Lincoln Memorials 95% Copper

Well Coinhunter, I have paid attention to ebay. If you look through completed listings you will find at least as many go unsold as get sold. And yes people on ebay will sometimes buy lots of pre 1982, but people on ebay sometimes pay hundreds for Chinese Fakes, doesn't make them worth any more, does it?

Let's look to history. The Wheat cent was last minted in 1958. That is 56 years ago.
Today you can buy circulated wheat cents just about anywhere for 3 to 5 cents and they wholesale for about 2 cents.
Five years ago you could buy circulated wheat cents just about anywhere for 3 to 5 cents and they wholesaled for about 2 cents.
Ten years ago you could buy circulated wheat cents just about anywhere for 3 to 5 cents and they wholesaled for about 2 cents.
Fifteen years ago you could buy circulated wheat cents just about anywhere for 3 to 5 cents and they wholesaled for about 2 cents.

When scrap copper was trading at 70 cents per pound you could buy circulated wheat cents just about anywhere for 3 to 5 cents and they wholesaled for about 2 cents.

When scrap copper was trading at $4 per pound you could buy circulated wheat cents just about anywhere for 3 to 5 cents and they wholesaled for about 2 cents.

Do you see a pattern?

LMC were minted to the tune of 5 or 6 Billion per year.
So tell me as a speculator do you see an upside?
As an investor do you see sn upside?

Take a roll of say 1972 BU cents to a LCS or coin show to sell and you will be lucky to get any takers at anything above face.

This is the reality. It is not mean or bitter, it is just true.
If you like them save some, but know that when you have to start spending money on storage it is money foolishly spent.

At least when you get sick of saving them they are still legal tender.

Simply not true. An item is worth what someone is willing to pay for it. I showed an example where someone paid 1.4 cents per cent, and had to pay shipping on top of that. So obviously $50 face value is worth more than $50 since there was a willing buyer.

I actually checked with my local coin shop. Guess what? They are selling bags of 95% LMC's at a small premium. They often get these as part of a larger collection. Instead of throwing them into the bank or into the change till, they sell them as an item just the same as wheat cents and any other items you would typically find at a coin shop. I know some of the close minded people here will find this hard to believe, but they are actually selling them (i.e. customers are buying)...gasp...at more than face value. Who would have thought?

When the US discontinue pennies you'll wish you had them to roll search. In Canada they're getting scarse because the market doesn't use them anymore. I was thrilled to get $100 from my uncle today. I'll be sorting them on a rainy day! :) You don't know what you have until it's gone. Follow the talks from the lobbyists that want to get rid of pennies and when they start sounding serious for once and follow the rest of the world (Australia, Sweden, Canada) then maybe start CRH'ing heavier. By then you guys will adopt the metric system too and we'll have a huge BBQ.

I think we can/will be able to look at Canada to see what happens. Can Canadians now melt their cents? If so, what are recycling centers paying? If the RCM is recalling pennies and melting them, what will the impact be on older pennies, considering that some that get turned in will be 1940s, 50s, etc?

It is very relevant.
It is the only coin with the same composition and weight as the LMC
It is the only coin with anything like comparable mintage figures.
It is the only coin that can be used in an historical analysis of what can be expected of 95% copper Lincoln Memorial cents.





Because there is no legitimate market for 95% Memorial cents. No law abiding conscience recycler will purchase them as scrap copper no matter what the spot price of newly smelted copper is.
I have been unable to find any Local Coin Shop who will pay anything for circulated rolls of Memorial cents. In fact I see them refusing to buy rolls of uncirculated Memorial cents.
So just where is there a market for 95% circulated Memorial cents?




Are there people on ebay willing to buy Memorial cents at a premium?
Yes. But these people are rather few and far between. When I researched ebay completed items less than 10% of the listings were sold.

Therefor if someone asks a question such as the op;




My answer is:



If still questioned The only honest answer is to compare LMC to LWC. Same composition, a smaller overall mintage, and over 50 year history of an extremely FLAT market.
Yes there are forums full of people talking about what a good thing it is to save them. Save them if you wish. But, know and understand that any premium you pay for them is not money spent wisely, any money spent on shipping is money spent unwisely, and any money spent on storage is lost. They have no investment value and absolute minimum speculation value.

There is no anger or malice here just analysis and evaluation and my opinion. I think I am accurate on this.

If you wish to save them then do so. If you know someone buying them for a premium then sell them every one you can, if you are paying a premium for them contact me and I will sell you all I can find.

Ok I lied, one more post. I'm not paying a premium myself, and I bet the majority chiming in here saying they are a good thing to save are doing what I do. And that is plucking them from their pocket change. And again, who is talking about accumulating so many that you have to spend money on storage?

Since they have no investment value, I might as well put any disposable income into something like the stock market because that always goes up right? Ponder this...how many investments have zero downside (again, going off the assumption that the LMC's are acquired at face value and no additional money is spent on storage options)?

Couinhunter, Stack that copper high! You have convinced me there is a market for 95% LMC. I see the the error of my argument now. Truly, thank you for this discussion