Test For Counterfeit Silver Coins – A How To
Their are tests to check for counterfeit silver, and while you can apply those tests to test for counterfeit silver coins, you cannot apply the tests for counterfeit silver coins to general counterfeit silver. If this seems complicated, it really is not. Please read on.
One difference between a test for counterfeit silver and a test for a counterfeit silver coins is that silver coins have specific dimensions and design criteria that is determined by the originating mint. Mint tolerances in general are very tight. A test for counterfeit silver coins is to test counterfeit silver coins against the published statistics for that particular coin as published by the originating mint.
If the test for counterfeit silver coins is positive, one or more of the coin dimensions will be out of tolerance, or the weight of the coin will be out of tolerance. This is because a counterfeit silver bullion coin must be made out of lesser metals than silver in order to be financially plausible as a profit creating counterfeit silver coin in most cases.
And, since different metals have different densities and qualities, an alloy that looks like silver will seldom weigh the same as silver. Therefore, a copy of a silver coin will either be too big or too small to weigh out correctly, or, if the counterfeit silver coin is the right size, it will weigh significantly more or significantly less than the mint struck silver coin.
For these reasons, you can apply certain tools to test for counterfeit silver coins, that may not otherwise work to test for counterfeit silver bars or ingots and the like. Here are some of those tools:
A Scales Can Test For Counterfeit Silver Coins.
The test for counterfeit silver coins in regards to an electronic scales is simple, but precision is key. A genuine silver coin will have a specified weight. A counterfeit coin that fails the test will either weigh significantly heavy or significantly light.
Slight variances for wear and/or dirt can be observed normally, but large swings outside of published tolerances indicates a fail against this test for counterfeit silver coins.
A Fisch Can Test For Counterfeit Silver Coins.
The Fisch is a unique little set of gadgets for the precious metals investor or precious metal coin dealer that can test for counterfeit silver coins. The Fisch measures weight, thickness, diameter, and shape of a coin against known tolerances in order to test for counterfeit silver coins as well as counterfeit gold coins.
The Fisch tools can be rather expensive, but in the world of ways to test for counterfeit silver coins and especially counterfeit gold coins, investing in a Fisch tool can payoff quickly.
A Jeweler’s Loupe Can Test For Counterfeit Silver Coins.
Because the quality of strike is so high for coins like the American Silver Eagle and the Canadian Silver Mapleleaf and the Austrian Silver Philharmonic, they are not easy to counterfeit. In fact, they are very difficult to counterfeit due to the staggering amount of intricate detail inherent to these coins.
Therefore, one test for counterfeit silver coins is to look at them under quality magnification. The tool for this job is a jeweler’s loupe. A jeweler’s loupe can be had for around twenty dollars, and can easily pay for itself if you use it to test for counterfeit silver coins.
A poor counterfeit coin will be easy to spot, even to the untrained eye, when you use a jewelers loupe to test for counterfeit silver coins. The test is performed by comparing the suspect silver coin to a known genuine specimen.
There are a few reasons that you can visually test for counterfeit silver coins. For instance the presses that counterfeiters use are very seldom ever the same quality of minting press the US Mints and other mints use, and therefore produce inferior copies.
Also, since counterfeiters often use metals other than silver, their silver coin will not flow as well or as evenly during the striking process, creating an inferior copy. An inferior copy will not pass the test for counterfeit silver coins under the magnification of a jewelers loupe.
A Caliper Or Rule Can Test For Counterfeit Silver Coins.
In addition to an accurate scales, you will need calipers preferably, but a precise rule and a keen eye should suffice. The test for counterfeit silver coins in regards to a caliper or rule is rather simple.
A genuine silver coin will need to have a certain diameter and a certain thickness. To test for counterfeit silver coins, compare the published dimensions for the silver coin in question with the results obtained by your measurements.
If you would rather just trust your silver dealer instead of test for counterfeit silver coins, please call ITM Trading and give us the chance to earn your business, and your trust.