Anyone else collect governmental bullion coins?

I know there is a lot of popularity for the Silver Eagles but I have been thinking of expanding. I am more of a type coin kind of collector and just doing one coin over and over bores me a little. So I thought it might be fun to buy a blank silver round Dansco Album and just do all the governmental bullion. I already have a Maple Leaf, a Panda, a Eagle and a Libertad. I was going to pick up a Kookaburra and a Philharmoniker next. That would give me US, Canada, China, Mexico, Australia and Austria. But an album with just 6 coins is kind of boring too. I was thinking of doing first and last year of issue that would bump me to 12 coins. I guess I could do 3 coins each country and go to 18. I was just looking for more options and more countries.

A quick google search came up with the Australian Lunar series but that series kind of throws me for a loop. It looks like they make so many different varieties and sizes and weights I wouldn't even know where to start. It follows the Chinese calendar and a dragon would be cool and I guess it could add coins here and there but they are kind of pricey (although I have bought pricey bullion coins before just because I wanted to own one like I own an Old Man Coin from Pawn Stars and would love to get the Chumlee coin and the Old Man was $60 when silver was like $30 an ounce and Chumlee is $65 with silver at $20 an ounce) . Then there is the Russian Saint George the Victorious that looks cool but that looks to be a 2 year coin 2009 and 2010 so that would be the limit of me getting it I guess. Then there is a new Ukraine Archangel Michael and the Kazakhstan Silver Irbis both newer coins without many years. Then there is the United Kingdom Britannia coin which is a must have.

Excluding the Lunar coins which have a great variety that would give me several more countries Russia, United Kingdom, Ukraine, and Kazakhstan that would take me to 10. I could add my Pawn Stars coins and thats 11 doubled to 22 not a bad album. And then just add the Lunar coins for more.

Are these ounce coins all universal in size and would they all fit it a plain Dansco silver round album?

Anyone else doing something like this?

 

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You need to organise your thoughts better. There is no first and last collection here, it is a first and current production collection. Every year you will need to buy every coin over again. Eventually your collection will have more coins in the middle years than anything else. You shouldn't include the old man piece either. It is not government issue like the others. Do they even plan to make that one every year? If you are collecting just one ounce bullion, then all the other sizes are imaterial to the Lunar series. All bullion is not the same size. The one ounce Libertard comes to mind there. It was made thicker and smaller in diameter for many years. There is no standard for countries to follow. Maybe just collect one ounce bullion and leave at that. Bullion was never intended as a collectable to begin with.

 

My Libertad is from 1985. Even if I did just two flipping it so one shows reverse and the obverse that would work and I wouldn't really have to worry about the years, just grab two one for obverse and one for reverse. The idea is I am more of a type set collector and I enjoy doing type sets more than say one particular series. If I did one series it would likely be the Eagle series. I just like the idea of having my own bullion kind of album rather than just one series like the Eagles or the Maple leafs. I'd do the Pandas as they change there design every year but those are pricey I have a 2013 that cost me $45 with silver at $25.

I like albums is the thing so I want to do an album for them, just didn't want to do 6 different albums.

 

Either were coins.....bullion is the future of the hobby.

 

I agree people collect bullion and its become a bigger collector base, I am not a big fan of the just random design bullion (unless its something cool with a little background like the Pawn Stars coins) but I am a huge fan of the governmental bullion. I love Eagles and Maple Leafs and Pandas and Libertads and wanted to expand to more countries. I have seen since 2008 three new countries have started to add there own government bullion coins. The nice thing to me is they are easy to sell, I love my coins and don't like to sell them but bullion is a lot easier to move.

My thing is I like everything in either Dansco or Whitman albums I am an album guy but I didn't want to do each set. I have seen silver eagle and libertad albums you can buy. I wanted to do 2 coins for each country and then just have lots of different counties.

 

I've been buying bullion issued coins from different countries, it keeps it interesting. Also look at the coins from Rwanda, Somalia, Iseral, etc. There are a lot more 1 oz coins than you would first think.

 

I think if you like governmental bullion, "collecting" them is a wonderful idea with one caveat. Many start down that path, increase premiums, and eventually are just a coin collector. Nothing wrong with that, but always remember WHY you are buying. Are you buying to invest in silver, or to collect coins? Neither answer is wrong, but each have different goals. If yours is bullion, set a limit how much of a premium you will ever allow yourself to pay and stick with it.

If you wish to collect, then gods speed and have fun. PM Treehugger, he is really big in these coins.

 

I just started going down the path of government bullion "coins", and also some "art" rounds - such as the old man round. I'm also partial to the Lunar II series dragons. The suggestions previously about clarifying what you want to collect is good, since the amount of coins etc. will quickly start to grow on you, and yes every year you'll need to buy them all so you're adding 20, 30, 50 coins per year easily. what series you like is for you to decide.

However I will offer my suggestion for you for storage would be the Lighthouse Quadrum system. Specifically the "Grande" line since bullion tend to be larger and require the bigger capsules:

http://www.lighthouse.us/epages/lig...s/leuchtturm_us/Categories/US/US_2258/US_2261

This will probably give you the best storage for the varied sizes of the different series, allow you to combine ungraded and graded within the same album if you so choose, and give you a nice continuity of album look and design across your whole collection. And, not sure if you're a fan of toned coins, but either way if or if not, using a plastic capsule such as an air-tite or a TPG slab will preserve the state of the coins better by not letting them tone further as quickly. Can't do that with any open-air album (unless of course that's your intention, and personally I love toned coins so no issue there).

I personally use the system, and find it's very flexible and fits my needs well since I can use air-tites, their own quadrum holders, or put in any of the major TPG slabs all within the same album binder. I've got several Ike albums done where I have a mix of the above in each.

 

That is a very good organizer and display system. Are the slipcases similar to Dansco's? Dansco's are supposed to be treated to resist silver corrosion. But these are more flexible to use. When you add up all the different style of holders, it isn't cheap. Then again, good coins aren't cheap either and this system is part of your overall investment.

 

I think the slipcases are just covers, not necessarily treated for anything, I haven't found anything stating to the contrary yet. The protection comes from the capsules you use, not the album cover so I don't think it really matters in this case. Since the Dansco itself is "open" the slipcase becomes the protection while stored in there.

Yes, it's true about the cost and you're spot on about the "overall investment" part of it. Between the album and enough 2x2's you're into it for $100 before any coins (which is another 5oz of silver after all... ) . However, that's a small amount compared to the many ounces of silver the album could potentially hold, and you know it's organized and protected fairly well against the elements by being in hard plastic 2x2s.

The only thing I will say is that the plastic pages are interesting when you first get them, and seem flimsy. But, once filled it's nice and solid and once settled into the albums it's good. I bought the pages first and stuck them into standard 3-ring binders to start with to keep the cost down, and that helped me get used to them also.

 

I like that kind of album idea, I have them just in the capsules that I got them from the coin store in. Something I could put the capsules in would be cool.

I am big type collector, I am doing a 7070 I have 18 holes to fill on it not sure if I will do the gold page though and I added an extra page for modern commemorative halves (it holds 16 and I know there is 18 that just leaves out Bald Eagle and the Medal of Honor) and am just missing 4 for that (swimming, basketball, baseball and 1996 soccer). I have thought about doing a Canadian or British type set after that.

Doing the governmental bullion just played in to my two favorite things to collect type sets and silver. I'd only want multiples if there were different designs every year so say for items like the Maple Leaf or Eagle or Libertad whos design is the same for every year I would only want 1-2. But if I got into the Lunar series or the Pandas who have different designs every year then I would do them every year so its unlikely I'd have to buy 40-50 a year more like half a dozen. The idea is I just didn't want an album that was one page so I was thinking 2 of each one for reverse and one for obverse unless I could find enough designs to do multiple pages with.

And I agree about the premium I mean I would mind paying the premium once for a coin say like my panda which had a premium on it but I wouldn't want to pay a premium for an entire series of coins like the Lunar series.

 

Howdy,

First of all, collect what you want.

I think you have a plan, but try not to pigeon hole it too much - let it flow.

I happen to love the int'l bullion issues and have been collecting them for a while. I started with a 'type' collection in a Dansco trying to show a different coin from as many countries as possible. Note that I also have a starter collection of silver crowns. Crowns are the earlier version of the modern bullion coins but normally had kings and queens on them. And I've done it for gold bullion coins (current and older).

Part of arranging these bullion coins into a set is silly but in response to a little paranoia regarding the gov't confiscating bullion but not collections. [yeah, weak but WTF]

That said, once I got going, I found that if you buy them every year, some will readily stand out as collections on their own. For example, I now have danscos for both Mexican Libertads and Canadian Maple Leafs just like the one I have for ASEs. I also had to ordre blank pages for my danscos that had large enough holes to hold some of the larger issues. This way within an album of 'silver rounds' or 'silver crowns' I can keep my kooks and pandas and brits together.

I also keep a year set of ASE's in tubes of 25 and have various and sundry stacks and what not. I just started with hocky pucks and have a tube for the bullion types.

And the bottom line is that you are the only person that has to be happy so whatever it takes.

peace,

rono