Silver Bars and Rounds

Discussion in 'Bullion Investing' started by kaparthy, Apr 29, 2009.

  1. kaparthy

    kaparthy Well-Known Member

    As a strong advocate for laissez faire, I like bars and rounds because they come from private mints. They also commemorate a wider range of virtues.

    I like banks and manufacturers. I found some one-ounce rounds issued to employees for annual safety awards.

    Silvertowne is well known for their standardized designs honoring guns, cowboys, eagles, buffaloes, Indians, firefighters, etc., etc., as well as Thank You, Happy Birthday, and Congratulations.

    A while back, I found a classic Martha Mitchell Watergate bar.

    About 10 years ago, I was forced to go to a coin show in Europe and I was happy to find a much broader inventory of truly artistic 19th century silver medals from trade fairs, agricultural expositions, manufacturing displays, etc. The workmanship truly eclipsed anything similar I had seen in the US, and it was all priced a few points over spot.

    If you are of a collecting frame of mind, just consider all the options for ENGELHARD. They have been making one-ounce bars and rounds for 35 years. Some are from Canada, some the US. Some are bars, some are rounds. You can find early serial numbers. They have different conceptualizations of the Corporate Logo.

    Then, there's your patriotics, the Liberty Lobby, NORFED, and others. I have a half-ounce silver honoring F.A. Hayek and a half-ounce with Andrew Jackson on it.

    There is another thread here on Franklin Mint items. The artistry is superior and the FM hallmark is your guarantee. The huge array of themes must satisfy many tastes. I have one on my desk now, some literature series or whatever, but I like it because it is Robert Frost "The Road Not Taken." Very philosophical.
     
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  3. TheNoost

    TheNoost huldufolk

    Ahh, Robert Frost. Love his work. Got any pics?
     
  4. Cloudsweeper99

    Cloudsweeper99 Treasure Hunter

    I prefer silver rounds to the silver commemorative dollars put out by the US Mint. More silver, lower price, interesting designs.
     
  5. fusiafinch

    fusiafinch Member

    private mints

    I also like the private mints and stuff like that ONLY if the name recognition and purity of the metal can be recognized and verified. Obviously, well known names like SilverTown and Franklin Mint meet this criteria. But I'd be less inclined to buy from some company I've never heard of.

    I have a question about Engelhard: I think they stopped making bullion items. All of their products are secondary market only. They don't make any current bullion products. But their name recognition makes their products collector's items in their own right.
     
  6. AshcraftCoin

    AshcraftCoin Member

    What was the question! LOL

    Here is a lot of info about Engelhard as a company...

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Engelhard

    I just skimmed it, but it doesn't seem to say when they stopped producing bullion items. I have read that they stopped mass producing silver in the 80s... stands to reason from Wikipedia that it was around 1984ish... as that is when they were "realigned". Not sure.

    Branding is the key here... they produced products of unquestionable quality and it paid off in the long run. The 1 Oz Engelhard Prospectors were highly popular... kind of similar to Buffalo Rounds now a days... of course, those are usually unbranded.

    Their name is just really well-known from word of mouth and sheer volume. I would argue that Johnson Matthey and Engelhard are two of the first major brands anyone hears of when they start researching silver bullion.

    Couple their brand recognition with the demand and competition on eBay... boom... instant premium price. Also, you will have sellers really build up those items sometimes (not always in truth)... with "RARE" "COLLECTORS ITEM" etc... really depends on what context and item you are talking about, but that helps raise the price sometimes too. You know, if you say something enough... it suddenly becomes "true". Just look at how many people are touting "Hard to find" in their silver auctions... really, there are 15,000 silver bullion auctions on eBay most days! Silver is not that hard to find or buy... you just have take some time to look and have some money.

    Oh geez... I got on a little eBay rant there. Sorry. LOL

    The key... when you can find them, buy them OFF eBay! They are cheaper. :)

    Thanks,
    Michael
     
  7. Cloudsweeper99

    Cloudsweeper99 Treasure Hunter

    Going from memory, in the late 70s [I might be off on the date] there were a number of counterfeit Engelhard bars going around. I don't know if any of them are still in circulation.
     
  8. elaine 1970

    elaine 1970 material girl

    i used to like the franklin mint bullion coins during 70's. special the proof version. packed very nicely.
     
  9. piratej 21

    piratej 21 Junior Member

    Does the Franklin Mint still produce silver rounds? I cant find any on their website.
     
  10. LSM

    LSM Collector

    I have a small collection of casino silver rounds. I have about 50 at this time and the theme's can vary from Babe Ruth to an oil rig. They are just fun to collect.

    Lou
     
  11. 1970 Silver Art

    1970 Silver Art Silver Art Bar Collector

    The Franklin Mint produced 1000 grain sterling silver bars in the early '70's. Most of these 1000 grain sterling silver bars displayed banks and there was a 1000 grain sterling silver Christmas bar.

    I do not think that Franklin Mint still produce any silver rounds but I could be wrong about that.
     
  12. 1970 Silver Art

    1970 Silver Art Silver Art Bar Collector

    I agree with that. It was to be stamped .999 silver on it in order for me to buy it. I like collecting silver bars and rounds that were minted by private mints especially the '70's silver art bars. I like other privately minted silver rounds too. I am very picky of what 1-oz silver rounds and bars that I want to get.

    The Engelhard Prospectors are the top brand privately minted 1-oz silver round IMO. The JM "Freedom" 1-oz silver rounds look nice too IMO.
     
  13. mkwelbornjr

    mkwelbornjr Junior Member

    Yes, they did one for the inaugural. http://www.franklinmint.com/product1.aspx?SID=2&Product_ID=9815

    Despite the description on the website, it is 1 ounce .999 Fine Silver. Hopefully more will come. The new owner are being very cautious about developing new product. But we might see more medals from Franklin Mint at some point.

    Franklin Mint Japan does some traditional style FM medals too...www.franklinmint.jp

    FM stopped its own minting in early 2002...but they still design and develop the product.

     
  14. elaine 1970

    elaine 1970 material girl

    i used to love silver bullion round during the 70's. like the franklin mint products. the sunshine mining products. and others.
     
  15. krispy

    krispy krispy

    I used to buy 1 oz rounds and bars from about '85 to '95. It was a simple way for me to save my money that I earned in simple lawn care jobs that I did for money in my neighborhood as a teenager. Otherwise, I'd have spent the money on something else if the cash was laying around. Plus it always kept me close to coin dealers and collecting. Super glad! that I was infatuated with the white metal back then and all those private mint rounds I bought as opposed to acquiring just a handful of bullion silver eagles. I saved a lot of money, got a lot of rounds, at low prices then, must have averaged about $6/oz to $9/oz including the dollar over spot from my dealer. After the mid 90s I dropped out of buying silver regularly but left all I'd acquired in storage. Sometime in the Spring of 2006 silver was on the rise and I decided to liquidate my holdings which had gotten to bulky for me. This stash gave me a great springboard into the world of gold bullion, which I traded up for all in one full trade from silver holdings. I don't miss the weight of dealing with all those ounces and now my SDB has plenty of room for new acquisitions without its weight breaking my arms when I pull it out for review. I love silver in rounds, small bars and coins. Silver is a wonderful investment, a beautiful metal and one I recommend to everyone. Don't underestimate its power and potential.
     
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