Why does everyone seem to take great care to keep their coins in mint condition? Weren't they meant to be handled? I mean, if they were to be used as currency, such as silver eagles or silver rounds, then wouldn't people just pass them around like regular coins (quarters, nickels, dimes)? If silver coins were ever used as currency, it would be difficult to use them as currency while at the same time keeping them in mint condition since everyone would be treating them differently. someone will hold their coins in their pockets, bags, purse, and they would get all scratched up and everything.
When things become possessions rather than utilities they are maintained, supposedly to maintain value. When they are utilities the value is intrinsic.
Everyone should have a few coins or small silver bars that they can handle to at least appreciate these things for what they are rather than as some sort of precious object that can't be touched.
I think it depends entirely on what makes up someone's stack and their personal tastes. If you buy/stack/hoard bullion grade gold like sovereigns, francs, pesos, etc then in the majority of cases they've been circulated already and for you to continue handing them won't greatly affect their value, seeing as it's pretty much just the gold value. Same applies to silver like round 50's, Australian pre decimal and generic bars. But to suggest to a kook collector or even a lunar collector that such coins should be handled will probably get you a verbal lashing. Tldr: depends entirely on the coin and preference of the person.
Collectors Stackers Flippers Fondlers. Collectors love their coin collection and often buy duplicate coins so that they can hold and view the coin whilst keeping the other hidden away for years and years. Stackers - That's complex. To me a stacker is someone who buys bars and selected bullion coins. The coins purchased are those that a stacker thinks will gain numismatic cap gain as well as a gain or protection as metal prices rise. Flippers - No feeling towards the purchase and deffinitely no fondling involved. Fondlers - A sick inner feeling to touch their bars and coins and those found fondling should be put on your black list.
When your Silver is both rare and in high grade then you even need to wear gloves when you handle the protective case it's in [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3yeVmQSan4[/youtube]
Lol I would have to take any coin out of that slab and fingerprint it all up even have a flip or two After a year buying/collecting I still dont own or have a pair of cotton gloves or a cotton "Doily" to put on my scales. Honestly though with the amount of bullion coins and designs being produced its hardly going to make any difference if they are handled or not! Caps are ok to stop them scratching against each other too much. This is why I like my collection of ASE,s, bought without consideration of quality,fondled regularly
Realistically, most people here aren't going to using gold and silver coins as currency anytime soon. They are investments, so why wouldn't you take best care of your investment? If you wreck the aesthetics of the coin, it's worth slightly above spot. That's all.
Seriously with the amount and shear numbers of modern silver bullion coins being produced there will be so many pristine mint condition coins still in tubes or plastic wrap for sale in the future that the difference in price between a collected bullion coin handled once or twice with bare hands by a collector or only ever handled with double gloves would be negligible! There is a difference between a collector handling a bullion coin and circulation wear or abuse of that coin. Proofs I agree are different and very low mintage coins I can understand but bullion high mintage coins need only be gloved by short time flippers wanting a quick buck. Finger pint body oil may actually improve an aging un circulated bullion coin especially on milk spot prone coins just as cheap Chinese plastics may ruin a mint un circulated low mintage highly collectable sought after coin in time to come.
Hi lamak, Welcome to the SilverStacker forum. The truth is, Eagles (ASE's) and modern silver rounds were never intended to be used as currency as you seem to believe. Silver does not function as money for the vast majority of people on earth. Even in places where silver is a legal tender, I'm confident that most people do not even bother with trying to use silver as money in these places. The reason why most people I know don't treat their mint fresh silver coins like they would their pocket change is that there's no sensible reason to. Sure, you could carry a single ASE or silver bar around with you so that you can fondle it whenever you feel an urge to do so, but other than 1 coin for this purpose, why would you need to open up tubes of fresh ASE's just to fondle them. I never quite understood that desire. It's only a piece of cold metal is all it is. A girlfriends or boyfriend makes for a much better thing to fondle, in my view. Besides, if you treat ASE's like pocket change, virtually any collector premium can be kissed goodbye...and for what good reason? I purchased some late 1980's bu uncirculated ASE's a couple or so years ago. I paid a pretty significant collector premium (percentage wise) for these uncirculated ASE's because they were not treated like pocket change, but kept in the condition they were bought. I have junk silver that I would have no problems handling did I ever feel an urge to fondle them (never had that urge personally), but I have no sensible reason to do that with mint fresh silver coins and rounds....they're just pieces of metal. .
If Bullion silver coins are just lumps of cold metal to be kept in tubes and never touched why dont you just buy silver bullion bars at a much less premium? You mention as an example ASE,s when everyone knows they are all only worth just over spot no matter what the date,well so I have been told many times on this forum for my foolishness in collecting an every year uncirculated ASE! Come to think of it who actually uses ASE to make them circulated as a posed to uncirculated? They are also not just a coin to carry around in your pocket and spend!
Every time I buy a 100 x 1oz set of coins I buy 101 so I have something to see and to feel. I think it is important and makes the investment feel more real.
I like to pull my snake out too... but back on the subject of coins; I like to handle them and get to know what a specific coin looks and feels like. Keeping them in a case is fine, but I reckon knowing the feel of any coin I want to buy will help me spot fakes easier. I also like touching my coins, silver or not. Obviously Proof coins shouldn't be touched, but normal coins are meant to be handled; holding a bullion ASE isn't going to affect it's value, the price of silver is. So touch and feel away to your hearts desire you silver fetish people... you won't go to Hell!
Grabbed a crown the other day.. My first. dirty and old.. Straight into bi carb clean.. Admired the shine.. Straight into mashed boiled egg.. Pretty colour toning.. A quick wash and a great coin to play with, throw around and show friends.. Meaty and heavy. No care needed and often I like to keep it in my pocket to play with. Everyone should have a coin like that!
For the same reason that people look after their cars: old, beat up pieces of metal are worth less on the secondary market than old, well cared for pieces of metal. Obviously you're welcome to treat your stuff however you want, but your options for selling become more and more limited the more damaged your stuff is.
So do you mean certain coins actually have already been circulated like soverigns, francs, pesos (im new and i dont even know what those coins are). So people used to use those coins like currency? Do they still use them like currency or not anymore? I found this mexico peso. was this coin used as currency and is it still used as currency today? http://www.apmex.com/product/158/mexico-gold-50-pesos-agw-1-2057-random-year Can you show any other examples of gold/silver coins that were (or still are) used as currency? Maybe I should start a new topic for this question?
I'd say you need to do a lot more homework first Yes older coins were used a currency & only modern coins have become "collectable " Like come in special & expansive packaging
