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 Replies: 12 / Views: 2,165 |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1510 Posts |
I have been pondering all of these Silver sharks and with them melting all these coins (and other things) down-- eventually the coins that they are melting are going to be more scarce. for example the franklins and barbers and other things that are beat up--melting them--will make the amount of coins left in that series alot less--and thus making OUR collections more valuable....
thoughts? Retired USAF 1983-2003
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Valued Member
United States
438 Posts |
There is still a lot of junk out there. Many coins will never have any value above melt, such as damaged 1940's Walking Liberty halves, 1964 Kennedys used in jewelery, 1921 Morgans used for the same purpose, circulated 1960,s quarters, etc. The hobby will not miss these items. Meltings will take their toll, eventually, but not likely in our lifetimes. ACE Mike |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4897 Posts |
Coinstar I've been told anecdotaly, meaning no idea how true, that this is why there are more higher grade Morgans out there than very circulated ones? And that people are putting together registry sets of ultra low grade Morgans because they are harder to find? Again no idea how true this is but have been told this by a couple dealers?
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
20753 Posts |
Many Jewlers have been melting Silver coins down for a long, long time. How this effects coin prices is as easily figured out as all the coins that are damaged, lost, buried, smashed, drilled for fun, melted for fun, etc. Not to long ago there was a post about all the things people have done to coins. Posts like that are common due to people have been doing anything possible to coins.
To try to figure out how any of that is reflected on coin prices is really just a utter guess.
For example no one on Earth has any idea of how many 1909S VDB Cents have been placed on RR tracks, melted by kids, shot at with guns, etc. If they did, then the prices of that and other such coins could be really acurate.
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
1510 Posts |
Carl= always correct!
Retired USAF 1983-2003
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Bedrock of the Community
Australia
21786 Posts |
The collectors keep coins in better condition. If they discard any of their silver coins, they are the ones that are close to melt value.
So far as the Mints are concerned, they just melt what they receive. Sometimes they may employ someone to to save obviously more valuable numismatic items, but I think that would not happen very much.
So there is a bias for a mint to melt lower value bullion items.
The poorer condition coins become scarcer than they before the melt. You may have noticed this in the auction catalogues. The bulk silver lots are of more modern coins, and there are fewer modern coins in poorer condition in those bulk silver lots at auction.
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Moderator
 United States
187801 Posts |
I say the same thing about copper cents. Once the melt ban is lifted we will see a lot of them lost forever, which is why I keep them. This will affect their value, eventually.
Two things should be considered here: the growing number of collectors and the growing number of metal recyclers. Each has an affect on a coin's value (numismatic versus melt).
As more coins are melted their scarcity will increase. I cannot speculate when it will happen (in my lifetime or not) but it will most likely happen eventually. It may be that the metal recyclers will always outpace collectors, ensuring that melt value is always be above numismatic value (for low grade coins). That is, junk silver will always be junk silver.
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Valued Member
United States
438 Posts |
I still think junk silver coins are the best way to save silver. They are easily divisible into small quantities (think dimes), and they generally sell in bulk at a smaller premium over bullion value than bars and rounds. I suspect there are enough folks out there that store silver in the form of junk coins to keep an adequate supply for quite a while to come.
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Moderator
United States
187801 Posts |
I agree. I never understand the reason why everyone wants to melt them. Unless there is an immediate industrial need, it is best to leave them as they are. Again, I say the same about copper cents. The melt ban is irrelevant as people are already trading them as bullion.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4333 Posts |
JBuck I agree, a lot of collectors out by this. Not as much melting going on, just a changing of hands.
When I listen to LED ZEPPELIN...so do my neighbors...
Roll hunting since '77
Dirt fishing since '72
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New Member
United States
37 Posts |
Well are they truely being sent out and being melted? Or are they just trading at spot between buyers and sellers with no numismatic value? I've scoured the net for pics of Merc dimes and Kennedy halfs being dumped into the big pot to be turned into bars or the like and I've just not really seen any at all. While its easy to say no one nevers knows you many are left, how many are really getting melted.
But I never turn down a chance to hit the "scrap box" at the local dealers to cherry pick a good one at spot price!
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
20753 Posts |
Quote:
I agree. I never understand the reason why everyone wants to melt them. Unless there is an immediate industrial need, it is best to leave them as they are. Again, I say the same about copper cents. The melt ban is irrelevant as people are already trading them as bullion.
What your missing is the fact that probably 80% to 90% of the population of this or any o  ry are people that have no idea that a coin is anything else but a coin. Many, many think a Copper Cent is something to be melted with piles of Copper Wire, Cable, contacts, etc. Many electricians just bulk melt anything that is Copper together into one big blob. Then take to the recyclers. Jewlers too melt anything of metal that could and is used to make what they think is a good selling item. To them Jewlery is worth way more than some silly round coin. Ban or no ban on melting any coin, just who is going to know, care or do anything about that. There really is no Coin Police you know.  The people on forums like this one are really a small portion of the population. Although the amount of coin collectors is increasing, so are the amount of people that melt coinage since the overall population too is increasing. |
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Pillar of the Community
Philippines
1156 Posts |
Quote:
Many Jewlers have been melting Silver coins down for a long, long time That is how it is here, as far back as 35 years ago, I'd bring a scrap peso silver coin to a corner jeweler and come back 2 days later for my new silver ring, payment for labor only and the jeweler gets to keep the excess silver (which he makes sure-beforehand, that there would be an excess ) that was also another way for me to buy a nice VF silver coin from jewelers, the nice coins they dont really melt down, they resell it  |
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Replies: 12 / Views: 2,165 |
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Posted 02/02/2011 9:32 pm
