Video 05 presents the $51.63 screening kit, but the library does not yet show the loupe exam on camera. That is the highest-leverage gap because a cleaned or altered surface can pass the three physical tests.
Six-point surface checklist
- Hairlines crossing the fields.
- Dead brightness without rotating cartwheel luster.
- A gray, washed-out appearance from dipping.
- Dark recesses beside unnaturally bright open areas.
- Soft or mushy details with a whizzed texture.
- Unnatural chemical color that ignores the design contours.
Technique
- Study known-genuine certified coins first.
- Use raking light at low angles.
- Scan in zones: fields, devices, rim, then both sides.
- Vary focus distance instead of staring from one angle.
- Compare constantly with reliable examples.
This sequence summarizes chapters 5–6 of Spotting Cleaned and Counterfeit Coins; it does not reproduce those chapters. Coin close-ups are illustrative only, never authentication evidence.