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Do you feel sorry for buyers of fake coins in on-line auctions?
291fifth
Posts: 24,675 ✭✭✭✭✭
Modern fakes of things like Trade Dollars, Bust Dollars, Seated Dollars and, especially, Morgan Dollars have now been around since the end of the last millennium. Sites like this one have made spotting such fakes much easier. In spite of that, the fakes, even laughably bad ones, still get strong bidding in on-line auctions.
Do you still feel sorry for the bidders in these auction (assuming you ever did feel sorry for them) or do you have other feelings?
All glory is fleeting.
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Yes. They are obviously new inexperienced collectors who will leave the hobby once they find out they've been scammed and usually will never come back.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
Yes. Long term it’s not good for the growth of our hobby.
It’s kind of like going to a casino and feeling like you were cheated. Would you return to the same casino? No. Would you stop going to all casinos? Maybe.
absolutely--no one deserves to be sold something fraudulent regardless of lack of due diligence, etc
yes, everyone works very hard for their money, they deserve what they thought they paid for
My sorrow for them is mitigated when they buy obviously “rare coins” for pennies on the dollar. I harken back to a guy who brought a “1796 Bust Dollar” to one of our club meetings. He was bragging about how he had bought it off the Internet for $200. The first problem was the bust was too far to the left, which is a 1795 variety. The second was, of course, its age was short by a couple centuries.
Few people sell $8,000 coins on the Internet for $200. Sometimes the greed factor lowers one’s sympathy for those who have been scammed.
Of course. Getting scammed sucks. It hurts the hobby for all of us. New buyer gets burned, new collector leaves the hobby. The scammer is the POS.
No, do not feel sorry. In most cases the buyers know that something is fishy. However they think this one here is not a fishy one. it looks very good. I am just simply lucky to find it. well, sorry but you have been had by a convincing scammer and usually a very new Chinese forgery.
Besides feeling bad for victims to the scammers can’t one do digging up before a purchase is made? I mean... common sense is a quality one can use.
My first reaction was NO, Never! However, after reading the posts, I've changed my mind to Yes, a thousand times Yes. Thanks for opening my
eyes, 
Yes. The first or second time, after that if they can't do a little research & learning.....not so much.
You can't protect stupid people from themselves.
Those that buy what they think is a million dollar jackpot are not collectors. Treasure hunters, yes. Collectors, no.
No sorrow for treasure hunters.
50-50. Education is expensive, and hopefully they learned something as a result.
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Yes if they believed they were buying an authentic coin
Successful transactions with : MICHAELDIXON, Manorcourtman, Bochiman, bolivarshagnasty, AUandAG, onlyroosies, chumley, Weiss, jdimmick, BAJJERFAN, gene1978, TJM965, Smittys, GRANDAM, JTHawaii, mainejoe, softparade, derryb, Ricko
Bad transactions with : nobody to date
Not always
thats why we help one another so this would not happen to a member here,
Don’t have this first hand but word on the steet afew thousand years ago was something about let the buyer be wear but kinda seems harsh and inappropriate now but (ware)or what ever never could spell. Wondering 🙀jzyskowski beware
🎶 shout shout, let it all out 🎶
Yes, I do feel sorry for them. Not everyone is tech-savvy, or knows about sites like this. And, not everyone knows that there are so many fakes out there, or how to detect them. Some people are more trusting or more gullible than others. That doesn't mean they deserve to get scammed. It's bad for the hobby.
There is this forum where members help out other members. But, there are also other forums where it seems it's the newbies being taught by other newbies, and some of the information is not going to be helpful.
Rocking my "shiny-object-syndrome"!!!
This!
My YouTube Channel
Yes - I feel sorry for anyone who gets ripped.
Yes. No one is willingly buying a fake. Whether the buyer is inexperienced, naive, vulnerable, or just an idiot, it doesn’t diminish the fact they are being taken advantage of by a thief.
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As Bill says, depends on the victim's motives. I also have little sympathy for those who are blatantly lazy, given the plethora of information now at our fingertips.
P.S. I've failed my own standards on occasion, and I sure don't feel sorry for myself.
It stinks when people are taken advantage of. Blame is not a black and white thing. But I have sympathy. And empathy too- we have all been a victim of something at some time.
yes and I wish the auction houses were a whole lot more involved at times. jmo
I have bought a couple of faked coins. Tuition.
I have also bought a few coins not knowing if they were real or not and they turned out to be to the real deal
I agree. You should preach that to some of Carr's disciples that swear if someone is mislead by his work someday in the future that it is their fault and that they somehow deserve it.
Also, Some sellers have no idea that their item is fake, they believe it to be real.
There are of course the sellers that sell what they know are fakes. IMO. they should be prosecuted if possible.
While not coins, and I am sure it happens all the time with coins, I get the deal with the wreckage when a spouse, child, relative, etc. knows said individual wants an X, doesn't have the money for X, really wants an X, so the well meaning relative springs a significant outlay of $$ (anniversary, decade birthday, Christmas, etc.) and they do not know really anything about it, or how much to spend, and goes out and buys X for their loved one, Later, when the gift is made, the loved one often knows it is wrong, but Granny blew a social security check on it, and there is no way to return it.
It is not usable in the form purchased, and now the recipient has to buy the real item, to cover it up.
I see $1000 automotive radios that are rusted blobs on the inside, air conditioners with everything broken inside, PostiTrac rear ends that are not, etc.
My family has a quasi strict rule concerning me of "Don't buy anything for me over $20." If they want to buy something nice, they give me a picture of it, and budget, and we shop together.
Plus, I negotiate a lot better.
Mixed feelings. I don't think society needs guardrails in front of every potential hazard. Apart from that, feeling sorry for anyone does little actual good. Prosecute the perps and educate the potential buyers as much as you can and move on. Much worse happens in the medical, used car, financial service, and real estate arenas.
2 thoughts. Once saw an offer on eBay for silver eagles that were phony and the original buyer was just trying to recoup some of their losses. Selling as novelty hoping others would help out with their mistake. Honest at least! Now about prosecuting dishonest sellers. Hopefully there’s a little more room in that special place in hell 🙀jzyskowski
🎶 shout shout, let it all out 🎶
Wherever there is money the scammers won't be far behind.
Maybe a tenth circle of hell should be opened for them.
What about those buying fake Rolex watches on the street in New York for $30? Do they actually believe that they are getting an authentic Rolex, or are they just trying to impress family and friends?
Interesting has there been any cases where the sellers have been caught and sent away
I feel it is easier said then done
Scammers need to be put in jail. Let's see them scam big bubba out of his pudding on his dinner tray.
I also feel sorry for the heirs. A lot of these fakes are going to sit in someone's collection for decades, with grandpa/grandma showing off their xxxx. I can't imagine the feelings when they take grandpa's 4-5 figure coin in and find out it's worthless junk.
The ones I do not feel sorry for have big $$$ in their eyes, who think they scammed the scammer, posting on forums "how much is it worth?", getting told it's fake, then arguing about it, then disappearing forever.
I can't find USPS rules on sending a ghost
IMHO: Yes, if the buyer doesn't have a mentor, or, someone to steer them in the right direction it may end in bitterness, and complete loss of interest in the hobby; which is a loss for all. Some can lick their wounds, learn, and move on to making better decisions; however, that bar may be quite high if a lot of money, and time had been invested....
Unfortunately, some are coached, and don't want to believe they had made a mistake(s), and keep doing what they had been doing...I don't feel too sorry for those individuals. Their decision.
On a similar note,...I've seen old timers in my local coin club buy cleaned coins without hesitation; once again, their decision. You ever tried telling a 70 year old curmudgeon they just bought a cleaned coin???
Fraud is rampant at all levels, ages, and designed to fool any degree of expertise. Whether it be fraudulent large cents graded by TPG's and passed as authentic, or the all too many obvious eBay scams....
Knowledge is power...applied knowledge is powerful! I try to refer to as many sources when I share what I think I know with those in my coin club, or, collector friends. In all honesty. Always. Important. I've seen many times "knowledgeable" sources rip collectors out of coins/sets just to sell for profit...In short, so many pitfalls, and levels of deception. Chinese may be the least of newbie threats...greed speaks the same language.
Knowledge without capacity = ? 🙀j
🎶 shout shout, let it all out 🎶
To answer the OP.....
Yes I do but........as my brother used to say, "kind-of I don't."
Don't worry ....
It will never get there.
I do have sympathy for new collectors who get scammed..... I do not have sympathy for new, scammed collectors, who, when told, become belligerent and accuse 'you' of trying to scam them or tell you that you do not know what you are talking about...."The guy on TV said it was very valuable and would increase ten fold in the next five years."....Yes, I have had that experience... a few times. Cheers, RickO
I do, but also get frustrated with buyers on many of these- there are just so many resources available on-line to do quick comparisons if you just take the time. As someone else mentioned some of the fakes are SO BAD I tell folks just having a copy of the Red Book would weed a number of them out. And spending the time on either PCGS CoinFacts or NGC’s VarietyPlus sites allow the buyer to see several comparison images of genuine coins as reference, not to mention articles on the subject in Coin Week, etc.
There are a number of folks who work to report and remove bad coin listings in internet selling venues but that can unfortunately feel like “whack-a-mole” at times, but trying to prevent a bad experience for a new/ novice collector seems worth the effort.
And then there are some who suggest making a mistake can be a positive learning experience, so this issue is definitely a doubled edge sword…
Actually, some people do willingly buy fakes. Some collect them, like Omega DEs and Henning nickels, while some buy modern ones to resell. A number of people have been caught importing and reselling in the US, sometimes to B&Ms.
Do they just call them reproductions?🙀jzyskowski
🎶 shout shout, let it all out 🎶
No, I do not feel sorry foe those who spend their discretionary money foolishly.
It is their money I have no say in how they spend it. If asked I will tell them my opinion and advice,
We all pay our money and take our chances.
Took me about 30 years to forget enough about getting ripped off to try it again.
Anytime someone mentions young numismatists, I think about how some dealers use them to roll hunt & rip them.
If I told you what I'd like to do with them, I'd get banned.
Yes, I feel terrible about how this hobby is associated with fraud.
My Saint Set
291 5th suggested a 10th circle in hell after I had suggested enlarging that special place in hell for exceptionally rotten people. Can’t get banned for that thought. 🙀jzyskowski
🎶 shout shout, let it all out 🎶
I don't feel sorry for the buyers, I feel anger towards the sellers. Too bad they cant jail the scumbags but its just something we have to tolerate and try to avoid.
"A dog breaks your heart only one time and that is when they pass on". Unknown
No!
But:
I feel sorry for those who create threads like this!
a.k.a "The BUFFINATOR"