Book Review-- US Gold Counterfeit Detection Guide, by Bill Fivaz
Longacre
Posts: 16,717 ✭✭✭
As the title states, this is a book about how to detect counterfeit gold coins. Of course, it would be impossible for a book to outline and explain every single type of counterfeit gold coin and method in existence, but the book does a good job of providing not only the basics, but also the details. The book is broken out into several chapters (including a foreword, a preface, and an “about the author”). The first chapter is entitled “Rules of Thumb”, which I found to be very interesting. The chapter outlines the general guidelines that you should use in the study of any counterfeit US gold coin. It contains such rules as fat and mushy letters, tool marks, spikes, odd coloration, etc. The book contains full color pictures (enlarged) that illustrate each item.
The rest of the book is a highly detailed analysis of each gold series. The analysis even includes gold commemoratives and California fractional gold pieces. For each series, the book provides a date-by-date analysis (not every date is included, though) showing different counterfeit coins and the text explains why the coins are not genuine. Again, there are numerous pictures on each page and they are greatly magnified. This is certainly not a book that you would read from cover to cover, but for anyone who collects gold (unslabbed), it would be useful to at least read about your series of interest. Even if you collect solely slabbed coins, it would be useful to see what a counterfeit looks like.
The book also contains an appendix that provides the specifications of genuine US gold coins, and another that shows pictures of the features of genuine gold coins.
In all, I think this is a good book, worthy of a gold enthusiast’s library. I plan to study it closely, in anticipation of a trip to the Far East, so I can buy US gold for pennies on the dollar and make a big score when I return. The book is available through Whitman’s site, as well as your friendly neighborhood bookseller.
The rest of the book is a highly detailed analysis of each gold series. The analysis even includes gold commemoratives and California fractional gold pieces. For each series, the book provides a date-by-date analysis (not every date is included, though) showing different counterfeit coins and the text explains why the coins are not genuine. Again, there are numerous pictures on each page and they are greatly magnified. This is certainly not a book that you would read from cover to cover, but for anyone who collects gold (unslabbed), it would be useful to at least read about your series of interest. Even if you collect solely slabbed coins, it would be useful to see what a counterfeit looks like.
The book also contains an appendix that provides the specifications of genuine US gold coins, and another that shows pictures of the features of genuine gold coins.
In all, I think this is a good book, worthy of a gold enthusiast’s library. I plan to study it closely, in anticipation of a trip to the Far East, so I can buy US gold for pennies on the dollar and make a big score when I return. The book is available through Whitman’s site, as well as your friendly neighborhood bookseller.
Always took candy from strangers
Didn't wanna get me no trade
Never want to be like papa
Working for the boss every night and day
--"Happy", by the Rolling Stones (1972)
Didn't wanna get me no trade
Never want to be like papa
Working for the boss every night and day
--"Happy", by the Rolling Stones (1972)
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Comments
<< <i>Is there any mention of counterfeiting of southern gold coins? I have never seen or heard of an example. >>
Yes, I believe there is a counterfeit quarter eagle with a D mint mark. I can't remember if it was a cast copy or how it was made; I have not looked at the book in a month or so. I agree with Longacre, every gold collector should pick this book up and study it.
<< <i>Is there any mention of counterfeiting of southern gold coins? I have never seen or heard of an example. >>
I've heard of a few "O" mintmarks being retooled to make a "C" mintmark but there are very few C and D counterfeits since these coins usually receive very close scrutiny by collectors and counterfeiters know this.
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
<< <i>
<< <i>Is there any mention of counterfeiting of southern gold coins? I have never seen or heard of an example. >>
I've heard of a few "O" mintmarks being retooled to make a "C" mintmark but there are very few C and D counterfeits since these coins usually receive very close scrutiny by collectors and counterfeiters know this. >>
I have heard this too. I think this book might even mention that.
BTW, the D counterfeit looks terrible. RYK, I think it would take you 5 seconds to determine that it was a fake.