ChopMark coins clues to authenticity
Crypto
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While the explosion in popularity has been fun to watch it has bought out an increase in “opportunistic marketing”. Simply buying a coin in a holder is no guarantee either as the services don’t really validate the chop rather than the host coin. I think a thread that hobbyists share their tells or clues they use to check the chop or ink mark on coins would be fun and educational.
When going though ebay I came across this coin 
To these eyes it clearly bogus, some things that pop out to me.
1-seller has a ample supply, they aren’t not that common.
2-seller has a wild but vague story of where they came from. Just like toners that all have a story and the seller has a bunch that look the same it should raise a red flag at the least.
3- specific coin appears to have been lightened yet the ink is too fresh
4-the ink is strongest on the high points and weakest at the low points. Old ink is often the opposite
Examples welcomed
Comments
Ink chops seem a little easier to authenticate because there are so few compared to regular chops. Along with the host coin making sense, the age, design, and general feel should all make sense. The presence of other chops is also helpful.
It's not exactly quantifiable but it's the old p*rn explanation; I know it when I see it. Here is my one ink chopped coin:
Regarding regular chops, there are many checkpoints. I'm not an expert; you know those guys and I'm sure they'll be around shortly to expand😅
Some things I look out for: Host coin authenticity and scarcity. Style of chop vs date of coin. Style of chop vs other known chops. Depth of chop and consistency of depth of chops. Reciprocal side damage. Overlapping of chops. Placement of chops. Repetition of chops. And the list goes on!
Here are a couple of my coins in chopmarked holders with (IMO) dubious or not true Chinese chopmarks:
Chopmarked Trade Dollar Registry Set --- US & World Gold Showcase --- World Chopmark Showcase
Chopmark genuine , inkchops fake
I hope I’m not hijacking the thread, but I don’t know much about chopmarked coins. Is any coin with a chopmark going to get a Details grade, like the “Chop Mark - Unc Detail” above? Do each of the grading services treat them the same way? If they all get Details grades, doesn’t that essentially remove any value pertaining to grade, leaving the coin authenticated but essentially ungraded and impossible to compare on a grade-to-grade basis with other coins?
I personally see a chopmark as the predecessor of the grading services. The recipient received the coin, verified that it was legitimate, and applied the mark to certify it. The mark is a badge of honor that shows the coin actually reached China, and became part of the trade currency there, even if it never again left a bag with 99 other coins. It does not mean the coin ever circulated, any more than silver dollars that sat in a bag in a vault domestically.
These are all plusses to me. So why the Details grade?
@Ronsanderson Assuming no other issues, PCGS will give chopmarked US trade dollars numeric grades. No other coins will receive that designation with PCGS or NGC. ANACS will also give a numeric grade but it still carries a Details designation. We've had the discussion re details/no details grade many times. There are vastly differing viewpoints, which I understand.
Regarding authentication, sometimes it requires a number of sources. (Thanks to @OriginalDan for the coin and the majority of this info) Take the following coin:
This chopmark has several things going against it.
-Morgan dollars are very scarce chopmarked; I believe there are something around 15 known examples.
-It's a Philadelphia mint coin; as anyone who collects chopmarked trade dollars knows, P mint coins are orders of magnitude scarcer than S and (most) CC coins.
-The chop itself is not a very "normal" looking chop; it's in relief and is not a well defined character.
-The chop is placed perfectly in the field; it's not obscuring any of the devices.
So, with all of those indicators, why is this a real chop?
-The patina, wear, and age of the chop match the rest of the coin.
That's still not enough for full authentication. However, a bit of detective work finds a very similar chop on several other indisputably chopped, contemporary coins:
Given the rationale to explain the items in the "Inauthentic Column", and weighing the negatives vs positives, I believe this is a valid chop.
Not all chops are this difficult to authenticate but hopefully it's a useful exercise in some things to look for in disputed or unclear chops.
Chopmarked Trade Dollar Registry Set --- US & World Gold Showcase --- World Chopmark Showcase
I have never seen a counterfeit Trade Dollar with what appears to have genuine chop marks. If anyone has an example, I would like to see it.
Helping out a friend who has an interest in them, I've seen many contemporary counterfeit world crowns with genuine chops but I can't recall specifically seeing any US T$s
Chopmarked Trade Dollar Registry Set --- US & World Gold Showcase --- World Chopmark Showcase
I agree that these are modern ink marks, I heard about a company in China that was adding modern ink stamps to otherwise genuine, but typically heavily chopmarked, Eight Reales, claiming they added "aesthetic but no historic value". Of course, it's a disingenuous practice and should bring no premium, they're modern concoctions. Here's one of five similar pages from a 2021 Chinese auction, to show how widespread the practice is:
Def see some commonality that shows on the examples on eBay. That said it draws doubt into existing examples fair or not
11.5$ Southern Dollars, The little “Big Easy” set