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 Replies: 851 / Views: 100,089 |
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Valued Member
United States
202 Posts |
Edited by NorthShoreMA
06/02/2026 8:15 pm
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Pillar of the Community
United States
863 Posts |
Quote:Today I called APMEX and Money Metals to determine what they will pay for $80 face value of 40% silver Kennedy half dollars.... The discount (26%) is larger than I anticipated: i.e., they are offering $8.35 for a coin with a melt value of $11.20. I'm not surprised. Even 90% US silver is going under melt these days. 20% under is normal as discussed earlier in this thread. Plus, those 40% Kennedys aren't really "silver", they're billon. Yah, they have silver, but it's relatively low so they're difficult and expensive to smelt. Thus, they're less desirable and carry a steeper discount especially to a bulk dealer. Same with WWII Nickels and lots of world coins like 20th century Scandinavian and Mexican coins. Having said that, those rolls and bags of 40% Kennedys rarely end up in a smelter, they just trade back and forth like 90% silver. The steep discount with 40% is just a hedge in case the coins ever do get smelted. Edited by jeffbuckes
06/05/2026 5:59 pm
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Valued Member
United States
175 Posts |
What's an updated price y'all are seeing?
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Valued Member
United States
175 Posts |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
863 Posts |
From 2 weeks ago, Bay State Coin Show in Mass:
Generic silver rounds were selling at or just under melt. I don't collect those so didnt buy any. They sure are pretty though!
90% was flat. Several tables had bags at melt. Mercs, Roosies, Washingtons, Franklins, Kennedys, didnt matter. Saw some bags and rolls of Barbers and WLH that carried a small premium, but didnt see anybody buying. Lots of caution from buyers and sellers on 90%. Even I didn't bother selling anything. First time in maybe 10 years I didn't sell at least some silver at the show. I think the downward pressure depressed prices more than it should have.
And recently I saw a YT video from a collector showing what he got at the same show: he picked up several slabbed ASEs for melt + 2. That's incredible to me. They were graded. Not that grade has a huge impact on their price but still... graded ASEs at melt + 2? That's why I didn't sell anything this year. I'd be lucky to get melt -5 or even -10 on Eagles. Sure, that's the market, but I'd rather hold and see what happens.
Silver is up about 8% since the show.
PS: another member recommended a YT channel by 'Silver Seeker'. I watched a few of his vids. They're longer and more melodramatic than I like, but it's interesting and seems authentic. He calls shops (anonymously) and asks for their buy / sell prices on Eagles etc. He usually gets a wide range of answers. So you really have to shop around when you buy / sell.
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Moderator
 United States
200382 Posts |
Thank you for your report.  |
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Valued Member
United States
175 Posts |
Thanks for the feedback. I was thinking of unloading some common date Morgan/Peace dollars and was surprised at the price I was getting offered for them. Guess I'll just hold on to em.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
863 Posts |
Quote:
I was thinking of unloading some common date Morgan/Peace dollars and was surprised at the price ... Silver dollars (Morganand Peace) are a special case, they are not junk silver. Many many date and variety collectors for those series in all grades. They almost always carry at least a small premium over melt, unless they are culls, scratched, former jewelry etc. What prices were you offered? Who offered those prices? IMO, common date, average circulated silver dollars would bring melt + 5 even in a soft market. That's $50 each last week, $55 this week and climbing as I write this (melt on these is $51at this hour, up 10% or so in the last week). |
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Valued Member
United States
175 Posts |
Quote:
What prices were you offered? Who offered those prices? Between 6 and 7 dollars under melt from a couple local dealers I talked with. The big online sellers I looked up are lower than that. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2246 Posts |
I purchased $10 face in 90% ($5 in quarters and $5 in halves) from a trusted seller on Instagram, who I have bought from in the past (AliCat Coins). With shipping and G&S fees the total came to about $492.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
863 Posts |
Today, Hartford, Conn Coin Show (actually in Hartford not Cromwell) This is a bi-monthly show. I was passing thru town and was able to stop in, right off 91 halfway between NYC and Boston. About 35 tables, maybe 25 dealers. No admission fee. Mostly US coins (1/2c to $20 gold), a couple world coin dealers, and 1 banknote dealer. A few dealers had silver bullion and rounds, but very few trays or bags of 90%, and the couple tables I saw didn't have prices listed for them. Dealers used to have big signs with their 90% prices, not today! I asked dealer what he was asking: Roosies: 36x Mercs: 40x WLH, Franks, Kennedy halfs: 40x Barber halfs: 50x Mind you these are all circulated, common date coins ("junk silver"), and the Barber halfs were fair at best, not quite cull, but no meat left on them. For reference, silver closed @ $48.80 on Friday (2 days ago) and NGC has melt at 35.3x https://www.ngccoin.com/price-guide...-values.aspxEdited by jeffbuckes
Today 27M ago
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Posted 06/05/2026 5:58 pm
