Boxes of Cents?

[bdrilling5]

I wanted to get some opinions, since I'm new to the hobby, on how to best utilize my time. Since I'm coming up on a long weekend, I thought it might be a good time to try sifting through a box or two of something. I was thinking about 2 boxes of Cents, but I wanted to ask: Would my time be better spent searching through a different denomination of coin?

A quick background (if it helps): I began the hobby with an interest in cents and, more recently, have gotten silver fever (a big surprise, I'm sure). I'm not sure though, on a tight budget (about $100), that I could get anything other than a few boxes of cents. I know a box of pennies is $25 and a box of halves runs $500 but I'm fuzzy on the rest. (I just can't seem to memorize the beginners guide)

I guess the ultimate question is: Are boxes of cents a good option, or would I be better off searching through a different denomination (if I can afford it), or should I just forget about boxes on a small ($100) budget and try to stock up on CWRs for the weekend?

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Diving for Pleasure and Treasure - Grab it through Amazon!

[boristhespider88]

I wanted to get some opinions, since I'm new to the hobby, on how to best utilize my time. Since I'm coming up on a long weekend, I thought it might be a good time to try sifting through a box or two of something. I was thinking about 2 boxes of Cents, but I wanted to ask: Would my time be better spent searching through a different denomination of coin?

A quick background (if it helps): I began the hobby with an interest in cents and, more recently, have gotten silver fever (a big surprise, I'm sure). I'm not sure though, on a tight budget (about $100), that I could get anything other than a few boxes of cents. I know a box of pennies is $25 and a box of halves runs $1,000 but I'm fuzzy on the rest. (I just can't seem to memorize the beginners guide)

I guess the ultimate question is: Are boxes of cents a good option, or would I be better off searching through a different denomination (if I can afford it), or should I just forget about boxes on a small ($100) budget and try to stock up on CWRs for the weekend?

A box of halves is $500, not $1000.

It should really be what you want to do. I do all denominations based on how much money I have on me. I find any of it fun.

 

[boristhespider88]

If you only have $100 to play with, a few boxes of cents or a box of nickels is where it's at. I would say don't fool with other denominations if you don't have enough for a whole box. (I'm not that adventurous, and most of my MWR scores happen in the last roll of a box, so if I get just $400 of a box of halves, my luck would be that the other $100 of the box was silver loaded.)

 

[Thorne]

Cents have the best ratio to find something worth keeping. Never heard of getting skunked with a box of cents. However I its silver your after. Why don't you but a box of nickels. Only 100 apiece. Might find silver war nickels or even a buff or a V. Happy Hunting. Keep us updated as to what you get and what you find

 

[Eldar11]

You might also try CWR dimes, I've had pretty good luck there, doing a few at a time.

 

[bdrilling5]

Never heard of getting skunked with a box of cents.

I typically keep the coppers just for the heck of it. On top of that, I've been keeping anything in pristine condition and anything out of the ordinary. That coupled with any wheat cents I find typically keeps me entertained, at least with the CWRs I've been going through. So I can't imagine getting skunked on a box unless, with my luck, I get a solid box of 2012s or something.

Why don't you but a box of nickels. Only 100 apiece.

I guess I thought nickels were out of the question - last page of the beginners guide says a box is $200 - but I guess I never thought to question it.

A box of halves is $500, not $1000.

Sorry on the halves, my mistake. Thanks for setting me straight!

 

[Thorne]

I started with 2 boxes of cents. With the 50 I got with that I slowly am working my way to higher denominations.

 

[usandthem]

If you want to find something pennies are a good bet. With halves you might find some silver, you might not. Every Friday I pick up two boxes of pennies and a box of halves. The pennies always produce.

 

[diggummup]

Pennies (or cents for the sticklers) are great to search through. You have a better chance of finding a few wheats, errors, or die varieties than you do of finding silver in a box of anything else, percentage wise.

 

[sagittarius98]

I guess I thought nickels were out of the question - last page of the beginners guide says a box is $200 - but I guess I never thought to question it.

It's $100. The guide has a mistake.

 

[ArkieBassMan]

I wanted to get some opinions, since I'm new to the hobby, on how to best utilize my time. Since I'm coming up on a long weekend, I thought it might be a good time to try sifting through a box or two of something. I was thinking about 2 boxes of Cents, but I wanted to ask: Would my time be better spent searching through a different denomination of coin?

A quick background (if it helps): I began the hobby with an interest in cents and, more recently, have gotten silver fever (a big surprise, I'm sure). I'm not sure though, on a tight budget (about $100), that I could get anything other than a few boxes of cents. I know a box of pennies is $25 and a box of halves runs $500 but I'm fuzzy on the rest. (I just can't seem to memorize the beginners guide)

I guess the ultimate question is: Are boxes of cents a good option, or would I be better off searching through a different denomination (if I can afford it), or should I just forget about boxes on a small ($100) budget and try to stock up on CWRs for the weekend?

It depends on why you are CRHing and/or what coins you enjoy searching. If you're CRHing to add "cheap" silver to your stash, then with a $100 bankroll you are most likely wasting your time. I'm not trying to be rude or a buzzkill here, but buying 1 box of nickels, 10 rolls of quarters, 20 rolls of dimes, or 10 rolls of halves at a time, you have about a 99.99% chance of failing to even pay for the gasoline you'll burn picking up and dumping coins. With gas prices where they are now, you'll have to find the equivilent of around 1.5 silver dimes for every single gallon of gasoline burned. You'd come out ahead money-wise by using that $100 to just buy as much silver as you could outright. Sure, if you CRH you will likely find some silver, but if you've spent $100 in gas to find $20 worth of silver, you haven't accomplished your goal. You've paid $100 for $20 in silver when you could have just bought the $100 worth of silver to begin with saving both time and more importantly money with more silver in your stash to boot.

$100 will buy 4 boxes of cents. Some people are able to sell copper cents for around 1.5 cents each. The average cent box reported on this forum seems to contain about 20% copper and 10 wheats per box. Thats 500 copper Memorial cents per box, which if sold at 1.5 cents each nets you a "profit" of $2.50 per box. Throw in the 10 wheats at 3-4 cents each and you're looking at $2.80-$2.90 "profit" per box. 4 boxes would net you about a $11.20-$11.60 profit, and again that won't even buy 4 gallons of gasoline. And thats just an average of what I've read. Your boxes might average a tad bit better giving you a slightly better return, but your boxes may average less as there are no guarantees in this hobby. Boxes in my area average only about 11-12% copper and 3-4 wheats per box, which is exactly why you won't find me sorting through a box of cents very often. Plus, I generally see copper cents selling in relatively large lots...$50-$100 face value at a time to reduce shipping charges, which is most of/all of your bankroll. You'll have to accumulate for awhile before you can sell, and thats even if you can find a buyer. Not everyone on this forum has been successful in trying to find a buyer.

With the above stated, with only a $100 bankroll you might get very lucky and stumble across solid roll(s) of silver, or a single coin worth hundreds or even thousands of dollars. It does indeed happen, but you should not expect to do it yourself. You probably have better odds of turning a profit by using that $100 to buy lottery tickets instead of CRHing.

Now, if you're CRHing because you enjoy the search and are willing to pay for that fun, then search whatever denomination of coin that you enjoy searching. Or get a variety of different denominations. Do it your way. Its your money, spend it in whatever way gives you the most enjoyment. I will add this though: If I was limited to a $100 bankroll and wanted silver, half dollars would always be my first choice. A single 40% silver half has more silver than 2 silver dimes. If I wanted as much searching as possible for my $100, then cents are definitely the way to go. Hand sorting 4 boxes of cents looking for copper, wheats, errors, etc. will provide you hours of searching whereas with the other denominations it'll likely take you less time to search them than it did to retrieve them from the bank. Another thing I will add: When you go to the bank(s) after coins to search, spend your entire $100. If you wanted halves, but the bank(s) had none, buy something else to search. The gas money is already spent, so you might as well try to maximize your return.

Hope this helped. Good luck!

 

[ArkieBassMan]

A box of halves is $500, not $1000.

This is true. A box of halves is $500. However, most banks have a $1000 minimum order (2 boxes), when ordering halves.

 

[Thorne]

I agree that searching for silver on a 100$ budget probably wont get you very far. I however visit my pickup bank once a week for non coin related business. And my dump bank is on my way home from work. So I waste almost 0 gas.

 

[boristhespider88]

This is true. A box of halves is $500. However, most banks have a $1000 minimum order (2 boxes), when ordering halves.

My bank has no problem ordering me just one box, but the bank I deal with isn't a big nationwide chain bank either.

 

[thripp]

You can definitely get skunked with boxes of cents if someone has dumped a lot of zinc recently. I get skunked on 5-10% of my boxes of cents.

 

[BuffaloBoy]

i wish that were the case around my neck of the woods, most banks are hesitant to order more than 1 box of halves for me.

This is true. A box of halves is $500. However, most banks have a $1000 minimum order (2 boxes), when ordering halves.

 

[HavokSouls]

I started out with just $60 and my very first $40 in dimes I found a silver cashed my dimes in bought $40 in halves almost half of one roll was silver 90%s the other three had none. Then I got addicted to the hunt and I could care less how far i have to go to get some coins because if I find one silver its worth it (to me). But I generally stick with dimes and halves (on a three box skunk with dimes) but get whatever u want u don't have to get boxes to find silver just as you don't need cwr to find silver.. HH

 

[bdrilling5]

It depends on why you are CRHing and/or what coins you enjoy searching. If you're CRHing to add "cheap" silver to your stash, then with a $100 bankroll you are most likely wasting your time. I'm not trying to be rude or a buzzkill here, but buying 1 box of nickels, 10 rolls of quarters, 20 rolls of dimes, or 10 rolls of halves at a time, you have about a 99.99% chance of failing to even pay for the gasoline you'll burn picking up and dumping coins. With gas prices where they are now, you'll have to find the equivilent of around 1.5 silver dimes for every single gallon of gasoline burned. You'd come out ahead money-wise by using that $100 to just buy as much silver as you could outright. Sure, if you CRH you will likely find some silver, but if you've spent $100 in gas to find $20 worth of silver, you haven't accomplished your goal. You've paid $100 for $20 in silver when you could have just bought the $100 worth of silver to begin with saving both time and more importantly money with more silver in your stash to boot.

$100 will buy 4 boxes of cents. Some people are able to sell copper cents for around 1.5 cents each. The average cent box reported on this forum seems to contain about 20% copper and 10 wheats per box. Thats 500 copper Memorial cents per box, which if sold at 1.5 cents each nets you a "profit" of $2.50 per box. Throw in the 10 wheats at 3-4 cents each and you're looking at $2.80-$2.90 "profit" per box. 4 boxes would net you about a $11.20-$11.60 profit, and again that won't even buy 4 gallons of gasoline. And thats just an average of what I've read. Your boxes might average a tad bit better giving you a slightly better return, but your boxes may average less as there are no guarantees in this hobby. Boxes in my area average only about 11-12% copper and 3-4 wheats per box, which is exactly why you won't find me sorting through a box of cents very often. Plus, I generally see copper cents selling in relatively large lots...$50-$100 face value at a time to reduce shipping charges, which is most of/all of your bankroll. You'll have to accumulate for awhile before you can sell, and thats even if you can find a buyer. Not everyone on this forum has been successful in trying to find a buyer.

With the above stated, with only a $100 bankroll you might get very lucky and stumble across solid roll(s) of silver, or a single coin worth hundreds or even thousands of dollars. It does indeed happen, but you should not expect to do it yourself. You probably have better odds of turning a profit by using that $100 to buy lottery tickets instead of CRHing.

Now, if you're CRHing because you enjoy the search and are willing to pay for that fun, then search whatever denomination of coin that you enjoy searching. Or get a variety of different denominations. Do it your way. Its your money, spend it in whatever way gives you the most enjoyment. I will add this though: If I was limited to a $100 bankroll and wanted silver, half dollars would always be my first choice. A single 40% silver half has more silver than 2 silver dimes. If I wanted as much searching as possible for my $100, then cents are definitely the way to go. Hand sorting 4 boxes of cents looking for copper, wheats, errors, etc. will provide you hours of searching whereas with the other denominations it'll likely take you less time to search them than it did to retrieve them from the bank. Another thing I will add: When you go to the bank(s) after coins to search, spend your entire $100. If you wanted halves, but the bank(s) had none, buy something else to search. The gas money is already spent, so you might as well try to maximize your return.

Hope this helped. Good luck!

See, that's the thing. I understand that I'm not going to make money doing this, it's honestly fun to me. That's why I got into it - I enjoyed looking through my pocket change and the jar of change my wife and I have at home. I got through everything I had available to me and wanted to keep going. I started by grabbing CWR when I could, so $100 gets me a small chunk to search through for a night. This way I get to search as I have time available to me. The only reason I'm even contemplating a box or boxes is because of the long weekend coming up. So, I probably wouldn't be focused on silver this weekend since I understand that $100 doesn't exactly give me a lot of (or really any) purchasing power in way of boxes for dimes or halves.

Also, as far as costs, I basically spend whatever money I keep. I rarely consider gas to be an expenditure because, like several have already said, my bank is on my way to or from basically anywhere I go. I really only go to my pickup bank on my way back from the store and my dump bank is close to work, so neither is usually out of the way for me.

I'm really not in this to get rich or even to make money, I simply enjoy it. My wife thinks I'm crazy, but I enjoy it. It's perfect for me since I can't just sit and watch TV, or sit and do X activity (unless it uses my brain). When I do sit and do nothing, I always wind up doing something else so sorting through and collecting coins has just been a good fit for me. Now my wife and I can relax and I'm not entirely bored and getting up to find other things to do. If I do happen to find something worth a pretty penny, it's a bonus.

So, that said, thanks for all your advice! It's good to see a general cost breakdown, but I'm not concerned as much with making or losing money as I am with enjoying myself.

Thanks to everyone else as well for all the responses. I'm still not sure what exactly I'm going to get, but I'm thinking I may do two boxes of cents/pennies and the other $50 in CWRs (MWRs probably only if I run out of places to go to get CWRs on my drive home). I'll definitely post the results of whatever I end up with for anyone interested.

 

[jamin_03]

I'm a poor student and only can afford a $25 box of cents for the long weekend. So that's what I'm going to do until I have more funding at my fingertips...

Jamin_03

 

[Thorne]

You can always save your wheat cents and sell them on roll at a time for like 2-5 bucks. Do that a few times and you'll up your. Bankroll in no time