MickD

Taken almost a month but FINALLY my ASE V75 is here!!
 
Arrived at the same time as it’s less hyped friends the Mayflower 400’s

Thanks to @StBeesSilver for for these amazing additions to my collection thank you so much! 

Not a precious metals purchase, but still a significant one.
I have been meaning to get one of these for a while, and I figured it would be better to order it now from the European distributer before the likely changes to import duty in the New Year.
Kudos to https://www.sigma-verifiers.com/ (a.k.a. Zetberg) for a terrific service.
Now I can continue stacking in confidence!

My first bit of Pamp, Rosa. Eye -watering Pamp premium, but a thing of incredible beauty. I think I may end up getting a taste for these...

Got home today to a couple of packages firstly thanks to @MickD for 2 really nice pieces for my stack. Thank you also @StBeesSilver for the stunning piece that is Thanks sword it's awesome! Thanks so much to you both! 
Sorry my pictures don't do them justice at all I'm an awful photographer! 
 

Arms stocks will get a boost when Biden takes over. Judging by his transition team a certain country will get their wars which Trump wouldn’t start. 
 
Arms stocks are where I draw the line because if I’m doing well then villages in Yemen and Syria won’t be. 

Completely agree mate as an ex soldier and been in warzones being on the receiving end of it. I have no interest in the military industrial complex especially when a majority of the conflicts were based on BS and a rich man's confidence trick.

Picked up the stunning 2021 half today & the free Brit offer from Bullion By Post made the best price sov (1896) hard to refuse 

1648 Liondollar MS63 with an interesting planchet flaw (reverse is slightly rotated)

Some recent additions off for grading.

Hi All
I would like to pledge as one lot:
(1) GBP50.00 to the winner (Payable by BT, PPFF, Cheque)
(2) A 'lucky dip' coin to be chosen by me on the day 
(3) GBP50.00 to the UK charity of the winners choice (If no particular preference, the default will be to the RNLI).  I will pay directly to the charity and provide proof of payment.
Best
Dicker

Few of the more interesting world silvers I received today don't see these every day Nice toning on the 1812 Eighteenpence/ 1s 6d token, British West Africa 2 Shillings 1918 in nice grade, and the star of the show, a 1888 Mombassa (Imperial British East Africa Company) - modern day Kenya Rupee minted in the Heaton mint in Birmingham.     

Thanks to @MickD, the Mrs is chuffed! 

Another Spanish silver 2 reales of Ferdinand VII - this one with an unrecorded overdate 2/0 and the only example I have seen 
I seem to finding lots of new varieties at the moment - the question is will NGC slab it as an overdate??? it will no doubt get a details grade due to the dig behind the bust but as the only example so far who cares! 

Well these dont come along every day. Massive thanks to Emanuel at @GSTradingI'm blown away. 

Little collection of arrivals today.
 
Thanks to @MickD& @Jamesd for the Germania’s/Nobles & Fafnir’s.
 
Managed to find the first in the Big 5 series for a semi-decent price too.

Hi All,
I thought it would be useful for to add a thread on gold / precious metal scams.  
There have been a few questions posted over the last year that indicate that some new forum members might be being scammed or are thinking about taking part in a "venture" that is is a scam....or worse being used to launder money.  This post can be used as a 'lookup' for new members and also for forum members to flag any scams that they have seen.
Forum members, please do flag up scams or any other advice that would be helpful to people.
Best
Dicker
 
The "Hook"
A gold scam is the same as any other scam - someone is trying to entice you into parting with your money for a product that does not exist and you will never receive.The 'hook' to catch your interest is often the prospect of making significant money by buying gold at a discount.  Margins on PM's are tight and you will find that even miners in remote regions of third world countries know the price of gold!
 
Types of Scams
Financing the importation of gold - Where there is a spurious source i.e. Gold looted from from Saddam, Gadaffi, ISIS, a corrupt mine manager etc  Financing the purchase and sale of gold in another country  - You are invited to fund the purchase and sale of gold using a bogus tax scheme - you are supposed to get the profits when the deal is completed Buying gold dust - "left over" from a mine crusher, smelting plant etc Buying from an fraudulent online dealer - Who has just setup shop and is selling gold at a deep discount Buying from a corrupt politician / government employee - Who just happens to have access to a load of gold Tax avoidance - Funding the purchase and sale of PM's across different tax jurisdictions with you taking a cut of the profits My client wants to buy a lot of gold - Or a bullion dealer, or a refinery.  This is essentially where a victim has been "won over" by a scammer and is then being used to scam others.  We had an example on this forum a while ago where a member was enquiring about buying vast quantities of gold (central bank quantities) or a large refinery...  I think in the end the forum member left, still thinking that we were wrong and she was had a client who wanted that quantity of gold..... Money laundering - You are used to move money around using your bank account (private or company), on the premise you are dealing gold, whereas you are moving money that comes from the proceeds of crime (mostly drugs)  
No one would fall for that right?
Sadly people do, and more frequently than people think - especially senior citizens.  Many scams are extremely elaborate, well planned and well financed, with months or years in the making.
Sending a sample as a 'convincer' - To convince a victim that they are genuine, it is not unknown (but not common) for a scammer to send a sample of gold to a victim for testing.  "Keep the 1/10th ounce sample, we have lots more......" More common is a video or documentary evidence of gold being tested with a piece of paper with your name on.  The gold may be real or may be totally fake, but you won't know Most frequently, stock photos of gold seem to be used as part of scam - using Google Image Search or Tineye is good for searching for the picture to see if it has been used elsewhere Pushy People - Frequently scammers are pushy, with a time frame and deadline put in place to pressurise you to handover cash Scammers are not necessarily pushy, and are willing to play the long game - for example selling a victim 2oz gold at 30% under spot, then waiting for the victim to say - lets do it again with 30oz's Documentation and Websites - Are sometimes surprisingly well put together, and enough to fool a non-expert Wire Transfer - Having a BIC Code and asking for payment by SWIFT MT103 dent mean the recipient is genuine  
Spotting Scams
Stranger danger - The majority of fraud against an individual is carried out by someone not known to them (but there are of course exceptions) Too good to be true - buying PM's significantly under spot doesn't happen - the market is too 'tight' with margins and pricing to match.  (Check the Forum Sale section - you are lucky if you can buy gold for Spot!) Dubious legality - Some scams purport to be close to the law, or in breach or it in order to make money, or someone says they have found a 'loophole'.  Example smuggling gold to avoid tax, claiming tax rebates on gold in another country Urban Legends - Were you hear of gold discovered and belonging to Gadaffi, Hitler, Saddam, that was left in a bank or looted only to be found by the scammer Government Involvement - The person you are dealing with purports to be a government minister, judge, central bank officer - they will not be, even in very non-democratic countries Payment by Western Union, Moneygram - these are immediate red flags.  Both of these companies have implemented checks for 419 scams (sending cash to West Africa and elsewhere) but it remains essentially an anonymous way to receive funds  Cash - To date, all of the scams that I have seen have involved the victim sending cash (physical or by wire) rather than precious metals, but this may not always be the case Google is your friend - Google the name of the company and the person you are dealing with - it doesn't take long to find that (or example) Judge Thomas Mensa of Ghana is in fact deceased, and not in possession of $USD20 million of gold he wants to sell to you at a discount (Mail I received last week...) Your personal information - Scammers often want your personal details ASAP The location of the scammer - From what I have seen (and I appreciate this is anecdotal) a large proportion of the gold scams originate from West Africa, and particularly from countries where 419 Fraud is common  
The following is a good watch and explains why people get caught out and then cannot stop funding a gold scam.   
 

Some beautiful Germania Fafnir ❤

I have come across another uk pourer in my travels. Top bloke to deal with and have a good chat to. I'm so impressed with these 2 items. As a marvel nerd to the core the thanos sword is insane. And the little logo bar is nicely done 

A few less britannias but i have finally breached 100 sovereigns so thought i would mark the occasion with an updated stack picture!

So here is my Stack, new to this but love the coins I have and can't wait to expand my collection
 

A "MEGA" thanks goes out to @MickD for this "AWESOME" addition to my "babies"!



SITS REALLY NICELY - ALONGSIDE its BIG Bruvver! 😉👍😍
 

 

The below is not a forum rule but simply a recommendation for sellers.

A seller of a coin (or other item) will have a much better idea of the condition and imperfections of the item, than the buyer has. Of course this is only logical as the seller has the item and the buyer hasn't seen it in person.

When I myself sell, I try to list every imperfection on the coin. Sure, this likely will put some people off from purchasing but I believe that it is important to be 100% honest. I also understand how it is from a buyers point of view. As a buyer, I (probably wrongly) assume that most sellers are like me and therefore if I see that there is no comment about the condition, I presume the condition is very good or at least good (in my opinion.) When however, an item arrives and there are issues or imperfections on the coin (or other item) it is saddening, but often not worth complaining over. I would however be cautious of that seller in the future.

In my opinion, telling the condition of a coin from a photograph is hard. Some members are exceptional at studying photos and picking up details, but I personally find looking at a static image quite difficult to ascertain the real condition of a coin. Often a photo will look like there are some imperfections on an item but the actual item looks perfect in real life, and vice versa.

Though the buyer also has a responsibility to ask the condition, as a seller you know more about the condition of the item. To avoid any issues and to keep the forum trade section transparent and honest we strongly recommend for sellers to disclose the condition of their item. i.e. mentioning any imperfections, spots, milk spotting, lint inside the capsule, damage to the capsule etc.

Of course, a seller can not state what grade the coin is (unless it is graded.) Those looking for absolutely perfect examples in their collection may want to consider graded coins. But a seller can state if their are any imperfections.

I already see a large number of members who always list every small detail about their item and I would like to say thank you for doing this 😊

Somewhat earlier than expected (the 7th in the series was only released in May 2020), here's the 8th and final release in the China Vintage Coin Series (available since Monday from LPM):
The 2020 1oz Silver China Kwangtung Dragon Dollar Silver Restrike (Premium Uncirculated)
Mintage: 5,000

 

NeutronJack
 

Just a littlen today. Always wanted one so thanks to @MickD for great service as always 😀