Special Report - How to Avoid Fake Silver & Counterfeit Gold Products

[jeff of pa]

If you have followed gold and silver market news over the past few years, it is likely you have seen various reports on fake gold and silver products.
In March 2012, a 1 kilo tungsten gold bar turned up in the United Kingdom.
Then in September 2012 there were reports on a slew of 10 oz tungsten gold bars bought and sold in .


Learn How to Avoid Fake Silver & Counterfeit Gold Products - GoldSilver.com

 

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[jim4silver]

I believe that in time there will be really good fakes out there. Right now they are not good if you know what to look for (at least in the ones I have seen online and in person). Sound is a good test, but some genuine rounds sound different than an ASE or even from round to round if made by different private mints.

I have accidentally purchased a few fake silver generics in the past but it was my fault for not inspecting all the bars/rounds carefully enough. Generally buying new mint tubes of Eagles or Maples, etc. from a reputable coin dealer is 99.99% certain to be genuine in my opinion. For future purchases I hope to stick to good junk silver and hopefully ASEs or Maples if the premium spreads ever go back to normal.

Jim

 

[TreasurePirate69]

Diversification is key. I try not to buy too much from one person or company. I also buy a lot of different types of products. Finally, I try to buy low cost products that are smaller in size rather than buying large bars that could result in major losses if even one of them is fake. I still may end up getting fake stuff some day. But this helps to minimize the possible damage if/when it happens.

I agree that the fakes are just going to keep getting worse as the years go by. Eventually the faith in the whole system will be lost if the governments of the world don't come together and stop this nonsense. We can't continue to let the Chinese flaunt the fact that they openly make these fake products and sell them to "dealers" in the US.

Here are a couple of interesting examples that are freely available on Alibaba. The Freedom Girl round listed below is especially interesting. I believe the pictures are of real products. But the company is advertising that they will basically copy the design of any coin for you.

Old Silver Plated Canada Maple Leaf Challenge Coin - Buy Chanllenge Coin,Old Silver Coin,Maple Leaf Coin Product on Alibaba.com

Freedom Girl Silver Bullet Silver Shield 1 oz .999 Fine Silver Coin, View religious silver coins, WUDA Product Details from Wenzhou Wuda Crafts Co., Ltd. on Alibaba.com

 

[lost]

Oh Gawd? Not my pretty Freedom Girl? I still haven't gotten a shipping date from Provident for a real tube, and now there is copies out there that can be delivered in 15 days?

Good Grief! Shoot me now!

 

[jim4silver]

I doubt the Chinese will get the weight and dimensions 100% correct on any of these silver fakes. All the fakes I have seen have been either too light or too heavy, in addition to the fact that the art work was not nearly as good as a real coin.

Jim

 

[TreasurePirate69]

I doubt the Chinese will get the weight and dimensions 100% correct on any of these silver fakes. All the fakes I have seen have been either too light or too heavy, in addition to the fact that the art work was not nearly as good as a real coin.

Jim

Agreed. However, as you said earlier the copies will likely continue to get better and better. This Alibaba source is probably not going to take much care in making you an exact copy. But the fact that they can blatantly advertise these types of services and no one does anything about it says a lot in my opinion. For every one vendor actively advertising on Alibaba, there are likely 20 more operating clandestinely that are doing a very good job of making fakes. This Alibaba ad also shows that they are no longer just copying high dollar numismatic products. They are now gladly copying common Maple Leafs, Freedom Girls, and well known private mint silver rounds.

 

[jim4silver]

Agreed. However, as you said earlier the copies will likely continue to get better and better. This Alibaba source is probably not going to take much care in making you an exact copy. But the fact that they can blatantly advertise these types of services and no one does anything about it says a lot in my opinion. For every one vendor actively advertising on Alibaba, there are likely 20 more operating clandestinely that are doing a very good job of making fakes. This Alibaba ad also shows that they are no longer just copying high dollar numismatic products. They are now gladly copying common Maple Leafs, Freedom Girls, and well known private mint silver rounds.

You are right that they need to do something about it. I don't know what company makes the fake US Morgans but that is counterfeit against the US gov but I don't think they are too concerned since Morgans are not circulating currency. I saw a fake Morgan at a coin store and it weighed under 20 grams (it was bought by an employee who was not real experienced). It didn't look too bad though as a circulated coin if you glanced at it quickly or were a total novice. It had a decent "ring" to it although it didn't sound like a real Morgan.

Jim

 

[TreasurePirate69]

The biggest problem I have with counterfeits is that if they put it in a flip or a case you can't weigh it or listen for the ring. If I'm at a coin show I'm not going to ask the dealer to remove the coin from its protective case so that I can weigh, measure, and ring it. So for pure bullion type coins there isn't as much of a concern because they are typically in the raw where you can handle them. But for numismatic specimens they are pretty much always in some sort of protective device (as it should be) that keeps you from being able to do anything other than look at it. Once they get to the point where you can't tell the difference just by looks then we are going to be in real trouble.

 

[ashleyrussel]

Before purchasing we should be more practical on any way. Better keen observation must be done to avoid buying fake coins. Well, nowadays, there's lot trading in fake goods but these is not a victimless crime as some people like to believe. So, we must beware of counterfeit merchandise because we know that the criminals make and sell counterfeit goods re-invest their profits in other criminal enterprises and evade the taxes the rest of us have to pay.