No copper in a bank sealed box?

So I had a first tonight. Opened a bank box from wells Fargo and to my suprise not one copper penny!!! I understand it was probably someones dump, but I was just curious if anyone else has had this??

 

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Do you roll hunt just for copper cents?
What's your goal in roll hunting?

I hope your not hoarding them.

 

Yep! Grade A copper would have to sell for about $7.50/lb. just for you to break even. You would put them to better use putting them into acrylic toilet seats.

Chris

 

Acrylic litter boxes too? Hmmm, pennies and poop...………..

 

Litter boxes make no scents?

I'll be here all week, don't forget to tip your waiter and don't try the fish...

 

My calculations show $6 an lb to break even if you are allowed to melt copper.
146 cents to the pound. 25% x $6= 1.50
But of course the highest copper has ever been was around $4.25
and is currently hovering in the $3 range.

 

They do to a cat.

 

I roll hunt Cents and I do pull out the copper but then I put fifty of them in a paper roll and sell them in my antique store for a dollar a roll. It's fun.

 

People buy 50 cent rolls of cents for $1?
Maybe you can sell Kennedy halves for $1.

 

I haven't tried that.



Yet.

 

This happens pretty often around here; yesterday got 10$ in pennies, 40$ in nickels. All but five rolls of the nickels were new coins. Many of the rolls of pennies were AU 2018 and 2019 Ds. Blech, 'tis the season.

 

I have to chuckle just a little bit because 10 years ago when I would argue the issue of the true value of Lincoln cents sold for melting, most everyone told me I was crazy....that I didn't know what I was talking about. Well, after nearly a decade of being ridiculed for my belief, I notice that nobody has stepped up in this thread to tell me that I'm wrong. It appears that my message is getting through.

Well, Michael, your $6 guesstimate is probably closer to being correct. I just threw the $7.50 amount out there as an approximation, expecting once more to get an argument from others. Still, we are both just expressing an opinion because we both know that it is still illegal to melt pennies and nickels, but shouldn't we also take into consideration what the smelter would be willing to pay? Right now, if we want to sell junk silver, doesn't the buyer typically offer a price that is usually 10%-20% below the actual price? Shouldn't we apply this known fact to a buyer of these pennies?

Just throwing this tidbit out there so others will have a chance to argue once more.

Chris

 

That's true there would be a middle man. Since the gold buying guy has to have a large enough amount to take to the smelter. (Who he claimed charged 6%.) Plus the smelter gets the other metals mixed in with the gold. Copper and silver.
So if you went that route there would be some markup and you would have to make closer to $7 an lb just to break even.
Except, people who are hoarding pennies have literally tons of them and could probably take them to the smelter without a middle man. And, since they are already getting 25% of the Grade A price, an additional 6% would be a gouge.

 

I mostly coin roll hunt pennies for errors and varieties. I also keep any Indian heads and wheat cents I find. Yes, I also "hoard" copper pennies. I'm not looking to get rich, lol, just kinda copied what the guy who got me into it was doing and havent stopped. The way I see it is at worst case scenario they are still worth face value and it's kind of a savings..lol

This was just my first bank sealed box from wells Fargo that had no copper at all and was curious if anyone else was running into that. No, it is not my dump bank as well. This branch was located almost 60 miles from my dump bank.

 

Or you could just smelt and refine in your own home...given you had the right equipment. When it's legal of course...

 

You can't smelt and refine in your own home. Whether it is legal or not. The fire danger, toxic fumes, and equipment needed would not be cost effective.
In many other threads it has been explained that hoarding copper is a waste of time and money. For example, storage has costs. Even if it is in your own home, you are still paying to store it, since you aren't able to use that space for other things. The containers you keep them in may have some initial cost. Which detracts from your bottom line.
Transportation. When the time comes to schlep all these barrels of coins to the smelter, you have to do the work of getting them on and off a truck, plus the gas costs and the time involved. Copper cents are alloyed and the spot price is for Grade A copper. Alloyed copper brings 25% of the spot price. While the all time high for copper is $4.58 a pound, it is currently $2.89. They are still mining copper and it is unlikely to get to (at least) $6 a pound for 50 years if at all. And that's just to break even. All of the people hoarding copper are in for a rude awakening. Now you decide to cash them in at face value, which is the higher return.
You think a bank is going to just take your million pennies with no service fee? So now you have given up and decide to use the Green Monster, Coin Star at 11%. Now every $10,000 that you have in pennies is yielding you $8900. Save yourself the time and money and start cashing them in at face value now, before you end up taking a loss in the future. Also, if you wait 20 years to get $8900 on your $10,000 investment, with inflation, you'll be lucky to have $4000 worth of purchasing power for your $10,000.

It's the old joke. We are losing money on every shipment. Yeah, but we are going to make that up in volume.

 

Lol...everyone gets so revved up on this issue. First, wouldnt be in my home, it would be in my shop taking the neccessary safety precautions. I apologize for saying in your home.

I wasnt here to debate the cost effectiveness of the pennies and completely understand your logic and reasoning behind not doing so. I'm just one of the many that do, because I choose to do so. I was simply asking if anyone has ran into a bank sealed box of pennies that had zero before 1982. What I choose to do with my coins, wether you think it is smart or not is simply up to me.

 

I just found it odd for someone who goes through 3 to 4 boxes a week, while never having that issue, to come across it.

 

Have a nice day. Of course you can do whatever you like. I never said you can't do it. I was just trying to save you the hassle, which is inevitable.

 

I appreciate your concern. I wish you well sir.