Contemporary early American counterfeit coins

Trime · May 17, 2014 9:59PM

Who collects these fakes?

DaveG · May 17, 2014 10:38PM

I have a few pre-Civil War counterfeit coins.

Or are you talking about the Colonial-era counterfeits?

njcoincrank · May 17, 2014 10:46PM

I do.

njcc

Sonorandesertrat · May 17, 2014 10:47PM

I do---19th-century fake silver and gold, as well as mechanical counterfeit coin detectors.

Trime · May 18, 2014 12:42AM

I am not referring to colonial era counterfeits of British coins i.e Machin coppers but contemporary counterfeits of American minted pre-civil war coins ( from counterfeits of American colonials to federal coins).

Trime · May 18, 2014 12:49AM

Sonor...,
"I do---19th-century fake silver and gold, as well as mechanical counterfeit coin detectors"
What is a mechanical counterfeit coin detector?.

Unknown · May 18, 2014 2:04AM

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cmerlo1 · May 18, 2014 2:07AM

I do. I have several, including a couple of really nice bust halves.

STONE · May 18, 2014 2:43AM

I've got several - Bust Quarters, Halves, NVVV Colonial in silver.

I've also got 50+ counterfeit Mexican reales, along with other Central/South American pieces.

Sonorandesertrat · May 18, 2014 2:54AM

Trime,

Mechanical counterfeit coin detectors were made in the U.S. prior to, and after, the Civil War. They typically allowed the average merchant to check silver quarters and halves, or various gold coins (dollars to double eagles), for diameter, thickness, and weight. The latter was commonly done using a rocker mechanism (the coin was inserted in a recess on one side of a fulcrum, and a built-in counterweight was on the other side). A variety of manufacturers made such devices.

An excellent, but scarce, reference is:
E. P. Newman & A. G. Mallis, "U. S. Coin Scales and Mechanical Counterfeit Detectors."

coinsarefun · May 18, 2014 2:57AM

I collect highest quality electrotypes and struck copies I can find.

Here is my newest coming to me from NER. It is an electrotype of the rarest Washington Funeral Urn....the copper one.

DaveWcoins · May 18, 2014 5:51AM

I do.

Sonorandesertrat · May 18, 2014 6:02AM

Stefanie,
Is your Libertas Americana electrotype just one shell?

coinsarefun · May 18, 2014 6:19AM

<< <i>Stefanie,
Is your Libertas Americana electrotype just one shell? >>

Yes, pretty neat looking

Unknown · May 18, 2014 6:23AM

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coinsarefun · May 18, 2014 7:11AM

<< <i>I thought many electrotypes were mint made and sold as electrotypes, is this not correct? >>

Besides the very few mint made electros
Most were made in the mid 1800's for either museums or
collectors that wanted to study the coin.

LanLord · May 18, 2014 8:06AM

While I don't collect them per-se, I do have a couple that were left to me by my father.

An 1879 $3 gold piece and a 1900 Lafayette commem dollar.

harveypb · May 18, 2014 8:25AM

I collect bogus contemporary Bust Halves.(and real ones) Got over 60 pieces 1820- 1838.
None are silver. Some cast, some die struck. Some look very deceiving
while some others are pretty crude.... All attributed to Davignon varieties....
Got 1 Modern Chinese piece as an example... All the rest are contemporary....

Zoins · May 18, 2014 8:43AM

Great photo collage!

Don't forget the art of making electrotypes is alive and well even today

cmerlo1 · May 18, 2014 9:00AM

My most recent acquisition- I like how the silver wash is worn off the high points:

howards · May 18, 2014 10:19AM

Moi.

AUandAG · May 18, 2014 10:33AM

I don't but this is a counterfeit detector:

bob

Can't seem to make a link but here is the ebay number: 221322078878

bob

Trime · May 18, 2014 11:13PM

Seems to be some collector interest.
Would PCGS consider a new slab category of Counterfeit coins?
I am not sure how one judges contemporary" or if this would provide some incentive to modern counterfeiters or if the Feds would confiscate such objects.

CaptHenway · May 19, 2014 12:03AM

One of the most fascinating "contemporary counterfeits" I have ever handled is one of the 1787 Flowing Hair half dollars as illustrated on the dust jacket of Dan Taxay's "Counterfeit, Mis-Struck and Unofficial U.S. Coins." I would sure love to know when that was made.
TD

OKbustchaser · May 19, 2014 1:22AM

I have a few bogus halves, but not as many as I once did.

Trime · May 19, 2014 2:14PM

Very Timely
The ANS Colonial Newsletter #154 arrived today: featured a major piece by Roger Moore on Irish 1776 Counterfeit Half Pennies.
Not for those with short attention span but cool nevertheless.

MrEureka · May 19, 2014 2:30PM

I have perhaps half a dozen in my collection, and I've bought and sold many hundreds over the years.

cwt · May 19, 2014 6:41PM

For anyone interested, here is a link to the website of the Contemporary Counterfeit Capped Bust Half Collectors Club

link

Trime · May 19, 2014 9:07PM

CWT,
Thanks for the link to the website of the Contemporary Counterfeit Capped Bust Half Collectors Club

lostincoins · May 19, 2014 9:53PM

Hey Bob here is your link
counterfeit detecter

Treashunt · May 19, 2014 9:57PM

cwt

Thanks for the link, nice site

Also, I have a few bust $1/2 contemporary pieces, plus some others.

Contemporary early American counterfeit coins

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