No love for modern US commemoratives, why?

I kinda see coins differently. Look at this years 1st quarter. It’s beautiful and peaceful. New front (new George) and the reverse is so graceful and having the time of her life

 

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Every picture tells a story don’t it

 

I admire that.

 

Certainly, I will take a picture when I get a chance later tonight.

 

I have a many of the modern commemorative coins from the '80s, '90's and 2000s. I quit buying most of them circa 2015. I thinking about "thinning the herd." When I looked at the Grey Sheet, everything is selling for close to melt. Even pieces that were good a decade ago are now worth about the melt price. The main exception seems to be the Jackie Robinson coins, but even they are about half what they were a dozen years ago.

Do you want to why some people don't like the modern commemorative coins? There is one of the reasons.

 

You nailed it, JM.

Somehow, commemoratives did very well in the 1980's and I believe even escaped the brunt of the 1989-90 Coin Bubble Crash. But they collapsed in the decades since, and I believe an index of commemoratives fell 85% peak-to-trough.

 

Ya gotta be a collector, with nary a thought as to 'will they go up or down in price', to really love them. I dreamed of owning the classics as a kid, and when the 'moderns' arrived, I was fully on board. They are not an investment vehicle, though many try to make them so. I do not delude myself..........

 

They were promoted in the 80s with a market maker

 

Any more details ? Was this done via newsletters....infomercials ?

You're not talking about Blanchard, are you ?

 

I dunno who it was just that there was a market maker and dealers took advantage of the new grading from TPGs hyping them up as rarities

 

Sure it does but that's not where my focus is at all. Pre-33 gold and low mintages is mostly where I stay.

 

As promised, this is what I was able to pick up from the melt tray.

Mind you, I am not a good coin photographer, much less through the 2X2 that this is in which seems to add a haze to proof fields. I had to play a bit with the color and contrast in Photoshop to get it closer to how it really looks.

 

The same melt-value floor for price is also there with large silver and gold "coins." I saw a beautiful 10-oz. Pope John Paul II commemorative that went for $30,000 but anybody buying it has to assume that they'll just get bullion value which at the time was about $2,000 so the person paid a 50% premium which could go away if he/she has to sell.

It was graded PF DCAM 70 so probably would get SOME premium.

 

You mean '$3,000' right?

And you're likely correct that the coin retails for $3,000, but wholesale stays at bullion value.

But that's not terribly different from most numismatic coins - Dealers buy at ~50% of retail in my experience, especially for most coins.

 

$30,0000....it was 10 ounces of gold !

I have never sold a numismatic coin, even those that have only 20-30% numismatic premiums. But my LCS gives me full bullion value when I have sold back to him.

 

You can sell anything for bullion value, doesnt mean youre actually getting a good price though

 

Some LCS won't even give you spot bullion price, they discount.

 

Got it. But also, why are you referencing '$2,000' in your post?

 

And some will tell you its fake or has no value etc etc to rip you off. Owning a store doesnt make you honest

 

That's the price of gold per ounce at the time.