They are both highly reputable and the chances of getting something fake is very slim if any. However no matter where you buy something you should always do your own tests.
I’ve bought from APMEX and verified eBay dealers. APMEX was pricier but arrived faster than the eBay ones. It was a little worn but very shiny. One eBay was from bullion exchanges. I didn’t really like that one. One from pinehurst coins. Sunshine mint very nice and cheapest one I got.
Nice video SD. The high premiums on Maples Leaf's are killing us! It's like the Silver/Gold Eagles. It's hard to imagine paying $33 (Maples) -$42 (Eagles) per silver coins. Even the price of Junk Silver is +$5 over spot. It's crazy! I've really slowed down on stacking.
SD, great video. New stacker here - Q: Without breaking the bank for one of those machines, besides the magnetic and weight tests, what should I consider? I have so far purchased two coins from a PP and both pass the magnet test. I need to get a decent small scale too.
I'm working on an electronic means to test them. With a multimeter you should be able to pass a current thru it with near 0 resistance. You could do Archimedes style test which is reliable but does require a good scale.
@Jonathan: you ALWAYS need to run 3 tests, namely density test (simply measure weight and volume of piece), electrical conductivity test (with the Sigma Metalytics PMV PRO or Aurotest ATS 450/LFK) and, for bare pieces (no packing), ultrasound.
How exactly does the PMV work? I always just weigh my silver. An troy ounce of silver will take up a certain volume. That volume will weigh differently if its a metal other then silver. Even if it's plated. But a more high tech way to verify is always intriguing. I'd just be curious to know how exactly it works.
Counterfeiters are getting better at matching the density of precious metals. How are you determining volume? Silver Dragons has a very good video on measuring specific gravity. It is a very precise method that uses the weight of displaced water to determine volume.
All your going to do if you touch it is put finger prints on it. Always remember before it was a coin or bar it came out of the dirt. I love getting a hand full of gold coins and just jingle them a bit, it feels so satisfying and the sound is beautiful
. . . the magnet test--silver is diamagnetic, copper is diamagnetic, and so is lead! Silver will slide slowly, copper more quickly, and lead is unaffected. The magnets are a test for *resistivity*, but account for *weight*.
Hey SD, I recommended your other 2 videos to the guys on Reddit. Dont you have all 3 models? I have the Pro with the wands and bridge like you do. I REAAAAAAALLY want a Pro-Mini, but alas, I saw your camparison video after I got my Pro. :-)
Buy what you can afford. It's better to purchase small amounts over a long time. But if you want to get a stack going I think there is nothing wrong with picking up a lot at one time. When I purchase $1500 or more from the major bullion dealers I am not charged sales tax - BIG savings there! Your state or country may differ so check it out! My local coin shop also does not charge tax if I pay in cash.
My friend, Silver Dragoon… you now got me into stacking the silvers. Thank u. It is good liquid coin. Gold is too expensive to sell. If I want bread in zombie apocalypse, gold worth too much, silver is better. I give you one silver for one piece of bread. I live another day to fight another zombie. Thank you. 🙏
Most silver stackers don’t have a clear idea about magnets and silver. There’s metals like iron capable of fixing a magnetic field or being attracted by a magnet. There’s other metals like copper or silver that can’t fix any magnetic field but they still metals. And metals have free electrons in their atomic architecture. That’s what makes them capable of conducting electricity but not only that. Wen you move a magnet in front of a metal during that movement electricity starts to flow inside that metal in circles aligned with core of the moving magnet. Those current also produce temporal magnetic field centered on the silver. And that new magnetic field reacts with the original magnet in the “opposing direction “ if you like or producing a magnetic repulsive effect. At the end it f the day we are talking about electromagnetic induced forces. And that’s the reason why the silver coin slides sooo slowly. Because is the best conductor ever known for electricity and the induction efficiency is very high.
First clue should have been the way the outer envelopes condition. I thought that I saw a corner flipped up. Second, the box was partially open. Third, the tape over the vial was partially pulled away from the tube
If the coin was more copper and passed the slide test. Would the weight be significantly different to where if you use both tests you could be more certain?
Yes, unless the coin was larger. You can fake every test individually but never all of them at the same time. Always measure weight and size. These are cheap measurements and do not require specialized equipment.
If you think fake boullion coins are common now, just wait another year or three. They will be everywhere. When will people learn that a manipulated commodity should be avoided?
Thanks for all of the valuable information. I'm seriously interested in buying silver but dealers are out of stock. Buying from a private seller isn'tfesible because they are asking silly money.
I'm new to this hobby and have a question. Can anyone tell me why the same coin but with a different year like 2016, 2017, 2018, etc have different prices?
The whole point of buying metals is to remove your money from the banking system. Just think about the canadian truckers that had their assets frozen. It wouldnt be that hard for your government to deem you unworthy of your own money, freeze your bank account, and seize whatever assets of yours they have access to. If you physically hold it in your possession, someone has to physically take it from you for you to lose it. While im sure uncle sam could send some thugs to your house to take your stash if he wanted, its not as easy to do as walzing into your bank with a piece of paper signed by their judge buddy that says your box now belongs to them. Keep a good firearm in the house and keep your metals in a good safe, bolted to the floor, and youll be glad you never took your metals to the bank.
Only issue i had in the past was with APMEX when i bought a roll of 90% silver quarters, and 1 of them was a 1965. But they helped me out and replaced it and bonus let me keep the free non silver quarter too :)
I recently purchased silver coins from APMEX. They have the coins wrapped up in individual packages. Do I risk losing value on the Canadian silver dollars or Buffalo’s if I brake the seal and place them into a tube?
Appreciated your video never thought about testing the Precious metals only because sd bullion, jm bullion Money metals exchange reputable dealers that claim to be By any chance you heard of any instances of fakes being sold through any Precious metals dealers?
Maples and Libertads are my favorite. Such beautiful coins. I need to get my silver tested though to be safe as I get most of mine from Facebook groups. I always get references but you never know.
XRF only measures the surface, so of course it's not good enough. Sigma might be fooled (I do own the Pro Mini), but not the GVS Bullion Tester. It tests through the entire metal by checking the metal's magnetic properties, which can't be faked. I always do double testing (Sigma & GVS), and I am happy to report my stack is clean.
I love my Sigma. The magnet test is an interesting one, but as you noted copper acts pretty much the same as silver, so it's not a fool-proof test. Thanks!
I think what you meant to say was if you buy from a reputable online dealer, then you should not have to test it. But he was just using this as an example for when you buy from places such as EBAY or from individuals that might not have a proven trustworthy track record and need a way to test If silver is real. Furthermore most of these are methods that are very common and the standard for industry, so it is basically a beginner guide for testing or verifying silver is legitimate and overall not fake. Meaning if you have the equipment to use these methods. But many more methods can be used if you don’t have the silver tester equipment used in this video.
Great video, thanks for sharing. I have the Sigma PMV Pro Mini and the GVS Bullion Tester as my main testing equipment. The GVS tester works well; a metal's magnetic properties cannot be manipulated or faked. As a result, it is completely reliable. Not keen on the Pocket Pinger (I do have it). The ping on the SML does not ring like other silver coins. As well, be aware that the Pocket Pinger should never be used on numismatic coins, as the plastic nubs will leave an almost invisible mark on the coins. Read the disclaimer and use at your own risk.
I just got a sigma pro mini. I found that some of my mercury dimes are not passing the test. Have you ever come across any constitutional silver not passing the test?
@@MG-ul4kc Sorry I don’t have constitutional silver, as I’m not American. But I had the 2021 St Helena 250 g silver bars test out of bounds (depending on where the you place the wand). The GVS unit tested good. This is why I don’t fully rely on the Sigma, as the Sigma may give incorrect readings. This is why you need to use multiple testing methods to confirm authenticity, and not rely entirely on one testing method.
I used to just weigh my silver coins (to .01g) and check the dimensions - and do a specific gravity check if I had a suspicious coin. Now that I have my Sigma PM verifier I rechecked all my coins and they all passed! Still glad I bought it as an additional test for checking purchases - great pace of mind.
you need deep pockets to afford one of those machines...unless you can write it off as a business expense...😂
If you're buying gold, 1 bad 1-ounce coin is close to if not more than the cost of a verifier. I was able to justify the expense, many won't.
I've been buying off SD bullion and JM. Is there a possibility to fakes from them?
I highly highly doubt they would sell fakes, but life is stranger than fiction
They are both highly reputable and the chances of getting something fake is very slim if any. However no matter where you buy something you should always do your own tests.
I’ve bought from APMEX and verified eBay dealers. APMEX was pricier but arrived faster than the eBay ones. It was a little worn but very shiny. One eBay was from bullion exchanges. I didn’t really like that one. One from pinehurst coins. Sunshine mint very nice and cheapest one I got.
Nice video SD. The high premiums on Maples Leaf's are killing us! It's like the Silver/Gold Eagles. It's hard to imagine paying $33 (Maples) -$42 (Eagles) per silver coins. Even the price of Junk Silver is +$5 over spot. It's crazy! I've really slowed down on stacking.
Same in Germany, as the German Government has increased the VAT for silver.
If everybody would quit paying the high premium and not buy it, they would lower the premium
Hey brotha how are you. I had a question ❓ about a One cent 1989 D missing the reverse planchet. Let me know thanks
SD, great video. New stacker here - Q: Without breaking the bank for one of those machines, besides the magnetic and weight tests, what should I consider? I have so far purchased two coins from a PP and both pass the magnet test. I need to get a decent small scale too.
The ping test is pretty good
I'm working on an electronic means to test them. With a multimeter you should be able to pass a current thru it with near 0 resistance. You could do Archimedes style test which is reliable but does require a good scale.
@Jonathan: you ALWAYS need to run 3 tests, namely density test (simply measure weight and volume of piece), electrical conductivity test (with the Sigma Metalytics PMV PRO or Aurotest ATS 450/LFK) and, for bare pieces (no packing), ultrasound.
Could you put a stack of eagles onto the bridge and get a good read on them all at once?
Silver Baggins
Can you rent those machines?😂✅
How exactly does the PMV work? I always just weigh my silver. An troy ounce of silver will take up a certain volume. That volume will weigh differently if its a metal other then silver. Even if it's plated. But a more high tech way to verify is always intriguing. I'd just be curious to know how exactly it works.
whats the volume and how do you test the volume? I just weigh them and try matching a ping test/magnet test with the known sound.
@@pepperleopard8846 I never said I measure the volume, I just talked about it.
Counterfeiters are getting better at matching the density of precious metals. How are you determining volume? Silver Dragons has a very good video on measuring specific gravity. It is a very precise method that uses the weight of displaced water to determine volume.
Is the magnetic slide only good for 1 Oz. silver coins or will 1/10 Oz. coins work as well? Also, does it work for other PMs, such as gold?
Can you test 5oz and 10oz bars without the bridge?
I'm curious. Why are you touching them with your bare hands?
All your going to do if you touch it is put finger prints on it. Always remember before it was a coin or bar it came out of the dirt. I love getting a hand full of gold coins and just jingle them a bit, it feels so satisfying and the sound is beautiful
How much of a discount are you offering on the Sigma meters? Really don't want to go through the whole checkout process to find out.
. . . the magnet test--silver is diamagnetic, copper is diamagnetic, and so is lead! Silver will slide slowly, copper more quickly, and lead is unaffected.
The magnets are a test for *resistivity*, but account for *weight*.
Gold info ! , The nitric acid is good but damages coins.. the silver sound is good option and the cloth test ..
What's the cloth test?
@@ScarletKnightmare rub old silver whit a cloth and You get a black stain (sulfur) , also a Egg works to for a test...
Hey SD, I recommended your other 2 videos to the guys on Reddit. Dont you have all 3 models? I have the Pro with the wands and bridge like you do. I REAAAAAAALLY want a Pro-Mini, but alas, I saw your camparison video after I got my Pro. :-)
Would you buy a lot of silver at a single time or would you get it in small portions like a tube at a time?
Buy what you can afford. It's better to purchase small amounts over a long time. But if you want to get a stack going
I
think there is nothing wrong with picking up a lot at one time.
When I purchase $1500 or more from the major bullion dealers I am not charged sales tax - BIG savings there! Your state or country may differ so check it out! My local coin shop also does not charge tax if I pay in cash.
My friend, Silver Dragoon… you now got me into stacking the silvers. Thank u. It is good liquid coin. Gold is too expensive to sell. If I want bread in zombie apocalypse, gold worth too much, silver is better. I give you one silver for one piece of bread. I live another day to fight another zombie. Thank you. 🙏
Most silver stackers don’t have a clear idea about magnets and silver. There’s metals like iron capable of fixing a magnetic field or being attracted by a magnet. There’s other metals like copper or silver that can’t fix any magnetic field but they still metals. And metals have free electrons in their atomic architecture. That’s what makes them capable of conducting electricity but not only that. Wen you move a magnet in front of a metal during that movement electricity starts to flow inside that metal in circles aligned with core of the moving magnet. Those current also produce temporal magnetic field centered on the silver. And that new magnetic field reacts with the original magnet in the “opposing direction “ if you like or producing a magnetic repulsive effect. At the end it f the day we are talking about electromagnetic induced forces. And that’s the reason why the silver coin slides sooo slowly. Because is the best conductor ever known for electricity and the induction efficiency is very high.
First clue should have been the way the outer envelopes condition. I thought that I saw a corner flipped up. Second, the box was partially open. Third, the tape over the vial was partially pulled away from the tube
If the coin was more copper and passed the slide test. Would the weight be significantly different to where if you use both tests you could be more certain?
Yes, unless the coin was larger. You can fake every test individually but never all of them at the same time. Always measure weight and size. These are cheap measurements and do not require specialized equipment.
Are you still trying to sell these verifiers? Must be good money in selling them as there always sold out.
If you think fake boullion coins are common now, just wait another year or three. They will be everywhere. When will people learn that a manipulated commodity should be avoided?
Thanks for all of the valuable information.
I'm seriously interested in buying silver but dealers are out of stock.
Buying from a private seller isn'tfesible because they are asking silly money.
I'm new to this hobby and have a question. Can anyone tell me why the same coin but with a different year like 2016, 2017, 2018, etc have different prices?
Cool machine 👍 I wish I have one
Why is storing your sliver in a bank safety deposit box not considered safe? Thanks
There’s a few reasons:
Limited access to your box
The bank can withhold the contents
The bank can restrict access
Contents are not insured
The whole point of buying metals is to remove your money from the banking system. Just think about the canadian truckers that had their assets frozen. It wouldnt be that hard for your government to deem you unworthy of your own money, freeze your bank account, and seize whatever assets of yours they have access to. If you physically hold it in your possession, someone has to physically take it from you for you to lose it. While im sure uncle sam could send some thugs to your house to take your stash if he wanted, its not as easy to do as walzing into your bank with a piece of paper signed by their judge buddy that says your box now belongs to them. Keep a good firearm in the house and keep your metals in a good safe, bolted to the floor, and youll be glad you never took your metals to the bank.
When you touched them without gloves 🤯
I love touching all of my silver and gold, it feels so good.
Have you ever watched your bullion dealer handle your coins when you buy them?
Sigma metal verifier is a must have
Only issue i had in the past was with APMEX when i bought a roll of 90% silver quarters, and 1 of them was a 1965. But they helped me out and replaced it and bonus let me keep the free non silver quarter too :)
Funny. The exact same thing happened to me two weeks ago. A 1965 Washington in the 90% roll. I reached out to Apmex and they sent me a 1964.
Link is invalid for the tester
I only buy Britannias now for that reason.
Does that tester work through the graded coins in PCGS Or NGC holders ?
New subscriber here!! I look forward to being a part of your channel. I hope it continues to grow! 💙🤙🏻🍻
Make a video of gold and copper spots
Great video, thanks for sharing!
Thanks silver Dragons
NOOO DONT TOUCH IT WITH YOUR BARE HANDS 😰🤣😂
It all comes out of dirt, and touching it won't hurt it, it might get dirty but it will still be precious.
I recently purchased silver coins from APMEX. They have the coins wrapped up in individual packages. Do I risk losing value on the Canadian silver dollars or Buffalo’s if I brake the seal and place them into a tube?
I put my buffalo's into a tube from APMEX. I'd assume as long as you wear gloves and are careful you'd be fine.
On the slide test the fakes seemed to stop and go and the real silver didn’t
The recent premiums are high on Silver Maples.
Appreciated your video never thought about testing the Precious metals only because sd bullion, jm bullion
Money metals exchange reputable dealers that claim to be
By any chance you heard of any instances of fakes being sold through any Precious metals dealers?
Used your link. Thanks SD!
Maples and Libertads are my favorite. Such beautiful coins. I need to get my silver tested though to be safe as I get most of mine from Facebook groups. I always get references but you never know.
Like your channel. I hope you and seeker do some more streams with each other.
That magnetic slide is awesome. I'm also working on a maple monster box.
Need to get a sigma, there’s a lot of high premium with silver atm. Hopefully it comes down again so we can keep stacking more👌🏻
I wish I could rent the machine since I can’t afford to buy one yet.
That seriously was a very helpful video. Thanks for sharing! 💙💙🍻
Canadian commi leaf ?
Also an ice cube will start melting almost immediately when placed on silver
Olympus xrf gun the sigma machine is just not good enough for bullion dealers try a 50 peso on it and you will understand.
XRF only measures the surface, so of course it's not good enough. Sigma might be fooled (I do own the Pro Mini), but not the GVS Bullion Tester. It tests through the entire metal by checking the metal's magnetic properties, which can't be faked. I always do double testing (Sigma & GVS), and I am happy to report my stack is clean.
very cool really like this
Wish someone would make an affordable precious medals identifier
Does anyone buy from Camino company? What’s your experience been?
I love my Sigma. The magnet test is an interesting one, but as you noted copper acts pretty much the same as silver, so it's not a fool-proof test. Thanks!
Beans³
I taste mine
Geez $2,000 for one 😩 maybe trade in an ounce of Gold for one lol
👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍
If you buy from a online dealer you shouldn’t have to check it.
I think what you meant to say was if you buy from a reputable online dealer, then you should not have to test it. But he was just using this as an example for when you buy from places such as EBAY or from individuals that might not have a proven trustworthy track record and need a way to test If silver is real. Furthermore most of these are methods that are very common and the standard for industry, so it is basically a beginner guide for testing or verifying silver is legitimate and overall not fake. Meaning if you have the equipment to use these methods. But many more methods can be used if you don’t have the silver tester equipment used in this video.
@@Frontier_Investor05 ThatGuyScott explained it in 13 words. 😁
@@silversharkc4666 keyword=reputable online silver dealer.
I buy all my precious metals from a homeless bum behind the 7-11
Especially any info on taxation which the IRS or any tax “professional” gives you.
Great video, thanks for sharing. I have the Sigma PMV Pro Mini and the GVS Bullion Tester as my main testing equipment. The GVS tester works well; a metal's magnetic properties cannot be manipulated or faked. As a result, it is completely reliable.
Not keen on the Pocket Pinger (I do have it). The ping on the SML does not ring like other silver coins. As well, be aware that the Pocket Pinger should never be used on numismatic coins, as the plastic nubs will leave an almost invisible mark on the coins. Read the disclaimer and use at your own risk.
I just got a sigma pro mini. I found that some of my mercury dimes are not passing the test. Have you ever come across any constitutional silver not passing the test?
@@MG-ul4kc Sorry I don’t have constitutional silver, as I’m not American. But I had the 2021 St Helena 250 g silver bars test out of bounds (depending on where the you place the wand). The GVS unit tested good.
This is why I don’t fully rely on the Sigma, as the Sigma may give incorrect readings. This is why you need to use multiple testing methods to confirm authenticity, and not rely entirely on one testing method.
@@stormforge68 Thank you for the information
Do you have any links to these products? I’m new to stacking, only have 1 eagle and about 5 Buffalo rounds as of now
Good gosh man! That's awesome, but I'd rather spend 1k on my metals!
PLEASE buy yourself some gloves! You are staining your coins.
First
How much are the sigma testers
I used to just weigh my silver coins (to .01g) and check the dimensions - and do a specific gravity check if I had a suspicious coin. Now that I have my Sigma PM verifier I rechecked all my coins and they all passed! Still glad I bought it as an additional test for checking purchases - great pace of mind.
i buy maples better than ASE which are way to expensive it makes no sence at all
1:24 but why...?
Great video brother thanks for the info have a great weekend
I only buy krugerrands, that way it's easy to check if they are real
If they're milky, they're the real deal
I taste mine