I just received a very "tinny" looking Florida Quarter. It looks fake, and it feels fake. The metal is much "whiter" than normal quarters, and it sounds like the old "tin" dimes of the past. I've tried scraping lightly to see if it's a painted coin, but that doesn't appear to be the case either. is there really a market for counterfeit quarters? Or is this a mint error. Just curious... Steve
Although I haven't come across any counterfeit state quarters, it's quite possible that's exactly what you've got. How much does it weigh? Is the design sharp, or is it mushy? What is the microscopic surface texture like? Is it attracted to a magnet? What does the reeding look like? What does the metal look like where you've scraped away the surface. These questions are germane to determining whether it is a fake or a wierd off-metal error. By the way, any scraping should be done on the rim, as it will be least noticeable there. It should also be done with a scalpel under a microscope. Many folks frown on invasive tests, but I have found them useful on many occasions.
I'll do the "high-res" picture thing when I get back home this weekend under pure-white light on a black cloth. And... I'll try to do the scalpel thing, although I don't have a microscope to go with it. I was just curious because I really didn't think that counterfeiting something like quarters would even be worth it... I'll post the info on this weekend or early next week. Steve
I have heard of what they call a shrinked coin...I don't know how they do it but they can make a IKE dollar the size of a quarter...this might be what it is. Speedy
I also think that it is a shrunken quarter. Here is a link. I hope it helps. http://minterrornews.com/news-2-22-03-bert_hickman-shrunken_coins.html
It's not "shrinked". It's exactly the same size as a regular quarter... It just looks , feels, and sounds like tin (the same feel and sound as an old tin dime I have here). I've been having problems with my camera, but they should be fixed by later tonight. I'll post pix as soon as I take them... Steve BTW: That link to the shrinked coins is pretty cool. I never knew they could do that... The machine sounds a little more powerful than something I could put in my basement, tho...
I think you'll find weighing the coin as Mike suggested will tell you more than anything else. But something that just struck me as a possible reason for the strange sound - the coin may have been struck on a partially laminated planchet. If one of the clad layers is not bonded to the copper core completely - that would account for the strange sound. Just an idea.
I'll try to find an accurate scale. Not being a coin collector myself, this was merely a question about a weird coin I ran across. FWIW, there are no layers. It's "one color" (tin/aluminum looking) all the way through. Maybe what I should do is ask if anybody would want to see it and I'll just throw it in an envelope for further evaluation. Is anybody in this group near Denver? If you'll "PM" me your snail-mail address, I'll put it in an envelope and mail it to you... Steve
You can't always see the clad layers. Sometimes the outer cladding wraps all the way around the coin.
