gill & Alan