Misprinted $50 bill

Okay, so in repsonse to that link you just posted Speedy, I took pictures of the exact locations shown on that page, so all of you can decide for yourselves. I know people are trying to help with the ink thing, but the only ink that will ever see this bill is what came with it, nothing more, regardless of whether the test ink fades or not. Pictures attached. Between the watermarks, the security line, and these photos I just attached, I think it should be pretty clear its real.

 

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It is underinked, not obstructed. If it was obstructed the area would be completely blank but if you look carefully you will see that most if not all of the design is there, just very faint. For some reason that part of the plate is not getting inked and it is fading further with each sheet printed.

 

^very true, good call there, i was beginning to think of the flaw in that theory based on the faint image thats there.

 

Is there anyone new who could say a little more on this? I'm extremely interested in selling it, and I need some guidence on how to contact coin dealers and such.

Vince

 

If you really want to find out about it, send it in to PMG or PCGS for grading. The cost is $30.00 and if it's fake it's body bagged and you do not have to pay! If it' sreal..well ya got yourself a fine note there fella!

RickieB

 

If I wanted to sell something like that my first contact would be with Heritage Auction Galleries .

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Did anyone else happen to notice that the Secret Service counterfeit coin "experts" don't know about the edges of the Sacagawea and President Dollars?

 

I agree 100%!!

I also agree!!

The first things i would do is get it slabbed as a way to help guarentee its validity and ot keep it safe, and then if you choose to sell it, contact the larger auction houses - NOT EBAY!

 

Its real I have a $1 just like it.

 

Take the time to follow the advice given and if it's real - you will be very glad you did!

Good Luck!

 

I can't believe this is the first time I noticed this post.

First and foremost, the only counterfeit test I recommend is a UV light. The $50 are the least sensitive to the wavelength (specified wavelength for checking notes is 365 nm). With the $50's, any old blacklight with work, even the ones you see in bug lights, kids invisible ink kits, etc.... The security thread on $50's should be yellow and will be to the right of the portrait.

Second, I'd like to see a high quality scan of the note, but based on what I've seen (the clean lines), I'm going to have to go with a foreign obstruction. Since there does appear to be some sort of ghost image of the missing area, I'm guessing that the foriegn obstruction was something soft and permable. Something like thin or tissue paper. The printing process uses more than 20 tons of pressure and could easily force the ink through something thin like tissue paper (like the paper you see in gift bags or clothes boxes at the department store).

It has been a long time since I read up on the specifics of BEP printing methods, but I bet that there is something disposable in the process that may match that size. Maybe something in the packaging for the paper or a label.

As mentioned above, if the foreign obstruction was still with the note, this note would definitely be a small windfall. As it is, I would still guess a couple hundred dollars, but I'm so far out of date on prices, don't quote me on either of those guesses.

Congrats on the find and make sure you tell your grandmother Thank You, big time.

 

OH. NO!

Don't do that!

 

What nobody's pointed out yet is that the backs of U.S. currency are actually printed with two different green inks. They look identical under normal light, but one of them disappears under infrared light. The special green ink is used for a vertical strip in a different location on each denomination, making it easy for an infrared scanner to identify the genuineness and denomination of each bill. Some vending machine bill acceptors check this, as do the little hand-held scanners that the blind can use to keep track of which bill is which.

Anyway, this bill seems to be the result of a press running out of one type of green ink but not the other. So you see an underinking error, but it's restricted to that one narrow strip of the bill where the special ink should have been. Nifty error note; should be worth a bit.

Oh, and in response to the other commentors: the "counterfeit detection" pens are a joke. They should not be relied upon for anything ever. Most good-quality cotton bond paper will pass the pen test; on the other hand, a genuine bill that's been through a laundry cycle will often fail it. The pens will catch fake bills that some kid laser-printed on ordinary computer paper, but that's about it. And the pen marks do not fade away completely, though they do lighten over time, so the pens should *definitely* never be used to authenticate currency that might be collectible.

 

Thanks for the information guys. I do have a blacklight at home, so I will take a look under that and put up some pictures if I can get a good shot.

I'm going to get ahold of a couple dealers in the area next month over spring break or sooner if I have time, and see what they have to say.

 

I must admit that I was completely oblivious to the infrared ink. I did a quick search and while I can find info indicating that IR ink has been in use since 1997, I could not find any specific details (yet...). I find it strange that I never came across that in all my research looking for a UV penlight to use for checking the security threads.

Once again, Numbers is a huge resource full of information.

 

I am no expert on those pens, but while the ink disappears to the eye, there may still be something left on the note. The ink doesn't evaporate (as far as I know) - it just disappears in regard to visibility. I wonder if it would be visible under other conditions (blacklight, chemicals, etc.)

Plus, it might affect the long term aging of the note - it might darken over time, or it might prevent that part of the paper from toning naturally if that happens to occur.

Not sure on any of this - just some ideas.

 

Numbers may have nailed it and Gatzdon has a good theory too. Either way it IS most likely a legit note and a great error.

NOW AS FOR THOSE STINKING PENS!!!!!!!!!!!!

If you are a cashier and your job requires one then go ahead and mark up a bunch of notes.
If you are a collector you won't touch one.

I forget who said it earlier but why not cut a 55DD Lincoln in half to see if it's real?

From now on I will put all "possible" error notes through my paper shredder for a better look.


Ok, I'm better now.


clembo

 

that was back when i new nothing about paper money.

 

This question is for numbers,

In this pic of the note, http://www.cointalk.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=15533&d=1169756452 , you can see a small portion of the green at the top is unaffected, so the error does not affect the entire height of the note. Do you know of any decent references for the IR ink pattern? I'm familiar with the magnetic ink patterns on the front (I've seen underinking errors of both the magnetic and non-magnetic portions of the obverse), but have no idea of where the boundaries would be for the IR ink, but there has to be published specs (same as all the other security features) for makers of equipment that detect the IR markings.

Thanks in advance.

 

I found a 2006 publication from the National Research Council "Is It Real? Identification and Assessment of hte Counterfeiting Threat for US Banknotes".

On page 28, it states "An example of a feature that is not readable in both directions is the infrared ink pattern, which is a set of stripes parallel to the short edge of the note."

My guess is (and this is only speculation) is that the IR markings would run from edge to edge on the note. Given that this note shows some original looking ink at the top, I would speculate that that this error is note due to insufficient IR ink.

 

Sorry to dig up an oldie, but here's a picture of the thread under a blacklight