Liquidity matters. Strategy is important. Exit is key. You need to be ready to take profit and put it into another market. If the spot price suddenly surges, it is useful to be able to rapidly take advantage of this surge. Recognisable and standard products will be easier for you to move. This should be the underlying strategy of a rational PM investor. Buy low, sell high. Return funds to the market when it is at a cyclical low. The odds and ends will not be easy to move in this scenario. One thing you have identified is that you get caught in a trap of 'But for $6 more per oz, I can get "BRAND'. You need to stop this behaviour, as it is costing you money. You are upselling yourself to a higher price. You should be investing for profit. The major profit is made when you have purchased at a significant low point in the market, and are exiting at a reasonable high. Buy as close to the spot as possible when you purchase. You can use a 3 month moving average to justify over spot purchase if the market is on a down trend. I just picked up some 10oz at 225, though market is only 205, because the average price over the last three months has varied upwards to $250. Buy London Good Delivery units. These are easier to offload should the market spike. Here is a very simple breakdown of what I would do with your stack. Fractional non bullion silver coins - Get the coins valued for Numismatic value. Sell these to a collector or on Ebay. Swap the non numis for 10 oz bars. Keep a couple of cherished items for sentimental purposes. Mixed 1oz, 10oz, kilo and 100oz bars - Swap the 1 oz for 10 oz in the next month. Swap the 100 oz bars for 10 oz or 1 kilo when Spot has increased back to $22.5. Or convert these into 1oz Gold bars. Mixed .25, .5, 1, 5oz, 10oz, and Kilo coins and rounds - Sell the .25, the .5 and the 5oz Immediately, liquidate them into Fiat Currency. Put this money into a term deposit, or some stocks/bonds. Keep the 1 kilo's with Premiums (Lunars etc) Consider selling the 10oz which carry premiums at high points in the market over the next 12 months and using the profit to buy bars. Keep the 1oz for interest. Poured bars of random sizes - Auction these on the forum. You may have a few hidden gems, and these sizes tend to fetch a premium for the collectability. Seminumi coins and bullion from everywhere - Need more information. You may have a couple of gems here. Graded bullion and other bullion and coins that appeals to me - Keep these. Chances are you have paid more than neccessary as they appealed to you. If you are to sell these, Ebay them slowly and use the currency to purchase more standard weights. Aniquities, silver shot and silver bullets. Keep the Antiquities. They are significantly more valuable. Sell them on Ebay when Silverware becomes a design trend 'in vogue' . The silver bullets and shot are cool to use at a poker game.
From what I saw a couple of years ago everything will sell easily in a silver bull market so maybe keep what you've got and just be more selective about future acquisitions. You could also try to do some trades for items that better fit with your new strategy and in that way hopefully not loose out.
I personally bought some dumb things when I started out stuff like perth mint colourised collectible coins. I luckily only bought a couple butI now keep them tucked away out of site and out of mind where I don't have to be reminded of my stupidity. I just plan on ebayng that stuff the next time there is a silver mania phase whenever that should be again down the road.
Thanks Geodesi for the thoughtfull writeup, its appreciated. I have decided to simply take a stand from here on out and now worry much about the past. I will swap the oddballs out that I dislike for more suitible bars and keep the others I have already purchased and am attached to but no pour anymore money into it. Being that I'm new the oddballs are a sizeable part of my stack but if I keep to a clean strategy in a couple years they will just be a drop in the bucket. Nothing I have are really rare nor collectable so I know I'm not sitting on any gems. All my semi numis are 2011+ and all my junk silver is just that I was atleast thinking clearly enough to not drop 100+ premium on a 1oz bullion coin for a collection I will never complete. I've summed it up to live and learn and will deal with what I have and make better descisions with exit strategy etc in mind for the future. I'm glad to know I'm not the only one that started out this way.
