Silver question

I would agree with eagles or maple leaves or another government issued coin. For silver especially, i do not like bars or rounds since the specific gravity of silver is way too easy to fake. There are silver plated fake bars and rounds out there, and the only way to tell is melt them down or cut them in half. Buying a coin lets you verify authenticity easier in my view. If you are buying for investment purposes, you have to think of ease of selling as well.

 

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Why is it easier to verify authenticity with a coin?

 

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So? They don't have to etch all the details out by hand. They make them the same way the mint does.

 

They have to "etch all the details" at least once, for a hub or die. Any mistake made there shows up on ALL the counterfeits produced from it. Catch it once, and you can tell the world what to look for.

 

Plus the mint has weight and size standards and it would extremely difficult to match these 100% if not made of silver.

 

Yes, but this can be done, but most of the time is not.

My preference for coins is simply the mints have extremely tight tolerances, and exacting details on the coins and the reeding. Most counterfeiters can get some of these details right, but not all.

What details do bars have? What is the EXACT diameter they are supposed to have? What is the EXACT microscopic design elements in them? If you do not know that answer, its literally impossible to tell if a bar is good or not.

 

Here's a few more reasons to add to those already mentioned:

- It's relatively easy to counterfeit 10+ oz bars and match the dimensions and weight, and it's worthwhile to do so. With 1 oz ASEs, it's a bit harder to do because of the size and the reeded edge, and it isn't as profitable to do so because each would require the same if not more effort than each 10+ oz bar would.

- With ASEs there's an added deterrent to counterfeiting in that the Secret Service would actively investigate counterfeit ASEs.

- Familiarity. There are a whole lot more ASEs out there compared to any privately minted coin or bar.

- Serial numbers are all fine and dandy, and they would make it a little more difficult to mass produce counterfeits, but they are not immune to counterfeiting.

 

:too-funny:

 

Really? Try counterfeiting some US currency and see what happens. The US may not care about collectible coins, forged collectibles, or many other things, but what they do care about is their money. There is still a VERY large contingent of Secret Service agents who do nothing but track down counterfeiters if US money. Like I said, they do not care much about old money, but current money, (which incidentally is how the US makes a lot of profit), they very much do care about.

Go to a copy machine and photocopy a modern US bill. No luck? Gee, the secret service has already got to it, huh? They DO care about where their paychecks come from. A fake 1916d dime? Eh, not so much.

 

I'm not saying you aren't clever enough to outsmart them, but you'll have to be much more careful than if you were just counterfeiting generic silver rounds or bars.

That additional risk is certainly taken into consideration by counterfeiters, and if there isn't a whole lot more reward to be had, then why bother?

 

I bet if you posted a fake ASE here you would be told that its a fake, and WHY its a fake, in about half an hour. How long do you think a fake generic round would ever be challenged? I would doubt ever, same with most bars. Sure, some bars are "collectible" and some good people here know them well, but then you are investing more in a collectible than silver, no? So, in that regard, if someone really wanted to buy bars, I would pay the premium to get a very well known name in bars, and post a pic here.

 

There must be a tremendous amount of counterfeit US currency out there because it's getting used at retailers all the time.

 

Wouldn't ASE be the same as a Mercury dime though? I don't doubt that they'll come after you for counterfeiting money that's intended to be used as money, but a bullion coin? If they don't do it for old junk silver that was actually intended to be used as money at some point, I don't think they will for a bullion coin that happens to also be a dollar.

 

Let's see, wasn't there once a post about a fellow who bought a silver bar for $500 where it turned ou to be stainless steel? (Tongue in cheek - it is a recent thread - How Many Ounces Is This Silver Bar)

 

According to who?

 

Because of the shape, you can use calipers to verify the diameter. With bars you can't rely on calipers because there could be variances in the corners (typically the counterfeits have less rounded corners and thicker depth), but with a round coin the diamter is consistent all the way around.

Yes this also pertains to rounds, not just coins, but the added benefit with goverment coins is that the diameter and thickness is well documented where as with rounds you have varying standards to keep track of, plus as was already mentioned the penalty for counterfeiting government coins is much more severe.

 

Both ASE's and Mercury dimes have counterfeits, but not all junk silver is currently circulating as money so the penalty isn't as great on those older 90% silver coins. That's probably why we see fake Mercs but not fake Rosies which haven't popped up on my radar yet, since they are still circulating.

 

There are defintely fake Roosies, and in any case ASEs never circulated as money, so why would they care?