Trade Dollar Real Or Fake?

I posted in wrong section. darn newbies

It's a really bad fake. I would recommend getting a slabbed example for your first coin if you are unfamiliar with the series.

Fake or not, it's so heavily polished that any numismatic value is pretty much destroyed. Walk away.

Looks to me like it was made on dies that were soft. On a genuine, US minted coin, the edges of the devices and legends are much sharper in relationship to the fields. Even the dentiled edge on this coin is poorly formed.

An overall "mushy" look is the first thing I notice in all of these modern counterfeits. Put that image right next to an image of a genuine US minted Trade dollar and you'll see what I mean. Once you recognize the difference in the quality, you'll be able to spot most of these from 5 feet.

Chance

That's the lazy path, and it's becoming disturbingly common. If you don't want to learn about the minting process and learn to really appreciate the fine points of coinage ... then why are you collecting coins?

If you educate yourself ... you won't have to pay for someone else's knowledge.

And ... There are counterfeit slabs, so that's really not the answer anyway.

Chance

been polished so much details are hard to see.
I would steer clear of this one.

I agree that you need to learn the series, but my approach maybe differ than some here.

I would go to local coin shows and look at genuine Trade dollars, pick up a book or two if available, buy a common year high quality slab that one can afford, study it further, buy a few cheap raw ones afterward and hold it in your bare hands, feel the weight and tap/drop it lightly and listen to the different sounds of genuine coins vs fakes.

If you're going to buy, make certain is real and buy from reputable dealers and collectors.

Just to add my opinion to the consensus:

The strike has all of the details that most of the fakes don't have, but the surface is very problematic. And I mean *very*. Even if it is genuine, it has been severely polished which has diminished most of its value.

Your best bet is to buy from a reputable dealer. For rarities such as this, I do recommend graded ('slabbed') specimens, as the authenticity tests they conduct are good enough to detect the majority of fakes out on the market. (And there are a lot of fake Trade dollars out there http://fakes.numismetrica.com/categ...ade-dollars/.)

However:




As a counterfeit collector I can say that in recent months, not so. Counterfeiters are finding plastic and holograms are easier to replicate than the coins themselves.... and that a large number of people are willing to trust the *plastic* rather than the coin it contains.




TPGs are one of the more curious forms of expert opinions. When you take a piece into a dealer and ask them face-to-face what something is worth, you're talking to a living, breathing human being. If you take it to multiple dealers, you have established a consensus with names you can revisit.

With a graded slab, you're trusting a label from a company with no individual person to fall back on or bounce further questions off of. It may be a reputable company. They may be fairly good at what they do, but if there's a mistake, you're on your own.

Also remember that TPGs are not your average hobbyists: They're in the business of selling their *services*, many of which are... for lack of a more tactful term... absolutely ridiculous. (FirstStrike® anyone?)

Education is the only surefire way to keep yourself away from trouble (but I admit, it won't necessarily keep you *out* of it :-) ).

If you're a new collector, trust *people* not labels. Join a coin club. Go regularly. Ask questions. Ask to come along with the friends you make on their next trip to a coin shop. Learn from experience *that* way as it's very much hands-on, and worth every minute you spend. :-)