Just searched through my inherited coins (dollar amount estimates help please)

I made it through about 25% of my collection tonight. The Tally is as follows- (70- Standing Liberty Quarters) (15- Standing Liberty Half Dollars) (475- Buffalo nickels/ most don't have visable dates). (775- Mercury Dimes/most are in good shape with dates). I haven't looked through the coins individually, and many of them are still in rolls. Any idea of face value or silver value alone in these coins? I was thrilled to finally get them in ziplock bags and separate them. I have books with coin sleeves on the way. On top of that I didn't even get to the backpack of world coins, or world notes. I have a lot of old Ching Dynasty Choins, and some old bank notes. Anyway Had a blast tonight, and if you could just give me a ballpark estimation on the silver mentioned above it would be greatly appreciated. You guys are so nice. Thank you for taking the time to do this. Pictures soon to follow.

 

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Too tired to do the math, but www.coinflation.com gives you up to date melt values on all US coins. I would say the buffs without dates maybe worth $.20 each, and with dates about $.60 each.

Most standing liberties with dates are worth more than melt.

Do you have a Redbook to check for scarcer dates and to teach you how to grade? This is pretty important.

Chris

 

Well if I read right silver dimes are about 1/10 an ounce of silver so that's about 77.5 ounces and pre 64 quarters are about 1/4 an ounce so that's about another 17.5 ounces so just those 2 things would be about 95 ounces so about $3200

 

Vonde, your info is not quite right. A dime is .07234 troy oz, Quarter is .18084 troy oz, half dollars are .36169 troy oz. Multiply the # of dimes by .07234x775= 56.0635 troy oz. Quarters, you take .18084x70= 12.6588 troy oz. Halves .36169x15= 5.42535 troy oz. 56.0635+12.6588+5.42535= 74.14765 Troy oz of silver. Multiply that by spot silver, currently $34.65 making it $2569.22 current silver value. BUT be weary of key dates, get yourself a redbook, grab those better dates and don't sell them for melt.

 

It's the weekend. I shouldn't be doing math

 

If I were you, I would separate them into 3 plastic bags: no date buffs, partial date buffs, full date buffs. The full date buffs have a bigger premium than the partials and same with partials to no dates. The no dates make nice ways to seed new kids into coin collecting. I give them to the kids who look at my coins with severe interest. I am running pretty low though. I hope I helped. If you can, swing by your local coin shop and get 2x2 cards to put your nicer nickels/dimes/quarters/halves into. That will store them in a pretty safe environment where further contact marks/wear

 

Having 775 Mercury dimes, I'd be double-checking them for the 1916-D and "1942 over 1" variety. I'm not a collector of Mercs, SLQ's & Walkers, but I would certainly check for key dates and varieties before I sold them for melt.

Chris

 

Chances are they'll all be common dates.. but you never know. Therefore, as Chris states, you need to check every single one before assigning them melt value only.

 

And that is the BEST part. Getting to look at every single coin.

Chris

 

Thank you very much for the info. I appreciate you doing the math. I initially estimated around 3k, but I guess the dollar amount was out of curiosity. I plan on holding on to these for a long time. I am really looking forward to searching through the rolls of merc dimes. It's too bad the dates are all worn off on the buffalo's. I like the idea of separting them into three bags. If I run across anything good I'll be sure to seperate it.

 

Very excited to report back that I found a 1942 2 over 1. I would say F12. Came across 2 rolls labeled 1942, and mid-way through the second roll there it is a 2 over 1. Taking a break for the Iowa game and then back to searching.

 

I was in the same situation last year. We inherited my father in laws coins. All in tubes. He used to be a coin and stamp dealer. Did not find any key dates but he had cherry picked a bunch of BY coins, nerves rosies Kennedys WLH BUFFS Franklin's. I kept the best and my wife made me sell the rest. I had enough to have every year merc, except 1916, all Franklin's and most dates of WLH and ROSIES. We still had about $10k in coin sold, just wish my wife had let me keep it all. Good luck!

 

Another Hawkeye here on the forums? I got my MBA there in '02.

Chris

 

:thumb:Nice mini-medium hoard keep us updated!!!
:kewl:

 

That's awesome Chris. I grew up in Cedar Falls. Love Iowa City. I'm an undergrad at UMD.

~Jason

BTW- no more key dates on the mercs, but the 2 over 1 was a shocker. I'm gonna send it in, along with my 3 dollar gold piece to get slabbed.

 

JCB. You've already received good advice about sorting through the coins and looking for key dates. If you just want to know the melt value of your silver coins try this link:

http://www.silvercoinstoday.com/silver-calculators/us-silver-coin-calculator/

It's my favorite calculator for silver melt value of US Coins.

 

Great find, I have been looking through junque silver for a while looking for one of them.

 

And if you're not tired of them, try being wary of lumping them in with your melt value junk silver.

 

Thank you RB. That silver calculator was great. All in all I have 94.96 Oz of silver, or 3,206 in silver value. I didn't count any of the buffalo's because I can't read the dates on them. My only question would be is a 1776-1976 Eisenhower still silver? I know it says 1976. I had quite a few of them.

 

First thing you should check for on the Eisenhower dollars is the edge, if they have a copper sandwich on the edge, they are definitely not silver.