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 Replies: 10 / Views: 2,212 |
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
1554 Posts |
 This article is intended to educate the coin collector about the very rare scenario of encountering a counterfeit coin, this possibly is further reduced when buying from a safe place like E-bay, however, it is good to keep the following in mind as a matter of prudence and this will preclude any chance of it happening to you. The best prevention is knowing how to tell if a seller you intend to buy from is someone who you should be wary about. The following are valuable tips which I have gleaned from many years of buying and selling on E-bay. The tell tale signs are that the sellers are always from a foreign land: China, Japan, India, U.K., Korea, Taiwan, etc. they tend to be new to E-bay, they have several negatives on their Feedback from buyers stating coins received are fakes, they tend to hide the buyers / bidders identity during auction, coins listed are the rarest found in the numismatic field and the coins have the appearance of being made of lead. If the coin you have purchased is RAW (uncertified) and you suspect it may be counterfeit, the best and simplest way to determine it's authenticity is to weigh it. To determine what the weight is of a Canadian decimal coin, go to the latest 62nd Edition of A Charlton Standard Catalogue of Canadian Coins. At the beginning of each decimal Era the entire description of the coin's composition will be laid out in detail. This will include the designer / engraver's name, coin's composition, weight, diameter, edge, and die axis. The best way to avoid being a victim of these scams is to always check the sellers feedback. Feedback is a sellers credibility and if it's hidden (private), you must be suspicious of his past dealings. Generally speaking the best way to determine future behavior is by observing past behavior. Another must to remember, "if it seems to good to be true it usually is". How many times have you heard this statement in the past? I'm sure all of us have countless times, then why not live by this golden rule. If you see a Canada, 1921, VF-20 nickel for sale at 5 cent start with no reserve, start asking questions? By challenging, boycotting and reporting these bad sellers to E-bay authorities, I believe we can make a difference in keeping the integrity of our hobby intact. Also keep in mind that 99.99% of E-bay coin dealers are decent people with good motifs, what I'm only referring to are an extremely small percentile of sellers that are not often on E-bay, however, they do turn up every now and then. E-bay security does an overall good job in weeding them out. If you know the "indicators" on what I've mentioned above, you can avoid being a victim. Glenn Pinto
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2669 Posts |
Glenn..  to the forums! While I greatly appreciate the passion and motives behind your post, there are other sellers that are well worth watching out for. Not all untrustworthy sellers are foreign. As a matter of fact, a great many are U.S. power sellers who slab their own coins and/or greatly over-exaggerate the coin's grade. We wouldn't want to over-simplify this for people new to the hobby. Other sellers might not even know they are selling a counterfeit. The most important thing to remember when buying ANY coin, no matter who it is from, is to know the coin you are buying. If you can tell the pick up points for a particular coin or series, and a good portion of the tell-tale signs of a coin's counterfeit, you are well on your way to being a knowledgeable buyer. A knowledgeable buyer is one who will be much less likely to purchase a counterfeit or over-graded coin. Education, education, education  |
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
838 Posts |
I hate to interject my cynicism, but I am getting leery of any valuable coin in high grade. Even TPGs can be fooled.
Right now I'm looking to buy an 1884 5c silver, and I won't buy higher than VG. Call me silly, but I can't get burned too badly that way.
A wise collector I know said recently of the 1948 Silver Dollar:
"All 50,000 of the 19,000 minted are still out there."
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
1931 Posts |
Quote:
"All 50,000 of the 19,000 minted are still out there."  soooo true! |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2408 Posts |
Some replicas are absolutely stunning in terms of artwork and their similarity to real coins is baffling. As I said before on this forum, I have no doubt whatsoever that "faussaires" are hard at work forging coins and, through mechanical methods and chemical processes, accelerate aging, introduce typical bag marks from "patterns" so that these fake could, eventually, fool even the most astute grading service.
Then one would expect a gradual and smooth deterioration in pricing over some years to come. Then, upon a sudden FBI revelation, a sharp decline (a la stock market crash). Panic sets in among collectors but mostly investors who dump their rare coins. The housing market, the stock market, now the coin market tanks.
Let's hope I am wrong.
Marc
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
636 Posts |
If I could add one thing...I have been told that those replica stamped coins shipping from China that are on ebay that people are knowingly buying, are arriving here without the replica stamp even on them. What are the chances that they are being flipped by the buyer as authentic later on. Pretty good I think....this really throws things into a loop. |
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Valued Member
United States
324 Posts |
I actually bought a contemporary Victorian 5c counterfeit a while back that was sold as a regular coin. It has a relatively low grade, so the price was less than $10. Since I have never seen a 5c contemporary counterfeit, and since they are hard to get, I was quite pleased with the transaction. But as for the recent "replicas" from China, its worth buying a few (along with a loupe and/or microscope) so that you know how to identify them. They are easy to spot. But there are counterfeits out there that are not, such as with gold coins.
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
636 Posts |
I agree buying and having a few counterfeits from China in your hand would be a good learning experiance,however I will not give these schmucks one red penny. It only promotes their illegal business.
You can be sure, that if I was in China, selling those things and got caught, Id be facing the firing squad with only a bowl of rice for my last meal.
Their whole country seems to be full of issues. Milk that is killing their kids, lead based paints that are being exported that can kill ours, the Sars outbreak that they tried to keep hidden from the world, millions of their people being displaced from flooding for the Gorges Dam project, human rights issues galore....ok,,Ill let it rest.
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Pillar of the Community
Australia
1040 Posts |
I have been to China quite a few times on business and much of it is actually very well developed and advanced. It wont be too long now before China is the most powerful economy in the world. Sure they still have some issues to sort out, but with their spending on infrastructure and desire to improve the living standard of every citizen and the loss of face they suffer when negative stories surface, it wont be long until they clean up their act.
And as for making copies of coins, it isn't illegal in China, as long as they don't counterfeit their own money. It is a matter for the buyer to determine the authenticity.
If you are getting an absolute bargain on a key date coin, and you haven't done your research, you shouldn't complain if you get stung.
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
636 Posts |
I really think their instance to 'make a buck' producing counterfeit coins (tho they call them replicas), is really going to chip away the opportunities for people to buy and sell coins with confidence. I would like to be able to comfortably buy and sell, without second guessing the authenticity of every coin that passes my hand. Its pure and simple, as long as people continue to support their illegal actions by buying this crap, the more that they will continue. Have a look at their feedbacks...there are thousands of buyers eating this stuff up. I'd like the RCMP, FBI and other agencies work with ebay and nail these guys. At the very least, have ebay step up to the plate and disallow all listings from China. Then again ebays main concern always seems to be their bottom line. |
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Valued Member
United States
324 Posts |
The Chinese "replicas" are really easy to spot, and once enough of them are in the hands of collectors, knowledge of them will be common place. Those coins are not the real worry. Go to this site if you want to know what is the real counterfeit worry here: http://www.coinauthentication.co.uk...letter1.html |
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Replies: 10 / Views: 2,212 |
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Posted 11/04/2008 03:15 am
