Hi All, I wanted to get the opinions from the members here about acquiring 40% silver coins as bullion. I ask this because lately as a hedge against the dollar and the state of the economy I have been buying junk silver 90% US coins (Washington Quarters, Roosevelt and Mercury Dimes and JFK Halves (1964)) when I see a good deal. When I look at the melt value of the 40% Silver Coins, (War Nickels & JFK Halves) it doesn't compare to the 90% Coins and why waste the money when you can get a higher percentage of pure silver. What's your take on this?
In 1985 or so when I was working at a toll bridge we were getting 10 cents on the dollar for clad halves and we thought we were doing good. We turned them in inside one pound cans of coffee (empty of coffee) . Now you can get anywhere from $2.50-$3.00 per coin. Now that's a deal.
They are worth it when you can get them for face value. Other than that, I'd forget it. If you want silver as a hedge, then buy silver bullion and forget about coins. You can get bullion cheaper than coins, you can sell bullion easier than coins, and for more money most of the time. Your own logic tells you that 90% is better than 40%. So does it not also stand to reason that 100% (OK .999% for the picky ones) is better than 90% ???
I agree with this very much i would say the only way to make a huge amount from coin bullion is if you pay face value so in short i would say just roll hunt look through dimes nickels quarters and halfs !! it is the best way to make the most money from it and sometimes it really pays of to be honest with you !! to find silver in circulation you just need time because worse comes to worse you dont get any you bring the coins back and swap for more unhunted rolls !!
@ GDJMSP, yes 99.9% is better than 90% but the cost for the particular coins I am buying is far less that an ASE. I d0 collect ASE's when there is free money in the budget. Let me add that I buy the 90% junk silver coins at close to their melt value and as you can expect I am only able to get 2 to 3 of those coins a week. As you mentioned, besides ASE and other 99.9% silver coins what other bullion do you recommend. Are you referring to rounds and bars? I heard these are harder to sell if you need to offload some in a hurry. Which particular rounds and bars are referring to? Thank you John
i would recommend rounds i know a lot of people looking for rounds right now that would pay right up for them !!!
@ Sean, Thank you for your input. I had read else where on the internet that some rounds are harder to sell quicker because of the design and maker of them. The theory is other investors or collectors wouldn't purchase them because they are not familiar with them. So is it better say to buy 1 oz silver generic rounds from APMEX or Provident and not the designs on other rounds like the Indian head kind?
Depends on what your long term plan is. ASE's are collectors coins made out of silver and are always worth silver spot price. On the other hand, generic rounds are only worth silver spot. ASE's sell for a premium, which you can make back when it comes time to sell.
This isn't entirely true. Dated rounds can sometimes trade for premiums, as well. I've gotten 200% premiums on Credit Suisse bars (low number certs) and 150% premiums on dated rounds. So, you *can* get a premium on non-gov't issued silver, but it's kind of a crap shoot, if you don't understand WHY there are premiums.
alot of people dont want 40% my lcs wont even buy them. most of the time they cost more to refine then there melt value. the best place to unload them is the website listia they go for 5000 to 8000 credits (1000=$1) then you turn around and use the credits to get other stuff you want. This is what i do when i find them in rolls. then i use the credits to get coins i need or 90% silver. dimes go for around 2000-3000 btw your sale ad is way to high no one is going to buy them for $5 i can get circulated and borderline uncirculated from my lcs for $3 and very nice bu for $5-$6
Often you can get 40% for melt value. It's the cheapest bullion. The problem is it's pretty much only worth the silver content.
That is the only way to buy them. Quite frankly I keep all my 90% finds, but sell off the 35 and 40% stuff to fund new searches. I have finally gotten to the point where I have enough of both again to sell them off when silver gets where I want/hope it will go.
I have noticed that it is easier to get 40% closer to melt value than 90% due to them being unpopular, this is a good thing I think, if you are looking for junk silver coins.
John - I most certainly did not say anything about buying ASE's. I said to buy silver bullion. That means silver bars, real bullion. Not rounds and not bullion coins, both of those have associated costs that go with them and they are typically more expensive than just plain bullion. If you want to buy silver, or gold, or platinum, or whatever, then bullion is forever and always going to be your best buy.
They're unpopular, and easier to get close to melt value, because they're hard to sell close to melt value. Look at Provident's buy prices, among the best around, for an example. As of this moment, they're offering 15.56x for 90%, 5.27x for 40%. According to Coinflation, "melt value" is 13.93x for 90%, and 5.7x for 40%. So, while this large wholesaler is paying almost 12% over melt for 90%, they're paying 7.5% under melt for 40%. You'll find the same effect on eBay, although prices tend to be higher overall there. If a buyer can get 40% silver for less money, it means that sellers have to let it go for less money. That's just the way it is.
Englehard has more liquidity when you want to sell than any of those other bars. Call coin dealers and let them know you have a 100 oz bar and that is often their first question - is it an Englehard.