How to Calculate Spot Price

One thing I get confused about is the dollar coins. Does 10 silver dimes or two halves equal the amount of silver in one silver dollar? I thought I heard it doesn't. If so, why doesn't the dollar equal these amounts? It's confusing. Couldn't you just weight all US silver coins, then multiply that by .90 (because they are all 90 percent lets say), take that number and convert to Troy ounces and multiply it by spot price? This would even be more accurate than the .715, wouldn't it? I guess the problem is that not everyone has such a scale when buying and selling perhaps

 

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Silver dimes have .07234 ozt times ten = .7234
Silver quarters have .18084 ozt times four = .7234
Silver halves have .36169 ozt times two = .7234
Silver dollars have .77344 ozt

Why the dollar contains more silver than the sum of a dollars' worth of dimes, quarters and halves is something I never understood and have no need to because it is what it is.

The problem is not because not everyone has a scale it is because it has been determined that by using .715 instead of .723 made everybody happy. Dealers and collectors feel they are not paying for silver they are not getting using the adjusted percentage.

I personally do not mix excessively worn coins, fine and below, with higher grade circulated coins, VF-AU, and I buy and sell those by weight.

 

Good stuff Ed. Thanks for the information.

 

Thanks for replying. Yeah it's weird the silver dollar is not in line with the other coins. I hate that. I wonder what the official reason is. Maybe someone knows on here. As for the other stuff you mentioned, yeah that makes sense. Thanks