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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;ahearn, post: 1261326, member: 18211&quot;]And the ANSWER is #3 as most of you deduced.</p><p><br /></p><p>The reason the mint marks were blacked out is, as some probably guessed, is that the batch of fake coins contained mostly CC mint marks, even on dates such as the 1899 that were never actually minted.</p><p><br /></p><p>All the coins, except those of the same date, were slightly different, suggesting real coins were used as models for the casting or dies, although reverses were less varied than obverses.</p><p><br /></p><p>Under a loupe, the surfaces have a very grainy appearance (probably cast) with an absence of extremely fine scratches found on a real circulated coin. There are no signs of sprues or cast seams. The edges are reeded but the cuts are very triangular -- and the density of cuts varies on some coins -- close together in places and further apart in others. Further, the edges have been beveled excessively, creating an almost rounded profile when viewed on end.</p><p><br /></p><p>Most of the coins didn&#039;t have the usual tell-tale marks of a cast fake -- rounded edges between devices and fields, flat stars, slick feel to surface, fat fonts, etc. Most features seemed perfectly consistent with a circulated model except that overall they appear a little soft.&nbsp; </p><p><br /></p><p>Size of the coins, diameter and thickness, is correct and within tolerances. HOWEVER, weight was <b>only 19.4 +/- grams </b>instead of 26.73. And all the coins <b>failed the magnet test</b>.</p><p><br /></p><p>These coins were obviously not created to deceive experienced collectors but could easily fool a novice. As we&#039;ve aleady seen on recent posts on this forum, some eBay sellers are pushing these coins as authentic. It is for certain that MUCH better fakes are out there, attempting to fool even the most experienced buyers.</p><p><br /></p><p>I hope this has possibly helped a few unsuspecting buyers from making a mistake.</p><p><br /></p><p>Al[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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