$50,000 For Halves & $2 Bills?

Oops! I forgot to mention, the $50,000 would go mainly toward designing the new prototype coin mechs and bill dispensers and stiff like that, and not nessacarily changing all of the mechs on older machines, because I know I've talked with people that said to upgrade some older machines would cost millions of dollars, but I just thought $50K would "open their eyes" a bit.

Fox, I agree with you that vending machines and the like should be designed to handle all current forms of US currency.Imagine if banks refused to accept $2 bills for deposit into accounts. Convincing the vending industry may be hard but will be much easier than convincing the general public to use $2 bills and half dollars. The public really is the driving force in these matters. Thats why the government will need to ignore public opinion in eliminating the paper $1. It would be awesome if you could achieve your goal without the $50,000 investment. Personally when I am in the states I love to spend halves and twos just for the shock value of it. Good luck on your endeavor but I would find a different way than than the $50,000 carrots.

couldn't agree more, they use whatever currency the public uses, if the public frequently used $2 bills, then vending machines would accept them. I should note that virtually every vending machine I've come across does accept them. Thus I spend $2 bills in them... and that's capitalism. Companies adapt to make money.

It goes deeper than that, into the guts of the machine. Recognizing Twos would be a simple software change....except a massive hardware change would need to accompany it, establishing a second route and a second reservoir for twos. Halves would be even worse; the entire coin-handling mechanism for every single machine in existence would have to be totally revamped. And although Big Business probably owns a majority of soft-drink vending - they offer attractive lease agreements - pretty much all snack machines are owned by the vendors (relatively smalltime folks who own a vending route) so the conversion cost would come out of their own pockets.

To me, this honestly comes down to the point where I don't think sufficient examples of the issues (Twos and Halves) exist in circulation to rationalize the conversion cost even if the people wanted to use them. Consider this: $20/mo net from each of the machines on your route will give you a very successful vending business indeed. It'll cost you, say, a bare minimum of $2000/machine to convert your equipment to recognize the new issues (the main costs of a vending machine are refrigeration if necessary, and the money/dispensation mechanisms; the rest is just a storage bin), and you have to rationalize that large 5-figure infrastructure investment based on additional business from people who will already be carrying the coin/currency you currently accept, anyway.

Not easy for you, not easy for the customers (who have to carry additional denominations), and as much as I hate to rain on the parade it just ain't happening.

Ain't gonna happen.

Halves and Deuce's are never going to enter the mainstream of commerce based on what a collector wants, no matter how determined Mr. Fox seems to be.

The public doesn't want them and they just aren't worth the work to make them. The only people that want them are collectors and Monticello (for the $2 bill).

You would be better off pushing for realistic and useful changes, like getting a dollar coin acceptable, and eliminating the cent, $1 bill and $2 bill in commerce.

While I like your enthusiasm for the Half and $2 bill, your one-man band isn't loud enough.

Change all vending machines to accept dollar coins only (just kidding). This would force use of dollar coins and eventually lead to the elimination of dollar bills which the fed has not been successful in YET. Maybe the fed should pay for the conversion to reach their goal even though it doesn't seem that is what the American public wants, nah, they would never do anything like that; not with our tax dollars.

Wait a minute. I thought that someone here (I believe it was jbuck) said, that most vending machines CAN accept halves, but the only barriers to that are the smaller coin slots/faceplates that need to be changed into bigger coin slots, adding a half tube, and flipping a switch, just as they did with the dollar coin for most newer machines. Wasn't that about right?

If most newer vending machines are set up to accept halves, then there shouldn't be no overly huge costs to slightly modify them to accept and dispense halves. As for $2 bills, I only expect vening machines to "accept" them. NOT dispense them. How many vending machines do you see that dispense bills? The only machines I wanted to dispense $2 bills is self checkout machines as needed, as well and both, accepting and dispensing halves as needed. I think I just need to try my luck at convincing stores and vendors that they will make more of a profit and save money by accepting $2 bills and accepted and dispensing halves. Same with stores with self checkouts. Maybe I could partner with banks somehow, and get them to hand people out a minimum of one $2 bill or a maximum of two $2 bills and a maximum of one half as thats all someone would come to need a minimum of in one transaction or withdrawl. (Say someone's pay check is $574.60. (Maybe someone would request a mix of $100s, $50s and $20s and maybe a couple $10s and $5s for the $570. The remaining $4.74 could be paid with two $2s, instead of four $1s a half instead of two quarters, and a dime. Well you get the idea) I think some people would be happy with $2 bills and halves if they were automaically handed out at banks and credit unions for people who want less bills and less change.

These banks and credit unions just don't usually give $2 bills and halves a chance, and that could be one of the major problems with their circulation. Heck, even if a bank hands out a $2 or a half to someone who cashes a check there, and they say "Aww cool! I'm gonna put this away and keep it!" That is still creating a demand for them and making progress

thats just my "42.50) (-;