Got a sample today from a fellow dealer that got stuck with these. Everything is correct(packaging, C.O.A.) except the coins. These are all dated 2000, and are some what easy to distinguish as fake if examined closely, as details are not in correct scale on the devices, are NOT silver-incorrect weight, and they have the incorrect West Point mintmark (Proof Silver Eagles were not struck at West Point until 2001). Be very careful when presented with large deals of U.S. Mint bullion products, as the reports of quantities of fakes in the market are on the upswing.
I just happened to order a fake American Silver Eagle with the 2000 date and the W mintmark in proof condition and have supplied photos for your edification. The item was purchased on ebay from a seller in the UK. The weight of the coin is 30.0 grams. Note that the light ray that goes through the letter L in LIBERTY fades away before it gets to the letter L.
I've seen this type before. It's an "Ali-Baba" Silver Eagle. You can nab them (along with a number of other varieties) for about $3 a piece from China.
As for the orientation of the coin, I don't remember. I already proved to ebay that it was counterfeit, thanks to this forum, and shipped the counterfeit coin back to the UK dealer. My congratulations to ebay for forcing the seller to give me a refund, which he ignored before I filed a case against him. It is ebay policy not to offer counterfeit coins, as I pointed out to him but was ignored. Needless to say, beware on ebay; I was astounded at the number of Alibaba fakes coming out of China - both of old and new coins, and virtually all the popular ones. Thanks to the member pointing out the Alibaba connection. I would like to see Alibaba take action against these counterfeiters.
Is anyone aware of any fakes that beat this verification method? I don't, but would like to hear from others. As far as I'm aware, faking silver through this method would be extremely expensive.
Yup, those are surfacing in my country. The whole aliexpress assortment actually.
Silver plated copper will have totally wrong dimensions and/or weight. But it WILL fool the magnet test. I at least can't tell a copper round from a silver one with the magnet.
And this week, a local seller is offering 2012 Panda's lacking a nominal value. Ignored the first person that informed him, but sent me email that he'd remove the listing. Small time sellers don't seem to all care about fake/real, just about making the sale.
You know...if I was a punk ringing out fake pieces to sell as real...Id at least do a lil homework and do it right. Fortunately for ALL most of these people are light in the brains area.
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Posted 06/17/2013 11:29 pm
