Cavorting At A Local Coin Show

Well maybe not cavorting in the true sense of the word but I had a great time at a small, local coin show recently. And small it was with less than 10 dealers present. But most had impressive inventories to display (it wasn't just a bunch of Morgan dollars, Mercury dimes and Silver American Eagles). It just goes to show that even small coin shows can have value for coin collectors and investors.

I took time to examine some old silver coins, most notably a Capped Bust 1827 silver half dollar in About Uncirculated condition. It is a great coin for serious collectors but for the asking price of this coin, I could purchase just shy of 15 Silver Eagles or Silver Maple Leafs which is more to my liking (confirming my casual investor status). This 1827 coin will have to be someone else's treasure to have and hold.

I am less of a fan of silver rounds and tend to favor government-issued silver bullion coins. But I do make exceptions for silver rounds at a good price BUT they must have good eye appeal. As luck would have it, I found some nice rounds at a good price (in the low $20's with the spot price at just over $20.00) at this show...

This first silver round is modeled after the U.S. Indian Head Quarter Eagle and Half Eagle minted from 1908 through 1929 (none were struck from 1917-1924).  These gold coins set a U.S. precedent in that the figures (a.k.a. devices)  and lettering were sunk below the coins' surface (incused) as opposed to other U.S. coins in which the "devices" were and are raised from the surface of the coin.  The silver round's obverse closely matches the gold coins' obverse but the reverse of the silver coin differs from the gold coins as it identifies a private mint plus the weight and silver fineness of .999.

I was not familiar with the issuer of this round, the Golden State Mint, so I visited their web site at GS Mint. They have a number of interesting silver and gold rounds and bars (of various sizes) with a $500 minimum purchase. To their credit, they have survived the many lean years, having been founded in 1974. Next I did a quick Internet search for "Golden State Mint Reviews" and "Golden State Mint Complaints" with nothing alarming showing up. They look like a good company to do business with but please be aware: 1) I have absolutely no affiliation with this company and receive no compensation for any purchases by anyone; and 2) I am not recommending that you do business with Golden State Mint without doing your own due diligence. You are responsible for your own decisions regarding the purchase of precious metals.

Another silver round I picked up at the show is also modeled after a U.S. gold coin - the 24-karat (.9999 fineness) American Buffalo which began production in 2006 (and this gold coin was modeled after the historic buffalo nickel minted from 1913-1938). The silver round's obverse closely matches the gold buffalo's obverse (just missing a date) but the reverse of the silver coin differs from the gold coin as it specifies the weight (one troy ounce) and silver fineness (.999) among other lettering differences. The Silver Buffalo was also purchased at a good price in the low $20's.

To my way of thinking, silver rounds that are modeled after well-recognized

and popular designs (24k Gold Buffalos, Morgan dollars, gold Krugerrands, $20 Saint Gaudens, etc.) stand a better chance of being favored over lesser known (and less attractive) designs when it comes time to sell. In addition to the purchased silver rounds, I was able to pick up some nice Barber and Standing Liberty quarters, a 2014 Australian Saltwater Crocodile 1 ounce silver coin and my first Maria Theresa thaler (a historic but not so rare Austrian coin containing .7520 troy ounces of silver) but that is the subject of a future post.

Changing gears, are you familiar with the IRS reporting requirements when buying and selling precious metals? The good people at JM Bullion have put together a helpful Infographic if you are unfamiliar with these requirements or need a refresher. You can find it at JMInfographic Its purpose is educational and shouldn't be considered financial advice. Of course you are responsible for any capital gains tax on profits from sales even if your transaction(s) don't require dealer reporting.  

At the time of this post, spot silver is at $19.45, Silver Eagles month-to-date are at 1,510,000 and the year-to-date total is 27,613,500.

One last note, I have published my ebook "The Last Canadian 80 Percent Silver Coins - A Buying and Selling Guide " on Smashwords so it is now available on Apple iBooks, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Oyster as well as Kindle and a few more. You can see the Smashwords listing at  Canadian Silver Coins . My other ebooks, "The Last 90 Percent Silver United States Coins - A Buying and Selling Guide" and "A Guide to Buying and Selling Peace & Morgan Silver Dollars" are still available on Amazon only.

Thanks for reading, keep the faith. 

Silver Investing - The Other One-Ounce Silver Coins

When it comes to one-ounce silver coins, the American Silver Eagle and Silver Canadian Maple Leaf seem to take center stage. But there are several other one-ounce silver coins that are worth investing in if you come across them and the price is right.  Although not quite as popular as the above two, the coins I list below are well recognized and their liquidity tends to be very good.

Other one-ounce silver coins (not in any particular order) include the Silver Koala, Mexican Silver Libertad, Silver Kookaburra, Silver Panda, Silver Britannica and Silver Philharmonic (pictured below).

The Silver Philharmonic was first minted in 2008 by the Austrian Mint in Vienna. It closely matches its counterpart - the Gold Philharmonic first introduced in 1989. This .999 fine silver bullion coin features the image of the "Great Organ" found in the concert hall where the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra performs with the flip side featuring a variety of musical instruments.  You can't go wrong investing in this coin. 

Another silver item I want to mention is this Silver Krugerrand. When I first spotted this Krugerrand, I assumed it was produced by the South African Mint as a silver version of the famous Gold Krugerrand. Come to find out this is not a legal tender coin produced by the SA Mint (they do not produce a Silver Krugerrand) but is considered a silver round produced by a private mint. This silver round is commemorating the continuous production of the Gold Krugerrand from 1967 until 1983. I purchased it because it closely duplicates the gold version and is more appealing to me than many of the other silver rounds I see advertised. The Silver Krugerrand isn't that rare so you shouldn't be stuck with a high premium if you decide to purchase. I would think the liquidity would be good because of the familiar images on both sides.

If you were to have purchased either the Silver Philharmonic or the Silver Krugerrand one year ago, they would have cost you over $50 each as the spot price of silver peaked at just under $50 on 4/24/2011. Today you should be able to purchase each for somewhere in the low $30's (spot silver is at $30.66 at the time of this post). If the price of silver goes back up (as many predict it will), you will find yourself with a nice profit. 

Stop by the Silver Investing Simplified and Silver Investing Guide for more info on silver investments.

Thanks for reading.

Silver Investing - Silver At $40.00 An Ounce

Silver reached the much talked about $40 per troy ounce on Friday - the highest it has been in 31 years. In fact, the spot price cruised past that figure and was knocking at $41's door, closing at $40.93 going into the weekend. As of this writing (early Monday morning CDT), silver is already up another $0.98 and stands at $41.91. Some say silver's price will not correct until it reaches $50.00.

This is good news if you already own (and have in your possession) a nice amount of physical silver but not so good if you are just starting to invest in silver. Silver is red hot now and finding a good deal is hard to locate. If you keep an eye on eBay auctions, you see some silver already being bid up to $50 per ounce and beyond. I have no recommendations on where you can buy silver cheap. Your best bet is to look for miscellaneous one-ounce silver rounds or possibly silver bars which have traditionally had a lower premium than coins.

So far in April, 750,000 Silver Eagles have been produced with the Year-To-Date total at 13,179,000.

Thanks for reading.

Silver Investing - Silver Sniping On eBay

When I have some spare time, I like to look at the various silver coins that are being auctioned on eBay. While I haven't seen many "deals", every now and then I find something that is of interest enough for me to bid on. That may be Walking Liberty Half Dollars, Silver Philharmonics, Silver Rounds, Morgan Dollars, etc. As long as the current bid isn't too high, the shipping fee is reasonable, the seller has a high positive feedback with a good number of transactions under his/her belt and there are only a few hours to go on the auction, I will probably place a bid.

Nothing is more frustrating than almost having the winning bid when some other bidder "steals" it from you with seconds to go. Then it's too late to place a higher bid before the auction ends. That's where sniping comes in. There is a free service that allows a bidder to automatically place a bid with just seconds to go (sniping) thereby increasing the odds of being the winning bidder. And the bidder doesn't even have to be by his/her computer. Just enter the eBay item number, the maximum bid and when to place the bid (how many seconds before the auction ends). Then go play outside. If interested, go to Goofbay and read up on eBay Sniper. This site offers other useful services that you may find of interest.

If you have come across other useful silver investing tools, please share them on this blog.

Thanks for reading.

Silver Investing - November Silver Eagles - 3,875,000 And Counting

November is proving to be a big production month for Silver American Eagles. At 3,875,000 it is the largest amount of any month so far in 2010 and the month isn't over yet. The year-to-date running total for Silver Eagles is a whopping 32,505,500. It's going to be a big year.

Because of their popularity, premiums are running in the area of 10-11% (and higher). If you are looking for silver that has a lower premium, you might want to look at silver rounds. These are one-ounce silver bullion coins offered by major refiners and private companies. I'm not a big fan of some of these but by staying with the large and reputable providers, you can safely get more silver for your hard-earned money and be able to cash out when you want.

The silver round you see pictured is the popular Silver Prospector made available by Engelhard, a major refiner highly regarded in the industry. Any silver product you can buy (at a reasonable price) with the Engelhard hallmark is an excellent buy. Be sure to shop around for the best price.

Thanks for reading.