Today I bought.....

[FFkook]

What did I do... Felt like a rich man today, so I ordered some silver:
100 gram European mint bar
2019 Maple Leaf
2019 Somali Elephant
2019 Kookaburra with pig Privy
2019 Philharmoniker
2018 Noah's Ark

And some copper to play with:
Peace Dollar
Aztec Calendar

But it felt like a new years order, as it will be delivered end of January (due to availability of some of them), so no worries there!!!!

Anti climax here: still a poor man...

Edited December 12, 2018 by FFkook

[KevinG]

I bought an original Austrian 10 corona from 1908 it is the 60 years of reign version.

[sixgun]

Just picked up this Perth 10oz from Arshimo2012.

This has got to be the dog's bollocks in cooling lines on a mainstream bar manufacturer.

[Guldmund]

Very nice! Think that is a pice of art!

[Oldun]

Oops, wrong thread 

Edited December 18, 2018 by Oldun

[Darren9330]

Happy Christmas to me, from me😁

[CadmiumGreen]

@shortstack68, Thank goodness, someone else that has an eye for Breitling!  You have an absolute brilliant watch there!

54 minutes ago, shortstack68 said:

Not a coin, but..............

I am fortunate to have several Breitlings. A beautiful 1996 Breitling Cosmonaute, a 1998 Breitling SuperOcean, and my Grandfather’s 1952 Breitling Navitimer, which I believe was the AOPA version and needs some refurbishment...but it still runs well!

[silenceissilver]

Today I bought my first non-regular sovereign - Isle Of Man 1974, a bullion coin. As I don't know anything about them, if anyone does, please share your knowledge. E.g. Is it capital gain tax exempted as regular sovereigns are? What grade is it, very roughly - obviously very low, (see e.g. the 2 dents on the right, at the rim, on the obverse, also visible on the left on the reverse) but I couldn't specify it any further at all, just out of interest, not for having it graded. What's the mintage? Does it have some numismatic value after all (They seam to sell quite high on e bay). And so on - any information about this coin is welcome. PS: Sorry for the bad picture quality, I don't get a better take without sunlight.

 

Edited December 22, 2018 by silenceissilver

[Bullionaire]

34 minutes ago, silenceissilver said:

Today I bought my first non-regular sovereign - Isle Of Man 1974, a bullion coin. As I don't know anything about them, if anyone does, please share your knowledge. E.g. Is it capital gain tax exempted as regular sovereigns are? What grade is it, very roughly - obviously very low, (see e.g. the 2 dents on the right, at the rim, on the obverse, also visible on the left on the reverse) but I couldn't specify it any further at all, just out of interest, not for having it graded. What's the mintage? Does it have some numismatic value after all (They seam to sell quite high on e bay). And so on - any information about this coin is welcome. PS: Sorry for the bad picture quality, I don't get a better take without sunlight.

 

I'm a big fan of these iom sovs (although this example does look a tad beat up). I don't know about the 1974, but the 1973 one had a mintage of 40000. 

My 1973 one also weighs a bit more than a standard British full sov.

[silenceissilver]

34 minutes ago, Bullionaire said:

I'm a big fan of these iom sovs (although this example does look a tad beat up). I don't know about the 1974, but the 1973 one had a mintage of 40000. 

My 1973 one also weighs a bit more than a standard British full sov.

Interesting, today I also bought a regular sovereign, weighted both and within a miniscule margin (0.01 - 0.02 grams or so), the weight was the same. I have not measured it yet but the thickness didn't seem to be 100% the same. That might be my eyes though. Density test to be carried out the next days. I'm sure it's real though. Could it be that the more copper coloured newer ones are thicker because of the lower denistiy of copper compared to whatever the alloy composition might be at less red sovereigns (silver?)

Edited December 22, 2018 by silenceissilver

[silenceissilver]

1 hour ago, shortstack68 said:

If i'm honest, that IOM coin doesn't look kosher, it has extremely mushy legends and the horseman also looks very mushy........I'm not an expert on the coin, but it doesn't look right to me

Thanks for your assessment, I will definitely have it looked at by another coin dealer even after the density test but I still think it's a genuine iom sovereign, my camera is not the best for close ups in the first place, plus the overexposure of flash light and yes, under the magnifying glass the horseman's face looks quite worn but the condition is generally rather poor but it's still a legit bullion coin.

[sovereignsteve]

2 hours ago, shortstack68 said:

If i'm honest, that IOM coin doesn't look kosher, it has extremely mushy legends and the horseman also looks very mushy........I'm not an expert on the coin, but it doesn't look right to me

I thought so too but I have never owned of of these so can't really comment from experience.

The lettering doesn't look right to me but it may be just the way they are. Perhaps they are just a bit knocked about with the edges rounded off?

[greendragon]

plenty of clear pics on everyones favorite search engine for comparison 

[5huggy]

The Royal Mint did not produce a half sovereign this year but the Isle of Man did produce a half sovereign this year. 

They are recognised by HMRC as cgt free!

[silenceissilver]

22 minutes ago, 5huggy said:

The Royal Mint did not produce a half sovereign this year but the Isle of Man did produce a half sovereign this year. 

They are recognised by HMRC as cgt free!

Thanks, good to know!

 

3 hours ago, shortstack68 said:

I thought the lettering looked too rounded and the shield on the REV also, but it could be a multitude of things

I think the lettering is fine, if you compare it to online pictures. Also thanks for everyone elses assessment but I think it's fine, just worn, which is OK for a bullion coin. I will propably carry out the density test tomorrow and keep the forum updated. If it brings the right result, I doubt it could still be a forgery as it is only a bullion coin. There would be no point in doing this. In any case if it really should turn out to be not legit, the dealer I bought it from would take it back.

[sovereignsteve]

2 hours ago, greendragon said:

plenty of clear pics on everyones favorite search engine for comparison 

Looking at these photos, I notice a difference in size of the "PM" in the exergue, probably the designer's initials. The OP's coin has the bigger letters similar to the 1973. However, the 1974 may be a proof which could easily be a different design. Looking around, I see both styles of initial on the 73 and 74 so not conclusive.

[JunkBond]

7 minutes ago, sovereignsteve said:

 "PM" in the exergue, probably the designer's initials.

Pobjoy Mint...

[silenceissilver]

1 hour ago, shortstack68 said:

Regardless if its real or fake, don't think that no one will or hasn't already, there's many fake Victorian sovs, the chinese can make good fakes these days and just getting onto modern, why do you think we have a new shaped £1 coin, due to the amount of fakes in circulation, so someone does have too much time on their hands, never rest on your laurels because you think nobody has faked something, dealers have sold fake gold, knowingly/unknowingly

True but at least it's considerably less likely for a bullion coin that actually has the right gold content.

 

1 hour ago, sovereignsteve said:

Looking at these photos, I notice a difference in size of the "PM" in the exergue, probably the designer's initials. The OP's coin has the bigger letters similar to the 1973. However, the 1974 may be a proof which could easily be a different design. Looking around, I see both styles of initial on the 73 and 74 so not conclusive.

I think you are right with your assumption

 

1 hour ago, JunkBond said:

Pobjoy Mint...

Thanks for clarifying that

 

1 hour ago, shortstack68 said:

I was going to say the same about the PM, the other thing i noticed however is the manx shield and the 3 legs, specifically the leg at 6pm, one touches the bottom of the shield, the other doesn't, the facial feature of the horsemen also look different, but these irregularities could be because 1 is proof, the other not, the lighting and the wear etc etc etc

What do you mean with the 3 legs? In all versions the left hind leg of the horse touches the bottom line. ... Made a new photo, still struggeling to get a good take but maybe the face is a bit more visible. ...interesting how the colour changes with the flash light and the additional light turned off. It has lost some copper in this take, I think

Edited December 23, 2018 by silenceissilver

[silenceissilver]

8 minutes ago, shortstack68 said:

These 3 legs

I see, thanks, the distance is shorter in the right one but I don't think it touches it. At the right one the distance seems to be the same as in my coin. You can't see that in the second photo though but in the first one

Edited December 23, 2018 by silenceissilver

[Bullionaire]

I think one of those is a proof, therefore were comparing apples with oranges a bit. 

I would recommend you check the dimensions carefully. If the width and depth are ok, and the weight is OK. Chances are it's genuine. Fakes are usually physically too big and weigh the right amount or weigh too little and are the right dimensions.

The fact that yours weighs the same as a uk sovereign and is a bit worn, fits with mine being heavier and not being as worn. Here is a pic of mine to compare

 

[silenceissilver]

9 minutes ago, Bullionaire said:

I think one of those is a proof, therefore were comparing apples with oranges a bit. 

I would recommend you check the dimensions carefully. If the width and depth are ok, and the weight is OK. Chances are it's genuine. Fakes are usually physically too big and weigh the right amount or weigh too little and are the right dimensions.

The fact that yours weighs the same as a uk sovereign and is a bit worn, fits with mine being heavier and not being as worn. Here is a pic of mine to compare

 

Now I have made it my profile picture, so it better be genuine.

[silenceissilver]

20 minutes ago, shortstack68 said:

Everything is difficult from just a picture, you can only give an opinion

Indeed and it's very much appriciated

 

29 minutes ago, silenceissilver said:

Now I have made it my profile picture, so it better be genuine.

I will measure the dimensions and weigh it again tomorrow and post the results here

[h103efa]

Not sure if a good deal or not, but just bought the £2 Jane Austen Silver Piedfort for £55 using the 50% off voucher at the RM!

[MickD]

One has just been listed for £120 or best offer on e-bay.

[h103efa]

5 minutes ago, MickD said:

One has just been listed for £120 or best offer on e-bay.

On the sold filter, they sell for £80+, but sporadically! Its a nice design so no qualms if keeping but i'll probably sell sometime in future! Basically i've fallen for the 50% off gimmick!