2$ bills...

So... the mint supposedly prints these out every year for general circulation... why is it that nobody uses them... EVER?

 

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Some do and others who think they are rare, keep them. You can go to the bank and ask if they have some and more than likely get some. Don't think they have a new date every year though.

 

Right...the latest $2 printing is Series 2003A, which were printed in the summer/fall of 2006. There were about 230 million $2's in that batch, which at recent rates ought to keep the Fed from running low for about five years, give or take. So I wouldn't expect another printing of $2's until roughly 2011.

(The $50 note also sometimes has to wait over a year between printings, but the other five denominations are generally in enough demand that they don't get rotated out of production for more than a few months at a time.)

 

I spend them all the time, and get comments from cashiers that they are seeing more and more of them, here in my area anyway. I know I compete with several others to get them when they come into my banks.

 

I spend them once in a while. I keep the 1976 series, but spend the 2003A's


My favorite thing to do is go to a Dunkin Donuts and buy a large coffee and pay with a $2 bill and 50-cent coin. I get some good reactions

 

I have $90 worth to spend as of today.

 

Simple answer is, because people rarely get them. Banks don't issue them to people unless they specifically ask... and almost all retailers who get any as payment just immediately deposit them at the bank when they get a chance (unless employees who collect them or want them as novelties buy them out of the drawer).

So rarely issued, and not long in circulation when they're actually spent, that's pretty much why you don't see many in circulation. Anybody who goes out of their way to get any though usually use them if they're not going to save them.

As to how the $2 bill got that way... well it used to actually be as commonly used as the $1 bill, but as the trasition was made from United States notes to Federal Reserve notes, the $2 bill got left out of the loop for about 10 years when the $2 FRN was finally issued. By that time, people had learned to do without it, and people quit bothering to leave a spot for it in cash register drawers. When it finally returned, in 1976, many saw it as a novelty designed to commemorate the bicentennial (especially since The Declearation of Independence painting replaced Monticello on the reverse). Thus, it was just saved, and not spent, even though the Federal Reserve was hoping that people would use it and thus lower the amount of $1 bills they had to print (never worked out that way!). Eventually, the Series 1976 was exhauseted, and 1995 they issued a new series, but it seemed other than people collecting or saving them as novelties, it wasn't getting used much, so quite a few years pass between issues. THere's been a Series 2003 and 2003A since... they're still printed in the millions... just seldom used in actual circulation. Likely theyre will be a new series once 2003A is exhausted, probably not for about another 3 to 5 years though.

 

$2 bills when they did circulate back in the 1950's etc did have a bit of a stigma attached to them, because they were allegedly used a lot in horse racing bets.

 

I've heard that theory before, as well as theories that they were used a lot in strip clubs. Not sure if it was ever the case that people used it for certain things they'd rather people not know about more than other denominations were used. But you'd think if they'd want to keep such things secret, they wouldn't use any one particular denomination more than others; doing so would draw attention to the very activity they're trying to keep secret. Besides, even if some people did use it for such things, there's no proof that any one person holding it now did (after all the people who spent it for such things would no longer have them obviously, because they already spent them!)

I've also heard theories that some people considered them unlucky. Certainly possible that some did, all kinds of people believe all kinds of things after all, but I've never heard of any evidence that it was a widespread enough belief to account for how little $2's get used. I'm more inclined to apply Occam's Razor (all other things being equal, the simplest explanation that can account for the known facts tends to be the correct one) and go by the "$2 bill just ceased to be considered practical" explanation myself. It's pretty much the same reason that half dollars are so little used in circulation now.

Interestingly enough Japan has had a similar experience with the 2000 yen bill (though it's only been around since 2000). It was issued to commemorate the 2000 G8 summit held in Okinawa, but it is legal tender and was originally meant to be a practically circulating bill. However vending machines wouldn't accept it, and most merchants didn't have room for it in cash drawer; many would even refuse to take it as payment. It's now extremely rare to actually see one in circualtion, and usually encountered only at banks and post offices. Usually only collectors and tourists will even ask for them. There is a rumor that some consider it unlucky, but again with the $2 bill in the US it's likely not a widespread enough belief to account for it's tiny circulation; the more likely explanation is it's just considered an inpractical nuisance and thus not used much. Unlike the $2 bill in the US though, it was never considered practical.

 

The 2000 Yen note is one I would like to find sometime, for it is interesting also in that the particular note was by then the only second instance of a woman appearing on a Japanese note - the first was a short time in the 1880's, and now the 5000 Yen note has a 19th century author on it.

Some older people here in the USA are suspicious of $2's. Back ca. 2006 I had a garage sale and used them for change, along with $1/2 coins etc. I had one woman vehemently refuse to take it, and I had to dig out some dollar bills. 99% of the time people are happy to get them, if I spend them in a particular restaurant I go to for lunch the owner buys them out of the register right away.

 

The BEP did print 2008 $2 bills, 10,000 for each Federal Reserve District, released month by month. They sold out almost instantly. See an example on eBay: 190279050216

 

These are actually Series 2003A. The serial numbers all start with 2008XXXX

 

If you're trying to get one from the source in Japan, your best bet is to check with banks or post offices. They usually have some. Otherwise, should be able to find one on ebay for about $35 or so uncirculated. (at current exchange rates, its face value is about $25 US.) Nice looking note; love the temple gate on the front, reminds me of when I lived in Okinawa for about a year (my dad, in the USMC at the time, was stationed at Kadena).

Never had anyone refuse $2's I tried to pay with, though they always elicited a comment of "wow, don't see these often." Never encountered anyone unaware of their existence as genuine US currency, but they always comment on how little they see them. Possibly you just encountered someone who didn't want one, not necessarily because they didn't believe it was real legal tender or anything.

 

Rumor has it that they were used to pay prostitutes, just rip off a corner and you wouldn't get an STD. Maybe thats why the lady didn't want it?
Also, Lettow is correct. Check RickieB s paper money contest #2.

 

Cool Story. I just always thought it was good luck to rip off a corner.

I think I'm going to start circulating some of my $2 2003A Notes. It'll be somewhat interesting!

 

Actually, my great aunt owned her own salon, and when people payed her with 2 dollar bills, she would rip the corners off as to not get them confused with 20 dollar bills. But I've never heard that before, that's pretty interesting. She hated 2 dollar bills though, because people would try and pass them off as 20's... and it would mess up her counting.

 

THe bank actually tried to give me 20 of them for $20, so be sure not to rip yourself or others off. LOL

 

If you get a 2 dollar bill your supposed to tear a Conner of the bill of and if you get a 2 dollar bill with all for Conner's torn of your suppose to tear the bill up. Some of the reason for it's stigma is the gambling (2 dollar bets at the race track) and prostitution, it would cost 2 dollars for a lady of the night in the 1930's (that's in the low end price range). Also they would pay 2 dollars for vote rigging. Last of all Deuce is one of the many slang terms used for the devil. During World War II Germany was going to flood the US with counterfeit money by way of Mexico. As the story goes Germany never printed any 2 dollar bills because Americans where so superstitious of the bills. Here's my torn 2 dollar bill.

Lou

 

pretty cool story

 

Thank you! :smile

Lou