Rare or "Key Date" Morgan Silver Dollars have a higher likelihood of being fake because their collector value can be many times what it costs to produce an authentic looking coin that may even be made of silver alloy. Some counterfeits may be made of ferrous metal and so placing the coin against a strong magnet will immediately identify the coin as a fake. However, counterfeits made of non-ferrous metal will pass this most basic test of authenticity. So how do you know if a coin is counterfeit when it's been produced out of non-ferrous metals? One method is to weigh the coin using a precise digital scale as I've done in this video. Another easy test is to hold the coin with Lady Liberty's head right side up, your index finger and thumb placed at the 12 o'clock and 6 o'clock position respectively. Then spin the coin from obverse to reverse keeping these fingers in place. The coin's reverse should now appear upside down with the eagle's head at 6 o'clock. If the orientation is off, the coin is a fake.
