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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;JCro57, post: 3043251, member: 92083&quot;]I collect off-metal planchets/blanks and wrong planchet errors. I have seen waaaay more loose examples of fakes than genuine ones at coin shows, and I have studied and read several articles from national experts who specialize in these specimens.</p><p><br /></p><p>Oftentimes, the shapes of genuine pieces are partially contorted (and can even have a box-like corner), they are often not evenly rounded, and sometimes the rim only appears on part of the coin, giving the appearance of both a blank (no rim) and a planchet (a blank coin with a raised rim) on the same specimen. So being a bit &quot;squared&quot; doesn&#039;t necessarily disqualify this piece nor does an appearance of an inconsistent rim. Also, the fact it was cut to penny size does not immediately disqualify it, though it is highly unlikely. Stranger things have happened that are even more incredibly&nbsp; bizarre and even unbelievable, like a &quot;mule&quot; with a Sacagawea dollar reverse and a Washington quarter obverse.</p><p><br /></p><p>However...What does it for me to call this a fake with 100% certainty is the coin&#039;s edge. This coin has part of a rim and thus was definitely struck on a planchet, which means it was not punched on a blank. When blanks are struck by the press, they aren&#039;t punched all the way through and are still partly stuck to the webbing; they literally rip off, leaving a rough edge. When they go through the upsetting mill, coins are compressed which forms the raised rim to now become a planchet, and this process &quot;smoothes&quot; out the rough edge of coins. The featured quarter has an uneven edge, meaning it was tooled/modified after leaving the Mint. It was likely modified for jewelry because a quarter made into a ring or necklace would be a little too big to wear comfortably.</p><p><br /></p><p>Most fakes show tool marks and are very sloppy. Most of the ones I see are cents cut down to dime size for 3 main reasons:</p><p><br /></p><p>(1) Lincoln cents (as well as other denominations) struck on metals intended for foreign countries (yes, the U.S. gov&#039;t minted coins here for foreign countries from 1855-1984) are often smaller in size, and can be worth hundreds or even several thousand dollars; some sold for tens of thousands. They are also almost always a noticeably different color. So, one reason is to fake an error for huge profits.</p><p><br /></p><p>(2) Pennies, like this example below, look pretty darn good to the average eye as a possible U.S. struck foreign blank error or a cent cut by a dime press. It has no visible tool marks. However, the color is kosher with the &quot;look&quot; of a Lincoln cent. So, why would someone do this? Because it was likely used to trick vending machines into thinking it was a dime (the size and weight would be very close).</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]759936[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=full]759937[/ATTACH]</p><p>3. It was modified to be made for jewelry or some other conversation piece.</p><p><br /></p><p><img src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie1" alt=":)" unselectable="on" unselectable="on" />[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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