Why aren't the Kennedy Halves in circulation?

I kind of strayed into the coin section on ebay looking for some new coins for magic.

I saw the 2010 Kennedy Half. I like to use 1964 Halves for magic. And looking at the many years that these half dollars have been minted since they were still common pocket change, I realized that lots of magic tricks could be so much stronger if I was actually borrowing a half dollar from a spectator.

At one of the coin dealers, I see that the new versions are selling for $1.95 each. If this is a coin paid for by the US citizens tax money, why are they not in circulation at face value? In fact, I never see them. If I went to my bank, could I order rolls at face value?

Thanks for your replies,

Ed

 

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Ed: Welcome to CT! The Kennedy half is still minted for collectors but has not been released into circulation for the past decade or so. Check out this link:

http://catalog.usmint.gov/webapp/wc...ctId=15502&langId=-1&parent_category_rn=10155

You can still order them form your local bank at face value but will likely get well circulated coins from the 1970's to 1990's, although some have had luck in getting the 1964 (90% silver) and 1965-1970 (40% silver) versions.

TC

 

The two problems I see with halves not circulating are: A) I don't think there is a vending machine in the world that takes half dollars anymore, and B) when the mint decided to mint them in 40% silver in the late 60's, it only promoted hoarding of them, thus ruining the chances of them ever circulating. Sure, they may get some limited use in Vegas, and a few supper clubs around. But, when is the last time anyone received one in change at the local gas station?

 

I spend about 50 a week, and the people who get them are often so amazed and so excited to see them, they go right back out of circulation.

 

Depends on what you define as circulate. There are a few businesses that give them out in change but it's not common. They only really circulate one way and that is people spending them. When businesses order change they don't order halves like all of the other deonminations. I think over time the population of halves out there in the wild will go down as people save them. They are no longer being minted for ciculation and are sold only in sets or rolls by the mint. I have found some in circulation that were't supposed to be released (I've got a few 87's but no 70-D yet)

 

Strangely enough, that is very similiar to conditions in 1952 when I went to work for the A&P Supermarkets. We never ever got a roll of halves from the bank. We got a few halves from our customers and gave those out as change as we got them in. (I learned never to offer a half to a woman. She might have a little change purse with slots for coins, but no half slot.) But we never had many halves in our cash drawers. I presume banks, which certainly had many rolls of halves in those days, were giving them out to their customers. Then with the Kenedy and silver situiations led to a shortage, they got out of the habit of using them and that was the end of the circulating half dollar.

 

The golden dollars are kind of a gimmick and people dont like them because there size
Is so similar to that of a quarter i would think the Kennedy halves suffer from the same
Dislikes!

 

No they are not paid for by US citizens tax money. The US Mint does not get any appropriations from Congress, it is self funding and in fact generates money for the general fund.

As to why they do not circulate for face value....back in the 90's the amount of halves requested by banks had be dropping for some time and the flow of halves was mostly from the banks to the Fed. In 2001 the Fed decided they had enough half dollars on have to supply the demands of commerce for the foreseeable future and decided not to release the 2001 coins that had been struck and that they were not going to order any more halves from the mint until further notice. In 2002 the mint was going to continue to make halves just for the mint and Proof sets but enough requests for halves were coming in from collectors that they decided to try selling roll sets and small bags directly to the collectors at a premium over face value (roughly double face.). It went over well enough that they eventually got the 2001 halves back from the Fed and began selling those as well and did so for years. Ever since then they have made a few million coin each year for direct sale to collectors, but none of thse coins have been released for circulation. Some get into circulation because the collectors but the coins, search them, and then take the rejects to the bank. And yes they do lose money on them doing that.

 

Half dollars circulated prior to the silver crisis of the '60s, as evidence by all the well-worn Barber, Walking Liberty and even Franklin halves that we encounter today. But after the public started hoarding the 40% halves, the half dollar stopped circulating, and vending machines were not tooled to accept them. If vending machines accepted halves today, there would be more public demand for them.

 

Same here. I even bought a coffee that was $1.39ish and gave her 3 halves. She tried to give me around $3 in change. I told her they were fifty cent coins and she looked at me like I told her I was from the moon sent to retrieve her first born. Probably could have gotten a free kid out of the deal, but instead helped her through the math to pay for the coffee.

 

JMHO - I think 50 cent pieces are useless in general commercial change - dimes come in second..LOL

Pennies, nickels and quarters rank tops - dollar coins come into the count - even if last

 

I can remember only one "vending" machine that accepted halves in the pre-Kennedy days. The company cafeteria had a change making machine that would take halves. Then, you could feed the other vending machines.

 

I just don't understand why the vending industry don't add a half dollar tube to all new vending machines they make. It can't possibly cost that much. Like I said, why not just make more durable polymer plastic bills, and get the half and the $2 bill circulating, and just mint dollar coins for numismatic items, or eliminate them completely? I mean, polymer $1 bills would last plenty long enough to save a lot of money, even if not as much money as a dollar coin would. The $1 bill would especially last a lot longer if they got the polymer $2 bill to circulate along side the polymer $1 bill. And for gosh sake, change the designs of the $1 and $2 bills. If the small businesses can afford to retool for new $5 bills, they can afford tretool for new $1 and $2 bills as well. It can't be that hard or overly costly.

 

Even if they did, how many $1 presidential coins have you gotten in change? The average joe wants hi's paper dollar. If those aren't catching on in our culture, I highly doubt any company would want to spend much more for a coin someone doesn't have in their pocket. I would love it if they did, but I don't see that happening short of the govt halting printing of the $1 bill and only releasing coins.

I lived in europe for 2 years with the euro, and see the coins are much nicer. Anyone else used to paper wouldn't think so. Just a thought.

 

Some of those knob-operated machines took halves. I remember seeing my father sink a Franklin half into a cigarette machine and getting a dateless Standing Liberty quarter back in change. That must have been some time around 1963 or 1964.

 

Kennedy haf dollars are still used by many Casino's to pay off $1 blackjacks on the 21 tables. This is probably the ONLY area where they are used on a regular basis.

 

Everytime I try to circulate the half dollars and golden dollars, folks tend to flock around me to collect them. Even at the restaurant, the owner's wife pulls them out for the grandchildren's special fund.

I like the feel of the metal. I was excited to read a post by a honest to goodness magician. Sounds like a neat profession.

Welcome to CoinTalk. Buy silver!

 

We receive an occasional President Dollar and Kennedy Halves a few times a month in commerce. Guess what? As our cashiers try to distribute as change to the subsequent customers, they DECLINE, and ask for the "conventional" quarters, dimes, nickels and cents for their change. Almost always any Kennedy half dollar received for payments are duly deposited in the next days Bank Drop.
Steve

 

There in lies the problem.

Folks will not accept them unless they have to and businesses are much too inclined to accomodate.