OK another coin I've saved us since my preteens and wondering if I should get slabbed weight is correct and it doesn't stick to a magnet does anybody notice any glaring problems why I shouldn't pay submission on this came from a old collection in Missouri that was put in a safe deposit box before 1950
if it passes all of the usual tests: magnet, weight, and specific gravity, I would send it in, but let it be known, I'd try every test I could find first.
First, welcome to the neighborhood! Please don't be offended by my negativity, but the "came from a old collection in Missouri that was put in a safe deposit box before 1950" just sounds like another spin on the "my grandfather had this in his collection since......" line. I'm more inclined to believe that you were duped by someone. Can you give us a real clear close-up image of the date? Is it possible that someone altered the last digit or even replaced it? This is a common technique used by a con artist. I hope I'm wrong, and you really do have a 1943 copper cent, but I've learned to be very skeptical about such claims in this hobby. Chris
With what degree of precision are you weighing this? As Chris mentioned, the "old collection" trope is overused on places like eBay and almost never refers to an actual old collection. As such, it raises flags of scepticism. If the weight and specific gravity are correct, you could still have a struck counterfeit 43 copper cent. We'd need high quality pictures here to comment further on authenticity, but this may be a coin that is worth sending to a grading service.
If you really have a copper 1943, how can you trust sending it to anyone, and not have them, steal/ switch etc. on you? (serious question) Are these grading services really that reliable, and have that much integrity? I would go to Heritage ( or someone) and get some kind of money guarantee from them/ insurance, etc. And have them send it off to be graded/ slabbed with less risk of losing a $100,000 coin. Does that make sense or am I paranoid?
And back to the OP's photo. The 3 looks OK which to my untrained eye is where you can tell if it is an altered 1948. If it doesn't stick to a magnet, does that rule out a 1943 steelie that has been "bronzed"?
If your advice suggested sending it to a TPG like ACG, then I would think your advice was sound. On the other hand, if you urged against sending it to any of the top four grading services for fear of being ripped off, then yes, you are being paranoid. Chris
Hard to tell from the blurry photo. Probably another altered '48, but if not and it's real, we have another million dollar coin.
A little of both, I think. Heaven knows I'd be paranoid if I had a genuine coin like that, but it's hardly the first they've handled, nor by a wide margin the most valuable. Actually, in the (poor) image, I don't think the bottom curve of the 3 is correct. All the same, its pure conjecture in the absence of accurate imagery. All we're doing is guessing.
There are ways that the last digit might be altered which would require an examination using a microscope or very high magnification. Chris
Anyone have a photo of an authentic '43 'copper'? I can only seem to find examples of S and D. Were the dies used for these (S & D) made at Philly?
IIRC, all of the coin dies were made at Philadelphia at the time, and punched with the Mint Mark at the branch Mint.
If you owned/ran a business as valuable as the top TPGs, whose reputations mean everything, would you risk that by switching out of swiping a coin that due to rarity and the owner's photo evidence, would be fairly easily identifiable? The value of such a coin (if...IF it was real) may be substantial to the average person, but if we look at the big picture it's a pittance. In addition, such a coin in their plastic has added benefits beyond the obvious.
