Coins worth more melted? What?

[natepen]

OK, this question hit me in the middle of the night and I'm sure there's all kind of goverment rules behind this but I thought I would throw this out there?

I was looking at silver prices and they were saying that a Rosevelt dime has 90% silver and 10% copper so at 2.5 grams its worth roughly $2.37 a dime.
What am I missing here? How is this correct? So they're telling me that my $10.00 worth of dimes I have in my change jar has about $237.00 worth of silver?
If this is true than why isn't everyone melting these down?

Thanks for the info.
Nate

 

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[diggummup]

Um... your missing one key point here... those prices are for pre 1965 dimes. How old are you?

 

[baywalker]

And it is against the law to melt american coins!

 

[leadnugget]

sadly, it seems that it is not illegal.
see here.

http://www.coinflation.com/is_it_illegal_to_melt_coins.html

 

[Lakemonster]

The coinflation link has all the melt info you require.

Strangely...the old pre 83 copper pennies are worth 2.3 cents melted.... more than twice the face value.
Personally.... I would never melt coins... in case of complete economic failure.... silver US coins are easily recognizable for what they are and what the value would be.... a melted ingot could be faked/counterfeited. They are worth the silver that are in them.... and with the fact that they are easily recognized as a standardized minting...they will be accepted for trade much easier in such circumstances.

 

[gleaner1]

Many times throughout history, US not withstanding, the face value of a coin became less than it's bullion value. Look at the history of early US gold coins. Many were melted to get a small profit on bullion value. Want to trade some copper cents in at profit? You better melt 'em first. Do you see? If you actually want to get full bullion value of the small copper US cents, you have to melt it first. But watch out for the police. Silver coins? Different story altogether. They are always worth at least full bullion value, which is way over face value, melted or not. Many lower grade silver US coins are listed in the price guides as bullion value and no more. It seems almost silly that real copper US small cents are worth so much, over twice face value, bullion-wise. It costs more than a cent to mint a modern US zincoln. Hence the outrage against, and loathing for the silly thing. I have about five dollars worth of older copper small cents just laying around. Someday, I'll roll em up and get a candy bar and sodi-pop.

 

[blackbeard1717]

You can probably sell them to your local coin shop guy for about $2.00 each depending on fluctuation of Silver Price.

 

[mrs.oroblanco]

Sorry to say - it IS illegal to melt coins.

Don't worry about the US Mint rules - You have to worry about the US Treasury laws.

In 2006, the US Mint did make a law saying you could not melt pennies or nickels, they feared they would have a shortage. But all that did was come into line with the US Treasury laws.

Specifically, the US Department of the Treasury says that all monies and coins belong to the US Treasury, and, in addition, the government, in accord with the "trading with the enemy" act you cannot export, nor melt down US coins.

There are at least 4 departments in the government (not counting the US Mint) that prohibit melting (or defacing) of US coins. Between the 4, you can't do it - and, if you do, you are talking about a minimum sentence of 5 years in prison and a $10,000 fine for each case.

Now, if they stop making pennies - you would then be able to melt them down - theoretically - as it would no longer be legal tender.

Beth

 

[fistfulladirt]

How do all of the refineries skirt the law, melting boat loads of silver and gold US coins?

 

[diggummup]

How do all of the refineries skirt the law, melting boat loads of silver and gold US coins?

There is no skirting to it. I don't think it would be smart to melt a us gold coin to begin with, the numismatic value would far outweigh any melt value. As for the silver ones, that's easy, they are no longer produced for circulation therefore it is legal.

 

[fistfulladirt]

How do all of the refineries skirt the law, melting boat loads of silver and gold US coins?

There is no skirting to it. I don't think it would be smart to melt a us gold coin to begin with, the numismatic value would far outweigh any melt value. As for the silver ones, that's easy, they are no longer produced for circulation therefore it is legal.

Diggummup, I read that many modern bullion gold coins are being melted because the premiums are so low, melt exceeds numismatic value. I'm still a bit confused about the melt ban on US coins. Copper cents are no longer produced for circulation either, yet there is a melt ban.

 

[gleaner1]

Some values for newer gold coins like commems are listed as "bullion value" in the price guides, not enough numismatic value to consider.

 

[47thelement]

Omg I could only imagine how many thousands and thousands and thousands of dollars of coins you would have to search through to hopefully find ONE quarter.

NO THANKS.

I have more fun swinging on the beach and the fields.

 

[diggummup]

Some values for newer gold coins like commems are listed as "bullion value" in the price guides, not enough numismatic value to consider.

That's what I get for only thinking of old gold.

Diggummup, I read that many modern bullion gold coins are being melted because the premiums are so low, melt exceeds numismatic value. I'm still a bit confused about the melt ban on US coins. Copper cents are no longer produced for circulation either, yet there is a melt ban.

The ban on copper cents and nickels is a new law that went into effect in early 2007 I think. It won't last forever. They did the same thing with pennies back in the mid 70's and they did it with silver coins in the late 60's.

 

[gleaner1]

Some values for newer gold coins like commems are listed as "bullion value" in the price guides, not enough numismatic value to consider.

That's what I get for only thinking of old gold.

Diggummup, I read that many modern bullion gold coins are being melted because the premiums are so low, melt exceeds numismatic value. I'm still a bit confused about the melt ban on US coins. Copper cents are no longer produced for circulation either, yet there is a melt ban.

The ban on copper cents and nickels is a new law that went into effect in early 2007 I think. It won't last forever. They did the same thing with pennies back in the mid 70's and they did it with silver coins in the late 60's.

I wonder what the metal value of clad dimes, quarters and halves are?? Never cared to check and I'm too lazy. I guess face value is greater. But at the end of the day, the US copper lincoln mem cent is probably the only circulating coin on earth worth more melted than face. And the zincoln? What a farce. 1.7+ cents cost to mint (do we really know for sure?). These zincolns are failed mint policy and not worth bullion, and their only saving grace, they dissolve in the dirt (thank God). Their silly, shallow copper coating facade is laughable. They are cast into jars and lost in couches and cars, a large percentage go out of circulation immediately. And for this we are deeply indebted to the powerful, clever zinc industry lobbyists. What it boils down to is that the us cent, a great boost to commerce at the middle of the nineteenth century, has become an anachronism, a great symbol of failed government. I feel like a hundred dollar bill at this time. I do not feel like 10,000 copper cents. I do not feel like a $230 blob of copper.

 

[fistfulladirt]

The modern nickel is worth a fraction more than face value, at $0.0514.

per http://www.coinflation.com/

 

[diggummup]

Some values for newer gold coins like commems are listed as "bullion value" in the price guides, not enough numismatic value to consider.

That's what I get for only thinking of old gold.

Diggummup, I read that many modern bullion gold coins are being melted because the premiums are so low, melt exceeds numismatic value. I'm still a bit confused about the melt ban on US coins. Copper cents are no longer produced for circulation either, yet there is a melt ban.

The ban on copper cents and nickels is a new law that went into effect in early 2007 I think. It won't last forever. They did the same thing with pennies back in the mid 70's and they did it with silver coins in the late 60's.

I wonder what the metal value of clad dimes, quarters and halves are?? Never cared to check and I'm too lazy. I guess face value is greater. But at the end of the day, the US copper lincoln mem cent is probably the only circulating coin on earth worth more melted than face. And the zincoln? What a farce. 1.7+ cents cost to mint (do we really know for sure?). These zincolns are failed mint policy and not worth bullion, and their only saving grace, they dissolve in the dirt (thank God). Their silly, shallow copper coating facade is laughable. They are cast into jars and lost in couches and cars, a large percentage go out of circulation immediately. And for this we are deeply indebted to the powerful, clever zinc industry lobbyists. What it boils down to is that the us cent, a great boost to commerce at the middle of the nineteenth century, has become an anachronism, a great symbol of failed government. I feel like a hundred dollar bill at this time. I do not feel like 10,000 copper cents. I do not feel like a $230 blob of copper.

One more reason to do away with the cent. As stated those zincolns are a pathetic and laughable joke and a poor excuse for an American coin.