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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Insider, post: 2711198, member: 24314&quot;]Just from the image (unable to see inside the deep recesses), I think they did a great job!&nbsp; I only wish they would have &quot;smoothed-out&quot; the scratches while they were at it.&nbsp; On the other hand, fakers sometimes leave an obvious defect on a coin (so it&#039;s not too perfect) to draw one&#039;s eye away from an alteration.&nbsp; </p><p><br /></p><p>Recently, in the US coin forum, I posted a 1916-D dime with a crudely misshaped &quot;D&quot; added to a 1916-P dime to make it valuable.&nbsp; The coin was cleaned and had a large black corrosion spot.&nbsp; My OP asked how much the spot affected the value&nbsp; - not that the coin was altered.&nbsp; Several posters did not notice the &quot;added D!&quot;&nbsp; I got criticized <img src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie3" alt=":(" unselectable="on" unselectable="on" /> for my deception while trying to teach the whiners <img src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie23" alt=":bigtears:" unselectable="on" unselectable="on" /> over there a good lesson: &quot;Check your coins carefully.&quot;</p><p><br /></p><p>Anyway, as you all know, ancient coins are often &quot;improved&quot; in some way.&nbsp; IMO, as long as <b>you</b> are able to detect the authenticity or &quot;improvements&quot; so <b>you</b> can make an informed choice, all&#039;s well.&nbsp; It is up to <b>you</b> what to purchase.</p><p><br /></p><p>Some dealers are not that good (even the best can be fooled on occasion - I&#039;m not referring to them). Time in the business may not always the best way to judge your dealer.&nbsp; For example, the dealer with thirty years of experience who said silver and gold ancients are not tooled is either <b><span style="color: #ff0000">stupid, ignorant, or both</span></b>!&nbsp; I saw tooled silver and gold ancients in the 1970&#039;s.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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