I bought a few counterfeit trade dollars in the past years , more so then real ones All the replicas are quite obvious when I put them next to the real thing. 1- Denticles are not all the same , some varies in length 2- Some of my fakes are ideal weight but they are not the right size 3- Some of my fakes are the correct size but off 2-3 grams 4- Rims all wrong 5- If not struck in silver , the fake is quite obvious in plated silver. 6- Britania is poorly detailed on some of my pieces. also if it's a cast fake you can look for casting nipples and casting seams I'm in no way a master in anything but I do hope I could help you ..
Thanks weryon. I just purchased one and I dont have any reason to think its fake by the dealer, though I suppose he could be fooled too. I will post pics once in hand but I'd like to know going forward how to spot them because these are an awesome design.
You spot them just like any other coin , when you know a chicken is a chicken , you will know it's a chicken and not a dog...... there's your metaphor for the day you owe me a coke. Just know about fakes and how some are made and what are general flags and the tell-a-tale signs of a counterfeit. Also know as much about the coin you are buying , look at a few, study them a bit and then cross reference your knowledge. With every fake I look at and cross reference with the real deal my counterfeit detection skill points increase +1 . Game on !
Hello, thanks everyone for assisting me! Is this a genuine trade dollar? It looks kind of weird in my standards. Moreover, I negotiated the price to 21 dollars? Please help! http://www.ebay.com/itm/28186073233...49&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&autorefresh=true
Anthony - a couple thoughts about that listing. 1) The seller has 8 feedback. Total. 3 as a seller. 2) One of their feedback is a negative for selling a fake coin. 3) The seller does not offer refunds. 4) The photos of the coin are blurry. Probably intentionally blurry. Maybe to hide details. 5) The price is $50 BIN...and the seller was willing to mark it down to $21? For a coin the seller describes as rare. All of these SCREAM something to most of us. What are your thoughts?
Thank you sooo much! I almost fell into the trap! Moreover, I kept asking about the weight and specs and he kept saying no!!!! Thanks sooo much!
Wow...talk about not even trying. My guess is that the seller's coin would stick to a magnet like crazy. I see similar coins at the local flea market, along with some very, very attractively priced CC Morgan Dollars.
Anthony, As an aside, I saw a basketfull of counterfeit 1911 trade dollars at a street fair in NYC and bought 2 to keep as examples.
All, the attached will give you an idea of what these counterfeits look like, which were going for $1 each at at street fair in NYC. I'm not an expert but to my eyes some of the lettering looks a bit sloppy, off center dentils and not what you would expect from an British mint. The coin appears to have a silver surface and has the right sounding ring. However, when I performed the magnetic test one coin nearly jumped off my desk and the other one got attached to the first. Hope this helps anyone out there interested in buying the real thing.
