Just got a bag of Ikes.

So... I went to the bank, asked if they had any "big ol' $1 Eisenhower coins" (if I just say "Eisenhower dollars" or "Ikes" they start breaking out Sacajaweas for some reason). The lady said, "Yeah, I've got about a hundred." I explained that she probably was thinking about Kennedys. She went to the vault, came back, and plopped a damn bag of 100 Ikes in front of me! I dashed to the ATM (it wasn't my bank) and snatched 'em up.

So... here's where I'm confused.
I have a ton that contain no silver at all. No biggie. But - are those worth anything or should I just go around spending them?

Here's the BIG question that no local coin shops can seem to friggin' agree on:
Which ones, exactly, DO contain silver? I was under the impression that EVERY Ike from '71-76 was 40% silver. No other regular circulated ones.
One guy told me that the bicentennials weren't silver, while the guy across the street from him told me they were silver. However, this guy says that not all of the 71-76ers are silver, while the guy back across the street says they ALL are 40% (except the bi's).

So.... could some explain this to me, very simply?
Which years contained silver - what was the silver content if other than 40% - and were those years ALL silver-content? I did read that there is no 1975 mark, and that it falls under the bicent strikes - so... do those have silver, or no?

Thanks a ton for reading, and thanks in advance for any help!!!!

 

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Either you're misunderstanding the local shops around you, or they aren't very good.
There's blue Ikes, which are silver. They're the BU S-mintmark strikes.
And there's some silver proofs, some are not.
No silver P or D Ikes though.
Obviously, you can just look at it, if you're trying to see whether it's silver or not.

 

Ahhh.. So the only ones that contain ANY silver were the ones from the San Francisco mint?
Well... is a standard Ike worth anything at all? Or just face value??

 

I believe all years were minted in silver and also in clad so the only way to tell for sure would be to weight each individual coin. The silver coins weren't meant to be released into circulation and only made in proof sets if I remember correctly so they're rare.

 

All silver ikes have the the S mint mark, including 1971 S UNC and some Proofs, 1972 S UNC and some proofs, same as the 74s and 76s. There were no silver ikes made between 77 and 78. Not all proofs are silver, just check the edge. All the circulating ones with P and D mint mark are not silver

 

77 and 78 are not, and not all proofs are silver. And all of the silver ones have the S mintmark

 

Ahhh, bummer. So are non-silver Ikes just worth face value, or would a lot of 100 non-silver Ikes be worth something more than $100?

 

There are some different types that maybe worth more such as 72 variety 2 and the FEVs.
http://eisenhowerdollarguide.com/1972-eisenhower-dollar-varieties/
http://ikegroup.org/FEV.htm

 

There are many varieties to look for if your looking for value. You could probably sell 100 ikes on ebay for a premium too.

 

There are some varieties, as stated above. Also very high grade Ikes sell at an exponential premium (think MS-65 and up). So check for varieties, and see if you can grade some that may seem high MS (if any).

Lastly, your local coin shop probably won't pay more than face, but you could find an outlet like ebay when they will sell for a small premium after fees. I usually can't get more than 5 or 10 cents over face per coin (after fees), and I've only sold lots of 50 or more. So it could be worth your time, possibly, but you'd have to make that call.

EDIT: Also keep an eye out for 1973 P and D Ikes, as those are NIFC, and only were included in mint sets.

 

Do you have a redbook? All that information is in there.

 

Looks like none of the coins are anything special. Bummer.
I don't have a redbook. Not even sure what that is. lol

 

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/07...&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=470938631&pf_rd_i=507846

It's pretty much the bible for US coinage, it tells you which ikes are silver and which are not, including the weights and mintages of the silver coins. It'll even show some of the major varieties I would suggest getting one if you want to get into coins.

It sounds like this isn't the first time you've went to the bank to ask for Ikes, haven't you done any research on them to find out what is what?

 

Sweet - thanks. I'm also going to do some research and figure out how grading works and how much it costs.
Most the coins look like regular coins to me. There are a couple that look like they haven't actually been used more than a few times... but I'm not sure what to look for.

 

I did also notice that 2 or 3 of the coins have a faint circle going all the way around the coin, about a centimeter from the edges. I'm assuming that's just from machinery when they were made - but it's pretty neat looking.

 

It's really tough to grade at first, here is a site that might just help

http://www.pcgs.com/Photograde/

And the circles are most likely from the coin be wrapped with a rolling machine.

 

Sweet -I'll definitely check it out.
Man.. I really thought I might have been onto something when I got all those Ikes.

I should have learned my lesson 2 weeks ago when I bought a bag of 200 Kennedy half dollars. There were 2 40%s and 2 90%s. I can't complain about the 90%s, but I did figure I was going to get a lot more, considering the other banks here had maybe 5 coins for every 4 banks.

So far, I'm thinking that with my luck, the Ikes and the Kennedys are going to pretty much be face value. Sigh.

The really crappy part is the best I can sell for within 30 miles is 80% spot - and I don't use eBay because of the ridiculous fees (then, of course, PayPal's fees).

Arrrrrrgh.

 

Actualy, those are most likely from coin rolling machines that have prongs which can leave such indentations

 

Regular, run of the mill Ikes are selling for $.35 -$.45 over face; so 100 Ikes would be $135-$145.

 

Hm...
Where at?