copper vs. silver: some numbers

[jnb1994]

So I was just doing some numbers and I'm wondering if copper is underrated. From what I've seen a lot of people don't think that it's worth sorting through pennies so halves and dimes seem to be the coins everyone is going through.

From what I've found here are some averages:
25% Cu pennies, 3-5 dimes per box, 2-3 halves per box, usually 40%

Now assuming these averages here are some numbers:

Pennies
$25 * 25%= $6.25 face value Cu per box
$6.25*249.57% (from coinflation.com) = $15.60 melt value per box
$15.60-$6.25= $9.35 profit

Dimes
$0.30 * 2273.62% (from coinflation.com) = $6.82 melt value per box
$6.82-$0.30= $6.52 profit

$0.50 * 2273.62% (from coinflation.com) = $11.37 melt value per box
$11.37-$0.50= $10.87 profit

Halves
$1.25 (avg fv per box) * 929.65% (from coinflation.com) = $11.62 melt value per box
$11.62-$1.25= $10.37 profit

So based on the profit coppers arent that far behind dimes and halves, plus there is a much lower chance of getting a skunk penny box since there are still so many in circulation. I know that money isn't the only reason that some of us CRH but just something to think about.

 

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[Mr. Silver Stash]

Interesting idea. I sorted $50 in pennies last weekend. Now I have this small bucket of copper and I am not sure what to do with it. It's only profit if I can sell it somewhere. Any ideas where to actually get some $$$ for the copper?

 

[jnb1994]

I've seen people sell them on ebay. There's definatley some demand for them. I've heard copper is going to be the next silver.

Also since Canada got rid of the penny the US might follow their footsteps and get rid of it soon too. If we get rid of the penny then it shouldn't be illegal to melt them anymore. You should keep some copper stored away for when this happens; if and when it does the copper price is probably going to go up

 

[jnb1994]

heres a link to ebay:
copper pennies | eBay

 

[The_EE]

Pennies
$25 * 25%= $6.25 face value Cu per box
$6.25*249.57% (from coinflation.com) = $15.60 melt value per box
$15.60-$6.25= $9.35 profit

That sounds about right.

Dimes
$0.30 * 2273.62% (from coinflation.com) = $6.82 melt value per box
$6.82-$0.30= $6.52 profit

That doesnt sound right for me. I am averaging about 1 dime per box. I do dimes only because its something extra to do, every little bit helps.

$0.50 * 2273.62% (from coinflation.com) = $11.37 melt value per box
$11.37-$0.50= $10.87 profit

Halves
$1.25 (avg fv per box) * 929.65% (from coinflation.com) = $11.62 melt value per box
$11.62-$1.25= $10.37 profit

I am averaging about 2.5/40% and .5/90% per box. $23.50 per box worth of silver at $32.40

So based on the profit coppers arent that far behind dimes and halves, plus there is a much lower chance of getting a skunk penny box since there are still so many in circulation. I know that money isn't the only reason that some of us CRH but just something to think about.

True, the problem is that copper takes much a lot more room than silver does. I have 2 boxes of pre 82 pennies and all my silver could fit in half a penny box yet its 3000x more valuable.

 

[jnb1994]

That sounds about right.



That doesnt sound right for me. I am averaging about 1 dime per box. I do dimes only because its something extra to do, every little bit helps.

$0.50 * 2273.62% (from coinflation.com) = $11.37 melt value per box
$11.37-$0.50= $10.87 profit



I am averaging about 2.5/40% and .5/90% per box. $23.50 per box worth of silver at $32.40



True, the problem is that copper takes much a lot more room than silver does. I have 2 boxes of pre 82 pennies and all my silver could fit in half a penny box yet its 3000x more valuable.

Everyone has different averages so I'm just going based on what I've heard. I personally haven't searched anything except 80 rolls of pennies and 120 loose halves in a ziploc.

Ya I guess time does factor into the equation if your searching by hand. I'm actually in the process of building a universal coin machine (compatible with any coin with only a slight adjustment) which could potentially search 2-4 coins per second and sort them based on the weight differences. With a machine like this time doesn't really matter because the machine is doing everything and would be able to sort 2-3 boxes in an hour reliably. I might actually try to make some money on the side using it and selling coppers on ebay or something. I did some calculations and if I'm able to get a huge load of boxes from different banks I would make a very large profit haha. Have to see how everything goes.

 

[tkessler77]

I am only get about 300 copper pennies per box so about 12% copper pennies and 88% zinc pennies. When I cash in my pennies I get about $22 back from a $25 box.

 

[TimZim]

I have about 200 lbs of pennies now what All the time spent looking at the dirty coins. silver its the way to go. You can get real cash now!! Pennies i may not ever see a gain for my time spent looking?? for what? Its just not for me.

 

[jnb1994]

People have been selling them on ebay for close to melt value

 

[jarlbartar]

I was moving some on ebay, but it is so market dependent. I was getting roughly $20 for 10 lbs. I guess its a small profit, depending on how you look at it with time sorting, time listing the auction, packaging - its just about enough to pay for the gas to drive to pick up a new box of pennies.

 

[The_EE]

I am only get about 300 copper pennies per box so about 12% copper pennies and 88% zinc pennies. When I cash in my pennies I get about $22 back from a $25 box.

I average about 20%-25%. It really depends. It takes 5 boxes of pennies searched to fill up another box, on average. 10 rolls of all copper cents is about the least I find total.

 

[The_EE]

I was moving some on ebay, but it is so market dependent. I was getting roughly $20 for 10 lbs. I guess its a small profit, depending on how you look at it with time sorting, time listing the auction, packaging - its just about enough to pay for the gas to drive to pick up a new box of pennies.

Copper is $3.79 a pound x 10 = $37.90

At that rate, I would keep it.

 

[BCD11]

Seems to me the choice of copper vs. silver depends on your location, sorting method, and preference among other things. One of our members sorted $83,000+ in halves and, if memory serves me, found one keeper. On the other extreme is the "dream box." For me, the first example would tell me NEVER to look at another half dollar while the second would indicate only doing halves; pick your poison.

Copper works for me because in the time it takes to sort a $500 box of halves my two Rube Goldberg contraptions can double sort and count $150 worth of pennies. Selling the pennies (not on ebay) provides enough profit (at least today) to buy some silver halves. Granted, I'm paying more than face if I choose to buy silver with the penny profits but, I have less than a third of the capital tied up in sort $$, I have NEVER had a skunk box of pennies, and it's faster for me to sort pennies mechanically.

Obviously this won't work for everyone. Different "find" %'s, fluctuating prices, and silver ounce sorting goals could make the copper swapped for silver process a loser or impossible from a practical standpoint. But in my little corner of the world being able to, in effect, consistently get silver halves from the copper I sort mechanically is gratifying.

Just my two coppers for what it's worth.

 

[Bigheed]

In theory pennies are definitely the way to go, but there is 2 main problems the way i see it.

1. It is not legal to melt them. So, you can either hoarde them until it is (speculative play) or you can Ryedale them and sell them on ebay.
2. Unwrapping boxes of pennies is a big pain in the butt. I can't unwrap them faster than the Ryedale can spit them out. I've tried to secure loose from the federal reserve but it is cost prohibitive for an operation my size.

 

[jnb1994]

Seems to me the choice of copper vs. silver depends on your location, sorting method, and preference among other things. One of our members sorted $83,000+ in halves and, if memory serves me, found one keeper. On the other extreme is the "dream box." For me, the first example would tell me NEVER to look at another half dollar while the second would indicate only doing halves; pick your poison.

Copper works for me because in the time it takes to sort a $500 box of halves my two Rube Goldberg contraptions can double sort and count $150 worth of pennies. Selling the pennies (not on ebay) provides enough profit (at least today) to buy some silver halves. Granted, I'm paying more than face if I choose to buy silver with the penny profits but, I have less than a third of the capital tied up in sort $$, I have NEVER had a skunk box of pennies, and it's faster for me to sort pennies mechanically.

Obviously this won't work for everyone. Different "find" %'s, fluctuating prices, and silver ounce sorting goals could make the copper swapped for silver process a loser or impossible from a practical standpoint. But in my little corner of the world being able to, in effect, consistently get silver halves from the copper I sort mechanically is gratifying.

Just my two coppers for what it's worth.

Where else can you sell pennies?

 

[Bigheed]

some people have reported that their LCS or Pawn Shop will buy them anywhere from 1.7 to 2.0 cents per Cu Cent. You might also be able to establish a relationship with an investor through CL.

 

[Generic_Lad]

If I felt like selling my entire silver stash, it would take me all of half an hour to drive to a place and cash it in. On the other hand, it takes considerably longer to unwrap and sort copper pennies and Ryedales aren't cheap and it takes even longer to sell them unless you know of a buyer. If I had a buyer that would pay 1.5x or 2x face for copper pennies, I'd be sorting them a lot, but I don't and so my only other option is to stick them on eBay and hope they sell and eBay's fees don't cut into my profit too much.

 

[BCD11]

Where else can you sell pennies?

Craigslist, referrals from individuals you buy CRH eqt. from, and read some of Andy's replies concerning price for his sorters sold through ebay vs. those sold not sold on ebay.

I'll bet there are some copper sellers on ebay that have developed a client list from buyers that initially bought an ebay listing and then sold additional copper to the same buyers without ebay, benefiting both.