Is This A Counterfeit?

Dude, you need to quit biting yuor nails.

The edge does look a little wierd doesn't it?

Hmmmmm

It sure looks like it, but counterfeiting quarters? That hardly sounds cost effective. Even the face of the obverse is fake looking. That is really strange.

quote:

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Originally posted by xxxxmadnessxxxx

>_< I've bit my nails for many years now. I'm very confident biting your nails is up next to smoking on the list of things you cant stop doing.

and yes, the edge is exactly what I'm looking at as to why I think its counterfeit. its 2 layers of silver with a copper looking layer in-between.

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Hey madness, are you sure that it is two layers of silver? I think somebody was playing around with molds and used a quarter as the subject for the practice on how to mold coins for future use in machines or pass off. Where is swamperbob?
Berry

madness - There are two distinct possibilities as I see it.

1. This coin has spent a considerable time underwater and has eroded. The copper is more reactive than the Nickel in the outerlayer so you get a recess in the copper portion of the rim and pitting in the surface cladding where copper erodes out of the layer.

2. It could be some form of counterfeit that I don't recognize.

I am leaning to #1 for several reasons. That is NOT because counterfeiting of 25 cent coins is not being done. IT IS. When I was still in New England there was a forger making quarters of copper that were dipped in mercury to pass. They were first found in 1999. The first ones noticed were old style 1999 quarters with the date under George's head. Of course none of those was ever actually made so they were obvious forgeries. I heard from bank tellers that other dates were also found.

I have come across fewer than a dozen counterfeit quarters dated after 1965. There are many counterfeits of silver quarters made before 1965, but clad quarters have not been such a large target. Most of the counterfeit quarters I have seen are struck from transfer dies using a variety of metals at hand - copper, nickel, steel and white metal.

But to me the edge tells a lot and in this case it looks eroded. We lived near an iron bottom pond with a public beach. Every year after the swimming season you could find coins with a metal detector. The coins that stayed in for a few years looked an AWFUL LOT like the one you posted.

But to confirm what you have - here are some suggestions.

First weigh it accurately. Erosion of the sort I think I see will produce an underweight of at least 5 to 20%. I actually saw one where the clad layers had seperated after all of the copper eroded out.

Second - look at the edge closely is the copper layer set inward from the C-N layers?

madness - the amount that the copper should be eroded inward from the edge of the coin will vary with length of exposure and the chemicals present in the water. But I am talking about a relatively small distance compared to the diameter of the coin. The fact that you notice a depression at all is fairly indicative that it was a "water baby".

Can you show us the reverse madness ?..Does look like it's in the same eroded condition..as the obverse?

You know..who ever did this maybe filed two seperate silver quarters to a particular thickness. Then took the left obverse of one and the left reverse of the other then glued them or used some kinda technic and sticked/welded these two on a foreign reeded copper coin that has the same diameter of a us quarter.

Interesting topic. I am also having hard time wondering why someone would counterfeit a quarter though. I think it might just be a worn out quarter...

Andrew

ahh..so you guys have already saw what I saw...OMG...sorry..i was in a hurry...didn't read all your posts :P