I've just started checking out these 5 ounce pucks, and I'm a bit confused. From a different thread yesterday, I found out there are two different versions of each design? One with the P mintmark for the collector's special version from the mint. Then one is without a mintmark, which I guess is made at West Point, and is the bullion version. Am I correct so far? So, I try to do a little more investigation. I tried to look up mintages of the different designs. I went to the mint website, and it gave me some mintage figures. For example, it lists Yellowstone with a mintage of 33,000. So, I presume 33,000 is the number of Yellowstone pucks made by the mint with the P mintmark. Am I correct? Am I to presume there is a different mintage number for the bullion pieces produced by West Point? Or does 33,000 represent the total number made by Philadelphia and West Point? I guess I'll go back to do some more searching to see if there are mintage figures from West Point. Or am I way off base on all of this? Please help, and point me in the right direction. Thanks.
There are not many of the coining presses for producing the 5 ounce coins. Minting is done for both varieties of these coins, bullion and uncirculated "P" collectible versions, at the same minting facility, Philadelphia. I haven't heard that any of these are minted at West Point. The versions sold directly to the consumer (collector) from the US Mint catalog are the collectible versions offering the vapor blast surface feature and a "P" mint mark. The other variety are the bullion version coins without a mintmark. They are first sold by the US Mint to their authorized bullion purchases, typically physical bullion dealers buying in wholesale quantities from the Mint, who then sell them retail to investors, collectors and anyone else who buys or resells these versions. There are indeed separate mintages for the bullion versions and the collectible "P" uncirculated versions. Each of the five designs of the bullion coins and each of the five coins of the uncirculated "P" coins released each year have their own individual mintages. Overall, for each year, there is a total mintage figure for the bullion coins (all 5 coins added together) and a total figure for uncirculated "P" coins (all 5 coins added together). For example the 2010 bullion coins offered 33,000 of each design for a total of 165,000 bullion 5 ounce coins. After 2010 however the Mint started toying with the figures and sales reported have shown differing figures per design for both bullion and collector versions. You can find the exact mintage statistics online at various sites. Here's a couple to help your research: America the Beautiful silver coins.com America the Beautiful Bullion coins Mint News Blog is also a good source to sift through and subscribe to for future e-newsletters on new Mint products, their sales figures (mintage) reported and other related statistics and specifications.
Ok, so they are all made in Philadelphia, some with a "P" for the collector's version, and without the mintmark for the bullion version. And the collector's version has a special finish to it. But I don't see mintage figures for the bullion issue. Or am I not understanding you correctly. If the Hawaii design shows a mintage of 20,000 - is that the total number for both the collector's "P" version and the bullion version? Or does 20,000 represent the collector's version, and nobody knows how many bullion non-"P" versions were made? Sorry for asking so many questions.
I already gave you a link to the information for bullion version mintages. Go back and read the details for each coin to see the mintages on that page. Just scroll down and you will see each coin detailed.It should be pretty clear, so I don't know why there's any confusion. The versions with "P" mintmarks have varied mintage per coin design because it's determined after sales end, based on units of each sold directly to customers from the Mint via their product catalog. So whatever the sales figures were, reflects that coin's mintage. It's also worth looking up the coin legislation for each year to see how many of these coins the Mint has been permitted to mint in total. From that figure they usually have divided equally amongst the given year's five designs. In the first year, 2010 the figure was set at an overall number inclusive of all designs. The following years, the coin legislation changed and was adjusted based on demand for total units to be minted, that's one overall figure for the bullion versions and one overall figure for the 5 "P" versions. A little background here. It's really much easier if you look this stuff up online to get specific numbers rather than relying on me or others trying to recite it all here for you, as all you want to know is out there, for both versions of these coins, bullion and unc. "P", and for each design released in each of the years they've been minted so far.
Which looks better? Mint version or bullion version. The bullion version looks shiny and the mint version dull in YouTube clips. Which one does the coin community gravitate to from a "look" stand point.
I've only gotten the bullion version so I can't say but part of my consideration on which coin to get is cost so that's why I'm only buying the bullion versions for now.
The mint version looks like a matte proof or satin uniform finish with very few if any marks – the bullion version looks like an uncirclated coin with varying finish areas and more imperfections/marks, the bullion version gets a little rougher handling and less die preparation.
I have an entire set of the collector's version of the pucks. In my opinion, the mint has done a good job with quality on them and I love the look. I will keep buying them until the program ends.
