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 Replies: 17 / Views: 5,933 |
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New Member
United States
37 Posts |
Hey guys, first post here... I have gotten recently, I've spent a fair amount lately, I'm priced in around $27-28 range. Anyways, Here is what I have so far. $190 of junk silver face (halves, quarters dimes, all 90% pre 64. I have 30 2012 eagles, and 10 maple leafs, and 2 cougars and 2 moose. I also have a 5 oz silvertowne bar, and 10 1 oz Johnson and Matthey bars. Anyways, I really love junk silver, the nostalgia of it, the fact you can get it at spot or less than a dollar over spot usually. I have about $150/week to spend with respect to silver. Do you think it would be smart to pick a day every week, and buy $150 worth of junk silver? Is investing small amounts more often a decent strategy or is it better to save up more money and buy larger quantities? I like the idea of adding $5-10 face junk silver (Pre-64) to my stack every week. Sometimes I order the junk through Silvertowne also, because they have reasonable prices on junk silver and free shipping. So how do you feel about hoarding junk silver. I almost prefer it to the shiney bars, although they are fun to look at. My thoughts are I will collect 1 or 2 rolls of ASE's a year and the rest pretty much junk silver. Thoughts? |
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Bedrock of the Community
Australia
21788 Posts |
If you want to take a silver position, dollar cost average your way into it.
If you want to get out of a silver position, dollar cost average your way out of it.
The period of your investment depends on your investment horizon.
If, say, it is to be for a year, have a look at the two year silver price history graphs, and the 200 day moving average price for silver.
The silver price history graphs that would most interest you are those of which are at least double your inveatment horizon.
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New Member
 United States
37 Posts |
Thank you for the prompt reply.
I am young, and my intentions are to stash it away and not even think about selling it for a long time 15+ years.
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Valued Member
United States
103 Posts |
First Welcome,
I am also a new member but I'll share...
I like the idea of recognizable bullion, and "junk" 90% is definitely that! It's also very modest premium to spot, and readily available here in the US.
I like silver eagles, maples, and libertads too, but I try to stay away from stuff with crazy premiums.
Remember when it comes time to sell you have to get those back and that it easyier said than done.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3184 Posts |
yes good idea. Slowly things will add up :)
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
834 Posts |
I am also young and I try to diversify the best I can within my silver
My stack consists of
80% Canadian junk silver
90% US junk silver
Pure .999 bars
US eagles, maples
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1454 Posts |
 , hotshotschamp. Nothing wrong with your strategy. Some people will say to specialize in one specific area but many of us like a steady diet of variety. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
808 Posts |
Welcome, hotshotschamp!
Sounds like you're already off to a great start! Like sel said, DCA (dollar cost averaging) is the best way to buy into a silver position. Personally, I set a monthly budget and and try to always add to my silver stack, regardless of spot price. I may choose to buy a little more going into a price dip but never at the expense of next month's buying budget. You'll quickly discover what buying frequency works best for you and your goals. After that, just stick to it!
As for what to buy? You can't go wrong with 90% and government silver bullion! Of course, buy wisely and keep commissions and shipping fees at a minimum since those costs hurt your DCA. Private mint bars and rounds can be interesting, too. Just buy what YOU like and what you understand and forget the rest!
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Pillar of the Community
United States
863 Posts |
Great way to buy. I try to buy a little whenever I can and make larder purchases every few months. Its tough being young. As with many other people we have very little disposable income but we are aware that this is a very good way to invest
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Bedrock of the Community
Australia
21788 Posts |
If your investment horizon is 15+ years, have a look at the overall history silver price graphs.
As best as you can, take a hard copy print of it, and mark on that graph all of the events that have had a significant influence on any major trend in the the silver price. Draw an average line through the graph to get an idea of where the curent silver price should be, without the current "noise" in the graph.
Your decision to buy or sell a small amount of silver with dollar cost averaging would be influenced, but not determined by, the trend in the 200 day moving average silver price, and it's relation to the average trend price line you have drawn on on your long term (30 year+) silver price history graph.
It is impossible to guess the silver price at some time into the future. The best you can do is arm yourself with past silver price history information, and hopefully use that to your advantage. Some skill development in the use of past information is needed.
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
1731 Posts |
Im probably younger than most people who stack silver. I try and add 10oz a month in silver (mostly pure .999) but I have some junk silver coming in.
But I think if you add that much silver every week, you're doing really good. I would love to add that much. Maybe every other week switch it up from junk to pure silver bullion?
Edited by coincollect1
08/03/2012 12:04 pm
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
36826 Posts |
hotshotschamp welcome to the forum. Your strategy is sound. Keep adding to the stack, keep track of your purchase prices, and cost average over time.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4008 Posts |
, HSC!  First, it is excellent that you are starting your bullion collection early in life. This is VERY important. Very few bullion collectors ever say, "Gee, I wish that I hadn't started collecting so early in life". In virtually every case, they will say just the exact opposite. Second, and very nearly as important as starting early, is the fact that you HAVE a strategy. Many people start collecting because they find it interesting and are attracted to nice looking precious metal coins, bars, and rounds. But they have no idea of what they are trying to do long-term or under what conditions they will be willing to sell. As a stock investor, I know that having an exit strategy is every bit as important as having an entry strategy. THINK, then act! It's nice to see someone your age doing just that. Your collection looks really good to me. It has a nice variety of different items and all of them are good ones. Yes, dollar cost averaging is one of 2 free lunches in the investing world. The other is asset allocation. Technically, these are not really "free lunches" but they might as well be because of the benefits that they give at no cost to the investor. This works when buying but also when selling because no one knows how the market will be pricing things in the future. There are trends that come along from time to time and you can sometimes use them to enhance your profits by selling more than you would have in an up cycle and buying more than you otherwise might have in a down cycle. Of course, these up and down price cycles are somewhat of an educated guess on our part but we all do what we can in this regard. We don't have to be right every time, just more often than not, to make good money at the investing game. I like your long-term view as well. This is good. Investing in precious metals is usually a 5 year or longer proposition. In fact, the longer the better in many cases. I have this long view as well and it is working out nicely. As an older person, I include my children and grand children in this view and not just my own lifespan. If I never need to cash in my silver hoard, that will be fine with me. I will pass it on to them in case bad things happen in the economy and they need it to get by. If not, then I am hoping that they too will pass it along to a following generation. Best of all would be if they did not need it but could add to it during their lives.  Buying from on-line vendors, such as APMEX, Provident, GoldMart, or SilverTowne works best either when you can get free shipping or when you are buying a large enough amount of gold or silver that their shipping costs are dispersed over more ounces and not just a few oz. A $25 shipping cost stings when it is for just a few ounces but is not so bad when it is for 100-200 ounces. For small purchases a local coin or pawn shop can be a better place to shop. Developing a good business relationship with a local coin or pawn shop can be a really good thing for a collector, so it is worth some time and a little money to do just that. APMEX is especially good for pre-1965 US 90% silver coins, as they often have nicer condition coins that appeal to some collectors and not just the beat up circulated coins. They cost a little more but they are so much nicer looking that I enjoy collecting them. Provident Metals and SilverTowne are also good places to shop on-line. GoldMart has a good rep as well but I have not bought anything from them. ASEs are very nice and I collect them as well. Don't forget the very nice Canadian Maple Leaf coins, though. They are great too and usually cost $0.50-0.75 less per coin than the US ASEs. They also contain a full Troy oz. of silver. I have a number of the SilverTowne 5-oz. bars and like them a lot. It's good that they have an individual serial number on them as well as just being an attractive well-made 0.999 silver bar. If these are ever stolen and then recovered, it will be much easier to reclaim them if we can show that its one of the numbered bars from our collection. |
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New Member
United States
37 Posts |
Thanks for all the replies, appreciate all the welcomes! Ed- Thanks for all the great tips. I tend to buy my junk silver at spot from a local dealer in my area. I buy from silvertowne a bit also for junk and bars. Should I stay away from there 1 oz bars though, because they lack serial numbers and the cred of say a Johnson Matthey or other more known companies? I agree I like the maple leafs. They are a beautiful coin, and can be had a bit cheaper than the ASE. I have the cougar and Moose coins and some regular maple leafs. Brilliant looking coin. How about the Buffalo 1 oz coin rounds. I have seen them for a very reasonable price, hardly over spot. Are they a respected brand/coin? |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
863 Posts |
Great way to buy. I try to buy a little whenever I can and make larder purchases every few months. Its tough being young. As with many other people we have very little disposable income but we are aware that this is a very good way to invest
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Bedrock of the Community
Australia
21788 Posts |
You are never too young or too old.
I spent $250 on a coin way back in 1967. That's about $1500 in today's money, with inflation.
Nothing wrong with using silver as a backup to your fiat money savings.
It's a pity governments don't think like this.
Edited by sel_69l
08/04/2012 09:46 am
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Replies: 17 / Views: 5,933 |
Posted 08/03/2012 01:11 am
