I always come across people on ebay who have loads (like hundreds) of 70+ year old bank wrapped rolls of wheats. Where do people find so many, if they're all from the same bank how do they find so many at one time? What are the best banks to find an assortment of dates. Would it be better to go to a small credit union rather than a large bank like bank of America? I'm guessing that the larger banks tend to get more novice roll hunters and newer coins. Also, has anybody ever thought about buying boxes of rolls directly from a store or business. Im sure there comes a time when they have too much change on hand and they have to exchange it, why not just get it directly from them? Might be better than the bank. Anyways, hopefully somebody can school me on this haha.
Most of the "old" rolls on ebay are put together and not original. Old looking paper is available as well as crimping tools. Rarely are the rolls old or unsearched. Most are a scam.
I didn't know the old papers were still available. I knew the newer looking 'unsearched' rolls were a scam. These are the ones I was referring to. http://www.ebay.com/itm/ONE-FEDERAL...83?pt=Coins_US_Individual&hash=item258a1c3787
They do happen, rarely, but they do happen. I have gotten rolls, usually they are now odd amounts like 25c cent rolls, or $20 half rolls from my various credit unions. I have managed to score solid wheat rolls, solid silver rolls etc.
Move to a city where the majority of the populace is retirees. Open an account with several banks. In the week prior to the 3rd of each month, make the rounds of those banks and watch for every elderly person entering the bank with a bag or box. Stand in line immediately behind them. Chris
I've spoken at length with a few people who work in banks, from small to large, and all of them say the coins in their inventory turn over fairly frequently. In these banks, there would be no roll or box that stayed put for 70+ years. I haven't spoken to someone from every bank in the US, so I suppose there could be a few out there that have rolls or boxes that haven't been touched in years, but it seems unlikely.
Coin rolls do turn over frequently - what happens though is that depositors sometimes bring in old rolls. But that doesn't mean you cannot find rolls that have sat in a bank's vaults for several decades - because I myself found original BU Ike dollars in a small bank in a rural N. California town a few years ago. The teller said they had had them for as long as she had worked there - then 15+ years.
buying an unsearched roll off ebay is like playing the lottery. you might hit a jackpot and actually get an unsearched roll which may or may not contain a rarity. Or you can get 2 wheats and a bunch of 2010-p pennies.
I think it's more like buying a lottery ticket from some guy on a street corner. You might get a legitimate lottery ticket that gives you a small chance at a jackpot, but more likely you're getting a fake that gives you absolutely no chance at a jackpot.
As a rule there really are no "unsearched" rolls on eBay. They have been searched somewhere along the line.
Finding OBW at banks is next to impossible. Most of the rolls on eBay, if legit, have been rolled long ago and put away. I've been to several estate auctions have seen BU rolls from the 60s on up.