I want to make some metalic coins that are forgeries.

Now before you all shout its Illegal, I want to impress this is for a Role playing game that my son in involved in, and the coins are actual metal coins. However, they are specific to the game world and do no represent or look like any coin in the real world.

Oh, and the game rules say we have to make them ourselves, ie no going to someone like a comemarative minting company and having them made.

Obvious ways are casting, or stamping.

Anyone got any ideas for getting stamping dies made?
I can use a workshop 10 ton press, for stamping.
I am not looking at making thousands, just a few tens of coins for the game.

I do have the actual coins to use as a pattern.

What for the team think??

chocolocolate coins, you can eat them once the game is over.

making the die is the hard part; for the coin blank use copper, aluminium or gold as they are soft.

are you able to amke a pantograph? basiacally you make your dsign 2 or more times fulkl size and then reduce it to the die; a fine point dremel to cut the die.

if it is say in somehting like mild steel, then heat it up covered in carbon to case harden the sruface. You should get some reasonable looking stamped coins out but it would deteriorate quite quickly.

[Edited on 13/8/08 by 02GF74]

for thosa wh don;t know what the f*** I;m on about; 3 D pantograph that one is 1:1 but with some ingenuity, it can scale down.

[Edited on 13/8/08 by 02GF74]

hmm...when I was an apprentice we used to turn brass rod into "pound" sized disks....they worked a treat in the vending machines down the corridor...

amazing really how tight the tollerances had to be to make it work

Dependent on the intricacy of the design you could get a die easily turned up, then engraving may be ok dependent on the detail.

You really then need some soft metal blanks that are just a bit thicker than the finished die depth and fly press them together.

The other way would be to sand cast them out of lead or an equivalent lead free solder stuff.

If you really want some fun you could look around on Utube and set yourself up an exothermic reaction similar to how they fuse railway lines together in some places. Then you can alu cast them easily!

Steve

Any reason why the coins can't be made from aluminium discs?

Makes it much easier to make the dies, etc.

quote:

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Originally posted by 02GF74
chocolocolate coins, you can eat them once the game is over.

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Low Melt Point Alloy! This stuff is awesome. The stuff I use melts at 96C, and is perfect for casting. You wont need super expensive tooling, just something that takes at least 120C. Cast two halves then bond together, or cast a single piece and knock of the nubbin!

I used to know an old feller (now passed on) who used to do alot of pewter and lead casting - small intracate figurines, crosses replica medals etc.

He carved them by hand from balsa wood then made a hard rubber mould in 2 halves. He would then melt his metal in an old tin cup on the stove and just pour it in. A few minutes later and hey presto - a perfect copy of the original.

Solder melts at very low temperatures. (don't get the flux cored stuff). Make moulds out of modling clay and allow to dry.

Or, press the coin of your choice (not legal tender for obvoius reasons) into a block of clay and make fibreglass male then female moulds. metal powder mixed with just a little polyester resin makes stuff that looks very similar to metal when the shine is sanded off. You could have an engraver make 1 coin for you then cast as many as you want.

Why not etch the image of the coin onto the metal, I'm sure there is a way of getting some sort of transfer that you can spray etching compound over.

What about clear laminate with the picture printed on and just sticking it in place.

Just an idea as its only for a game?

how about glass coins? would look futuristic and glass etch is available in cans from hobby shops. guess the trick would be getting disks cut. maybe some of those fancy glass tiles for detakils in bathrooms?

http://www.ivillage.co.uk/homegarden/interiors/kitchen/articles/0,,690255_709884,00.html

Do the coins have to be made of metal? Because if not then get some casting resin, some metal powder, and make them from that. Just press the coin into some plastercine and you have an instant mould. Just a thought. HTH Ray

WOW!!!

What a response.

OK, I have a real coin that I can use as a pattern.
Its fairly intricate.

They have to be made of metal, or the other players in the game will realise its a fake, and probably try to kill me (my Character).

BTW... This is Live Action Role Playing, and its played by about 1000+ people at 4 events per year. Set in the mid 1650's In a new colonial type setting (read Europe and America of the 1600's) with magical powers, and intelligent animal beings.
Its a LOT of fun if you have a good imagination.

Right back to the coins, I will put one up on this posting when I get home.
I think I could do the colouring with a Copper wash or electroplating, as this particular coin is coppery.

Rules say I can forge them, but cannot get them made by an outside minting service.
Thats so the forgeries, are not as good as the Game companies coins! That would be too easy.

but Like a Locost... doing it youself if half the fun..

Keep it coming... you are giving me ideas..

..... so what happened?

were these coins ever made, is so, photo?

what metal are the coins you already have made from.

if they were copper, you could use them as spark erosion electrodes, and get two die halves eroded out of P2 tool steel using the existing coin as the electrode.

Most injection moulding toolmakers will have a die sink spark erosion machine and it won't cost as much as you think to do something small like that. get the halves hardened and you can make as many coins as you like from blanks cut from sheet copper etc.

Could you use copper and then etch them with ferric chloride the way PCBs are made. You can buy etch resist pens for this.

I would use white metal to cast them, with a modelling powder or putty mould.

Everything you need here

http://www.fredaldous.co.uk/

LIGHTNING BOLT!

Did they have printing presses back then? Paper money

I'd like to know a bit more about this game too