This coin looks like a fake to me. What do you think? http://cgi.ebay.com/1916-D-Rare-Kin...mQQptZCoins_US_Individual?hash=item3ca7251b43
I can't describe how my gut reaction tells me it's fake, but my instinct tells me to stay away. But, the seller offers a 7 day return policy and pays the return shipping. Maybe it's worth a shot...
AU-50? Yea, right. I am not the expert here, but were I a betting man, I would bet that it is a fake.
I'd say it's real. He says it's real, offers return policy. If your interested in it, ask for another picture of some detail so you know he has the coin in his possession and it's not someone else's coin.
I have probably mentioned this before but at the ANA one year I ran into Randy Campbell. He was grading coins of mine and 1 was a 16-D. He told me that not only was mine fake, but that it was the singularly most encountered fake at the TPG where he worked. I would never buy a higher-end 16-D without authentication by NGC, PCGS or ANACS. Period. End of paragraph.
I believe this coin to be fake. I think it had the word copy on it in the reverse left field (from the O of ONE to the N of UNITED). It looks like it has been heavily tooled in that area to remove the evidence of that stamping. Additionally the lower few leaves on the right side of the fasces fade into the field before they get all the way up to the fasces. On a genuine coin those leaves touch the fasces, even in very low grade. This type of loss of detail is consistant with a counterfeit coin.
I also believe it's a fake. The mintmark position and shape must match one of the 4 known varieties, I don't believe it does. The marks on the upper left reverse do not look like post mint damage to me. The E closest to the mm does a fade-away.
My first impression by looking at it is that it looks "wrong". Not an added D. The WHOLE COIN looks very very wrong.
I believe we've had a coin, that looks just like this, a few months ago on this forum. All sorts of problems, that scream STAY AWAY!
I'm also leaning toward a fake. For some reason, my eyes go to the rim. It looks a little fishy to me.
I asked the seller if they would send it to NGC for me if I won it and they declined. They reiterated it was real and called the "plastic sellers" a bunch of "crooks". Pass.
they got VG money for it, so either they cheated someone out of more than a grand or they got cheated by the buyer. I'm gonna guess it is the former.