why do they(U.S. mint) even bother putting a $1 sign on a .999 silver peice do they think anyone is going to actually use it as $1....
Because it is legal tender and yes some people have spent them. A older guy I know got one from his teller at the bank - it was beat-up and looked real rough, plus he was carrying it in his pocket.
Because if they didn't put a denomination on them they would be 'medals' not 'coins'. If silver bottoms out your ASE is worth at least $1; any variance from there is based purely on precious metal value, condition, and collector interest.
You should see the 1/2 oz. platinum eagles in the 10th anniversary set. They say $50 and they're each worth about $1,000.
Back in 1990 when I had a paper route someone actually did give me one as if it were a dollar. Still not sure if he only thought it was worth that much or was just being generous lol... but when I took a look at it, he did try to convince me it was worth a dollar. I didn't argue. It looked slightly circulated but just barely... can only assume he must have received it as a dollar also. Had it for several years before I ended up selling it (as a 1990 business strike that had been circulated it was only really worth silver value, but still an improvment over what was essentiually a $1 investment lol...)
