Ive used the Sigma for a couple years now but on pure silver and gold and have had no issues. I never rely on the Sigma alone but also measure diameter, thickness & weight etc.. In some cases I may even do displacement test in water. Every counterfeit piece I have tested even nicely plated bars and coins have also shown up as fake on the sigma.
Thanks for stopping by to watch, I do appreciate it. I did retest them out of the flips and they still gave a false test. Maybe I need to do another video showing that
Simple weight test can find a lot of counterfeits. I purchased 4 ASE’ on eBay a couple of months ago and when I received them the first thing I did was weigh each one. Two of them were light and two of them were overweight. I was suspicious so I used a Ping tester and that confirmed that they were fake. I reported it to eBay and they immediately refunded my money and when I looked for the seller he had disappeared off eBay.
Thanks for stopping by and the suggestion, I do appreciate it. That is a valid suggestion that I need to look at. If I remember correctly I did check them with the wand but not out of the 2 x 2's with the staples so I will remove a few and redo a check on them. I appreciate the idea GD
I wanted to give you an update on your suggestion. I removed the coin from the flip to retest it away from the staples and it still showed as silver. The wand showed it as silver still as well It was a great suggestion and helpful. Unfortunately this is something you need to remain aware of if you are purchasing this model. Not sure if they have corrected this with the recent unites they offer. Thank you GD
The Sigma does need to be calibrated from time to time. However, as you clearly demonstrate the sigma has its limits. When it's used for coins it's programed to test the resistivity. When certain metals have similar resistivity it can give a false reading.
The verifier model that you are using is the base model that only tests the surface. You also need to do a density test to determine if the metal is genuine. The Pro and Investor versions will do the density tests. Please understand your equipment.
Thanks for stopping by to watch and comment, I do appreciate it. I may just sell this one as well if it brings what I paid for it or more. Where did you sell yours. GD
Thank you for stopping by to watch, I do appreciate it. Glad you found this helpful, you may find my most recent updated video on the Sigma helpful as well. GD
In a way I'm glad to see that the Sigma is wrong. I purchased a Sigma last year to test my silver bars. I purchased 100 (1 ounce) bars from Scottsdale Mint about 5 years ago. The bars test good on one side with the marker centered between the brackets and on the other side the marker is just outside the brackets. The Scottsdale Mint bars otherwise pass the weight and magnet test. It's got me scared I may have some fake silver. What first raised my concern is that the bars are shaped just slightly different from all my other bars. I don't know if there is supposed to be a standard shape for the bars but all my other bars are the same size. The Scottsdale Mint bars have a different curve radius at the corners and are less that a millimeter thicker than the other bars. I noticed the difference in thickness when I had a stack of 50 Scottsdale Mint bars next to a stack of 50 APMEX bars. The stack of 50 Scottsdale Mint bars were about 3 millimeter taller. This difference is not noticed by the naked eye when comparing the bars 1 to 1 but the accumulated difference of 50 bars in noticed. I don't know what to do.
Thanks for watching and sharing your comments. The size and shape of the bars has to do with the different ingot molds that are used. Did you use the large wand on the bar or just the table of the unit. One thing about the Sigma is that if you test something with an irregular surface than you could get a reading like you described so it is advisable to check it using the wand. If you purchased the bars directly from the Scottsdale Mint than you have nothing to worry about, they are what is stamped on them
Some of Those proofs have some DCAM look to em👀 super frosty 👍 great video too! I’ve seen sigmas get fooled here and there with a thin layer of gold around a bar for example but having a tester is better than not when dealing with with precious metals
Good job GD! I have this exact machine, and now I am not going to sleep as well since watching. What if all these gold Buffaloes and Krugerrand I have bought from Apmex and tested are all fakes that are just plated? Omg
Thanks for stopping by to watch, I do appreciate it. Glad you found this video helpful. I would not worry about anything you bought from Apmex, I am pretty sure they use an XRF analyzer which is pretty accurate. As far as using the Sigma, just consider it only one test you would do, you should also do a weight, measurement and in some cases a ping test. If in doubt you could also do a specific gravity test. GD
Two things come to mind as I read your comment. Number one is that governments around the world buy gold as a store of wealth and not bitcoin. Number 2 is you better hope that no type of virtual currency ever becomes the norm if you treasure your freedoms because this will eventually be the ultimate way for any government to watch and control what you make and spend.
Help the channel out by leaving a comment a thumbs up.
GD
Ive used the Sigma for a couple years now but on pure silver and gold and have had no issues. I never rely on the Sigma alone but also measure diameter, thickness & weight etc.. In some cases I may even do displacement test in water. Every counterfeit piece I have tested even nicely plated bars and coins have also shown up as fake on the sigma.
Thanks for stopping by to watch and sharing your experience with the Sigma
GD
Test those coins on the Sigma without the stapled flips.
Thanks for stopping by to watch, I do appreciate it.
I did retest them out of the flips and they still gave a false test. Maybe I need to do another video showing that
Simple weight test can find a lot of counterfeits. I purchased 4 ASE’ on eBay a couple of months ago and when I received them the first thing I did was weigh each one. Two of them were light and two of them were overweight. I was suspicious so I used a Ping tester and that confirmed that they were fake. I reported it to eBay and they immediately refunded my money and when I looked for the seller he had disappeared off eBay.
Thanks for stopping by to watch and share your experience on eBay.
Glad that worked out OK for you
GD
Congrats on hitting 400 videos!
Thanks STG, I didn't know I did that until you mentioned it.
I appreciate you taking the time to be a part of that.
GD
Have to tried it without the staples or with a wand? It seems like the staples might interfere with the magnetic impedance and skew your result.
Thanks for stopping by and the suggestion, I do appreciate it. That is a valid suggestion that I need to look at.
If I remember correctly I did check them with the wand but not out of the 2 x 2's with the staples so I will remove a few and redo a check on them.
I appreciate the idea
GD
I wanted to give you an update on your suggestion. I removed the coin from the flip to retest it away from the staples and it still showed as silver. The wand showed it as silver still as well
It was a great suggestion and helpful. Unfortunately this is something you need to remain aware of if you are purchasing this model. Not sure if they have corrected this with the recent unites they offer.
Thank you
GD
The Sigma does need to be calibrated from time to time. However, as you clearly demonstrate the sigma has its limits. When it's used for coins it's programed to test the resistivity. When certain metals have similar resistivity it can give a false reading.
Yes that piece of equipment does have its limits but for the price they get for them it should be a little more reliable.
I have one of those sigma's. It's not a fool proof machine like you demonstrated 👍👍
Thanks my friend for stopping by to watch and comment, you know I appreciate it.
The verifier model that you are using is the base model that only tests the surface. You also need to do a density test to determine if the metal is genuine. The Pro and Investor versions will do the density tests. Please understand your equipment.
Thanks for watching and sharing your thoughts on the subject.
I bought my sigma back in 2019 and sold it this year for a profit! ha! Thanks for the update, GD!
Thanks for stopping by to watch and comment, I do appreciate it.
I may just sell this one as well if it brings what I paid for it or more. Where did you sell yours.
GD
Thanks for the information.
Glad you found it useful, thanks for stopping by to watch
GD
GREAT CONTENT AND WELL EXPLAINED. THANK YOU.
Thank you for stopping by to watch, I do appreciate it.
Glad you found this helpful, you may find my most recent updated video on the Sigma helpful as well.
GD
In a way I'm glad to see that the Sigma is wrong. I purchased a Sigma last year to test my silver bars. I purchased 100 (1 ounce) bars from Scottsdale Mint about 5 years ago. The bars test good on one side with the marker centered between the brackets and on the other side the marker is just outside the brackets. The Scottsdale Mint bars otherwise pass the weight and magnet test. It's got me scared I may have some fake silver. What first raised my concern is that the bars are shaped just slightly different from all my other bars. I don't know if there is supposed to be a standard shape for the bars but all my other bars are the same size. The Scottsdale Mint bars have a different curve radius at the corners and are less that a millimeter thicker than the other bars. I noticed the difference in thickness when I had a stack of 50 Scottsdale Mint bars next to a stack of 50 APMEX bars. The stack of 50 Scottsdale Mint bars were about 3 millimeter taller. This difference is not noticed by the naked eye when comparing the bars 1 to 1 but the accumulated difference of 50 bars in noticed. I don't know what to do.
Thanks for watching and sharing your comments.
The size and shape of the bars has to do with the different ingot molds that are used.
Did you use the large wand on the bar or just the table of the unit. One thing about the Sigma is that if you test something with an irregular surface than you could get a reading like you described so it is advisable to check it using the wand.
If you purchased the bars directly from the Scottsdale Mint than you have nothing to worry about, they are what is stamped on them
Always must pass at least 2 tests, 3 for piece of mind.
Great advice richard, thanks for stopping by to watch and share your thoughts, I do appreciate it.
GD
Some of Those proofs have some DCAM look to em👀 super frosty 👍 great video too! I’ve seen sigmas get fooled here and there with a thin layer of gold around a bar for example but having a tester is better than not when dealing with with precious metals
As long as we understand there are some limits to the sigma and not rely on it as the only test, it is worthwhile to have.
Thanks for watching.
GD
I have a group of those quarters that are CAM or DCAM and I might be willing to sell or trade them if you are interested.
Good information.
Thanks my friend for stopping by to watch and comment, I do appreciate it
Good job GD! I have this exact machine, and now I am not going to sleep as well since watching.
What if all these gold Buffaloes and Krugerrand I have bought from Apmex and tested are all fakes that are just plated? Omg
Thanks for stopping by to watch, I do appreciate it.
Glad you found this video helpful.
I would not worry about anything you bought from Apmex, I am pretty sure they use an XRF analyzer which is pretty accurate.
As far as using the Sigma, just consider it only one test you would do, you should also do a weight, measurement and in some cases a ping test. If in doubt you could also do a specific gravity test.
GD
Hello G.D. best wishes from Florida .❤
Thanks david, I appreciate you stopping by to watch and comment my friend.
GD from the way too cold and snowy Rocky Mountains
cool info and those testers are not cheap
Thanks Vince for stopping by to watch and comment, I do appreciate it.
Happy Holidays
GD
Sigma 😅 i would not trust it 100% . I see cooper treated as silver om my so ...
Good to see you here my friend. Hope all is well with you.
Thanks for stopping by to watch.
GD
Bitcoin will take over gold and silver
Two things come to mind as I read your comment.
Number one is that governments around the world buy gold as a store of wealth and not bitcoin.
Number 2 is you better hope that no type of virtual currency ever becomes the norm if you treasure your freedoms because this will eventually be the ultimate way for any government to watch and control what you make and spend.