You have to spend $200 to get free shipping anyway. Just buy every couple of months instead of every month.
My Sterling pieces are worthy of selling in an antique shop. I even have a Sterling baby rattle. They’re all cool pieces so I can’t convert to .999.
Each one of your choices carry high premiums. The seller you mentioned is even worse for having higher prices than most others. In addition to high premiums and high prices you will have to shipping if your order is less than $199 and sales tax on the price paid over the actual metal weight/content. I suggest you comparison shop on findbullionprices.com A better way to buy any PM is a higher weight for a lower premium. If a 10 oz bar is more then you want to spend buy a 5oz bar. Or a sheet of 5. Shop at your local coin show or dealer with ca$h. There should not be sales tax and certainly no shipping.
I own everything from 1 gram pieces up to 100 oz bars and everything in between. I just like silver no matter what it is.
That's why if I'm in Kentucky, I buy from a dealer and not a shop. They're one of the only states still charging sales tax on coins and bullion. While I don't live in Kentucky, I know that any one of its bordering states have no sales tax. As someone in Indiana with 2 great coin shops roughly the same distance from me, I am quite glad I don't have to pay tax. Anyways, who would wanna to pay roughly $1.23 for a war nickel just by crossing the river (not to mention the toll bridges) when you can get it for $1.15 or lower in your state? I do this because at my local coin club, I sell them for $1.25, so I'm on quite a tight budget with those.
As stated taxes and shipping eat up the money that can be used for purchases. Also add in travel expenses. Travel expenses is a very good reason for me not to attend the Baltimore show. From NYC it costs me over $400 to attend. Gasoline, tolls, lunch, and dinner. Do that 2 or 3 times a year.
I just have a half dozen or so rounds if I can find them in the stash. Mostly odd or vintage, probably worth more than the silver content to someone else.
If they are vintage they are worth a little more than the silver content. My LCS buys Sterling items at silver costs minus 10% and them sells them for 10% more. He makes 20% on them and all he does is weigh them. I can pick up fairly cheap and sell in my antique shop. It just takes time for the right person to buy them but I don’t mark them up high either.
Wisconsin just eliminated the sales tax on bullion. Finally. I have been selling my inexpensive world coins in lots and then investing it in silver coins and rounds. Also Indian heads and commemoratives. I like the 2-ounce silver weight. It fits my budget and there are deals occasionally on Ebay from sellers who sell trinkets, baseball cards, clothing, etc. and just happen to have a couple of pieces of silver. They will take an offer more often. GreatLakesCoin.com has common rounds with free shipping at $139. Again, fits my budget. I have been downsizing and selling odd stuff on Ebay, then investing it in silver for the long term. Coin shops are 80 miles away, so I deal online.
That's like saying ANYTHING you can get for Fifty cents on the dollar. I did see a silver Lego at the local G&S store but he was asking 2x what you can purchase one for at an online bullion dealer. The Pez silver pills I think would make a good addition to someone's collection.
I saw an episode of Counting Cars on Tuesday. They were given a model of a car made from legos that were specifically made for this one of a kind car. It is to be auctioned to raise money for children in need. They actually painted the Lego car and it looked great.
I personally prefer a mix. As a coin collector at heart I try to make my silver stacking as close to coin collecting as I can. I like to have a good amount of 90% and some sovereigns - eagles, krugerands, maples etc. But to keep things interesting I always pick a few things out of the generic bin. I love the 2 oz stackers from Scottsdale so I have several of those and I’m a sucker for the earlier Libertads, so even though those have a crazy premium I do have a small stack of those. Ultimately it’s your stack and you should buy what you like/want. Unless you’re paying absurd premiums you can’t really go wrong with any silver. The only real recommendation I’d make is to not stack anything less than 90% silver. So no Canadian 80% and DEFINITELY no war nickels.
The only time I buy eagles and the like that have higher premiums is when they end up in the generic bin because the coin has some sort of issue. As long as it’s not beat to death, an eagle at generic price is nice