I am looking to add some junk silver to my holdings. Where can I find some honest dealers? Any help would be appreciated.
If you are lazy then i would go with APMEX but if you are willing to put a little time and effort i would buy from Ebay.
I know that most people say they have x number of dollars face value, but I don't quite understand how that could be priced. I know that shows my lack of knowledge in this area but I am working on that. I do agree with sentiment on CT that most of the bullion prices carry a big premium. I am trying to find the most cost efficient way to own silver. Having said all that, I would like to start small and see how that goes, say maybe 16 oz. worth. Thanks.
The manner of pricing that you refer too is quite common. Say I want to sell junk silver (1964 dimes, quarters, halves) and I have in aggregate, $10.00 face value (FV). To determine how much silver is in any given dollar amount of coins just multiply that amount by 0.715. So $10 times 0.715 == 7.15 ounces of pure silver in $10 face value of coins. And then, 7.15 times spot price of silver($23 today) == $164.45 (melt value of silver contained in the $10 worth of coins) ------ So for the dealer to make a modest profit you'll probably be asked to pay $175 or $180. Since you are the buyer, you have the option of accepting that price or looking elsewhere to do better. --- Most dealers are honest but one may always request references or check them out with others here on the boards.
It should be noted there are actually 7.24 ounces of silver in $10 face value of coins. However if it is junk silver, and I mean pretty worn, then they will use 7.15 to account for the worn-off silver. When selling buying and selling you should take the condition of the coins into account. i.e. don't use 7.15 for better quality coins. It's best to actually weigh the coins and use that instead as you then know for sure.
I agree with what's posted here but few buyers or sellers ever weigh the coins and adjust the price. The .715 multiplier is the standard regardless of condition (which I don't agree with). You're right that quality rolls of AU/UNC coins should bring more while heavily worn FR/AG should bring less, it just rarely works out that way. I've bought rolls of SLQ that were over 10% under weight! A stack of 40 of them was about as tall as a stack of 30 BU quarters! I bought and sold them using the .715 figure when .615 would have been closer to reality! Some buyers/sellers state "no slicks" to avoid part of the problem.
Usually, you'll just offer to sell $10 face of 90% whatever (dimes, Kennedy's, etc..) and the dealer will offer you a price. It is up to you to decide what is a fair value. For me, using the lighter weight 7.15 and a 95% premium is a good sell price. 23.35X7.15X.95=$158.60 is what I'd expect to get when if I sell. I use the upper weight and 106% to see what a good buy price is. 23.35X7.23X1.06=$179. As you can see, this gives a dealer a $20.40 spread on my silver.
