tozak said:
Also did I mention I stack 5c, 10c and 20c pieces for exactly this reason. It's like the $10 Sterling Silver coins, you can't loose, you have face value and a metal content approaching the face value. Safest investment to be in atm.
The few problems I have with this stacking strategy...
1. There is currently a non-industry market for silver, so anything with silver in it you can sell to the public as well as industry. Does the same market exist for Cupronickel? There are many alloys of CuNi, is this particular alloy used for anything other than coins? I know there are some marine applications for CuNi but is it the same alloy? If the only people who want this alloy are the coin makers, and they decide to make the coins out of a cheaper metal, then who are you going to sell to?
2. You can't separate the metals out at home. If you are super keen you can refine silver coins at home, along with other scrap silver. You can probably melt old coins into a bar but then what? The USA has laws to prevent you from melting the coins down and selling them for scrap. Silver coins you could hide in other silver scrap, but the coin alloy... harder to get away with.
3. You may end up with significant issues getting rid of the coins. Shops are only obliged to accept up to a certain amount in coins, and it isn't very high. Over in the USA, you get charged for depositing coins, or you have to roll them yourself for deposit.
4. The reason the metal content is approaching the face value is that the face value is pretty much worthless. If inflation continues then your face value stop loss is no longer significant.
5. You have money that is losing value due to inflation (Face Value), and gaining value due to inflation (metal content); looks to be a return-neutral investment. At the moment if you can buy 6 cents worth of metal for 5 cents then it looks like you are winning, but only if you can find someone to pay 6 cents for a 5 cent coin. Until you can sell it you are just losing money.
6. The space it takes up. I know this is used as a reason not to stack copper, and when the price of copper skyrockets then you will be rich. But stacking CuNi makes less sense than stacking Copper to me.
7. Relatively little numismatic upside to collecting these coins. The fact that I can remember to look out for the 1972 5 cents probably means that there isn't too much to remember in these series. I have set aside plenty of the 20 cent commemoratives though, these are probably the only ones I would stack and even I am getting a bit bored with 'Don Bradman', I haven't seen a 'United Nations' for many years but I always enjoy adding the Centenary of Federation coins to the stack. However I just saw four rolls of Centenary of Federation 20 cent coins go for $20 a roll (Catalogue value of $60). So I am in no doubt as to the true value of my circulated versions.
8. Production cost does not necessarily equal the value of the metals. You still have to pay for the refining, planchet manufacture, dies, minting, collection, storage and distribution. These would probably be about the same for any denomination and probably fairly fixed, so for the smaller coins, more of the cost would be in the manufacturing process than the metals. Probably means the higher denominations are not double the value of the smaller ones.
Having said all that, there are positives to stacking it.
1. The premiums are low, you can buy them at face value, there is no dealer mark-up.
2. Easy to get hold of, no need to travel or use the postal service so there are no handling costs.
3. Not much required in the way of security, no insurance premiums or safes required.
4. It is 'off the books' and easier to dispose of in unaccounted transactions. No requirement to show proof of purchase.
5. Not likely to be faked, unlike higher denominations.
I have got quite a few of the commemorative and low mintage 50 cents and I always put aside the commemorative 20 cents when I get them but it is getting to the stage when the cost of real estate to keep them would be better off used for storing books or clothes.