Bullion Pieces. Can anyone identify these?

Is there any guarantee as to their fineness? Could they be of a lower fineness than that stated on the product?

sel_69l wrote:

That's always a potential issue. You have to factor in the reputation (or lack thereof) of the producer.

Also, precise measurements for diameter, thickness, volume and weight help a lot. Silver has a known density (grams/cc) and fakes generally don't match that.

There's also the "silver ring" when you drop one on a tabletop. Although diameter and thickness can affect that a lot. Even small differences in thickness and diameter make the ringing sound much different.


tumbleweedtrumpet wrote:

The "Peace" lady doesn't look so happy either.

oblakavshtanax wrote:
What do you mean by "fakes"?

Honestly, two of them looked a little suspicious. All the rest look genuine, and they are the correct weight (31.1 grams +/- 0.1 gram) and volume is correct for that mass of silver. They also have the right "look" and a good silver "ring" when you drop them on a table.

One of the "suspicious looking" ones is also the correct weight and volume. If it's not pure silver, someone went to a whole lot of trouble (and this was back in the 1970's or 1980's when, with the exception of one big spike, silver prices were fairly low).

Even the one that is "off" a bit on the weight and volume is only slightly off (possibly somebody was using sterling or coin silver to make ".999 fine" silver rounds).

I had to order a new vial of silver testing solution. I'm waiting on that to get here before I call the two "suspicious" ones pure silver. But the other 8 I have full confidence in.

These look good,,but look close,,,

rh13 wrote:
I see that. Enough said.

bherring1964 wrote:
Yeah, some confusion there. I never said they were coins. I've checked the weight on most of them. They are all 31.1 grams +/- 0.2 grams except one. My scale resolution is 0.1 grams, so I can't get beyond that. I've seen known genuine ASE's come up 0.2 grams light or heavy, so that variation doesn't bother me much. Not every blank is exact. Variations of +/- 5% are common enough.

Do you also check volume? And how do you test that. One of the 31.1 gram pieces looks small for it's weight. It might be an optical illusion, but I'm curious. It does scratch bright silver on a piece of paper (not black or dark gray).

There were "art bar" collectors before silver rounds became the standard. IIRC, there was an "error" bar in the general engines. We'd typically have 100-200 different rounds back when retail was $8-10. If there were $20 "rare" rounds, it's more likely they'd be $45-50 today than $80, but it depends on the collectors.

Limited issue high quality rounds, ie Disney characters might go for $50 and up back the, who knows today.