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 Replies: 17 / Views: 2,930 |
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Valued Member
United States
242 Posts |
My dad asked me how I know that my .999 fine copper bullion is really what it says it is. I hadnt thought about it since I was collecting for the looks figuring the copper isn't worth enough to really worry about at this point. (Have 20 times more in copper pennies then I do in copper bullion coins.) But he has a point for more important purchases I think. How do you know that a particular gold or silver bullion item is what it says it is both in weight and in .xxx fine? Do you only buy from certain mints and they are certified? Is it more like buyer beware or you test it when you get it somehow? I could see myself having fun buying silver and keeping it secure and protected visually. I dont 'need' the investment, but since I am under government limitations on savings, having it 'invested' in bullion allows me to have more value on hand without violating my government requirements. (Stupid the smart thing to do is to save up a thousand dollars incase your car dies or your dishwasher explodes or something but because of my limited status I am actually required to spend money then borrow it on a credit card later if I have to pay for a massive expense like that.  ) *** Moved by Staff to a more appropriate forum. *** |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1903 Posts |
Ya, lovely how the government is teaching people to spend spend spend and not save and invest. I am an extrordinarily optimistic person...but until we get our government back to what it was written to be....this country is going to keep on sinking. As for assurances of purity....use reliable sources and government issues bullion. It isn't 100% but is as close as it is gonna get. Testing would cost more than any profits you could hope to make.
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Valued Member
 United States
242 Posts |
Ahh ok. Even though it makes perfect sense my brain hadnt made the distinction between government bullion and government coinage. I think someone said somewhere the only real difference is whether or not it has a value on it even though some of the 'coinage' would never be spent at face value except by ignorance/stupidity because its bullion value is so much more. (I remember a discussion around here somewhere about some 'bullion' having values for purchases and limitations on import/export/duties/etc.)
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1903 Posts |
Bullion minted by countries usually does have a face value. An American Silver Eagle does in fact have a $1 face value, a Canadian Silver Maple has a face value of $5 etc... but that is a technicality and not intended to be used as currency. There IS limitations on private purchase and movement of currency across national borders...if I remember right, Canada has a $25 limit per package of coinage that can legally move across the border into the U.S. so yes there are restrictions. How precious metal suppliers get around this law is beyond me, but in the private sector, moving large quantities of silver coinage can be problematic.
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Bedrock of the Community
Australia
21786 Posts |
I have no doubt the a U.S. Mint product is what the Mint says it is.
So how about fakes?
'TING!, TING!, TING! TING!'
A comparative ring tone test should be sufficient. That should pick out fakes that are less than .999 fine.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
808 Posts |
Government bullion is minted to very fine tolerances in terms of size and weight. Shortly after my first gold purchase, I invested in a high quality scale and a pair of nylon calipers. By carefully weighing and measuring the physical dimensions of my coins and then comparing those values against the official published weight and dimensions of the same coin available from the various government mint web sites, I've been able to reliably authenticate my own collection with a high degree of confidence. This same process works just as well for government silver bullion, too.
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Valued Member
United States
117 Posts |
I use a digital scale, which works great for weighting items that I'm unsure of. Usually, if your not comfortable, you're better off not buying it. Since stressing over a littl piece of metal isn't worth the overall outcome. Better to get a coin your comfortable with, and enjoy looking at, all day long. And without having some little voice in the back of your mind, asking "Is it really real?" At least that's what I've learned. I once had a Morgan dollar that I wasn't even sure if it was real, since a friend gave it to me, who get it from a guy off a bus stop. And I'm totally clueless with Morgans, with all their errors upon errors upon errors. It ended up being real and everying, but I wasn't happy with it, even thou a lot of people confirmed it wasn't fake. I just wasn't comfortable. To all your Morgan dollar collections...just WOW! I just can't keep up with multiple errors and such. |
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Bedrock of the Community
13014 Posts |
Quote:
How do you know that a particular gold or silver bullion item is what it says it is both in weight and in .xxx fine?
Do you only buy from certain mints and they are certified? If you buy from a reputable country mint (USA, Canada, AUS, GB ect) you know exactly what youre getting. For their bullion versions if you buy from a site like Provident Metals, APMEX, silver towne again you can be confident in what you buy. Its when you start buying from places that are cheaper than everywhere else or deals to good to be true that red flags should be going off. Private mints like englehard are very reputable, but their products are faked. Buying from the same sites listed above greatly reduces the chance of a fake. Personally I stick to bullion from national mints and stay away from the privately minted stuff but there is a lot of private stuff out there thats exactly what it says it is. |
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
1502 Posts |
credit suisse isn't a cheap brand but they are swamped with fake gold bars.
What matters is the source you are buying from, whether they take it upon themselves to ensure quality, be it a national mint or local dealer. What comes after that is knowledge. Silver and gold have specific properties (density, malleability, magnetism, conductance, the way it vibrates), some of which lends to quick tests. And lastly, you can always double check. I would insist to bore a small hole if I were to buy 10oz gold bars
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4008 Posts |
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An American Silver Eagle does in fact have a $1 face value, a Canadian Silver Maple has a face value of $5 etc... but that is a technicality and not intended to be used as currency. It is typical of governments to put a face value on a bullion coin that is way less than the current bullion value but if the price of bullion drops below that of the face value, they back-pedal like mad so as to "not get taken" by all the people cashing in their bullion coins. :-/ |
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Valued Member
United States
200 Posts |
Yes, that is true. There are a lot of coins from countries like Marshall Islands not worth the face value. I have $50 coins of Marshall Islands coins and their silver value is around $36. Even if I travel to Marshall Islands, I cannot get $50 for them.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4008 Posts |
Quote:
Even if I travel to Marshall Islands, I cannot get $50 for them. Anyone traveling that far should get a $100 credit at the local hotels, bars, and restaurants.  |
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Valued Member
United States
71 Posts |
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Valued Member
United States
200 Posts |
I find non US bullion to be quiet cheap at times. Most of my recent non US coins purchase has been below spot. Anything below spot looks like a good deal to me. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4008 Posts |
I inherited a few Marshall Islands coins from my Dad but they are just silver plated and not worth anything other than as a keepsake. |
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Valued Member
United States
200 Posts |
$50 Marshall Island coins are pure silver. Which ones do you have Ed?
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Replies: 17 / Views: 2,930 |
Posted 09/27/2012 6:04 pm
