what type of silver to collect for a new numismatist

I just started in December and have acquired quite a bit of junk silver but should i keep with junk silver or bullion, rounds, or bars, as an investment.

 

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If you're looking for an investment, you'd want to try to get silver as cheaply as possible. Paying a premium for bullion like SAE's would decrease your chances of maximizing your return. In any case, don't be surprised if you have to hold onto this form of investment for quite a long time.

Try to avoid using the terms "numismatics" and "investment" together.

Chris

 

What Chris said. Everything. Now I'm not sure but I have a feeling stackers sometimes trick themselves into buying modern high premium bullion coins and justifying the purchase by calling themselves "numismatists." You want the most for your money so don't tie it up in bullion that's way over spot because a mint is trying to create artificial rarity. You'll be hard pressed to get that premium back when it's time to sell.

 

If you really wanted to invest in Silver , buy the ETF (SLV). Your money will be liquid and you can buy or sell instantly. No risk of theft (EXCLUDING thieving brokerage fees!!!!!)

Or you can liquidate all of your junk silver and metals and move it to Vanguard and make a smarter investment.

 

I like pre-1965 American 90% silver halves and quarters. They are easy to determine authenticity, too many Chinese fake silver rounds are out there.

And some people like to have a supply of easy to ID smaller denomination silver coins in case of a meltdown of our modern American Monopoly money

 

+1 AKA Cost Average down.

Still, I wouldn't advise holding on to phyiscal silver when you can buy an ETF and sell it immediately.

 

We call those people "the swamp people". Also acceptable would of been Preppers or Neanderthals.

 

Also there is foreign silver. Australian silver can be found for less then melt quite often (because yanks don't know how much silver's in it) and it also has a collector value because they usually all have low mintages.

 

No doubt the general opinion of coins as an investment is fueled by the fact that big money sales are always reported yet, there is not a large enough publication to report about folks that lost money on their "coin investment".

I remember back in late 2008 mid 2008 where the population reports for Missing Edge Lettering Jefferson Presidential Dollars sat at around 880 coins yet, nobody currently collecting these modern wonders had seen any for sale!

Remember, this was 2007 and Missing Edge Letter presidential dollars were incredibly hot. Especially after the first George Washingtons hit the market and the series was trading very heavily.

At any rate, a collector over on the CU Forum posted that he'd received a cold call from a company called The Oxford Club which handled "investments". The offer presented the collector was an MS65 Missing Edge Lettering (MEL) Jefferson Presidential dollar for only $2,950 each!

Less than 2 years later, I was able to purchase the exact same coin for $766 out the door! Today, the PCGS Price guide value for the coin is a sorry $275. (can you spell L-O-S-E-R ? )

Coins are NEVER good long term investments but can be excellent "Short Term" money makers if you know what to buy, when to buy it, and when to sell it.

Example: 2008 Rev of 2007 Silverr Eagle.
US Mint purchase price: $25.95 +$4.95 Shipping
Sale Price immediately after receiving: $250.00
Current Value: Between $300 and $600 graded.
Chance of getting one today at $25.95: Zero

What to buy, when to buy it, and when to sell it.

Personally, I would NOT invest in Silver. Or Gold. Or Platinum. Or any other Precious Metal since the risks are huge and any payout can take 30 years to achieve provided the market is just right.

 

As an answer to the OP's question: The best kind of silver to get is silver at Face Value.

Get ahold of $500 and start searching Kennedy Half Dollar Boxes. You'll need a bank to order them and a different bank to dump them back into.

 

How likely of a payout is this route? I wouldn't mind searching through 1000 coins to make some money... Or am I just going to get my $500 back.

 

It really depends. I've gone through boxes with nothing but then I'd get a box that had nearly a roll of silver in them. You "can" get 40% Silver Kennedy Halfs, 90% Silver Kennedy Halfs, 90% Silver Franklin Halfs, and 90% Silver Walking Liberty Halfs. At only 50 cents a piece it makes the hunt worth it.

Can I guarantee you'll find something in your first box? Nope. But if you've the time and you want cheap silver then Half Dollar boxes is the ONLY way to go. You can search Quarter Rolls and Boxes but you gotta remember, the Quarter is THE most widely used coin in the country.
You can search dime rolls and boxes but dimes are used on a regular basis.

The ONLY coin which is NOT used on a regular basis, is the Half Dollar. As such, few people ever check them out for silver and even then most folks believe that the silver stopped with the 1964 dated coins.

You WILL find silver.

Aside from the silver, I've pulled some nice DDO coins out of circulated boxes which I had graded and sold for between $50 and $150 bucks each. But you have to know what you're doing.

 

It's been a long time since I received a half dollar in the change. Are there even any vending machines that will take them? Casinos might be the last place where they are in use.

 

Modern casinos don't use halves. Though they do get them from the general public, which they dump at their banks. One casino I worked at got HUGE bags of Ikes all the time. I think each bag held 1000 Ikes. I could never get at them because they would always seal them and ship them out.

 

Sorry! This sounds like someone who wants to make money, but doesn't want to work. You've got to be persistent and pay your dues.

Chris

 

Based on what I was seeing in the Coin Roll Hunting threads a year or two after silver's last spike... you'll make money in the long term, but once you figure in your time to find banks that will work with you, get the boxes, search them, and dump them, you'll be well below minimum wage. Possibly below a dollar an hour.

If you don't find the activity itself rewarding, or get a disproportionate gambler's high out of the occasional lucky strike, it's not a great way to spend your time, IMHO.

 

Everybody has their own personal opinions....here is my advice to you. Collect what you like and enjoy. By starting out collecting 90% is a VERY good start. I would definitely go with ASE's, Austria Philharmonic's, Canadian Silver Maples and then invest in some 10oz silver bars from Johnson Matthey and Engelhard.

Those are some sure bets....but as always don't limit your choices by what others say. I use to collect Morgan and Peace Dollars and acquired an entire set of Silver Washington Quarters. NOW, I love collecting world coins for the artistry and rareness. I still collect the 10oz bars and 90% junk silver. So do what makes you happy.

 

Don't know your age or time horizon, but silver, especially bullion, is not an attractive investment. If you want a reasonable return on your $$ and be able to sleep at night, buy high quality stocks like JNJ. If you want to "invest" in coins, with the idea of selling them down the road, buy the highest MS rated Morgans that you can afford. Just my opinion.
Best of luck.

 

The modern coins, which are in the millions fluctuate with the price of silver is not the way I went. I like the older US coins, Graded if you can this way you need not to worry if they have been cleaned/polished or fake. They have a history to them and the better struck coins will usually with stand the price drops of silver - some dates and mint marks will continue to increase even when the price of silver drops. If you decide on raw coins, which I really, really like - my advice is to educate yourself on how to identify cleaned/polished, and fake coins because e-bay is flooded with them. I'm not much of an e-bayer because of that, unless you can trust the seller - I like to physically handle the coin. It is easier to identify cleaned/polished, and fakes and not purchase than it is to return. Also, as you get educated you won't be fooled that NGC and PCGS are the only qualified third party grading companies and you'll be able to build yourself a nice collection. I think the bars are considered ingrets (?), I've seen them in collections and carry a nice piece of history - but don't know nuch about them to elaborate. Hope I helped.