It absolutely amazes me.

[FreedomUIC]

What I don't understand is how does silver replenish itself. I have gone CRH/Road Trips and found absolutely nothing. This has gone on for at least two or three times in a row, then "BANG", there is silver all over the place. Most of the silver is in hand rolls from the banks, not boxes. Are there really that many people that were saving $.50 cent pieces because of Kennedy I don't think so, I am just curious and would like some feedback as to your thoughts of how one bank that never has any silver now gets $75.00 in hand rolls and several silver coins in with the mix. For example, one bank that I used to order boxes from went dry for almost 13 straight weeks and I give it up. Over the past three months I have stopped in there on occasion and found hand rolls with silver and one time this past week read "Kennedy and his half brothers came to visit", Had $250.00 in hand rolls that contained
AG.

Where is it coming from because it appears that Brinks and several other well known companies are pretty stingy in their boxes....

 

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[rileyboy]

Freedom,
Good thoughts. But, as I have said before and will say again...
Many people saved the 1964 Kennedy out of respect and belief
that the coin will go up in value over time. Same for the Walkers
and Bens especially when the dimes and quarters went to clad
in 1965. People just started saving the silver not even thinking
that the price of silver would sky rocket over the years. I'm 65
years old and remember when there were no clad coins.
EVERYTHING was "silver". The price of silver was "peanuts" and
the coin was worth more then the silver. I used to save the "Buffalo"
nickels and Mercury dimes, but back then we didn't have much
money to do CRH. I was lucky to be able to afford one roll of
nickels to look through. Could never afford a roll of dimes or quarters
much less halves. I was in college from 1963 to 1967 and had to
live off about ten dollars a week and that's the absolute truth. Rich
Hartford is a little younger than me and I'm sure he remembers how
tight "spending money" was in those days. When I was in the Army in
1968 I made only $67.00 a month!. In 1969, I started my career
making $7,420 a year and lived pay check to pay check. There was
nothing left over for the coin hobby. I didn't get back into coins for
almost 25 years. During that time no one really "looked" for silver as
it wasn't worth as much as the coin. Only in 1980-81 when the Hunt
brothers tried to corner the silver market did silver sky rocket to $50
an ounce. I'm sure millions of silver coins were sold and melted down
at that time. Then the market crashed when they weren't successful
in cornering it. Anyway, millions of silver halves, particularly 1964 and
40%ers 1965-1969 survived. Now years later, collectors like Grandpa
are passing away and coin collections are being inherited or handed down
to heirs that could care less and only want the money. Thus, many
collections were just taken to the bank and deposited. The bank then sent
out the coins to be rolled. From about 2005 to 2008 CRHers found lots
of silver halves in rolls etc and started saving them as the price of silver
went up and the silver was worth more then the coin. Also, collectors
and heirs learned that their coins were worth more then face value and
started taking them to coin shops and shows to sell. That's why the boxes
you all search produce less silver. Simple as that. I've read here many times
from young members who wish they were around in the 1970's and 1980's
thinking there was tons of coins out there. Not so. If they were around then, they
wouldn't have the cash to even pay for one box to search much less ten boxes
a week. I believe that periodically someone just dumps a collection and if
you are lucky enough to be the next person at the bank you are the "winner".
Otherwise, search your boxes and take the few that you get and be happy.
Remember the history or the California "Gold Rush". Well it too dried up.
Just some thoughts from an "old timer" in this hobby.
rileyboy

 

[apush]

Interesting and informative reply, Rileyboy. I remember the 1980s when prices were skyhigh. Then, I remember the 1960s when gas was about 23 cents or so per gallon (and there were gas attendents who checked your oil, washed your windows, and gave kids--like me--bubble gum and suckers). The thought of paying-at-the-pump was never thought of. I remember my mom and I would laugh at the thought that someday a company would put free water in bottles and some idiot would buy it.

Yes, its true--many folks have no idea concerning the value of silver and just dump to get the face value. I was one of those folks at one time as well. And, from my own experiences CRHing, it is just pure luck of the draw. Sometimes I find good rolls; other times good boxes--mixed with a whole bunch of skunks more often than not. Overall, I cannot complain one bit; I have only CRHed since last January and had a few nice finds, but met lots of nice people along the way.

HSH,
apush

 

[clovis97]

I am new to the hobby, but with that said:

Years ago, when I was in high school and college, during the 1980's I thought of the idea of CRHing. I had heard that "silver coins are always worth keeping, and someday they will really go up in value".

I remember going to my dad and telling him about my new idea. "So? Who has the money to do that? And what is the price of silver these days? You are wasting your time to find a quarter here and there."
I heard the same thing from other adults at the time, and the general consensus was "the whole thing sounds like a waste of time."

I had a job right out of college, and one of my duties was to fill the pop machines and count the change. One morning, I was counting about $600 worth of change from the machines, and had a large handful of silver dimes and quarters. My boss came in, saw them, picked them up, and put them in his pocket. "Those are mine." he said. This boss had the personality of an eel, and I often wondered how and why anyone would have promoted him. I was not mad that he took the coins for the silver, but really ticked by how he took them without asking. So, I went to an honest coin shop to investigate. The shop owner said that he was paying .25 for silver dimes, and .40 for silver quarters. With all that work, how much would they have been worth? $5 in profit, for the whole handful?

I think there are tons and tons of people who have saved silver coins for years, but don't have much of it, and don't know where to sell it. They have also fallen into the general mindset of "silver isn't worth much" mentality.

Heck, I have maybe 10 dimes and 15 IH pennies that I've found in change, and until a few months ago, had no idea what to do with them.

In the past five days, there was a thread on a non coin forum that advised the poster "that only the ones before 1964 are worth anything." Maybe that explains why I got a solid HRW of 40%'s not too long ago.

In a nutshell, I think the mentality of "silver isn't worth anything" has been the norm for 20 to 30 years. Combine that with today's economy....and boom!....there is silver being dumped into circulation.

 

[ArkieBassMan]

I would think that there are two basic ways that silver coins seem to "magically" appear. First, as others have stated, people inherit coin collections, do not know the true value, and just cash them in. Second, collections get stolen. There would be much less risk involved for the thieves to cash the coins in at a bank - or just simply spend them - than taking them to a coin/pawn shop.

 

[gold eye]

In my area times are hard people are turning in everything and iam happy for what I'm finding plus i have made friends with a lot of tellers who save silver for me and i take care of them what goes around comes around . happy hunting Ron

 

[quiksilver]

You gotta realize that before i believe it was 1970 that half dollars were pretty common and as such plenty of old folks have or have had them. There are some articles in different publications that have a history of halves. I believe it was coin world which had 1 not too long ago.

 

[Codes]

There are billions upon billions of silver coins that were minted. Some of them get cashed in by people who have no idea of the value of a silver coin. Others just don't care. In some cases when people who collect coins pass away their collections are cashed in at face value.

Example: I went to a friend of the family's house whose father recently passed away. I asked if he collected any coins and if I could make an offer. His daughter said I was about 2 days too late because they took them all to the bank and cashed them in.

-Codes

 

[Rich Hartford]

When I was a kid my mother would send me every day to the corner store with a half dollar to buy bread and a pack of L&M's (cigarettes). The Half was always a Walker or a Ben.Always had to bring back the change. I never remember 1964 Kennedy Halves. A half dollar was a lot of money when I was a kid. I remember that buffalo nickels, silver dimes and quarters circulated throughout the 60's. Nobody saved or collected them.
HH
Rich

 

[clovis97]

Rich, that is an interesting story!

 

[JD-GA]

To many reasons to list why its still out there but so long as folks sell their silver to collectors and not melt it, somehow it will always find its way back into circulation someday. Say no to melt shops.

 

[SFBayArea]

Well, inflation drives up everything. When gas was $.23 cents a gallon and now $3.25/gal. It's also the same with 2 silver roosies and 3 copper cents. That's like $4.09 melt value today per gallon of gas.. guess it shows gas is gonna go up.

 

[FreedomUIC]

Well, inflation drives up everything. When gas was $.23 cents a gallon and now $3.25/gal. It's also the same with 2 silver roosies and 3 copper cents. That's like $4.09 melt value today per gallon of gas.. guess it shows gas is gonna go up.

As a note to your statement. Here in Florida, Gas jumped from 2.91 to 3.05 over night.
I still can't figure that jump out. Milk used to be around 2.98 a gallon, it is now 3.99. Eggs were around 1.99 for 18, they are now at 2.39. Beer used to be sold in 24 packs for 12.00, you now get 18 bottles for 12.00. Most dairy products have had a drastic raise in price. Staples are, sugar, flour, bread, salt and so on have also taken a big price jump.

I believe what everyone has been saying about inflation is true, the only people denying that inflation is in check is the government.....