Generic rounds vs bars

P

pug

Member
What's your preference when you're buying and why? If you had to pick from generic bars of 10oz, 5oz, 1oz or tubes of 1 oz rounds what would you choose?

To start here's my 2c:

- generic bars often seem to have a simpler, less attractive design than rounds. Rounds can be nicer to look at than bars.
- smaller fractions usually cost a higher premium when buying (that you risk losing on reselling).
- buying a tube of rounds means I need to check all the rounds are ok to make sure I'm not getting ripped off.
- 5 and 10oz bars are easier to stack, and have less premium to lose on reselling?
- 5oz bars are harder to find than 10oz.

Your thoughts, tips and suggestions are appreciated...
 
Price per ounce is what you look for.
Sometimes 10 oz of rounds can cost the same a 10oz bar depending on where you make your purchase. If there is any difference is it the cost of a coffee ?
In Gemany the tax on bars is 19 % but on coins only 7% so coins can work out cheaper.
Rounds and coins can be sold fractionally compared to a bar.
 
The first thing you need to do is decide what your collecting/stacking objectives are. The "correct answer" to the eternal "What does it make sense for me to buy?" question has to be based on your objectives, will differ radically depending on what your objectives are and will pretty much be dictated by your objectives. What do you want to achieve with your PM purchases?

Photonaware raises a good point, too. Where you're located weighs heavily in determining that "correct answer." The UK VAT makes stacking gold a whole lot more sensible than stacking silver in the UK (unless paying inordinate taxes is one of your objectives). Your tax requirements on PM purchases need to be factored into determining your objectives.
 
Thanks for the responses.
@photonaware precisely! I'm looking for a good price per oz and hope to avoid complex numismatic related stuff.

@fatfreddy My objective for buying really is the long term increasing value of silver. Inflation hedge and insurance for a SHTF situation.


I'm mainly wondering what will be easier to resell down the road.

I'm thinking that it may be worth paying a bit of a premium over spot to get a more recognized name stamped on the bullion for a potentially higher resale and liquidity when it comes time to sell?
 
My personal preference is 10oz bars sometimes i buy 5oz'ers.
Easy to move and when bought in bulk the savings are good.
Thats the smallest i go aside from a few collectible 1oz bars

When time comes to sell up i dont like
having to sell individual 1oz bars/rounds In bulk

Im not a big believer in shtf scenarios with silver - however
I would like to add some fractional rounds to my collection in future
as a novelty/precaution item but i think food would be more of an asset in
those circumstances

But hey everyones got their reasons for stacking just do your own research & dont follow the crowd
 
Your objectives are largely the same as mine. If you stick with low-premium silver coins (ASEs, Maples, Philharmonics) and bars from known, respected and major private mints (Perth, Johnson-Matthey, SilverTowne, etc), I don't think you'll go wrong. I prefer governmentally-minted coins over rounds because I think they have better recognition and acceptance. The coins are also more liquid than 10oz bars.

One thing you didn't ask about that I think is of major importance these days is where to buy from. Since eBay is presently the main global haven for fakes, forgeries, counterfeits and scammers, my days of buying anything there are history. The combination of the high prices and the current flood of bad news merchandise make for an unacceptable situation that I'm not willing to enter into. I know they have their "buyer protection" thing, but it's not hard to find horror stories about that, either... I buy from local coin/PM dealers who've been well-established for many years and from major online coin/PM dealers. The prices I pay beat almost everything on eBay and I don't have to worry about buying plated Chinese tungsten.
 
Yeah have to admit going for the low premium stuff takes the guesswork out of resale. Curios or some of the more "collectable" coins and rounds can be a craps shoot.
 
Didn't say it above, but...

The one major problem with my "Keep It Simple" game-plan is the ever-present, all-pervading, gnawing temptation to get into the fancy/shiny/pretty higher-premium stuff like proofs, high relief coins, gilded coins, painted coins, Kooks, 'Roos, Pandas, Britannias, all that Lunar stuff, Mongolian wildlife, African wildlife, etc ad infinitum... That temptation eats away at me ALL the time and maintaining the self-discipline to continue resisting it is NO fun. But---the game-plan is the game-plan and if I change it 3x every week, it won't be a game-plan any more...
 
Fat Freddy said:
The coins are also more liquid than 10oz bars.
Click to expand...

I disagree. Here in Oz, at fair prices, I have found 10oz PM bars to be the most liquid form of silver. They hit the mark in the respect of recognition, affordability and premium.
I have found coins need to find a buyer willing to pay the premiums, which narrows the potential market.
 
i hate to point out the obvious... but the difference between generic silver bars or rounds is the shape.. one is a rectangle, and of cause the other is round.
 
Fat Freddy said:
........and I don't have to worry about buying plated Chinese tungsten.
Click to expand...

Do you believe the Chinese have a monopoly on plating Chinese Tungsten?
 
shinymetal said:
i hate to point out the obvious... but the difference between generic silver bars or rounds is the shape.. one is a rectangle, and of cause the other is round.
Click to expand...

More than that though.... what size do you think is the best to stack and why? 1 oz tube rounds? 5oz bars?

Also when buying generic, does anyone have any concern that they won't be able to resell at spot? Every now and then I come across dealers saying they buy "recognized" only at spot... and don't pay full spot for "unrecognized".
 
pug said:
shinymetal said:
i hate to point out the obvious... but the difference between generic silver bars or rounds is the shape.. one is a rectangle, and of cause the other is round.
Click to expand...

More than that though.... what size do you think is the best to stack and why? 1 oz tube rounds? 5oz bars?

Also when buying generic, does anyone have any concern that they won't be able to resell at spot? Every now and then I come across dealers saying they buy "recognized" only at spot... and don't pay full spot for "unrecognized".
Click to expand...

I personally like to stack 5 and 10 ounce bars..
not saying that i don't have some 1 ounce rounds and bars, and even a KG bar, and some other random craps...
i don't care that much, if the price goes up significantly and they are offering me a dollar or 2 bellow spot, i won't really care that much.
 
Luckyluke---No. Positively not a monopoly. A good, strong, dominant position=yes, but a monopoly=no.
wrcmad---When I made that statement about liquidity I meant from my end of it. I can sell anywhere from one to ten 1oz coins but with a 10oz bar, I either sell the entire 10oz bar or else I don't sell it.
renovator---I don't think Fort Knox is at all a player in plating tungsten. But--as for storing it, ????.
pug---That recognition vs resale consideration is why I prefer coins over rounds.
 
Bars definitely. Max metal for the money.

In the beginning I did my stack a disservice by wasting money on stupid f**ing coins whereas I could have had many more ounces in my stack. I see spending money on numismatic coins as being similar to stamp collecting.
 
10oz PM bars are fantastic low premium Silver, they're my favorite alongside PAMP 1kg.
 
pug said:
Thanks for the responses.
@photonaware precisely! I'm looking for a good price per oz and hope to avoid complex numismatic related stuff.

@fatfreddy My objective for buying really is the long term increasing value of silver. Inflation hedge and insurance for a SHTF situation.


I'm mainly wondering what will be easier to resell down the road.

I'm thinking that it may be worth paying a bit of a premium over spot to get a more recognized name stamped on the bullion for a potentially higher resale and liquidity when it comes time to sell?
Click to expand...

just record down the sale threads and see how long it took for the metals to find new homes.

coins with a bit of premium takes more time than bars with lesser premium.
premium bars will take more effort to find the buyers :lol: the special buyers!
selling when silver price is moving up will be much easier than when the price is being smacked. :rolleyes:
selling common silver when price is flat, its just too long.
 
If you can buy 5 oz, 10 oz, and even kilo coins at good prices compared to bars then they are lovely things to have and much more interesting than a "loaf" of silver.
Often the premium on larger coins is less and can be picked up for the same as bars. Shop around.
 
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