Carolinian
TUG Member
Taking advantage of market inefficiencies is usually a good thing. The metals market have been trained over the last few decades to only think in round weights (round troy ounces; round gram amounts) People don't want odd weights any more.The US silver market used to be based on silver coinage that had circulated, and could, in extremis, be used as money again. (i.e. a silver quarter could be used as a quarter again.)
But the generation(s) that grew up with "silver in their silver" are dying off from old age. I was 7 years old when silver was phased out of the coinage here in the US. Younger generations give a blank look at actually having money with intrinsic value. Hence the demand for 90% silver is dropping. I'm starting to buy $10 face a month at these prices. Nostalgia, you might say.
I like paying the least premium for gold or silver. The few bullion coins I have were the result of sales by bullion companies, mostly British Britanias. Generally on gold, I can often find things like British sovereigns or German imperial 20 marks for 2-3% over spot for a little under a quarter ounce and sometimes US Liberty half eagles for 4-5% over spot, also almost a quarter ounce. I also buy at the half ounce level where I have often bought the 1967 Canadian $20 centennial coins which have over a half ounce of gold and are cheaper than the Canadian half ounce Maple Leafs. I also like the US Liberty eagles and the Austrian four ducats. 1/10 ounce bullion coins have even bigger premiums but in that range I can sometimes find British half sovereigns or Austrian or Dutch ducats at 4-6% over spot. Recently I have been buying the Danish 10 knonor, a 1/8 ounce roughly at 3% over spot and that does not even take finding sales, but is the regular price. All of that beats the heck out of the usual premiums of bullion coins and I like the history and character of the coins as well. If I go with a one ounce coin, which I have not as yet, it would be the US Liberty double eagle or the Austrian 1915 100 kronen restrikes. I see the latter from time to time at spot on VIP sales.
One I missed lately by not seeing the email for several hours and when I checked they were already sold out was a VIP sales at spot for Mexican 2 pesos coins, which are about1/20th of an ounce. That is the only time I have ever seen a gold coin that small at spot. There was a limit of 10, but if I had seen the email in time, I would have bought the limit, and also bought the limit in my wife's and son's names.
All of our silver is former circulating coinage, mostly US, but quite a few Canadian silver dollars, too, and some other Canadian circulating silver.
