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 Replies: 17 / Views: 8,418 |
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Valued Member
Canada
94 Posts |
Hi, I came across this 20$ bill and something is very wrong with it. I'm hoping those of you who understand the printing of bills better can help me understand what happened to it. My biggest fear is that it is a fake. This bill has a strange shade of purple/red to it. It is most evident on the back. It is also partially showing the 20$ imprint that should only be visible under UV light. The colour of the UV sensitive 20$ imprint seems to be the same colour as the purple/reddish shades on the bill. I have scanned this next to ane xample of a regular 20$ to really show the difference. Can someone explain this? Was ink spilled on the twenty when it was being printed or do I have a counterfeit bill?   The bottom one is the strange one. |
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Bedrock of the Community
Canada
10743 Posts |
Good question, where's our paper money experts.  |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3098 Posts |
Looks like some kind of dye got on it - can't really say from where, but anti-theft dye packs are usually red.
And this sort of dye will bring out the UV ink on the note. The UV feature on Canadian notes (and others that are invisible) is a special vanish/overprinting from a different type of ink, so it will pick up dyes or other substances.
Does the security strip on the back change colors when you tilt it?
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
1733 Posts |
They will also pick up dyes from unusual places, stuck in the pages of a damp magazine, sitting on a fast food tray and so on. I had a five turn almost purple when the kids stuck some silly putty on it.
Nothing about the note scares me looking at it... if it feels right and security strip is accurate, I'd say it's simply a regular damaged bank note.
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Valued Member
Canada
272 Posts |
First rule of thumb when looking for counterfeit bills is to run your first finger and thumb very lightly along either side of the bill, you are looking for raised ridges from the printing, then check the maple leaf strip for change of colour along the left side of the face.
Also look for fibres all over the bill both back and front.
On the surface your bill looks fine to me, as for the pink/red hues, sun light or humidity could cause this along with a miriad of other reasons.
Hope this helps.
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
1166 Posts |
When I search bundles of notes, I come across a variety of colors. All the reasons given above are logical.
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
3692 Posts |
New counterfeits can reproduce the hidden numbers and faces so don't rely on that. The number one thing you should look for is the metallic strip on the BACK. It is interweaved in the paper itself. Forget the hologram, as those can also be reproduced. Feel the paper's quality by rubbing it in your fingers and thumbs for a short time. You should be able to tell with a blindfold on. There are raised bumps on the big number 20. Another thing that is hard but not impossible to countefeit is the tiny tiny printing saying Bank of Canada over and over. Both samples turned out about the same.
Another note about the fibres: make sure they are actual fibres in the paper and not just scanned on. They also glow under UV light. (So do most new commemorative quarters!)
The one thing that really bothers me about this bill is the purple SQUARE where it's not supposed to be. Either that's a huge mess-up or you have a counterfeit. OR, that's just the way they were made until 2008. Also, the raised bumps at the top right corner of the front aren't quite there, but lots of bills have worn down bumps. I don't see any traces of them on the 2nd bill. Everything else about the bill looks legit, even the imprinted part that says CANADA running along the right border on the back.
If you're still not sure, send it to me! :D
Edited by Libertad
03/13/2011 12:15 pm
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
3692 Posts |
I'm intrigued now. The purple square leaks out to the other side and smears the woman's face a bit. What are the exact dimensions of that square? Then we can begin to guess what was placed on the bill and for roughly how long. My guess: a sofa leg without carpet underneath. Any crinkles or creases on the bill that the scan didn't pick up?
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Valued Member
Canada
166 Posts |
My money is on the 2008 being a counterfeit, something is just not right with it...or quite possible it is a mess-up at the mint but unlikely.
Best bet is to back-light them and see if the Queens embedded image shows through and the puzzle 20 connects.
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Valued Member
Canada
276 Posts |
actually, it's best to drop it in a bank machine and let the banks figure it out.
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
1166 Posts |
Check out the microprinting on your note. If it is soft or blurred, then it's counterfeit. If it's crisp like any other note then it's legit.
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Valued Member
Canada
480 Posts |
The embossing on the numbers can be easily copied with heat embossing equipment. Check the see-through registration device (vertical 20 next to the big 20 ). Check the watermark (queen) that it is dark when light is shown behind the bill (and not printed on the surface), and that the details are good- this is one of the biggest failings of counterfeits. . Check that the strip is 2 colour- the counterfeits I have seen have only 1 colour. Check the microprinting- the bottom row of text, the twenty below the Queen, and the fine lines and printing all over the bill. Check that the ink does not run when it is wet- Some counterfeits do, but not all. Check that the paper feels right. Check the fibres are solid with a light behind them- the counterfeit ones can fade out. Also check the weaving of the 20 CAN strip- that it is visible, and complete.These are the visual and tactile tests that you can carry out easily.
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Valued Member
Canada
426 Posts |
No one has pointed this out yet, but look at the vertical-dashed strip on the left side of the back of the two notes. One one note it goes between the 20, on the other it goes right over the 2 in 20.
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
1166 Posts |
The strip position varies. If you havs a stack of notes and flip them, the strip wavers back and forth.
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Valued Member
Canada
248 Posts |
-Icandiit- I can agree with that, that' all I seen on it. Not strange if that's all but all I can see. Right now time for bed.
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New Member
Canada
42 Posts |
Just take it to a First Choice Haircut store and ask them to check it for you - they have a marker that when applied to the bill will either turn yellow on a counterfeit or appear black on the regular bill.
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Replies: 17 / Views: 8,418 |
Posted 03/12/2011 09:39 am
