How would you handle this Accumulation...Update last post

Casman · October 16, 2012 6:11AM

Let's say you had 27 (5) Gallon Buckets of miscellaneous US coinage collected over the past 12 years. You want to convert to cash?

What would be the quickest way to accomplish that?

Edited for the nit picker..lol...

It was a client question. Thanks for the help.

fc · October 16, 2012 6:15AM

Is there any chance the buckets contain 90% silver coins?

I would sample a bucket to find out if it was worth it to get the silver out first.

Otherwise I would start by calling a few banks and asking if they could help.
Preferably a bank you have a relationship with. They have coin counter machines
and would probably not charge you if you made an appt (i think).

LindeDad · October 16, 2012 6:15AM

A lot of trips to the coin counter at the credit union. Mine sifts it out silver and foreign coins as you go just keep checking the reject slot.

fc · October 16, 2012 6:17AM

<< A lot of trips to the coin counter at the credit union. Mine sifts it out as you go just keep checking the reject slot.

>>

does it reject silver coins?

PerryHall · October 16, 2012 6:23AM

<< 

<< A lot of trips to the coin counter at the credit union. Mine sifts it out as you go just keep checking the reject slot.

>>

does it reject silver coins? >>

Most reject silver and I agree with this suggestion.

fc · October 16, 2012 6:28AM

answer supplied.

closing the thread. XXXXX

;-)

Crazy4Coins · October 16, 2012 6:29AM

Probably very little silver if collected over the last 12 years. I'm cashing in a 5 gallon jug now. I just went to my bank and asked for coin bags so I could deposit it without separating or rolling. They just ask that you do not put too much in one bag. Drop in a blank deposit ticket and a few days later credit is made to your account.

TomB · October 16, 2012 6:44AM

Over the last twelve years? I'd bring it to my bank and allow them to put it through their coin sorter and take the cash that way. There is a negligible chance of finding silver in this group and, even if a coin or two is silver, the time to go through all of it might not be worth it.

messydesk · October 16, 2012 6:46AM

If it's change collected over the past 12 years, I'd assume no silver and call my bank for instructions. 27 such buckets is a lot of change. If I do some approximate and somewhat sloppy calculations, a bag of cents weighing 35 pounds would fit in a 5 gallon bucket, which can hold 40 pounds of water, paint, or joint compound. 27 of these is $1350. Assuming (remember, I'm saying sloppy) nickels have the same density as copper cents, at 5 g each for a nickel and 3 g for a cent, the same bucket holds $150 in nickels. A mixture of dimes, quarters, and clad halves is $1 per 22 grams. Assuming the same density as nickels, that's about $680 for a bucket. 27 of those will require additional paperwork. If the mix is 60% cents, 20% nickels, and 20% bigger stuff, you have $30 in cents, $30 in nickels, and $130 in bigger stuff, which comes out to over $5000 in change.

MsMorrisine · October 16, 2012 7:07AM

silver half dollars can sneak through.

ColonelJessup · October 16, 2012 7:45AM

Perhaps nit-picking, but I consider a hoard to be a group of coins with some organizing principle.

This group would be more accurately described as an accumulation.

If the coins were all acquired in the past 12 years, the likelihood of any silver coins occuring is so miniscule that the labor of sorting them might mostly likely not being worth your time.

tightbudget · October 16, 2012 9:19AM

If I really had time, I'd pick them for the Wheats, silver, anything else good, etc.

But if he's just trying to dump them, find a bank that offers free coin counting (usually requires an account). Second best bet would be a Coinstar machine. I've never used one before but I think you can get no fee coin counting if you take a gift card to one of a few retailers instead of cash.

19Lyds · October 16, 2012 9:49AM

Holy Carp!

27...........5 gallon ...... buckets!

Thats a lotta stuff to go through but.............I'd begin by separating out the specific denominations into individual buckets 1st.
Then I'd start with the halves and work my way down the different denominations. This would enable the seller to at least pull out all the silver for sale.

Kennedy's and Washington's have some fairly rare varieties in their clad compositions and I for one, would search each and every one.

IF, the owner of said coins simply wanted to turn them in at face value, separating the denominations would make it a bit easier. I think.

I kinda wish I had this problem.

stealer · October 16, 2012 9:57AM

The machines do not always reject silver and thus is why people search bags that come off said machines.

I would recommend they hand sort if they want to guarantee that they pick out every piece of silver.

DeliaBug · October 16, 2012 9:58AM

DeliaBug · October 16, 2012 10:00AM

Casino trip!

Certainly not the quickest though.

PerryHall · October 16, 2012 10:06AM

<< The machines do not always reject silver and thus is why people search bags that come off said machines.

I would recommend they hand sort if they want to guarantee that they pick out every piece of silver. >>

Silver looks different enough from clad so you could spread groups of coins on a table and just look at them to see if any silver is visible. It'll be a lot quicker that checking each date.

ambro51 · October 16, 2012 10:46AM

Sort through them one by one with a 5x glass, Redbook and Cherrypickers Guide. Nice entertainment for the balance of ones life.

MICHAELDIXON · October 16, 2012 11:42AM

Take it to BB & T Bank and run it through their counting and sorting machine. If you have an account, there is no charge for it.

Buzzybest · October 16, 2012 11:45AM

<< >>

I read numistmatic books. Sometimes even in the bathroom!

Casman · October 17, 2012 4:24AM

The count has increased to 32 (5) Gallon Buckets. We called a few local banks and they weren't very helpful. They were complaining they can't take in that much.

I'll try to get a pic, the guys supposed to be bringing in a bucket.

Egger · October 17, 2012 4:31AM

Does the client have any kids, I would have them separate the by denominations. or just do a bucket every few days, if there is more than one branch of bank, make some trips.

Casman · October 17, 2012 7:46AM

Well, I wasn't there but the guy brought in 1 bucket, split in 2 because it was kinda heavy. My associate sent me a pic from his cell phone. We spoke with another bank and they suggested just pulling the quarters and sending the rest through coin star. If we get involved in it I can provide the final tally and maybe get some more pics of everything.

renomedphys · October 17, 2012 8:09AM

Some casinos offer free coin counting, but the guy behind the counter said they wouldn't take more than $1000 worth.

I empty out my kid's piggie bank every 18 months or so and usually get about $300 worth, all of which fits easily within a 1 gallon ziplock bag. And now I'm thinking, if it's $300 per gallon (actually more) then we're probably talking about a lot more than $5K for the whole lot. Like $40K more!

edited to add: $300 in random change is pretty darn heavy, and quite awkward to carry around.

GrumpyEd · October 17, 2012 8:25AM

I would open an account at a credit union that offers using a free coin counting machine (or a bank if there's one nearby that offers it).
Then I'd bring it in batches, maybe half a bucket and give it a quick search for wheats and silvers either before bringing each batch or as it's fed into the machine.

Being 12 years of change it's not likely to have much silver.

If it was mine I'd search for varieties but I like doing it, if the person has no enjoyment in searching then it's not worth the effort.

Casman · October 17, 2012 8:28AM

Thanks for all the advice. We have 3 casinos nearby in Detroit I'll check there as well and see what they have. And oh ya, go Tigers!!!

TwoSides2aCoin · October 17, 2012 8:55AM

Why waste a good hunt? Get hooked up with the local school and tell them you have a cirriculum called numismatics. Take a bucket each week and have the students sort , search, stack and roll or flip them. The more they study, the more they'll learn the value of money beyond what's just at face.

Just an idea.

DrBuster · October 17, 2012 10:34AM

One bucket at a time is probably the only way to do it. I've seen errors on coinstars with known amounts being put in for conversion.....penny or dime here and there on that much can annoy.

BaseballAbs · October 17, 2012 11:09AM

<< Sort through them one by one with a 5x glass, Redbook and Cherrypickers Guide. Nice entertainment for the balance of ones life. >>

Sounds great if your retired and you have a few years left.

Baley · October 18, 2012 9:16AM

We spoke with another bank and they suggested just pulling the quarters and sending the rest through coin star.

that is my advice as well, unless you or someone you know wants to enjoy handling it for a wage of less than what coinstar machines would charge you.

with that much, i'd probably consider skipping the first step and just dumping it in coinstar. What was the person thinking, that such an accumulation would be worth more than face?

it's worth less

ckrakowski · October 19, 2012 6:39AM

check for silver and Indian head cents and older obsolete coinage.

Casman · October 25, 2012 4:43AM

Update:

My buddy brought in a sampling in a 1 pint pail. Good grief...The coins are filthy...

I noticed only a few cents. The majority are quarters, and the rest are dimes and nickels. The coins were all recovered from the car masher. Quite a few are bent and mangled up and extremely dirty covered in gunk.

In 5 mintues of tilting the pail I pulled 4 Silver roosies, 2 merc's, a 2000 sac, a New Hampshire DOT token, and the rest, well, it's a mess and I was wearing a suit.

Doesn't look like coin stars gonna work with the bent stuff. The counts up to 42 (5) gallon buckets. The owner wants to convert to cash asap and said he'd split 50/50 with my buddy.

I said I'd help, but they gotta clean it up first. With that said, What's the easiest way to clean off a massive amount of coins? Soap and water? Dollar car wash power sprayer?

I'll try to upload some pics tomorrow for entertainment.

Bochiman · October 25, 2012 7:56AM

run 'em through a sifter with soapy water in a way like a gold panner would do......

originalisbest · October 25, 2012 8:17AM

<< Why waste a good hunt? Get hooked up with the local school and tell them you have a cirriculum called numismatics. Take a bucket each week and have the students sort , search, stack and roll or flip them. The more they study, the more they'll learn the value of money beyond what's just at face.

Just an idea. >>

Not that it's a bad idea in theory, but my sense of human nature is that you'd lose a significant % off the top in this scenario.

originalisbest · October 25, 2012 8:19AM

I would also say that, to get that much silver in just 5 minutes of looking, it might be worth your time to plow through it in small batches?

Casman · October 25, 2012 8:23AM

<< run 'em through a sifter with soapy water in a way like a gold panner would do...... >>

Thanks, I'll give that a try and upload some pics tomorrow night.

My buddy was gonna take them to the coin laundry but I told him that wasn't for that...I gotta imagine they'd be a little pissed if he threw a 5 gallon bucket in there.

What's the best way to straighten the bent ones? Sledge Hammer? Keep in mind there's likely over 100,000 coins to straighten.

Geez, I can't believe I'm asking these questions.

1tommy · October 25, 2012 8:28AM

Thats just crazy, I am sitting around all day and would gladly clean those coins..................for a hamburger today

Sound like alot of work but you need to find someone that has the time and winter is coming.......... Good luck...............

mrpotatoheadd · October 25, 2012 8:37AM

Where do I redeem Mutilated coins?

PDF link from the US Mint website with instructions on how to redeem mutilated coins.

edited to add... I'd imagine trying to straighten out bent coins reliably enough to not jam up a counting machine would be extremely time consuming and hardly worth the effort.

epcjimi1 · October 25, 2012 8:43AM

<< Update:

Quite a few are bent and mangled up and extremely dirty covered in gunk.

>>

I'd try an experiment with a solvent product type such as this, soak it in a solvent for a long period of time, rinse with soap and water, final rinse of just water. Srsly. Try it on a small batch. See what happens. Can't hurt to try.

mrpotatoheadd · October 25, 2012 8:49AM

How much do you suppose it'll cost to buy enough solvent to clean 100,000 coins? What do you do with the solvent afterwards? And even if it does work, you're left with 100,000 clean, bent coins.

epcjimi1 · October 25, 2012 8:56AM

<< How much do you suppose it'll cost to buy enough solvent to clean 100,000 coins? What do you do with the solvent afterwards? And even if it does work, you're left with 100,000 clean, bent coins. >>

A. Don't know, 55 gallon drum might get it done. B. Recycle it. C. I don't think they are all bent. D. Was just an idea, sounds like a bad one. Oh well.

michiganboy · October 25, 2012 9:38AM

Sounds like fun to me I want in. I spend a day smashing coins flat and cleaning for a chance to pick through for silver. Carborator cleaner and a large drum should get them clean.

mrpotatoheadd · October 25, 2012 10:59AM

<< C. I don't think they are all bent. >>

No- only about 100,000 of them:

"Keep in mind there's likely over 100,000 coins to straighten."

epcjimi1 · October 25, 2012 11:26AM

<< 

<< C. I don't think they are all bent. >>

No- only about 100,000 of them:

"Keep in mind there's likely over 100,000 coins to straighten." >>

D. Was just an idea, sounds like a bad one. Oh well.

mrpotatoheadd · October 25, 2012 11:43AM

Not trying to give anyone a hard time over this, but another consideration...

The federal minimum wage is $7.25. In order to make that much straightening coins, you'd have to be able to do 29 quarters in an hour- two minutes each- reliably enough to run through a counting machine without getting rejected or jamming the machine. And that's assuming you got the coins free of charge and they didn't need any other type of processing- like cleaning. Is that possible? I don't think I'd want to try to find out.

And when you finally run out of quarters and dimes, you'll need to be able to straighten 145 nickels an hour to maintain your pay rate...

michiganboy · October 25, 2012 12:06PM

<< Not trying to give anyone a hard time over this, but another consideration...

The federal minimum wage is $7.25. In order to make that much straightening coins, you'd have to be able to do 29 quarters in an hour- two minutes each- reliably enough to run through a counting machine without getting rejected or jamming the machine. And that's assuming you got the coins free of charge and they didn't need any other type of processing- like cleaning. Is that possible? I don't think I'd want to try to find out.

And when you finally run out of quarters and dimes, you'll need to be able to straighten 145 nickels an hour to maintain your pay rate...

>>

Most of us here have probably worked for less at sometime and OP said he found silver and a token in a small sample that sounds like there would be more then minimum wage at the end of this and possible a cool treasure search. Metal detectorists spend way more time and come up with way less.

DeliaBug · October 25, 2012 12:21PM

So 40+ buckets of coins, with many bent that went through a car crusher and are all greasy from laying at the bottom, and you get 50% and do all the work. Sweet deal for the other guy.

If I was in your situation, I would go back and explain that after some investigation it would not be worth your time unless your take is 75% or you will have to move on. It will be an unbelievable amount of work.

When I was younger I worked in a salvage yard and there is a reason no one took the coins out of the bottom of the crusher.

Baley · October 26, 2012 1:19AM

<< Update:

My buddy brought in a sampling in a 1 pint pail. Good grief...The coins are filthy...

I noticed only a few cents. The majority are quarters, and the rest are dimes and nickels. The coins were all recovered from the car masher. Quite a few are bent and mangled up and extremely dirty covered in gunk.

In 5 mintues of tilting the pail I pulled 4 Silver roosies, 2 merc's, a 2000 sac, a New Hampshire DOT token, and the rest, well, it's a mess and I was wearing a suit.

Doesn't look like coin stars gonna work with the bent stuff. The counts up to 42 (5) gallon buckets. The owner wants to convert to cash asap and said he'd split 50/50 with my buddy.

I said I'd help, but they gotta clean it up first. With that said, What's the easiest way to clean off a massive amount of coins? Soap and water? Dollar car wash power sprayer?

I'll try to upload some pics tomorrow for entertainment. >>

wow, this new development makes it an even worse situation than if they were normal change, however the chance at silver sweetens it a little bit.

Maybe consider bagging it up by the pound or two and selling the bags "unsearched" on ebay with the story of their origin.

If you're set on cleaning them up and mining them, consider renting one of those portable cement mixers that will mix a bag or two of concrete, and cleaning them by the bucket with some water and detergent/degreaser by tumbling them for a while, then spread them out on a tarp, hose them off, and scan for silver, dollar coins, anything of value.

then cull all the worst of the mangled coins and those that are still sticky, and run the rest through a Coinstar, which will kick out most of the silver and foreign, but take most of the wheat cents.

No matter what, sounds like a tremendous amount of work for even one 5 gallon bucket of this mess, never mind 42 of them. The bent coins are going to be more trouble than they're worth

Casman · October 26, 2012 2:02AM

Well, this definately looks like more hassle then it's worth. In any event I went through the pail and here's the results:

A total of 7 Silver dimes, found 1 more dated 1952.

$37 Dollars in quarters

$33.40 in dimes

1 Sacajawea Dollar

1 Half Dollar

$1.25 in Nickles

6 Lincoln cents.

approx 25 tokens and a few foreign coins.

I'm gonna recommend they seperate the coins and make a trip to PA.

messydesk · October 26, 2012 2:33AM

<< I'm gonna recommend they seperate the coins and make a trip to PA. >>

Good recommendation.

How would you handle this Accumulation...Update last post

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