RWB

All four are low quality fakes...and presumably so is the so-called "coin dealer."

Thanks for link. Saved the booklet for later reading.

I don't know. Have not paid much attention to Manganese Brass alloys.

The war nickel alloy is a completely different critter. Mint operatives knew it was a "bad" alloy and difficult to roll without cracking and splitting. Plus copper, silver and manganese do not form a true alloy -- only an unstable mixture. "Whiskers" of Mn are commonly seen when these nickels are broken.

Well, my background in historic pistols, etc. is about as effective as a 22-short at 1 mile.... I was going by the coin's illustration and the scale where the cartridges looked more like rifle ammo.

I understand --- to me, they simply do not show what is necessary to distinguish any grade from AU-58 to 69.999991. (They are pleasant illustrations, and usefull for authentic EF and lower.)

Just "bling" for a pro basketball player's neck. It's detail is matched only by its ugliness.

Possible, but very unlikely to avoid detection during melting, ingot casting, rolling and annealing, plus the routine assays made along the way to cutting blanks. Further, most collectors do not realize that silver ingots, and to a lesser extent strips rolled from them, have inconsistencies in fineness between center and edges. This is called "silver segregation" and is described, along with details of the above, in my book From Mine to Mint.

"Not an error, just damage"

Combination of minor mechanical doubling (very common) and damage.

Differences in strike detail should have little effect on grading a coin. The key element is the observed change from the coin's original condition to its present state.

The coin is EF and has been harshly cleaned. Consider offering him a conditional sale: you'll buy the coin if it comes back from NGC straight grade of EF-45 or better. Even then, it's worth about 2/3rds of his asking price. (This is the 3rd most common New Orleans mint quarter.) Just because "They are both very old and don't really use the internet," doesn't mean they won't try to gouge you for every cent.

The ammunition in his cartridge belt, will not fit the pistol in his holster. Also, the background "trees" resemble a "tree farm" planting and not a natural forest.

The difference are critical and can be captured in good photos, but it requires skills the ANA photographer lacked.

"It came upon the Google search, that valuable pile of gold; Hysteria looming far over head, from just another lie told."

To me, the photos do little to differentiate a true AU ("AU-58") from all the UNC versions and thus don't show the details that separate one grade from the other. In this mashup, a "MS62" and a "MS67" hardly differ. The photos are nice illustrations for EF and lower, but hardly usable as grading examples. Thanks for posting the link.

That's from incomplete detail. Look at other letters near the rim. Top of T is almost invisible.

Numismatically? Nothing. Anyway, I already won a Mega-MIllions Lottery. My ticket paid $4.

RE: "Is this a die crack?" Nope. It's a tiny lobster with a damaged right claw. (Red arrow points to crustacean.) The photo Mr.Bill347 posted is of a numismatic crack-out artist at work. You'll occasionally see these at larger coin shows, etc.

Damage. Hope the rest of the collection is better.

Yep. Fake. Open your Dad's copy of the Guide Book of U.S. coins and compare those photos with your fake.

A very simple way to squeeze money out of damaged and badly worn Trade dollars is to add fake "chops." Foolish people will then pay more than junk-box $$ for these imitations. Kind of like what the Colorado counterfeiter does to produce fakes.

I was reviewing the origins of the young portraits and combinations made with language and font styles. Back then I could not find photos of sufficient quality and resolution to allow me to examine hand engraving details. Sooo...I saved by pennies ,,,errrr "cents" and eventually found a beautiful proof with just a little nice toning. That allowed me to complete what I was working on. The coin was so attractive that I decided to keep it. It always gets an admiring look whenever I visit the bank box. (I have a medal from sculptor Heidi Wastweet that's in the same category -- except it was bought solely for its magnificence.)

I now have digital offprints of this article and will send one to any individual for their personal use. Send me a PM with your email if you want a copy.

Rykel: Your cent is damaged/mutilated. It is not an "error" of any kind. Now, please step away from your "smart phone" and "U-Tube" hysterical coin videos. You've been given honest, reasonable suggestions above. As a new collector you have zero knowledge or experience and should listen to the members here and learn. Thank you.