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Why do dealers offer so far below melt for 90%? Why don't they just not buy it?

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  • dhikewhitneydhikewhitney Posts: 522 ✭✭✭✭

    @mr1931S said:

    @dhikewhitney said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @MasonG said:
    It's pretty simple, if you don't like the price you're offered, don't sell. Nobody is obligated to pay you the price you think you deserve.

    Too many sellers "don't shop around" to get best price for their silver and gold. 2/3 melt is unacceptable pay for 90% imo. Dealer that can't pay any more than that, time to fold the tent. I wonder if unwillingness to pay more than 2/3 or so for 90% resulted in a local shop doing exactly that, folding the tent.Their business of selling collector coins pretty much went to hell the last few years with the runup in silver and gold combined with poor customer service to the collector.

    How much will you pay for my 40% and 90% silver ?

    I won’t pay even 2/3 of melt at current silver prices. For uncirculated pre-1965 silver I would pay 1/4.

    I'm a coin collector, not a silver accumulator with $ signs in my eyes. Will you let me go through your 90% to cherrypick possible collectible pieces and then sell me those pieces I select for say, 10% above what you had to pay to acquire them?

    No, what I paid for them is irrelevant to the one who buys them. The price, as in real estate, is what both parties to the sale agree on. The market determines pricing and perceived value is often an illusion.

  • ColonialcoinColonialcoin Posts: 806 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @BAJJERFAN said:

    @PeakRarities said:
    Some of the largest refiners have either stopped accepting alloyed silver entirely, or theyre paying $15 back of melt....and thats with an 8 week settlement. Many B&M Dealers are on the verge of "shutting down" next week to process backlogged inventory and organize the mountains of silver that came in. Many are neck deep in inventory, capital has been almost entirely depleted with an unprecedented surge of sellers and with the current conditions theres too much risk for shops to lay out 50k to make $500 , so its a buyer's market.

    I remember when silver hit $50 some years back. My local dealer bought a bunch on a Saturday, but failed to sell it off at the end of the day. On Monday morning he took it in the shorts pretty good from what he said.

    Two dealers by me always bid back on Saturday for that very reason, unless they have a quick out.

  • HATTRICKHATTRICK Posts: 2,374 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @124Spider said:

    @HATTRICK said:

    @CaptHenway said:
    Some people might take the lower price, some won't. They are creating a market at realistic levels for market conditions.

    More like gouging the public for what they can get away with. Beat them down low, rip them off high.🤑🤑🤑👹

    So you believe that, if a dealer is getting all the junk silver he/she/they want, at, say, 2/3 of melt, they are somehow morally-bound to pay more, because "fair"?

    I don't. Nobody is forcing anybody to sell. Spot markets don't define the market for buying and selling junk 90% silver; what a willing buyer is ready to pay a willing seller does.

    Not bound to anything but over the decades what I have observed is buying at the lowest they can get away with. Price up, price down, volume up, volume down are just the excuses of the day. Do not sell to dealers like that .

    " If you push something hard enough, it will fall over. " The 1st Law of Opposition from The Firesign Theater
  • BAJJERFANBAJJERFAN Posts: 31,559 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @jmlanzaf said:

    @dcarr said:

    @jmlanzaf said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @dhikewhitney said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @MasonG said:
    It's pretty simple, if you don't like the price you're offered, don't sell. Nobody is obligated to pay you the price you think you deserve.

    Too many sellers "don't shop around" to get best price for their silver and gold. 2/3 melt is unacceptable pay for 90% imo. Dealer that can't pay any more than that, time to fold the tent. I wonder if unwillingness to pay more than 2/3 or so for 90% resulted in a local shop doing exactly that, folding the tent.Their business of selling collector coins pretty much went to hell the last few years with the runup in silver and gold combined with poor customer service to the collector.

    How much will you pay for my 40% and 90% silver ?

    I won’t pay even 2/3 of melt at current silver prices. For uncirculated pre-1965 silver I would pay 1/4.

    I'm a coin collector, not a silver accumulator with $ signs in my eyes. Will you let me go through your 90% to cherrypick possible collectible pieces and then sell me those pieces I select for say, 10% above what you had to pay to acquire them?

    No $ signs in your eyes - but you want to "cherrypick". Bit of an inconsistency there.

    If you are going to buy one quarter for 10% over what I paid, I think I'll pass on you wasting my time for $1.50

    .

    I don't see any problem in wanting to collect and save one coin (or a few coins) from being melted.

    .

    I didn't say there was a problem with it. But, as you know, volume customers get the discount. My having to sit there and let you pick through inventory rather than instantly ship it out creates risk for which he is expecting a preferred price.

    I see no problem with his request. He (and you) should also see no problem with why I would refuse the request if it adds risk and no profit for $1.50

    Would it be worth your time to sort through say $100 in circ Walkers in order to find something that might be worth more to a collector because of condition? Like this one, but ANY common date. I expect that in many cases the Walkers would have been sorted before they were ever offered to you.

    I remember one local dealer saying that they picked out the better stuff, but that was then.

    theknowitalltroll;
  • Coin FinderCoin Finder Posts: 7,625 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Lots of good info here on this thread.

    Lots of folks who bought silver at $20 are selling and converting profits to gold.

    All shops in my area are no longer buying silver, but buying and selling gold..

  • BAJJERFANBAJJERFAN Posts: 31,559 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited January 24, 2026 8:17AM

    @mr1931S said:

    @dhikewhitney said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @MasonG said:
    It's pretty simple, if you don't like the price you're offered, don't sell. Nobody is obligated to pay you the price you think you deserve.

    Too many sellers "don't shop around" to get best price for their silver and gold. 2/3 melt is unacceptable pay for 90% imo. Dealer that can't pay any more than that, time to fold the tent. I wonder if unwillingness to pay more than 2/3 or so for 90% resulted in a local shop doing exactly that, folding the tent.Their business of selling collector coins pretty much went to hell the last few years with the runup in silver and gold combined with poor customer service to the collector.

    How much will you pay for my 40% and 90% silver ?

    I won’t pay even 2/3 of melt at current silver prices. For uncirculated pre-1965 silver I would pay 1/4.

    I'm a coin collector, not a silver accumulator with $ signs in my eyes. Will you let me go through your 90% to cherrypick possible collectible pieces and then sell me those pieces I select for say, 10% above what you had to pay to acquire them?

    If you want to search and cherrypick I would suggest that you go out and buy the largest bag [maybe $1000 worth] of 90%, and search that as those are the least likely to have been searched. You want bags that have changed hands without ever having been opened.

    theknowitalltroll;
  • jesbrokenjesbroken Posts: 11,036 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Probably, for the same reason some sellers ask moon money for their items. Hopefully, someone sells the bullion to them at their price.
    Jim


    When a man who is honestly mistaken hears the truth, he will either quit being mistaken or cease to be honest....Abraham Lincoln

    Patriotism is supporting your country all the time, and your government when it deserves it.....Mark Twain
  • jmlanzafjmlanzaf Posts: 39,015 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @BAJJERFAN said:

    @jmlanzaf said:

    @dcarr said:

    @jmlanzaf said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @dhikewhitney said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @MasonG said:
    It's pretty simple, if you don't like the price you're offered, don't sell. Nobody is obligated to pay you the price you think you deserve.

    Too many sellers "don't shop around" to get best price for their silver and gold. 2/3 melt is unacceptable pay for 90% imo. Dealer that can't pay any more than that, time to fold the tent. I wonder if unwillingness to pay more than 2/3 or so for 90% resulted in a local shop doing exactly that, folding the tent.Their business of selling collector coins pretty much went to hell the last few years with the runup in silver and gold combined with poor customer service to the collector.

    How much will you pay for my 40% and 90% silver ?

    I won’t pay even 2/3 of melt at current silver prices. For uncirculated pre-1965 silver I would pay 1/4.

    I'm a coin collector, not a silver accumulator with $ signs in my eyes. Will you let me go through your 90% to cherrypick possible collectible pieces and then sell me those pieces I select for say, 10% above what you had to pay to acquire them?

    No $ signs in your eyes - but you want to "cherrypick". Bit of an inconsistency there.

    If you are going to buy one quarter for 10% over what I paid, I think I'll pass on you wasting my time for $1.50

    .

    I don't see any problem in wanting to collect and save one coin (or a few coins) from being melted.

    .

    I didn't say there was a problem with it. But, as you know, volume customers get the discount. My having to sit there and let you pick through inventory rather than instantly ship it out creates risk for which he is expecting a preferred price.

    I see no problem with his request. He (and you) should also see no problem with why I would refuse the request if it adds risk and no profit for $1.50

    Would it be worth your time to sort through say $100 in circ Walkers in order to find something that might be worth more to a collector because of condition? Like this one, but ANY common date. I expect that in many cases the Walkers would have been sorted before they were ever offered to you.

    I remember one local dealer saying that they picked out the better stuff, but that was then.

    Generally, no. I do look at halves because it's quick and easy. I don't look at dimes or Washington quarters. Especially now. AU mercs are bullion

    All comments reflect the opinion of the author, even when irrefutably accurate.

  • MasonGMasonG Posts: 6,581 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @dhikewhitney said:

    @mr1931S said:
    I'm a coin collector, not a silver accumulator with $ signs in my eyes. Will you let me go through your 90% to cherrypick possible collectible pieces and then sell me those pieces I select for say, 10% above what you had to pay to acquire them?

    No, what I paid for them is irrelevant to the one who buys them.

    Yep. If you found a 55 doubled die searching rolls of cents from the bank, would you sell it to me with a price based on your cost of one cent?

  • jmlanzafjmlanzaf Posts: 39,015 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @MasonG said:

    @dhikewhitney said:

    @mr1931S said:
    I'm a coin collector, not a silver accumulator with $ signs in my eyes. Will you let me go through your 90% to cherrypick possible collectible pieces and then sell me those pieces I select for say, 10% above what you had to pay to acquire them?

    No, what I paid for them is irrelevant to the one who buys them.

    Yep. If you found a 55 doubled die searching rolls of cents from the bank, would you sell it to me with a price based on your cost of one cent?

    Yes

    All comments reflect the opinion of the author, even when irrefutably accurate.

  • logger7logger7 Posts: 9,448 ✭✭✭✭✭

    AZ is paying -$11 spot for 90% face, which is probably reasonable and 85% on Morgans: https://www.azcoinexchange.com/BuyList.htm

  • MaineJimMaineJim Posts: 820 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Since silver hit $100 I decided to stop at the local store yesterday, not a pawn shop but a "we buy/sell gold/silver" location. It is a rather large location where they had a display on the wall showing realtime spot prices.

    I only had a small bag of scrap sterling oddities, weighed out at 7.4 ounces. There were five people working behind the counters in a section designated for jewelry and misc. stuff. There was a line of people waiting to be helped. Another section was there just for coins. To my right there was a lady with multiple large plastic containers filled with gold jewelry so I was a really small fry.

    I was a bit amazed at the quantities being sold there by mostly women. My stuff was really just junk but it was all marked sterling.

    Anyways - at my turn the women who helped me said it was crazy there just non-stop all day and that they would need to pay me in cash. I asked what they were paying for 90% junk coins and she said she didn't know, that I'd need to go to the coin counter.

    I asked her what they would pay for five pounds of sterling flatware as that was next on my list to bring in if I felt satisfied with this sale. She said a bit less per ounce and that I might want to look up a refinery for that much. On the way out the coin desk person said $53 per dollar for the 90% and $20 for 40%.

    In the end I was fine with the $438 they paid me since it was all yard sale/goodwill items that I'd paid almost nothing for. I'm not sure if I'll bring in the rest of my silver stack but it sure was easy and I know that that is what you are paying for in these places.
    Jim

  • @CaptHenway said:
    During the last weeks of the Hunt Brothers bubble American refiners were backed up at least six weeks. They would accept silver for refining, (refining was necessary because the people desperate to cover contract silver owed to the Hunt Brothers had to deliver it in .999 form) but would not pay the depositors until the refining was done, and then they would only pay at the silver market price in effect on the day of settlement, not the day of the deposit. If the market had crashed in the meantime, as ultimately happened, the depositors stood to lose a lot of money.

    European refineries were not as busy. A guy I worked with at Harlan J. Berk in Chicago had worked for Rarcoa at that location during the Hunt Brothers bubble. He told me how once a week they would ship about a ton of silver AIR FREIGHT to Switzerland to be refined, and one of the staff would have to fly there to handle the deposit. That air freight and that air fare was not cheap, but they got their settlement in a few days rather than weeks, and were left holding relatively little silver when the crash finally happened. They paid for that air freight and that air fare by buying silver well back of spot.

    So, what we are seeing is called "Reality."

    I had a similar experience in 1979/80......I was selling scrap to handy and harmon....would not price until day before melt....sold all my 90% to Teachers Precious Metals in NY...Joel paid the most $$$$ and quick check....those were the days!!

  • MasonGMasonG Posts: 6,581 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @jmlanzaf said:

    @MasonG said:

    @dhikewhitney said:

    @mr1931S said:
    I'm a coin collector, not a silver accumulator with $ signs in my eyes. Will you let me go through your 90% to cherrypick possible collectible pieces and then sell me those pieces I select for say, 10% above what you had to pay to acquire them?

    No, what I paid for them is irrelevant to the one who buys them.

    Yep. If you found a 55 doubled die searching rolls of cents from the bank, would you sell it to me with a price based on your cost of one cent?

    Yes

    Cool. I'll double your money. Here's two cents. :)

  • mr1931Smr1931S Posts: 6,692 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @jmlanzaf said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @dhikewhitney said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @MasonG said:
    It's pretty simple, if you don't like the price you're offered, don't sell. Nobody is obligated to pay you the price you think you deserve.

    Too many sellers "don't shop around" to get best price for their silver and gold. 2/3 melt is unacceptable pay for 90% imo. Dealer that can't pay any more than that, time to fold the tent. I wonder if unwillingness to pay more than 2/3 or so for 90% resulted in a local shop doing exactly that, folding the tent.Their business of selling collector coins pretty much went to hell the last few years with the runup in silver and gold combined with poor customer service to the collector.

    How much will you pay for my 40% and 90% silver ?

    I won’t pay even 2/3 of melt at current silver prices. For uncirculated pre-1965 silver I would pay 1/4.

    I'm a coin collector, not a silver accumulator with $ signs in my eyes. Will you let me go through your 90% to cherrypick possible collectible pieces and then sell me those pieces I select for say, 10% above what you had to pay to acquire them?

    No $ signs in your eyes - but you want to "cherrypick". Bit of an inconsistency there.

    If you are going to buy one quarter for 10% over what I paid, I think I'll pass on you wasting my time for $1.50

    I don't believe i asked for your opinion but since you gave it anyway---there is nothing inconsistent about my use of the word "cherrypick" in the context of me finding suitable, collectible examples out of a batch of so-called "junk" 90% silver. Collecting is not all about $s with me.

    "Great spirits have always been met with violent opposition by mediocre minds."
    Albert Einstein

  • jmlanzafjmlanzaf Posts: 39,015 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @mr1931S said:

    @jmlanzaf said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @dhikewhitney said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @MasonG said:
    It's pretty simple, if you don't like the price you're offered, don't sell. Nobody is obligated to pay you the price you think you deserve.

    Too many sellers "don't shop around" to get best price for their silver and gold. 2/3 melt is unacceptable pay for 90% imo. Dealer that can't pay any more than that, time to fold the tent. I wonder if unwillingness to pay more than 2/3 or so for 90% resulted in a local shop doing exactly that, folding the tent.Their business of selling collector coins pretty much went to hell the last few years with the runup in silver and gold combined with poor customer service to the collector.

    How much will you pay for my 40% and 90% silver ?

    I won’t pay even 2/3 of melt at current silver prices. For uncirculated pre-1965 silver I would pay 1/4.

    I'm a coin collector, not a silver accumulator with $ signs in my eyes. Will you let me go through your 90% to cherrypick possible collectible pieces and then sell me those pieces I select for say, 10% above what you had to pay to acquire them?

    No $ signs in your eyes - but you want to "cherrypick". Bit of an inconsistency there.

    If you are going to buy one quarter for 10% over what I paid, I think I'll pass on you wasting my time for $1.50

    I don't believe i asked for your opinion but since you gave it anyway---there is nothing inconsistent about my use of the word "cherrypick" in the context of me finding suitable, collectible examples out of a batch of so-called "junk" 90% silver. Collecting is not all about $s with me.

    You might want to check the definition of "Cherrypick". It has "profit" right in it.

    All comments reflect the opinion of the author, even when irrefutably accurate.

  • MasonGMasonG Posts: 6,581 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @jmlanzaf said:
    You might want to check the definition of "Cherrypick". It has "profit" right in it.

    A dealer once told me the reason he didn't like cherrypickers going through his stuff is because he could have the exact coin they're looking for in his case but they wouldn't buy it because they didn't want to pay retail for it.

  • silverman68silverman68 Posts: 556 ✭✭✭

    If you can get an offer of no more than $15 below melt on 90% you should take it. Dealers are putting out thousands of dollars and need the spread for safety.

  • jmlanzafjmlanzaf Posts: 39,015 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @MasonG said:

    @jmlanzaf said:
    You might want to check the definition of "Cherrypick". It has "profit" right in it.

    A dealer once told me the reason he didn't like cherrypickers going through his stuff is because he could have the exact coin they're looking for in his case but they wouldn't buy it because they didn't want to pay retail for it.

    I think there's a lot of truth to this. I see it a lot with minor varieties. I rarely see them sell for what the CPG says they should be worth. Everyone wants to cherrypick them.

    Personally, I don't care if they cherrypick me. But it can be frustrating if you are busy at a show and someone wants to look through your entire inventory and buys nothing. But that's why I prefer ebay to shows. They can cherrypick on their own time.

    All comments reflect the opinion of the author, even when irrefutably accurate.

  • MFeldMFeld Posts: 15,948 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @jmlanzaf said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @jmlanzaf said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @dhikewhitney said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @MasonG said:
    It's pretty simple, if you don't like the price you're offered, don't sell. Nobody is obligated to pay you the price you think you deserve.

    Too many sellers "don't shop around" to get best price for their silver and gold. 2/3 melt is unacceptable pay for 90% imo. Dealer that can't pay any more than that, time to fold the tent. I wonder if unwillingness to pay more than 2/3 or so for 90% resulted in a local shop doing exactly that, folding the tent.Their business of selling collector coins pretty much went to hell the last few years with the runup in silver and gold combined with poor customer service to the collector.

    How much will you pay for my 40% and 90% silver ?

    I won’t pay even 2/3 of melt at current silver prices. For uncirculated pre-1965 silver I would pay 1/4.

    I'm a coin collector, not a silver accumulator with $ signs in my eyes. Will you let me go through your 90% to cherrypick possible collectible pieces and then sell me those pieces I select for say, 10% above what you had to pay to acquire them?

    No $ signs in your eyes - but you want to "cherrypick". Bit of an inconsistency there.

    If you are going to buy one quarter for 10% over what I paid, I think I'll pass on you wasting my time for $1.50

    I don't believe i asked for your opinion but since you gave it anyway---there is nothing inconsistent about my use of the word "cherrypick" in the context of me findingp suitable, collectible examples out of a batch of so-called "junk" 90% silver. Collecting is not all about $s with me.

    You might want to check the definition of "Cherrypick". It has "profit" right in it.

    I don’t believe he asked you to reply to his post.😈

    😉

    Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.

  • cladkingcladking Posts: 29,510 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @logger7 said:
    AZ is paying -$11 spot for 90% face, which is probably reasonable and 85% on Morgans: https://www.azcoinexchange.com/BuyList.htm

    Littleton is paying nice premiums on VG and better non-'21 morgans. Most dealers will pull out nice circulated coins for them to capture this premium if they have a substantial quantity to ship. This will save a lot of the best coins.

    tempus fugit extra philosophiam.
  • MasonGMasonG Posts: 6,581 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited January 24, 2026 1:49PM

    @jmlanzaf said:

    @MasonG said:

    @jmlanzaf said:
    You might want to check the definition of "Cherrypick". It has "profit" right in it.

    A dealer once told me the reason he didn't like cherrypickers going through his stuff is because he could have the exact coin they're looking for in his case but they wouldn't buy it because they didn't want to pay retail for it.

    I think there's a lot of truth to this. I see it a lot with minor varieties. I rarely see them sell for what the CPG says they should be worth. Everyone wants to cherrypick them.

    Personally, I don't care if they cherrypick me. But it can be frustrating if you are busy at a show and someone wants to look through your entire inventory and buys nothing. But that's why I prefer ebay to shows. They can cherrypick on their own time.

    I was at a show when the dealer told me that, almost his exact words. He was particularly unhappy about them taking up a seat, buying nothing, and preventing potential buyers from being able to view his cases.

    edited to add... And about this: "Everyone wants to cherrypick them", my brother asked me to sell a bunch of his Morgan VAMs through eBay. I warned him that if they weren't among the most popular varieties, buyers would probably not be willing to pay any more for them than for the regular date/mm. He priced them higher anyway, and eventually had to drop his prices to get them sold.

  • jmlanzafjmlanzaf Posts: 39,015 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited January 24, 2026 1:46PM

    @MFeld said:

    @jmlanzaf said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @jmlanzaf said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @dhikewhitney said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @MasonG said:
    It's pretty simple, if you don't like the price you're offered, don't sell. Nobody is obligated to pay you the price you think you deserve.

    Too many sellers "don't shop around" to get best price for their silver and gold. 2/3 melt is unacceptable pay for 90% imo. Dealer that can't pay any more than that, time to fold the tent. I wonder if unwillingness to pay more than 2/3 or so for 90% resulted in a local shop doing exactly that, folding the tent.Their business of selling collector coins pretty much went to hell the last few years with the runup in silver and gold combined with poor customer service to the collector.

    How much will you pay for my 40% and 90% silver ?

    I won’t pay even 2/3 of melt at current silver prices. For uncirculated pre-1965 silver I would pay 1/4.

    I'm a coin collector, not a silver accumulator with $ signs in my eyes. Will you let me go through your 90% to cherrypick possible collectible pieces and then sell me those pieces I select for say, 10% above what you had to pay to acquire them?

    No $ signs in your eyes - but you want to "cherrypick". Bit of an inconsistency there.

    If you are going to buy one quarter for 10% over what I paid, I think I'll pass on you wasting my time for $1.50

    I don't believe i asked for your opinion but since you gave it anyway---there is nothing inconsistent about my use of the word "cherrypick" in the context of me findingp suitable, collectible examples out of a batch of so-called "junk" 90% silver. Collecting is not all about $s with me.

    You might want to check the definition of "Cherrypick". It has "profit" right in it.

    I don’t believe he asked you to reply to his post.😈

    😉

    Did I ask you to reply? 🤣

    All comments reflect the opinion of the author, even when irrefutably accurate.

  • MFeldMFeld Posts: 15,948 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @jmlanzaf said:

    @MFeld said:

    @jmlanzaf said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @jmlanzaf said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @dhikewhitney said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @MasonG said:
    It's pretty simple, if you don't like the price you're offered, don't sell. Nobody is obligated to pay you the price you think you deserve.

    Too many sellers "don't shop around" to get best price for their silver and gold. 2/3 melt is unacceptable pay for 90% imo. Dealer that can't pay any more than that, time to fold the tent. I wonder if unwillingness to pay more than 2/3 or so for 90% resulted in a local shop doing exactly that, folding the tent.Their business of selling collector coins pretty much went to hell the last few years with the runup in silver and gold combined with poor customer service to the collector.

    How much will you pay for my 40% and 90% silver ?

    I won’t pay even 2/3 of melt at current silver prices. For uncirculated pre-1965 silver I would pay 1/4.

    I'm a coin collector, not a silver accumulator with $ signs in my eyes. Will you let me go through your 90% to cherrypick possible collectible pieces and then sell me those pieces I select for say, 10% above what you had to pay to acquire them?

    No $ signs in your eyes - but you want to "cherrypick". Bit of an inconsistency there.

    If you are going to buy one quarter for 10% over what I paid, I think I'll pass on you wasting my time for $1.50

    I don't believe i asked for your opinion but since you gave it anyway---there is nothing inconsistent about my use of the word "cherrypick" in the context of me findingp suitable, collectible examples out of a batch of so-called "junk" 90% silver. Collecting is not all about $s with me.

    You might want to check the definition of "Cherrypick". It has "profit" right in it.

    I don’t believe he asked you to reply to his post.😈

    😉

    Did I ask you to reply? 🤣

    No, but I know you wanted me to. And he didn’t want you to.😀

    Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.

  • jmlanzafjmlanzaf Posts: 39,015 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @MFeld said:

    @jmlanzaf said:

    @MFeld said:

    @jmlanzaf said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @jmlanzaf said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @dhikewhitney said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @MasonG said:
    It's pretty simple, if you don't like the price you're offered, don't sell. Nobody is obligated to pay you the price you think you deserve.

    Too many sellers "don't shop around" to get best price for their silver and gold. 2/3 melt is unacceptable pay for 90% imo. Dealer that can't pay any more than that, time to fold the tent. I wonder if unwillingness to pay more than 2/3 or so for 90% resulted in a local shop doing exactly that, folding the tent.Their business of selling collector coins pretty much went to hell the last few years with the runup in silver and gold combined with poor customer service to the collector.

    How much will you pay for my 40% and 90% silver ?

    I won’t pay even 2/3 of melt at current silver prices. For uncirculated pre-1965 silver I would pay 1/4.

    I'm a coin collector, not a silver accumulator with $ signs in my eyes. Will you let me go through your 90% to cherrypick possible collectible pieces and then sell me those pieces I select for say, 10% above what you had to pay to acquire them?

    No $ signs in your eyes - but you want to "cherrypick". Bit of an inconsistency there.

    If you are going to buy one quarter for 10% over what I paid, I think I'll pass on you wasting my time for $1.50

    I don't believe i asked for your opinion but since you gave it anyway---there is nothing inconsistent about my use of the word "cherrypick" in the context of me findingp suitable, collectible examples out of a batch of so-called "junk" 90% silver. Collecting is not all about $s with me.

    You might want to check the definition of "Cherrypick". It has "profit" right in it.

    I don’t believe he asked you to reply to his post.😈

    😉

    Did I ask you to reply? 🤣

    No, but I know you wanted me to. And he didn’t want you to.😀

    True

    All comments reflect the opinion of the author, even when irrefutably accurate.

  • MaywoodMaywood Posts: 3,850 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @Isica said: But why don't they just not continue to buy instead of offering prices that are often less than 2/3 of melt?

    2/3 of melt is .666, a 90% silver coin has a net pure silver content of .715ozt. Figure out the math for yourself but that dealer(s) has costs of operation and risk involved. It isn't unreasonable for him to make a profit

    "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety," --- Benjamin Franklin

  • 124Spider124Spider Posts: 1,155 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited January 24, 2026 2:50PM

    @HATTRICK said:

    @124Spider said:

    @HATTRICK said:

    @CaptHenway said:
    Some people might take the lower price, some won't. They are creating a market at realistic levels for market conditions.

    More like gouging the public for what they can get away with. Beat them down low, rip them off high.🤑🤑🤑👹

    So you believe that, if a dealer is getting all the junk silver he/she/they want, at, say, 2/3 of melt, they are somehow morally-bound to pay more, because "fair"?

    I don't. Nobody is forcing anybody to sell. Spot markets don't define the market for buying and selling junk 90% silver; what a willing buyer is ready to pay a willing seller does.

    Not bound to anything but over the decades what I have observed is buying at the lowest they can get away with. Price up, price down, volume up, volume down are just the excuses of the day. Do not sell to dealers like that .

    I'm pretty confused by your posts.

    First, you excoriate dealers for paying low prices, seeming to suggest that they should pay more.

    When I pushed back, you're now saying that they're not "bound" to do anything. But you note that they pay "the lowest they can get away with," as if that's a bad thing. Why would anybody expect them to pay more than that?

  • orevilleoreville Posts: 12,248 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I understand melt is .715 of face value of 90% junk silver

    A Collectors Universe poster since 1997!
  • MrEurekaMrEureka Posts: 24,580 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited January 24, 2026 4:19PM

    @oreville said:
    I understand melt is .715 of face value of 90% junk silver

    Just to help some people avoid confusion, $1 face of typical junk silver contains 0.715 ounces of actual silver. In reality, heavily worn silver has a little less than that, and uncirculated silver has a little more. But 0.715 is considered the industry standard when quoting prices.

    So if silver is trading at $100 an ounce, junk silver melts for roughly 71.5 times the face value, and these days would trade between dealers around 65X.

    If someone is offering 2/3 of melt, that would be 2/3 of 71.5, i.e., 47.67 times face. For a small quantity coming in over the counter at a coin shop, that’s probably a little cheap, but not obnoxiously so.

    Andy Lustig

    Doggedly collecting coins of the Central American Republic.

    Visit the Society of US Pattern Collectors at USPatterns.com.
  • bestdaybestday Posts: 4,266 ✭✭✭✭

    @lsica said:
    I do understand that getting rid of large quantities of silver can take a lot of time, so I understand why dealers are leery about having to sit on large stock in a potentially volatile market. But why don't they just not continue to buy instead of offering prices that are often less than 2/3 of melt?

    Margin enhancements .. Local B&M , a member here offered $37 for $1 face while JMB buy was $52

  • MasonGMasonG Posts: 6,581 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Lots of complaints about how different dealers offer different amounts. How about this- dealers all get together and decide on what they'll offer. Everyone pays the same, nobody pays more.

    Happy now?

  • GoldFinger1969GoldFinger1969 Posts: 3,274 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited January 24, 2026 4:56PM

    @CaptHenway said:
    Some people might take the lower price, some won't. They are creating a market at realistic levels for market conditions.

    I get that, CH...still....it's not 1980, with limited access to hedging and financial instruments. Even my LCS says he and his refiner hedge using COMEX. You can always short ETFs or other stuff.

    I understand a few dollars off spot when the price might go down sharply....but the discount now appears to be 25-30%, not 5-10%. :o

  • MasonGMasonG Posts: 6,581 ✭✭✭✭✭

    If the discount is too steep, don't sell. Problem solved. :)

  • 124Spider124Spider Posts: 1,155 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @MasonG said:
    If the discount is too steep, don't sell. Problem solved. :)

    You nailed it; seems pretty simple to me.

    Yes, I understand, and share, the frustration of having no idea how much I'm going to be offered. But, like everyone else, I have the free choice of taking it or leaving it.

  • DisneyFanDisneyFan Posts: 2,847 ✭✭✭✭✭

    How expensive would it be for a refiner to add another refinery "booth?"> @MasonG said:

    If the discount is too steep, don't sell. Problem solved. :)

    Sell your ETF instead.

  • lsicalsica Posts: 1,720 ✭✭✭✭

    @Maywood said:

    2/3 of melt is .666, a 90% silver coin has a net pure silver content of .715ozt. Figure out the math for yourself but that dealer(s) has costs of operation and risk involved. It isn't unreasonable for him to make a profit

    OK, to make this clear, I was talking about 2/3 of what the actual silver would be, ex: Silver @ $104/oz would be ~$74/$ face. I meant offering $50 instead.

    And also - this wasn't meant to be a question of morals or ethics, it was a question of if the silver market is so volatile and your time frame to sell it is so long and if you have so much anyway why buy it at all?

    Philately will get you nowhere....
  • MasonGMasonG Posts: 6,581 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @lsica said:
    And also - this wasn't meant to be a question of morals or ethics, it was a question of if the silver market is so volatile and your time frame to sell it is so long and if you have so much anyway why buy it at all?

    Dealers make their living buying and selling. They don't always get the opportunity to buy the kind of stuff they'd prefer but they'll still make offers on other items. Note that offers may or not may sound reasonable to the seller and it's up to him to decide whether or not to accept. With regards to the bullion market and "having so much anyway", that won't necessarily stop them from offering an amount where they feel they're not exposed to excessive risk. Again, it's up to the seller to decide if he's satisfied with the offer or not.

  • BLUEJAYWAYBLUEJAYWAY Posts: 11,084 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @jmlanzaf said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @dhikewhitney said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @MasonG said:
    It's pretty simple, if you don't like the price you're offered, don't sell. Nobody is obligated to pay you the price you think you deserve.

    Too many sellers "don't shop around" to get best price for their silver and gold. 2/3 melt is unacceptable pay for 90% imo. Dealer that can't pay any more than that, time to fold the tent. I wonder if unwillingness to pay more than 2/3 or so for 90% resulted in a local shop doing exactly that, folding the tent.Their business of selling collector coins pretty much went to hell the last few years with the runup in silver and gold combined with poor customer service to the collector.

    How much will you pay for my 40% and 90% silver ?

    I won’t pay even 2/3 of melt at current silver prices. For uncirculated pre-1965 silver I would pay 1/4.

    I'm a coin collector, not a silver accumulator with $ signs in my eyes. Will you let me go through your 90% to cherrypick possible collectible pieces and then sell me those pieces I select for say, 10% above what you had to pay to acquire them?

    No $ signs in your eyes - but you want to "cherrypick". Bit of an inconsistency there.

    If you are going to buy one quarter for 10% over what I paid, I think I'll pass on you wasting my time for $1.50

    So if a new young collector came into your shop to make a single purchase you would turn him away? Not a great way to encourage new blood in the hobby.

    Successful transactions:Tookybandit. "Everyone is equal, some are more equal than others".
  • GoldFinger1969GoldFinger1969 Posts: 3,274 ✭✭✭✭✭

    The last 2 times silver crossed or approached $50 (1980, 2011) it lasted only days or weeks. So the fears by refiners that they would buy lots of metal at the highs and see the price 30-40% lower a few weeks later was understandable.

    But this time, the price has continued to rise -- the parabolic spike is accelerating -- and dealers who bought more at $55 or $65 or $75 or even $85...with or without a discount to their seller....did very well. A "collapse" now would take the price back to the $70's which is where they thought the collapse would START only a month ago.

    I know I sold some "junk silver" in late-December because I needed the $$$ for FUN. Silver was about $70 at that time and I got about $62 equivalent. I didn't like it, but my LCS always treats me fair...he told me his silver refiner was imposing the discount on him so he had to pass it off dollar-for-dollar. I understood.

    Incidentally, he bought a $35,000 hoard from an estate I referred to him in March when silver was about $32 or so. No discount at that time.

    He also told me that while the discounts are not as bad with gold, he's had to look far and wide to find another gold refiner who won't crush him (and force him to crush his clients)....he does alot of business with gold jewelry in addition to (worn) gold coins....said he was actually looking to an Italian refiner, not one in the states or the Tri-State NY area. :o

    It's the rapidity of the move in the metals that is causing the fear for the refiners/LCS/dealers. But there are so many hedging techniques available nowadays, I think the odds of getting caught buying at the top and being exposed are much lower, unless you get greedy and buy alot of metal and don't hedge.

  • jmlanzafjmlanzaf Posts: 39,015 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited January 24, 2026 10:45PM

    @BLUEJAYWAY said:

    @jmlanzaf said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @dhikewhitney said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @MasonG said:
    It's pretty simple, if you don't like the price you're offered, don't sell. Nobody is obligated to pay you the price you think you deserve.

    Too many sellers "don't shop around" to get best price for their silver and gold. 2/3 melt is unacceptable pay for 90% imo. Dealer that can't pay any more than that, time to fold the tent. I wonder if unwillingness to pay more than 2/3 or so for 90% resulted in a local shop doing exactly that, folding the tent.Their business of selling collector coins pretty much went to hell the last few years with the runup in silver and gold combined with poor customer service to the collector.

    How much will you pay for my 40% and 90% silver ?

    I won’t pay even 2/3 of melt at current silver prices. For uncirculated pre-1965 silver I would pay 1/4.

    I'm a coin collector, not a silver accumulator with $ signs in my eyes. Will you let me go through your 90% to cherrypick possible collectible pieces and then sell me those pieces I select for say, 10% above what you had to pay to acquire them?

    No $ signs in your eyes - but you want to "cherrypick". Bit of an inconsistency there.

    If you are going to buy one quarter for 10% over what I paid, I think I'll pass on you wasting my time for $1.50

    So if a new young collector came into your shop to make a single purchase you would turn him away? Not a great way to encourage new blood in the hobby.

    That is not what I said, but thanks for changing the argument. Maybe read the whole thread.

    Anyone can come in and pay my price for anything. But you are not entitled to come in and set the price and then also waste my time for hours. And that MAY include a YN, although I've yet to have a YN come up and spend hours of my time, cherry pick my junk silver and also set the price. Mr. Harsche is not a YN.

    All comments reflect the opinion of the author, even when irrefutably accurate.

  • BLUEJAYWAYBLUEJAYWAY Posts: 11,084 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Did read the complete thread. > @jmlanzaf said:

    @BLUEJAYWAY said:

    @jmlanzaf said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @dhikewhitney said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @MasonG said:
    It's pretty simple, if you don't like the price you're offered, don't sell. Nobody is obligated to pay you the price you think you deserve.

    Too many sellers "don't shop around" to get best price for their silver and gold. 2/3 melt is unacceptable pay for 90% imo. Dealer that can't pay any more than that, time to fold the tent. I wonder if unwillingness to pay more than 2/3 or so for 90% resulted in a local shop doing exactly that, folding the tent.Their business of selling collector coins pretty much went to hell the last few years with the runup in silver and gold combined with poor customer service to the collector.

    How much will you pay for my 40% and 90% silver ?

    I won’t pay even 2/3 of melt at current silver prices. For uncirculated pre-1965 silver I would pay 1/4.

    I'm a coin collector, not a silver accumulator with $ signs in my eyes. Will you let me go through your 90% to cherrypick possible collectible pieces and then sell me those pieces I select for say, 10% above what you had to pay to acquire them?

    No $ signs in your eyes - but you want to "cherrypick". Bit of an inconsistency there.

    If you are going to buy one quarter for 10% over what I paid, I think I'll pass on you wasting my time for $1.50

    So if a new young collector came into your shop to make a single purchase you would turn him away? Not a great way to encourage new blood in the hobby.

    That is not what I said, but thanks for changing the argument. Maybe read the whole thread.

    Anyone can come in and pay my price for anything. But you are not entitled to come in and set the price and then also waste my time for hours. And that MAY include a YN, although I've yet to have a YN come up and spend hours of my time, cherry pick my junk silver and also set the price. Mr. Harsche is not a YN.

    Did read the thread. People, as you know, interpret/see things differently. Not a universal rule.
    Was just curious how you deal with my stated example.
    Not to change the subject,"argument", what is the going rate for junk silver buy prices in your area?

    Successful transactions:Tookybandit. "Everyone is equal, some are more equal than others".
  • nwcoastnwcoast Posts: 2,888 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited January 25, 2026 12:03AM

    Just a note for those who might be curious;
    Went to a coin/jewelry shop here in Washington State and they were buying junk silver and paying 60x face. We have this new 10% sales tax on PM’s but they said if one did an exchange into another metal, the tax wouldn’t apply.
    Demand for gold had been very brisk and they were sold out of eagles, double eagles and other larger denomination rounds and bars. There were several customers selling silver and still a few others actively buying.

    Happy, humble, honored and proud recipient of the “You Suck” award 10/22/2014

  • mr1931Smr1931S Posts: 6,692 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Cambridge dictionary definition

    cherry-pick
    verb [ I or T ]
    uk /ˈtʃer.iˌpɪk/ us /ˈtʃer.iˌpɪk/

    to pick only the best people or things from a group, so that only people or things that are less good remain

    I have no more to say on this matter.

    "Great spirits have always been met with violent opposition by mediocre minds."
    Albert Einstein

  • blitzdudeblitzdude Posts: 7,427 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @lsica said:

    @Maywood said:

    2/3 of melt is .666, a 90% silver coin has a net pure silver content of .715ozt. Figure out the math for yourself but that dealer(s) has costs of operation and risk involved. It isn't unreasonable for him to make a profit

    OK, to make this clear, I was talking about 2/3 of what the actual silver would be, ex: Silver @ $104/oz would be ~$74/$ face. I meant offering $50 instead.

    And also - this wasn't meant to be a question of morals or ethics, it was a question of if the silver market is so volatile and your time frame to sell it is so long and if you have so much anyway why buy it at all?

    I suspect shops are in business to make money. So, they can either sit on the sidelines and offer to buy nothing and make no money at all or offer to buy at what the current market dictates and try to sell for a profit. Sounds like business 101 to me. If you don't like the current offers you are receiving don't sell and go look elsewhere. RGDS!

    The whole worlds off its rocker, buy Gold™.
    BOOMIN!™
    Wooooha! Did someone just say it's officially "TACO™" Tuesday????
    Retiring at 55, what day is today? :sunglasses:

  • VeepVeep Posts: 1,492 ✭✭✭✭

    “he told me his silver refiner was imposing the discount on him so he had to pass it off dollar-for-dollar. I understood“

    This is the crux of the whole issue. In addition, whatever that “dollar” is might change. It’s a moving target. Also, the refiner might stop buying at all. They are protecting themselves and that risk protection rolls right down the line. It’s up to each buyer to determine what the risk is worth to him.

    "Let me tell ya Bud, you can buy junk anytime!"
  • jmlanzafjmlanzaf Posts: 39,015 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @BLUEJAYWAY said:
    Did read the complete thread. > @jmlanzaf said:

    @BLUEJAYWAY said:

    @jmlanzaf said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @dhikewhitney said:

    @mr1931S said:

    @MasonG said:
    It's pretty simple, if you don't like the price you're offered, don't sell. Nobody is obligated to pay you the price you think you deserve.

    Too many sellers "don't shop around" to get best price for their silver and gold. 2/3 melt is unacceptable pay for 90% imo. Dealer that can't pay any more than that, time to fold the tent. I wonder if unwillingness to pay more than 2/3 or so for 90% resulted in a local shop doing exactly that, folding the tent.Their business of selling collector coins pretty much went to hell the last few years with the runup in silver and gold combined with poor customer service to the collector.

    How much will you pay for my 40% and 90% silver ?

    I won’t pay even 2/3 of melt at current silver prices. For uncirculated pre-1965 silver I would pay 1/4.

    I'm a coin collector, not a silver accumulator with $ signs in my eyes. Will you let me go through your 90% to cherrypick possible collectible pieces and then sell me those pieces I select for say, 10% above what you had to pay to acquire them?

    No $ signs in your eyes - but you want to "cherrypick". Bit of an inconsistency there.

    If you are going to buy one quarter for 10% over what I paid, I think I'll pass on you wasting my time for $1.50

    So if a new young collector came into your shop to make a single purchase you would turn him away? Not a great way to encourage new blood in the hobby.

    That is not what I said, but thanks for changing the argument. Maybe read the whole thread.

    Anyone can come in and pay my price for anything. But you are not entitled to come in and set the price and then also waste my time for hours. And that MAY include a YN, although I've yet to have a YN come up and spend hours of my time, cherry pick my junk silver and also set the price. Mr. Harsche is not a YN.

    Did read the thread. People, as you know, interpret/see things differently. Not a universal rule.
    Was just curious how you deal with my stated example.
    Not to change the subject,"argument", what is the going rate for junk silver buy prices in your area?

    The two people I talked to yesterday were at 60 and 65, respectively.

    All comments reflect the opinion of the author, even when irrefutably accurate.

  • jmlanzafjmlanzaf Posts: 39,015 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @Veep said:
    “he told me his silver refiner was imposing the discount on him so he had to pass it off dollar-for-dollar. I understood“

    This is the crux of the whole issue. In addition, whatever that “dollar” is might change. It’s a moving target. Also, the refiner might stop buying at all. They are protecting themselves and that risk protection rolls right down the line. It’s up to each buyer to determine what the risk is worth to him.

    Upstate is buying 90% at -$8 as of Friday. That means most shops, unless they have immediate customers of their own, will be lower than that.

    All comments reflect the opinion of the author, even when irrefutably accurate.

  • JerseyBJerseyB Posts: 152 ✭✭✭

    I was paid 57x face yesterday on the proof sets I sold. Definitely lower than I would have liked but that's about the same I would have received selling on eBay after fees. They were selling 90% at 65x face.

  • jmlanzafjmlanzaf Posts: 39,015 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @JerseyB said:
    I was paid 57x face yesterday on the proof sets I sold. Definitely lower than I would have liked but that's about the same I would have received selling on eBay after fees. They were selling 90% at 65x face.

    If they are selling at 65, 57 seems quite fair.

    All comments reflect the opinion of the author, even when irrefutably accurate.

  • softparadesoftparade Posts: 9,819 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @PhillyJoe said:
    No matter what happens, you will never see $40 silver again. Probably not $75 silver either. It will plateau, but this isn't anything like 1980.
    Even Franklin Mint stuff is selling and that hasn't happened in the last 40 years!

    $40 silver is gone forever.

    COPPER is gutter !

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