If you've been giving some thought to making an investment in gold Krugerrands, the gold bullion coin of South Africa, then it's a good idea to familiarize yourself with the coin. In particular, you'll want to be able to spot a fake Krugerrand. Luckily, this is something that virtually anybody can do when armed with the right knowledge.
The most effective way to avoid acquiring a phony will be to buy coins from a professional vendor, specifically a coin merchant who has a lot of experience with Krugerrand coins. These vendors will have been dealing with this sort of coin for many years, so they can easily notice when a certain coin doesn't have the correct hue or weight. What's more, reliable coin vendors are quite concerned about their reputations, so there will be a real incentive to ensure that they are only offering legitimate coins.
With that being said, it is still entirely possible to ensure the authenticity of a Krugerrand yourself. Standards for these coins are published by the South African Mint and publicly available, so you can easily see how your coin compares to these standards. Additionally, you need to know that gold is a special metal. Particularly, its density is very high, actually much higher than other commonly available metals. If you do happen to come across a fake bullion coin made with a lesser metal, the weight difference really should be fairly obvious if you know what you are looking for. And metals that have a density comparable to gold are either very hard to get a hold of, quite high-priced, or really brittle. All of this puts you at an advantage when attempting to establish whether or not a coin is fake.
In terms of physical properties, this is what you should be looking for: a one-ounce Krugerrand has a weight of 33.930g, a diameter of 32.77mm, a thickness of 2.84m, and 160 edges. A half-ounce coin has a weight of 16.965g, a diameter of 27.07mm, a thickness of 2.215mm, and 185 edges. A 1/4 ounce coin has a weight of 8.482g, a diameter of 22.06mm, a thickness of 1.888mm, and 150 edges. And lastly, a 1/10 ounce coin carries a weight of 3.393g, a diameter of 16.55mm, a thickness of 1.35mm, and 115 edges.
To be able to perform this testing, you'll want fine-grained ruler with millimeters markings and an accurate scale that can make weight measurements in grams. If you like, there's a very nifty gadget known as the Fisch Tester that is able to conduct all of these tests for you. It has a coin-shaped recess used for checking shape, a slot for checking a coin's thickness and diameter, and a fulcrum to check a coin's weight. The Fisch Tester will save you lots of time and can make it much easier for you to discover a fraudulent coin. Just be careful about buying a Fisch on eBay because, ironically enough, there have been some reports of imitation Fisch Testers being offered there. If you decide to go with one of these, you should consider buying directly from Fisch.
With this new information in hand, you'll now be able to spot an imitation Krugerrand all on your own. Good luck in your gold investing!
The most effective way to avoid acquiring a phony will be to buy coins from a professional vendor, specifically a coin merchant who has a lot of experience with Krugerrand coins. These vendors will have been dealing with this sort of coin for many years, so they can easily notice when a certain coin doesn't have the correct hue or weight. What's more, reliable coin vendors are quite concerned about their reputations, so there will be a real incentive to ensure that they are only offering legitimate coins.
With that being said, it is still entirely possible to ensure the authenticity of a Krugerrand yourself. Standards for these coins are published by the South African Mint and publicly available, so you can easily see how your coin compares to these standards. Additionally, you need to know that gold is a special metal. Particularly, its density is very high, actually much higher than other commonly available metals. If you do happen to come across a fake bullion coin made with a lesser metal, the weight difference really should be fairly obvious if you know what you are looking for. And metals that have a density comparable to gold are either very hard to get a hold of, quite high-priced, or really brittle. All of this puts you at an advantage when attempting to establish whether or not a coin is fake.
In terms of physical properties, this is what you should be looking for: a one-ounce Krugerrand has a weight of 33.930g, a diameter of 32.77mm, a thickness of 2.84m, and 160 edges. A half-ounce coin has a weight of 16.965g, a diameter of 27.07mm, a thickness of 2.215mm, and 185 edges. A 1/4 ounce coin has a weight of 8.482g, a diameter of 22.06mm, a thickness of 1.888mm, and 150 edges. And lastly, a 1/10 ounce coin carries a weight of 3.393g, a diameter of 16.55mm, a thickness of 1.35mm, and 115 edges.
To be able to perform this testing, you'll want fine-grained ruler with millimeters markings and an accurate scale that can make weight measurements in grams. If you like, there's a very nifty gadget known as the Fisch Tester that is able to conduct all of these tests for you. It has a coin-shaped recess used for checking shape, a slot for checking a coin's thickness and diameter, and a fulcrum to check a coin's weight. The Fisch Tester will save you lots of time and can make it much easier for you to discover a fraudulent coin. Just be careful about buying a Fisch on eBay because, ironically enough, there have been some reports of imitation Fisch Testers being offered there. If you decide to go with one of these, you should consider buying directly from Fisch.
With this new information in hand, you'll now be able to spot an imitation Krugerrand all on your own. Good luck in your gold investing!
About the Author:
If you want to invest in gold coins, you should really take the time to learn how to spot a bogus gold Krugerrand. It's simple enough that anyone can do it, and it will help you avoid buying something you will regret.. Unique version for reprint here: How to determine if a Krugerrand gold coin is a fake.
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