Like with everything else, there is a reddit for that too: https://www.reddit.com/r/CostcoPM/
Silver Coin Collecting Question
- Thread starter Jerry1
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Running_Man
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
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Those are nice. protect the coin and make for a lovely display. A sealed tube is worth nothing more other than the value of the tube.
Koolau
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
I like this philosophy. My BFF whom I've spoken of often used to criticize me for making small investments in PMs. He would say "For the cost of that coin, I could buy " ... " And his list was endless. And, of course, since he did NOT have the money to buy a coin OR a " ... " he would borrow the money to get " ... " anyway!
He died last year, leaving his DW in a half million dollar debt hole. If 1/10 of all those cars and motor cycles and wave runners and boats and trips to 6 Flags and Disney were instead 1 oz gold Eagles or K-rands or Maple leaves or 100 oz silver bars (bought instead of " ... " AT the same time) his wife would be sitting pretty, debt wise.
Some people can not curb their desires for possessions and experiences. There is a school of thought, of course, that BFF was the winner because he had more "fun" than I did. He fed his passion. That's the only thing I ever envied him was his "passion" which he did, indeed, feed.
I'm happy to occasionally sit in a corner and look at a hand full of coins and know that, while they aren't strictly speaking a "good" investment, they are a small piece of my AA and they will likely always maintain there value. They also offer a bit of insurance against harder times than we're living in currently. I hope I'm wrong about that last part, but that's part of my "passion" if I have one - to be ready for harder times. Like all insurance, it costs you something but it may well be a good way to spend a small amount of your stash. Natrually, YMMV.
You can also finagle that at Walmart.com using the CapOne Walmart credit card. Pinehurst Coins (at Walmart.com) sells 2024 ASE rolls for $551.42. The CapOne card gets you 5% back from there, making each ASE $26.17. Free shipping.
dirtbiker
Full time employment: Posting here.
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I also prepare for potentially harder times. In addition to PMs, I keep stores of food, water, ammo, and other items that could potentially be used in the event of harder times. I fully expect to never have to use any of them in that situation, but I'd rather have them and not need them, than to need them and not have them.
Car-Guy
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
I suspect if it really hits the fan, guns/ammo, food and water will have the most value. Followed by things like shelter, fuel and generators. Extra guns and ammo can be used to barter for food and water. PM, maybe....I also prepare for potentially harder times. In addition to PMs, I keep stores of food, water, ammo, and other items that could potentially be used in the event of harder times. I fully expect to never have to use any of them in that situation, but I'd rather have them and not need them, than to need them and not have them.
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I am a past president of our local coin club. As far as I know, with the exception of the strap on the monster box of 25 tubes/rolls, the government does not put seals on each tube. I suspect any seals are after market gimmicks. While a bullion dealer might like the sealed roll, I can't think of a numismatic reason for it?? At a show two weekends ago Silver American Eagles were selling for between $28-30 per coin depending on which dealer had them. No one was asking if they came from sealed tubes.
For me personally, I would not stress over taking them out of the tube.
For me personally, I would not stress over taking them out of the tube.
Koolau
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
I also prepare for potentially harder times. In addition to PMs, I keep stores of food, water, ammo, and other items that could potentially be used in the event of harder times. I fully expect to never have to use any of them in that situation, but I'd rather have them and not need them, than to need them and not have them.
Yeah, part of my philosophy as well. I always hope my "insurance" never needs to pay off.
DrRoy
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
I have a fun coin collection that includes a US historic type set, a little gold, and a number of silver rounds on themes that I enjoy like space and Alaska Mint. They are probably worth a couple $10K but I do not consider them an investment, just a prior hobby.
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Half pint bottles of booze and packs of cigarettes also might be useful as trade goods.
"Preserving wealth" or matching/beating inflation or converting "fiat dollars" to "real money" are often terms silver collectors use. If these are your main reason for owning Silver Eagles, there are cheaper ways to do it. My guess is that your interest is a bit like mine (all the above.
Heh, heh, feel free to ignore all this as it may be TMI. OH, and returning you now...
I'm getting interested in the idea of holding actual PMs. If converting fiat dollars to real money is the goal, what is the most cost effective method?
Koolau
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
IMO the most "efficient" method is to purchase larger bars of .9999 fine silver (100 troy oz) is probably the sweet spot as it's not ridiculously expensive (maybe $2400 now) and it's not too heavy to carry home to your safe or hidey-hole (about 7 pounds.) It is infinitely redeemable at any coin or store that deals bullion. The major disadvantage is that it's NOT divisible. IF you need silver for one of it's other uses (when fiat currencies break down - heaven forbid) it's not good for buying a loaf of bread.
The sweet spot for divisibility without too much "premium" over silver spot is probably generic "rounds" which are the one troy ounce silver coins "minted" by any tom-dick-harry silver outfit. Typically, generic rounds carry a very small premium - not like the expensive Silver Eagles. The premium is higher than 100oz bars (or smaller bars) BUT, the premium is not that bad in general - especially once you do your own research. Any coin dealer will know at a glance if your round is fake or not and they won't sell you a fake. Only issue then for (hard times) is whether a grocer or guy with food will sell to you for a generic round.
Best silver for "hard times" is clearly the USA silver coin. Premiums have been very low for a while but recently have become rather high. BUT everyone knows a silver quarter when they see or feel one. If someone with food is willing to sell, they'll sell for USA silver coins.
So, there is a range of prices and uses for owning silver. I think low premium trumps just about everything else - except as a "crisis" investment. For that, USA coins are the only way to go but that's just my opinion and YMMV.
By the way, there are hundreds of videos on the internet which discuss such things. There's a guy who calls himself "Silver Dragons" I think which has some videos about these issues.
IF you are serious about owning PMs, I'd suggest a LOT of personal research - including visiting stores that sell. You'll be surprised about the spread store-to-store. The price to buy vs sell spread can be significant as well. Get to know the dealers and be ready to "deal" with them. Coin shows are another possibility but with a slightly higher risk of fraud. TRY to avoid paying sales tax. It used to be easy but not so much now. Don't go wild - start slow. Keep it simple. Diversify - maybe "cheap" rounds first, then smaller bars, then maybe bigger bars then USA coins on the dips.
Mostly, do your homew*rk and most of all, make a PLAN. Why do you want to own PMs? (IOW what are you "hedging" or trying to protect against?) How much are you willing to hold? What loss are you willing to take? How will you secure PMs? Gold or silver or both??
Personally, I would avoid the "other" PMs (Platinum and Palladium, etc.) even though they are much more useful than gold for instance, they are more volatile and less well recognized in hard times. These metals ARE good for speculation - simply BECAUSE of the volatility. BUT you gotta be sharp and interested and involved if you want to take advantage of that volatility. Not my thing, but maybe someone else's thing.
Oh, and I personally avoid ANYTHING with so-called "numismatic" value. It's very much more volatile and dependent upon judgement of the buyer/seller. There is room for profit, but also loss. Only buy numismatic if you're willing to put in the effort to learn and if you are willing to take "paper" losses for long periods of time. Remember, too. In a "crisis" an ounce of silver is worth (wait for it) an ounce of silver - whether it's a $1000 rare silver dollar or a silver round that cost you $25. They'll both buy you maybe a loaf of bread.
If I sound like I know what I'm talking about, I don't. So do your own research. I haven't bought or sold PMs in many years. I made most of the mistakes I've mentioned. Eventually, I made my plan, executed it and tweaked it a few times over the years. Now, like most of my portfolio, it's set and forget. Get on with life. Money is a tool - nothing more. I have enough (enough stock, enough bonds, enough PMs, etc.) Now I enjoy my retirement.
Heh, heh, hope this hasn't been too boring - I know it is to those who prefer other "investments" than PMs. Have some fun in your research.
When my DGF passed away in 1973 my DGM, gave me a bunch of coins that he had. They probably aren't worth a lot over the coin values. When I was a kid I would go with him to lots of places and he would trade with the people for coins. I have shown them to my DGD and she thinks they are pretty. some day she will have them all when I'm gone. I pull them out ocasionally and remaniss about the times I would go riding with my "Bigdaddy" and we would talk about stuff.
Car-Guy
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
If he had been collecting for a while, he probably had a "bunch" of silver coins. All US dimes, quarters, halfs, and dollars minted in 1964 and earlier are 90% silver so they have more than just "face value". And if he had been "trading coins" then he may some that have some numismatic value too. You might want get a collector to scan them for anything of real value, over silver melt. Scanning hundreds of coins doesn't take long (minutes) if you know what to look for.
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Koolau
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Yeah, there are sites which will tell you which dates are considered "key dates." If you have any of those, THEN do your research. Otherwise, USA coins were (of late) in the 20 times Face Value range. So a silver dime would be worth around $2. It obviously fluctuates with silver price, popularity of US coin ownership at that time and also dealer to dealer.
Here is a site which shows a comparison of prices available at bullion dealers on line. I've never checked the validity of this site, so do your own homew*rk if interested.
https://findbullionprices.com/p/90-junk-silver-coins-100-face-value-bag/
The dealers on that site are all good-to-go. The majority of them are what stackers at https://www.reddit.com/r/Silverbugs/ frequently use when they purchase from dealers. I have personally purchased from most of them.
Koolau
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Heh, heh, I don't think most of them even existed back when I bought! Besides the silver my dad left me, I think I paid something like 3.4 X Face for my first USA coins. So the value has increased roughly 6 times. Of course, now, the old paper rollers are falling off the coins! So, buying the S*P or DOW would have been a better money maker. BUT the insurance value is key in my thinking. The growth of my "silver insurance" policy has been better than any life insurance policy I've ever owned. But, YMMV.
I occasionally watch a "stacker" video on YouTube just for funzies. I can't even imagine storing 25,000 to 100,000 coins! BUT some of these guys are really into it. Everybody needs a hobby, I guess.
