I see some auctions on eBay with shipping at $3.99. That would have to be first class, wouldn't it? The weight limit for 1st class is (I think) 13 oz. A whole roll should weigh less than 9 oz. (226.8g = 8.00013 oz). Is that the best way to mail them? Can't really insure 1st class mail, but you can get tracking. Is it better to spend a few more bucks and send priority with $50 insurance included and tracking?
Actually in some cases Priority is cheaper. And if you pay and print the shipping label online you get free tracking. Plus schedule a pick up for your package and you don't have to drive to the post office. https://www.usps.com/ship/welcome.htm
What shipping methods do the listings state? Given the thrust by eBay to have "free" shipping on EVERYTHING, some sellers (including me) simply settle on an amount that minimizes the loss associated with mailing stuff but eBay still requires sellers to specify why type of shipping is being used. For 10 half dollars coins, the weight of the coins alone comes in at 4 postal ounces. Throw another ounce on for packaging and an additional ounce for the mailing device and you're looking at 6 postal ounces which translates into $2.86 for a 1st class package. Of course, this does not address how the coins would be packaged. 2x2's? Coin flips? Half a plastic Roll? All would have a bearing on what packing material and what "type" of package that could be used. And yes, you can insure 1st Class Mail. I don't know where you get the idea that you cannot.
I guess it was the person at the postal counter. Maybe they meant it made more sense to send it Priority mail.
6 out of 10 times, the person at the Postal Counter doesn't know as much as they "think" they know. They'd certainly like to and certainly enjoy over powering customers with their infinite wisdom on US Postal Policies and Procedures but I can get just as much useful information from a McDonalds Counter Employee who gets no where near the government sponsored pension plan. In Short: RTFM.
I probably would have gone the bubble wrap First Class "Thick Package/Envelope" route if they were common coins.
You can insure first class mail as long as it's in a big enough envelope or bubble mailer. Not a regular envelope. You could use the cassette or dvd size bubble mailer, and mail them in 2X2's with a light cardboard backer on both sides to protect the coins from damage and someone figuring out what they are. This should still come under the weight limit. It's called first class parcel rate, as opposed to first class letter rate. And if the uninformed clerk says you cannot do it this way, they don't know what they are talking about. Also, your package has to have some flexibility (able to bend a bit). Been dealing with the postal service for 48 years and sadly I know more than they do in most cases.
Flexibility does not enter into the FC parcel rate; you're paying for it indirectly, as for instance, a 3-ounce first class parcel is MUCH more than a 3-ounce non-machinable letter (which is $1.12). That's 91 cents for 3 ounces, plus a 21 cent surcharge. It's the thickness that's a problem. The non-machinable letter must have a thickness of 1/4 inch or less, otherwise it goes as a first class parcel, regardless of weight or dimensions or packaging, plus the maximum [letter] weight is 3.5 ounces. Because most of my mailings are stamps or postcards, I seldom have a problem with thickness. The counter clerk will give you a free plastic template to measure your letters, including a slot cut to 1/4 inch exactly.
I mail all my postcards in a 6X9" manila with backers on both sides for protection with the stamp "Do Not Bend". Because I need delivery confirmation. I cannot do that with #4 or#6 regular envelope. Some say it's overkill, but the customers are happy.
Well, I do about the same, but use a cardboard 5 x 8 mailer; no problem with delivery confirmation on those, either. I never use a "regular" envelope. I think I remember correctly that the mailer + 6 postcards comes in just under 2 ounces, i.e., 91 cents in the U.S. (plus tracking if needed).
