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Do you pour?
Bcookie
Posts: 57 ✭✭
I have been stacking for a few months and I would like to get into pouring my own bars.. I think it would be fun and if I can make a few dollars selling them then it can help finance my personal purchases.
Have you poured silver? if so, any tips? and show your handy work.
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I have thought hard on doing this. Have never done it as the dies are not easy to create. Pouring is the easy part but who would pay extra for a loaf by me? It would have to be an interesting subject matter and done in enough quantity that there is $$$ enough to make it worth your while.
If you have a "unique" idea and can pull it off it may work.....maybe.
There was a forum member who did tiny poured bread loaves but did not do them for long as the market for them was so slim...have not seen anyone else doing it.
Good luck,
bob
There was a forum member who did tiny poured bread loaves but did not do them for long as the market for them was so slim...have not seen anyone else doing it.
Good luck,
bob
That forum member is "no longer with us," but he did manage to convince a few forumites to purchase his home made stuff. Perhaps some of them will make a comment.
Pour some copper , melt some pennies if you don't have any scrap . You can find info on youtube about making your own crucibles with common items like propane torches , hairdryers and whatnot.
I'm not saying you are going to make money but it would be smart to practice with copper before trying silver
One thing to consider…if you try to sell these to the average Joe or Jane on the street, being able to ‘prove’ that the bars really are silver may be a challenge, regardless of what is stamped on them. That alone pretty much convinced me that it would not be worth the effort. Now, if you want to make some for personal use that is a completely different story.
i have been looking at ebay and youtube.. its funny because there seems to be a premium for "pour lines". just tap the mold while you pour and there you have it.. I bought 2 ounces of shot to try out.. if nothing, it will keep stacking interesting.. you an only go so far building your stack before you get bored.
Unless a bar was produced by a recognized mainstream refiner, I wouldn't buy it. Also, it would be difficult to sell a homemade silver bar to anyone other than a refiner that buys scrap metals since such a bar would require an assay to be performed before payment could be made..
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
Doing it as a hobby or to create something to keep then go for it.As financing means probably not.A lot of variables would arise trying to sell them.Proving genuine is biggest.You would be trying to make your profit off of premiums and if there's no demand there's no premiums.
BST references several
I think it could be an admirable experiment but I would not see it as a means of making money, many home projects like this actually end up costing money but are good educational endeavors.
Successful transactions with : MICHAELDIXON, Manorcourtman, Bochiman, bolivarshagnasty, AUandAG, onlyroosies, chumley, Weiss, jdimmick, BAJJERFAN, gene1978, TJM965, Smittys, GRANDAM, JTHawaii, mainejoe, softparade, derryb
Bad transactions with : nobody to date
I poured lead bullets for a while from scrap wheel weights etc.. That was worth it when I was doing my own reloading... Never tried silver or gold... I would only do that if I were making something personal, such as jewelry or to commemorate a family event. Otherwise, difficult liquidity... Cheers, RickO
@ricko
That would be helpful here, illegal to order lead bullets on the internet, not cartidges but just the lead.!?
Successful transactions with : MICHAELDIXON, Manorcourtman, Bochiman, bolivarshagnasty, AUandAG, onlyroosies, chumley, Weiss, jdimmick, BAJJERFAN, gene1978, TJM965, Smittys, GRANDAM, JTHawaii, mainejoe, softparade, derryb
Bad transactions with : nobody to date
PS
Saw a wheel weight yesterday in the parking lot and thought................ it has been years since I saw one on the pavement.
Successful transactions with : MICHAELDIXON, Manorcourtman, Bochiman, bolivarshagnasty, AUandAG, onlyroosies, chumley, Weiss, jdimmick, BAJJERFAN, gene1978, TJM965, Smittys, GRANDAM, JTHawaii, mainejoe, softparade, derryb
Bad transactions with : nobody to date
Really??? We (in NYS) are not supposed to be able to buy ammunition on line (though some suppliers ignore it)... however, the components can still be purchased. Did not know that about Massachusetts... Cheers, RickO
Can not buy 'arrow heads' either, last time I checked.
Successful transactions with : MICHAELDIXON, Manorcourtman, Bochiman, bolivarshagnasty, AUandAG, onlyroosies, chumley, Weiss, jdimmick, BAJJERFAN, gene1978, TJM965, Smittys, GRANDAM, JTHawaii, mainejoe, softparade, derryb
Bad transactions with : nobody to date
Pouring silver it tougher than gold for some reason. Even with a heated mold it doesn't like to pour into a shape nicely.
I run two induction furnaces a 1kg and 3kg machine, both are water cooled. Quality equipment is not for the faint of heart, or pocket book. I believe I have around 35-40K invested in the furnaces, crucibles, cooling system, air filtration and all the little things that go with it.
In the market for a larger setup though. Something where I can melt 250-500 oz of silver at a time. This is just for assaying large lots of scrap I get in.
Well... I have to say it's not as easy as I thought
pouring into graphite? Are you preheating it?
Yeah, I poured into graphite.. I think the preheating is the issue. I only had the flame on it for a few seconds before I poured.. I need to get a smaller propane. Torch for the preheat while I melt.
this melting and pouring of silver is one of those things I always thought it would be fun to try.
am harboring no illusions that it would be anything other than difficult, frustrating, and non-profitable
Liberty: Parent of Science & Industry
I did a pour of Glenmorangie just now and a 70 dwt sterling cast this morning. Both turned out perfect.
But back to the OP post. I suspect few if any would trust an unknown purity for which you propose to pay any premium.
Got quoins?
Today I sold the above 8.2 grams for $7.50. It carried a little premium. It is the prototype 1/1 double stamped 1/4 ounce bar.
Who the heck would buy that?
Knowledge is the enemy of fear
Why a collector of course...
This guy will pour whatever you want in .999 silver. Bars, figures, etc. He's also branching into copper and gold.
http://www.barrelylivingsilvercasting.com/
Insert witicism here. [ xxx ]
Real classy site and products
The member who poured the mini bread loaf silver bars was me. They were wildly successful here in this forum, and if memory serves me right, I produced and sold about 100 of them here. They varied in size from 14 grams to 18 grams I believe, and each was stamped with weight and purity. I used .999 shot from APMEX exclusively and a small electric kiln with crucibles. Poured them into graphite molds, then stamped them with a custom made hardened steel stamp. They were so popular in fact, that I went on to produce a very limited quantity (20 pieces) of 2.5oz poured bars which all sold out before the 1st one was even poured. The entire process was very fun, yet very time consuming. I worked in a mark-up of about 30% over melt on the bars to help cover my costs (molds, kiln, custom stamp, etc) and ONLY did them for members of the forum as a fun adventure of sorts. As someone mentioned above, the market for something like those bars outside this forum would be very limited. People here bought them because they knew who I was, and with such small sizes, nobody got hurt on the premiums. It was a fun exercise, but not one I would do again.
Yo gecko. I bought two of them mini loaves. Unfortunately I bought a coin shop after that , and the mini -bars sold. I got my money back (lol) ... and if I recall, they had birth dates stamped into them. I had intended on giving them as gifts but the intended recipients showed little interest and disrespect. Win some, lose some. Those were the days, huh ? Nice to read ya again.
Gecko's back!
Yes, it was the lizzard! Good to hear from you and the results of your little experiment Gecko!
If I remember correctly your first pour did not go well.
You have not remembered correctly.
https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/comment/9652669#Comment_9652669
"If I remember correctly your FIRST pour did not go well."
I can't believe those were made in 2011. It seems more recent.
Kinda wish I would have picked one up back then...
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