You’ve seen the headlines. After the short lived “silver squeeze” hit the mainstream news, there was a major uptick in searches online about silver. Frantic purchases based on the silver price scare happened. It became much ado about nothing. Or was it? The actual spot value didn’t go up hugely, but the premiums and demand on retailers did. Similar to how the Game Stop buyers squeezed, in a quick period of time, those in collaboration (Wall hedge fund managers) trying to perpetually short the stock, this silver squeeze revealed that the precious metals markets truly are manipulated. Good ole’ Chase Bank and the usual suspects decided to strategically buy more silver than ever before right in the nick of time to keep the price down amongst the scare.
The sky isn’t falling, yet. Now that the dust has settled, many are left wondering and wanting to get involved with collecting silver. Many may ask themselves, “How do I start?” Should I buy silver coins, bars, or rounds? With what coins should I start my collection? We’re glad you asked. We’ll get in the tradeoffs are bars, rounds, and coins later. For this article we’ll be suggesting five simple silver coins of which a collector or stacker can start a respectable collection. On second thought, in these times, we would advise worrying about “respectable,” and just be concerned with hedging for inflation. Hedging for inflation includes diversifying within an asset class. One mistake that new collectors make is attempting to procure sheerly numismatic coins when bullion gets the job done.
Thus, we’d advise to change your vocabulary in the beginner mode to “stacker” instead of “collector.” In to stack silver or begin any basic collection, you don’t need to go with rare or numismatic coins. Go semi-numismatic, circulated, or even down-right worn. Try building a foundation to your stack with these five coins from three different countries. They’re recognized, quickly liquidated, and easily divisible. Because each has a government-issued face value they are trusted and popular. Thus, you’ll never have an issue having them recognized and accepted.
- American Silver (ASEs) – These bullion coins you won’t likely see in circulation started in 1986 and still hold a face value of $1, although worth much more intrinsically and for key years. Starting in mid-2021, after 25 years of the same, there will be a design change transition for both silver and
- Pre-1965 Quarters – Also called constitutional or junk silver, quarters made in 1964 and before are 90% silver. What used to be pocket change is worth more than face value. You can collect these in a classic Whitman Coin Folder for safe keeping. According to Coinflation.com, as of today, the melt value of one Quarter dated 1932 – 1964 is $5.01, or 20x what it was in 1964.
- Pre-1965 Dimes – Also called constitutional or junk silver, dimes made in 1964 and before are 90% silver. These also work nicely in a Whitman Coin Folder. According to Coinflation.com, as of today, the melt value of one Roosevelt Dime dated 1946 – 1964 is $2.00, or 20x what it was in 1964. Plus, in a worse case scenario, dimes are quite divisible for trade, so you’re not left buying groceries with a 100 oz silver bar and expecting change.
- Pre-1965 Half-Dollars – Your older relatives may have started to hold onto these after 1965, since the Kennedy Half Dollars from 1964 are 90% silver, and the ones from 1965 – 1970 are 40% silver. We recommend the 1964 coins since it’s a key year – the year Kennedy was shot – and the is easier on calculating the bullion value.
- Canadian Silver Leaf – These are our brothers and sisters to the north. Produced by the Royal Canadian Mint, these coins feature the queen’s image on the obverse and leaf on reverse. You can often buy one of these bullion coins for a lower premium than American Silver .
- British Silver Britannia – Royal Mint has produced the Silver Britannia since 1997. These coins have changed designs numerous times since they have been produced. On even numbered years a Britannia, the female representation of Britain, is depicted. Since 2013 the proof coin has depicted a different design each year.
If you start with these five coins, your silver stack will be well-diversified by large nation government issued bullion in to get you off to a great start.
-Phil Harmonic