Newbie Question :: Silver Coins

Here are a few lessons I have learned in junk silver:

- the smaller the denomination, the more it was probably used and might be worn coins. I recently put 50 mercs in a plastic coin container and felt that I could have fit 7 more coins in there. Hence, for junk dimes I look for Roosies over mercs (although I like a good merc more).

- the same theory for older coins, the generally have more wear. You can tell I like a good thick coin!

- anything less than 90% is easy to pick up, but generally harder to get rid of - at least close to melt. If you are looking at these, get a good deal to make it worth it.

- keep stacking. Dollar cost average.

- I buy bullion too. Being in the U.S., I am partial to Eagles. Generally speaking, anything from a national mint (U.S., Canada, Australia, etc.) will carry a higher premium than something from a private mint (sunshine, JM, Engelhard). I like to go for things that are going to be more recognizable in my part of the world. For some that doesn't matter, but something to consider.

- don't buy from China.

- buy what you like, but also develop a strategy so you don't just buy things on the spur. Strategies can always change, but don't blow your cash on something you may regret or that will take you off course.

- enjoy.

1) Is there anything wrong with purchasing circulated Walking Liberties...from highly rated sellers on ebay...I'm referencing the current "melt" price to determine the underlying silver value?

Very good way to go.

2) My only concern at this point...is getting fake coins. This does not seem likely to me, but what's the best way to check these particular coins?

Common-date, circulated Walker halves are rarely counterfeited. If you buy them in Good to Very Fine condition, there is virtually no chance on getting a counterfeit.

3) In reviewing the prices on various Walking Liberties I see that most have an identical value, but there are a few years that are special.

Many Walkers from the teens and twenties are better dates. Once you get into the thirties and forties, almost none are better dates.

Couple points I've learned:

If you're just looking silver content go with more common coins like 64 Kennedy halves or Franklin halves. There are oodles of 64 Kennedy's out there and not a huge demand from collectors (you only need two for your Kennedy album).

Dimes have the lowest premium over spot (opposite of bullion where fractional coins have a higher premium) - especially Roosies since there aren't any real keys. Dollar coins sell for way over spot. Often you can buy very nice Roosies or even Mercs from a dealer's junk bucket that have a decent numismatic value over spot. I've flipped a few mercs on ebay that I bought for spot and then sold for a few bucks more. You won't make much money but it can be a good start to learn cherry picking.

Be careful when you sell too and do a little research into the coins you hold. I'm sure I'm not the only one who has bought a key or a semi-key in a junk lot or bought a junk lot of 40% halves and found 90% halves in it.

You can usually buy 40% halves for under spot, but so can everyone else which is why they are hard to sell. Like novillero says, don't waste your time unless you are getting a deal.

You can almost always buy junk War Nickels for under spot but they're really hard to sell over spot and they're illegal to melt. Maybe that's an investment opportunity, but only if you can get them dirt cheap. Be warned though that there are a lot of misinformed people out there who think nickels from 64 and below are all silver and will try to sell common nickels for War Nickel prices.

If you've been following gold in the last couple of months, you'd see a zigzag pattern, from 1200, to 1240ish, back down to 1200, and below to 1170, then back up to 1190s. Silver, on the other hand, hasn't dipped below 15-16 in a while, and really hasn't broken 20 either for a bit, ranging from high 17s to low 19s if lucky. I wouldn't be surprised if I saw silver hit 30-35 in my lifetime. This is from memory, I'm not looking at any charts right now, but you have to decide what your personal bottoms and highs are, and play with that. You say you're investing, so go with American Eagles. They are the most accepted bullion from the looks of it, the most liquid.

In respect to WLs, they are a good starting point, but make sure you get a good deal - meaning, buy in bulk to reduce the overall cost. And if you're investing these, do you have a market wherein you can dump them when you hit your personal
high?

Good luck!
If you're worried about getting fake coins from the Bay, then I would so some heavy research on top sellers by going through all of the customer feedback, filtering out the obvious customers that are happy no matter what. In person, though, you can watch out for lead. It hasn't a density very very close to silver and nonmagnetic. Can be a lead core with plating, so make sure your dealer is reputable! (This last part is talking about bullion, not WLs.) When you're comfortable enough buying silver you can get generic rounds from private mints. They have a low premium but may be harder thatn AEs to liquidate when you need the money.

As far as selling, I find pretty much all 90% to be easy to sell. Check around your local coin shops, pawn shops, jewelers, basically anyone that buys PMs and find out what they offer for junk and compare with internet values. (This will also give you a better idea what you should be buying at.) Some buy by a multiple of face value and others buy by weight. Finding out who does what will offer another avenue to exploit for profit or at the very least help you get the best deal for your junk.

All 90% is liquid but I prefer halves. Watch out for heavily worn "slicks" which are underweight. If the condition of the coin is below G04, you can be sure it's underweight. Some people will not want "slicks".

Many dealers only want "roll" quantities and large dealers often have a minimum dollar amount (i.e. $500) to make a buy. Also remember that 90% silver is calculated using the 0.715 multiplier. Face Value X 0.715 X Spot Price = Total Value.

Good Luck!

all good information regarding 90%. I would only add that a silver half dollar has slightly more silver in it than two quarters or 5 dimes, so if you can get halves for the same price you may want to purchase those. I know that wholesale they can receive .2 x face premium (12.7 vs. 12.5, for example). And I agree with Stjoeblues, but my suggestion would be to hold both gold and silver just in case. I too would hold physical gold and silver over ETFs for a long term holding. Short term I'd hold the ETFs due to the smaller buy/sell spread, since I don't see the reality noted above coming in the short term.