Ain’t this just swell?

I debated whether to post this, but Coin World let the cat out of the bag.

https://www.coinworld.com/news/us-coins/2018/08/chinese-starter-kit-for-fake-pcgs-holders.all.html

 

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Makes me sick!

 

Anything to make money.. When I walk through Chinatown here in NYC all you see is people showing pictures of fake name brand handbags, watches etc to sell..

 

Anyone else struck by the irony of the NYINC show banner ad at the top of the page? Ah yes, international commerce, ain't it grand?

It's what we have reaped from the seeds sown in the days of Ping Pong diplomacy. There are NO old Asian cultures that even had concepts like counterfeiting or intellectual property or patents. We had to teach it to those few which have adopted it. It never occurred to them as being a problem, much less a crime.

 

Counterfeit coins? Go ahead!

Don't pay your income tax, lose your head!

We can see what the ChiCom's priotities really are- this is the joke of the corruption of third world Countries.

A better question: is the Gold and American currency they currently have in their reserves fake too??

 

Sometimes the truth hurts. Now, if only illogical emotion could be set aside...

 

Which illogical emotion would that be? That we’re all just the same, and we need to trust and welcome everyone?

 

Every time I see a post like this I think of myself back as a youngster completely consumed with coins. If I felt I had to be a counterfeit detection expert to enjoy the hobby, I don’t know that I would have pursued it back then. The deck is heavily stacked against the young hobbyist these days and that is very disheartening to me.

 

Yup, very sad but very true. This may be numismatically a country ALMOST ONLY for old men, as tough as that sounds. The young, over-exuberant, and inexperienced are targeted as roadkill.

 

Oh, I don't think it's so dire as that. Remember, Randy, you and I started out small back in our youth. That is to say, we pulled a great deal of our collections out of the pocket change and roll searching. I suspect the same is true in this day.

The scary thing happens when collectors become more advanced, or specialized. It is hopeful that the knowledge of the collector has advanced as well but it's not always the case. As long as people/collectors rely on someone else to do their bidding, and not learn to rely on their own instincts and obtained knowledge, they're fraught to be scammed by such an abomination as OP mentions above.........

 

Among others... I'll never understand why so many utterly fail to grasp the fact that it matters less what values we espouse, but what "values" (or lack thereof) someone else does. Rules work only when everyone agrees and/or there are true consequences for breaking them.

As it stands now, the only real consequence is a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Leprechaun not included.

 

How about some cereal with dehydrated marshmallows? Do we at least get that? No? Darn.

 

I'll never understand 'magically delicious'..........

 

I can't get the 'taste' out of my mouth..........

 

The feeling of the dry chalky marshmallows scraping along your teeth. /shudder

 

Just as I think everyone should study the basics of how coins are made (and used to be made whichever you collect), it is equally important to study fakes, altered, and damaged coins.

I have about 20-30 fakes that I bought from different series. $2 is my max unless I can prove they are 90% gold/silver, and then I pay melt value (and it helps to have friends who have a Fischerscope Xan machine which can tell if they're plated or 90% pure through and through). And they have to be decent fakes, not die casts.

After studying these, I can't tell you how easy it is to spot them immediately even without a loupe. Some are obvious to most people. Some fool even experienced dealers. Be someone who others can come to tell if they're genuine or not. I consider it a responsibility of a true coin collector and/or numismatist. I also feel it is a responsibility to share our knowledge, especially so with those who are getting started.

By studying both how coins are minted and how they are faked/altered/cleaned, you eliminate 90% of the problems when it comes to determining if you should buy a coin or not, either slabbed or raw.

For example, here is a two-headed nickel. Both sides are from real nickels. This is an easy one...you would think. I teach 10th graders and showed this to several classes. I asked people who were interested or who already collect coins to look at my "genuine" error coin. Only one in about 40 took the time to check the edge and she still didn't question it could have been altered. Only one saw they had 2 different dates and still thought it was real.




Next is a Trade Dollar. It is 90% silver. And 100% fake.



Fake Morgan dollar



This is what we are up against, including some just as bad on some sleazy and ignorant dealer's tables.

 

These examples point out how good some of the fakes are.
Thanks for posting.

 

You take a bunch of chemicals, dehydrate the products you make from said chemicals, then put it in a box and sell it to children. It's magically delicious, because there is no other way to explain why they don't taste like crap.

 

The X-ray can't see all the way through. A thick plating will pass. Fortunately, most forgers don't want to use more of something valuable than they think they will need to fool 99.9% of their audience. Specific Gravity is the only way to tell that unless they have made a very imaginative alloy.