Thoughts on this $2.50 Gold Indian? Fake - Or Real?
Banemorth
Posts: 986 ✭✭✭
So let me start off by saying that to my extremely mediocre eye, this thing looks perfect. The ONLY REASON that I'm suspect is because the guy I bought it from on Ebay just got blasted with some negative feedback for selling "the exact same coin multiple times." I look at his closed listings and sure enough, same slabs, same cert numbers, the pictures are blurry but maybe the same coin, maybe not. Bad pictures are generally a red flag for me on Ebay because that usually means you're hiding something. Still the price was good and I figured worst comes to worst I'll send it back.
Now I'm not an expert by any means but for the life of me I think this looks good but I know they are highly counterfeit. It's in an ANACS slab, an old soap box which I really like, but I know slabs can be faked too.
Not sure what the etiquette is on sharing the Ebay seller's info so I won't do that for now but if it's allowed I'm happy to share that too.
Thank you for your time!
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Comments
Good coin, properly graded. Who would have the capacity and the materials to fake an old Anacs slab?
Looks real to me and properly graded. Nice pick-up assuming you didn't overpay for it.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
Logger that's exactly what I thought but I was scammed in the past and it has made me a little gun-shy and paranoid, I'll be honest. Someone I respect very dearly told me "there is no santa clause in the coin world. If a deal is too good to be true, it probably is."
I went through this guy's sold auctions and he's selling TONS of stuff way below what they're worth via best offers. Here's a small sampling of them. Honestly if it's legit I am over the moon because the price was fantastic but I'm just nervous is all.
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There’s no such thing as Christmas in numismatics.
Having said that I don’t have the expertise to tell if it’s fake. It’s slabbed which would suggest it’s real but based on him using the same photos and certification numbers I’d be suspect.
The last star and the date seem to be "falling off the edge" but I think that's just camera angle and lighting. It looks real to me as well, and accurately graded. I purchased my Quarter Eagle (1925-D) raw and posted images before sending it off for grading (and authentication). Come to find out, that particular date/MM is one of the more heavily counterfeited pieces in the series even though it has the highest mintage. Mine turned out to be real, but poor photography and lighting had a few quite learned numismatists thinking it was a counterfeit piece... And while "it's too good to be true" is often the case, there are still a few deals to be made out there... just not the rips or "You Sucks" that everyone is hoping to find.
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Could just be selling an older coin collection with lots of old anacs slabs. As for the low prices... I don't know. I can't imagine any properly categorized gold coin going for much at all under market value.
I'm not seeing any "same cert numbers" in the pictures... could the negative feedback be from not honoring the high bids and just relisting the coins?
Collector, occasional seller
Nah I just didn't include those pictures as again, not sure what the rules are around sharing the seller's information. Here's two examples but there's more.
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By the way, again thank you so much Logger7, PerryHall, Skier07, Ikenefic, and ChrisH821. Your opinions and shared knowledge are much appreciated.
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The listing shows the seller is located in Reno, Nevada so buying from him might be a real gamble.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
Your coin is real, and I love the older holder. Nice buy.
Thanks guys, I know I sound like some crazy old tinfoil hat wearing madman. Appreciate you guys humoring me haha.
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A few points:
He may have accidentally listed a group of coins twice without noticing.
5 of the 6 negative feedback are from the same person e***b
The rest of his feedback looks fine, I don't think you have anything to worry about.
I poked around in a couple of his listings, it looks like he isn't filling out all of the item specifics such as mint mark. It also isn't helping that his pictures are less than good and "seller does not accept returns". All his items seem to just get a single bid.
This had to be a painful sale, recent NGC sales are around $2k, PC price guide is $4k:
Collector, occasional seller
the one bid thing isn't real. he lists it as an auction that also accepts best offers. No buy it now option. He immediately accepts the first offer he gets. If it says 1 bid it was an accepted best offer. If it gets a bid before he accepts an offer the auction runs as normal.
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Ohhh I see. So no way to see what they actually sold for?
Collector, occasional seller
Also the town is known for quick marriages and divorces which doesn't necessarily mean anything about a given seller.
But if he starts asking for more money to get what you bought for some reason that may be a matter of concern.
One thing that antagonizes buyers is not getting stuff they've set their hearts on.
I had one seller who kept cancelling orders as "out of stock" with large amounts of money involved a couple weeks after the sale. He wanted feedback to be revised to say he was a swell guy....
The 16-S Indian $5 in AU-58 has a PCGS price guide value of $1250. The winning bid is shown as $650. It's not the price you'd expect to see; but if the coin is real, somebody did very well.
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Now listen boy, I'm tryin' to teach you sumthin' . . . . that ain't an optical illusion, it only looks like an optical illusion.
My mind reader refuses to charge me....
is that a couple scratches on reverse by Of A?
just because a seller sells something twice does not make them a scammer (unless auction running same time)
returns and non-payers make most sellers sell again.
Some good deals in that group; lesson learned, ebay no reserve auctions is usually a major loser unless you have lots of followers on a given auction, I learned that the hard way.
I'll offer you a generous 5% finders fee on those coins and even pay for shipping to yours truly!
The problem wouldn't be the coin, it would be the seller. He can scam you with a picture of a real coin
We see that on these "do it yourself" ebay auctions, unfortunately. Let us know when you actually get the coins. Don't count your chickens until they're hatched.
@Banemorth ... That gold coin appears authentic. I can understand the caution though. Please let us know how it is when you get the coin. Good luck, Cheers, RickO
Oh I have the coin in-hand and the second one I ordered came today as well. It looks just as good as the first one. I only bought two from him because I was a nervous nelly. Now with all your guy's confirmations I regret not being greedier
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Another cautionary tale from ebay selling, if he had run them as buy it nows considering offers he would have made closer to market.
Real - nice coin
He doesn't care--
He paid face value for them.
BHNC #203