The Morgan Dollar Thread

[HighlandTiger]

We don't seem to have a dedicated thread about USA Morgan Dollars. So with Ares in mind, and others with an interest I thought it might be helpful to stick all the Morgan discussion in one place. (If I've missed a previous similar thread, perhaps the mods could merge all the posts. Ta). We could also add any other US dollars, peace etc. It will stop us clogging up other threads when we go off on a tangent away from the normal modern day bullion.

 

Anyway with regards to my latest buy and in reply to Ares, 

 

Yeah that is cheap, it doesn't seem to be worn so bad (or at least any worse than a Morgan usually is) but that's a very unusual toning pattern going on there.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yeah I too thought the toning was a bit "off", and I wondered if that was the reason for the low price, although it was a very late night auction finish so that could also account for the price. These pics are from the Ebay auction, I've not had the coin delivered yet. So the pics might not be exactly what the coin looks like in the flesh. After all I've seen gold coins look silver and silver coins look gold, thanks to peoples "expertise" with taking pics. But I thought I'd nothing to lose at that price. If it turns out to be a dud, thanks to paypals money back guarantee, I can send it back, get a full refund, and all I've lost is a bit of time. Plus if it is a fake, for a day or so I'll be able to give it a good look over, so I know what to look out for in the future. Sometimes it pays to know, see and hold a fake coin in your hands, to give you a reference for the future.  

[silversword]

What's the deal with Morgans?

[a_a]

Similar thing happened to me, I got one for £10 delivered, only thought I got such a bargain because it was listed under antiques rather than coins. It was an excellent copy dimensions-wise, but it was 7g underweight and also magnetic. I weigh everything on arrival anyway but before that I only questioned it because the surface was a really odd mottled blend, looked like a mix of different metals. I'm waiting for eBay to give me the money back, will post some photos of it next to some real ones when I get a chance

[HighlandTiger]

right, Morgan arrived today, and it's fine. Definately silver and only 0.1g underweight which is acceptable for a coin with wear. 

 

The discolouring appears to be a dried waxy type of gunge. It reminds me of what a coin would be like if it had sat in the bottom of a mechanics toolbox for a few decades.

 

I'm tempted to give it a little clean, just with washing up liquid to see if I can shift some of this grime. 

[Ares]

By all means clean it, i'm not technically opposed to anyone cleaning their coins (as odd as that sounds) as long as you're aware exactly of what'll happen because of it

 

It's when you get people who clean 'em and still think "that's still pretty much uncirculated, right?" and advertise it as such I get annoyed.

 

Looking back at it, the small green deposits (which look almost copper-ish) look interesting, recommend that for further research because the coin itself shouldn't go that colour.

[HighlandTiger]

In the end I just wiped it down with a damp cloth. got rid of some of the gunge, but it hasn't affected the toning or anything. It still looks as though its spent most of its life inside a mechanics toolbox