Hey Jbuck, I Think I Found A Vending Machine For Halves

You're talking just like the vending industry told me, the start-up cost to design and test a new prototype half accepting and dispensing coin mech, I would need at least $500,000 to start, and I was a bit shocked to hear this, because I thought a mere $20,000-$30,000 or so, would build the first prototype coin mech (I'm wondering if they were meaning $500,000 to redo most of the nation's vending machines out there) But I also made the suggestion of helping with a new bill acceptor, that would automatcally be set up to accept a redesigned $1 bill (I want the $1 and $2 bills to be redesigned, and although they are redesigning the $2 bill, I don't know if they will ever redesign the $1 bill, because the vending lobby always blocks the redesign of the $1 bill, due to reprogramming costs, which is why I wanted this new technology to come out around 2020, when they could redesign the $1 bill along with all other denominations, and the new vending machines bill acceptors and coin mechs would be set up to accept and dispense halves, and accept redesigned $1 bills, (either that, or I hope the $1 bill is gone out of circulation by then) and I do hope that they make the bother/effort to reprogram all machines that take $1 bills, $5 bills and up to accept the redesigned $2 bill when it comes out, perhaps similtaneiously with the next new $5 bill as I have suggested (or again, either that, or introduce a $2 coin and yank the $2 bill out of circulation by then, and have coin mechs set up to accept and dispense halves, $1 and $2 coins)

I really don't see the $1 or $2 bills going antwhere, but I really think the only way the government is going to sell the dollar coin idea, is to print more $2 bills and get people used to that, or just jump right to the $2 coin. I go for the $2 coin option.

These lobbies are pretty dumb, huh? We have just got an entire run of new polymer banknotes and I think everyone just had to deal with it.

Snowman! Long time, no post on one of my topics! Welcome.

Yes, I use halves by the hundreds of dollars worth at my local Walmart's self checkouts as long as I can get them. I don't know why people here are saying "The half is dead" because of this very reason. If some machines are set up to accept halves, then obviously they are NOT "dead" One person in the vending industry even told me that retooling all vending machines to accept havles was a great idea, and he would do it, if he could, but he had to listen to what his bosses directed him to do, and a few other vending people said that, with less quarters, and inflation, using the half over smaller denomination coins in vending macvhines would make sense.




I thought I heard that they made more halves than usual in 2013. Hopefully, like with the $2 bill with the BEP, maybe the U.S. Mint is minting more halves for general circulation. Thanks for the tip though.

@just carl,

I apologize for getting so angry with you from your last post. I only feel that, even though halves are not being made for circulation anymore, they are still "being made" and the Half Cent, 2 cent, 3 cent, and 20 cent coins are not being made at all anymore, otherwise, I would be pushing for vending machines to accept those as well (at least, the 20 cent coin anyway), and even a $3 bill if there would have been one, as they orginally planned to produce, which the $3 bill's plans somehow got dropped. (Come to think of it, I believe vending machines should accept pennies as well, but I think the vending industry would argue that, if some person came along and dumped a bunch of pennies off on their machines, then even a few more people do that, the vending machine's penny tube coin slot would get full, and eventually fill up, and jam the machine from using other coins. The only way I would see vending machines accepting pennies, is if the machine had a huge metal bin at the bottom of it, to collect all of the pennies, as opposed to tubes, or whatever all the other coin denominations have. But its not even worthy of lobbying for vendors to accept pennies, as they should be killed off, AND replaced with (perhaps a smaller, lighter) half dollar coin, that would work better in a vending machine).

Again though, sorry for being such a jerk.

Not even for a 15 second "horsey ride" at the grocery store if you are a kid?

I agree totally, and as I ended up saying, I would not push for Half Cents, 2 cents or 3 cents, but maybe the 20 cent coin if it were still around. In fact, IF the 20 cent coin were still around, I would be lobbying for them to kill the quarter, as it would make it much easier to kill the penny and the nickel. We should be rounding to the nearest dime in today's day and age.

I agree. Quoted for truth.

I cannot even use change at the post office machines. Plastic only. Been that way ten years now. It really upset me since that was how I was collecting baby dollars from "circulation."

I cannot remember where it was, and it was quite a while ago, but one post office I popped into had just painted over them. Wish I had a camera phone back then.