My FAKE 1909S VDB pictures.

mrdq · January 30, 2010 12:32PM

A few days ago someone had a POST your fakes post but I just found these pics so I thought I'd share. This coin was featured in forum member Charles D. Daughtrey's book Looking through Lincoln Cents. When he was writing the book I offered to send him the coin as an example of "Added S" and it's pictured on page 48.

OneCent · January 30, 2010 12:53PM

1909 VDB with an added S. Looks to be a pretty good fake.

I can't quite tell from your photograph the serif style of the mintmark in order
to place it in the era which it was used. Do you know?

crazyhounddog · January 30, 2010 12:55PM

Where in the world would an average guy find an "S" that small ? How do they do that? Thanks for sharing the fake, it's amazing!!

mrdq · January 30, 2010 1:01PM

closeups might help

GrumpyEd · January 30, 2010 1:05PM

Another added S:

On the real ones the serifs ends are more parallel not at an angle and the S is not big and chunky. There's also a chip in the S but it's hard to see in this pic because of the slab.

A real one:

OneCent · January 30, 2010 1:06PM

There is no "dot" inside the top and bottom curve of the S.

I'm not entirely sure of the mintmark era ( I could get out Lange's Complete Guide To LC, but too lazy atm), but would guess that it is from the 1940's.

It is a pretty good fake. The VDB on the reverse looks a little funky.

stevek · January 30, 2010 1:13PM

Before the advent of grading, around 1980 if I'm remembering the year right, scammers had became so proficient at this that one dealer showed me how he was scammed from a con artist who came into his coin shop to sell a 1909S VDB, and naturally the dealer focused on the S...and so he determined it was genuine, and a short while later after he paid cash to the scammer and the scammer was gone, he looked at the back and realized he'd been conned - it was the VDB which had been added to a 1909S.

Takes a very confident scammer to risk messing up a valuable coin, to create a more valuable coin.

I'd never buy a 1909S VDB unless it was in a PCGS slab.

Norseman88 · January 30, 2010 1:41PM

I wouldn't buy a 1909 svdb period, way to much for a coin that is not rare.

nankraut · January 30, 2010 2:18PM

<< I wouldn't buy a 1909 svdb period, way to much for a coin that is not rare. >>

I understand and respect your opinion; however, if a collector wants to assemble a complete set of Lincolns, what do you do about the SVDB?
I doubt that you could ever find one in change these days.

DCW · January 30, 2010 2:39PM

While the 1909 SVDB is not "rare" in the true sense of the word, it is probably the most popular US coin of the 20th century. It is also extremely liquid, as it doesn't matter how many are in an auction. They will all sell and for strong money. So the demand always seems to exceed the supply, hence it doing well over the last hundred years at the top of most want lists.

Batman23 · January 30, 2010 3:25PM

Here is another added mintmark.

OneCent · January 30, 2010 4:18PM

<< I wouldn't buy a 1909 svdb period, way to much for a coin that is not rare. >>

It is the most coveted coin in the most popular series
on the face of the planet.

sf340flier · January 30, 2010 5:06PM

Geez Batman, that's a pretty good fake.

Walkerguy21D · January 31, 2010 12:53AM

Thanks for sharing the various pictures of fakes with the forum.
Re:

<< <>
I understand and respect your opinion; however, if a collector wants to assemble a complete set of Lincolns, what do you do about the SVDB? I doubt that you could ever find one in change these days >>

Excellent point, nankraut....I think the same can be said for a lot of 'key dates' in various popular series. The 38D walker is fairly plentiful in most grades, expensive relative to it's availability, but I still needed one for my set. 3 legged buffs are everywhere, as are low and middle grade 1877 and 09S indian cents. You either pony up or stare at that empty hole.

BillJones · January 31, 2010 2:56AM

<< Where in the world would an average guy find an "S" that small ? How do they do that? Thanks for sharing the fake, it's amazing!! >>

He would scrape the "S" off of another Lincoln cent and attach it to the coin. The trouble is the "S" on the 1909-S-VDB is distinctive from later "S" mint marks.

I'm not so sure that the coin that started this thread is an added "S" counterfeit. The "S" looks a worn as the rest of the coin, which often not case with added mint mark pieces. I think the whole thing is a counterfeit made to look worn with some artifical aging. It might be one from the China mint.

mrdq · January 31, 2010 3:13AM

PCGS bagged it as added S. Don't ask me, i bought the dumb thing

granted i was 15.. but still.

My FAKE 1909S VDB pictures.

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