Gold & Silver question

Pykrim

Pykrim

Joined
Dec 10, 2012
Messages
684
I wanted to ask you guys (in this forum) where the best places to buy gold and silver are if someone wanted to invest in them( physical location, online, etc)? I looked around a little at work but don't have too much time to search. The best group of people are right here in this forum so I figured I'd ask here.

Things I'm looking for:
Best price. (Lowest % markup)
Availability.
No minimum amount to purchase.
Trustworthy.
% of pure gold/silver and do they do testing?
Any good info or advice for a beginner into buying gold/silver.

Thank you guys/gals in advance.
 
I've gotten my best deals at jmbullion.com. Both gold and silver. Subscribe and they'll notify you on deals like .79 cents over spot, etc.

Never had an issue with JM. Avoid eBay since there are lots of fakes.
 
I'm also interested in this.... Although I'm on the other side of the Planet from most of you...

Lawrie
 
I dont buy either.

I do, however, collect half dollars 1964 and earlier(90% silver) and 1965-1970 (40% silver).

I get 1000$ worth from the bank, pick out any that contain silver, and turn all the rest in to the bank for my money back. Only spending $.50 for each half dollar I take. I have loads of silver over years of doing this.

3 half dollars from 1964 and earlier give a bit over an ounce of silver. Each half dollar at 90% is .396 of an ounce in silver.

1965-1970 half dollars being 40% are .176 ounce per coin requiring 6 to get a hair over an ounce of silver.

Its the most cost effective way i have found of hording it. Kinda turns into a hobby and something i look forward to each week.

Be aware that you will encounter times where you find absolutely nothing. Its all part of the hunt. But you lose no money. 50 cent peices are still worth 50 cents when you turn them back in.
 
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Couple things for you to consider...
Building a relationship with a local bullion dealer is a good thing.
Watch for extra CC charges from online bullion dealers, most want Cash, MO, or wire transfer to get the best price.
Check their insured (and you DO want insured) shipping prices.

Stay with recognizable forms of all of the metals, and smaller size (1 oz or smaller if you like) bullion coins.
Don't buy graded slabbed "collector" bullion coins, they're generally overpriced.

Junk silver (1964 and older US dimes, quarters, half dollars) generally have the lowest markup for silver and are 90% pure.

Usually South African Krugerrands (22k Gold) have the lowest gold coin markup, followed by the Canadian Maple Leaf (24K gold), and the American Eagle (22K gold) has the highest.

There are acids and touchstones used to test gold purity, and you'll want to learn to do it yourself.

DO NOT go for collectable coins unless you get some guide books and study them first!

Good luck!
 
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Thank you everyone! I do have some silver coins but not that many. The half dollar idea sounds good and I haven't thought of doing that one before.

I've seen a lot of ads for jmbullion.com also but with online companies I just wanted to be careful.

Thank you all for the advice and tips!

Oh yeah I do have some infi and more on order =]
 
Serious question: Why do you want Gold or Silver bars?

Is it for investment? More stable currency? Economic collapse?
 
A little bit of all of that. Not really thinking we'll experience a collapse or anything along that line. More along the line of buy gold/silver now before the price goes up more. And as another form of saving for retirement, which is a long way off but best to start early ya know?

I know everyone should prep for an emergency or what not and honestly I'm probably lacking in that area. If the market collapsed we wouldn't be completely screwed if we had some solid form of currency. But that isn't the reason I am interested in buying gold/silver. Just planning for the future some. Who knows how much it will be worth 25-30 years from now.
 
JMbullion for good prices and has all the usual average stuff, if looking for special, hard to find or unique stuff I like APMEX.
 
My favorite for pretty stuff is ScottsdaleSilver. I have purchased from APMEX and Sunshine Mint also (and one other that I can't remember right now). But my 10oz Silver Stackers that came from Apmex looked like they had been used as a puck for street hockey (three different purchases, all horrible). The stuff from Scottsdale came perfect every time. I haven't checked out JM yet, but will now. At one time I did want some specific PAMP gold (small poured 100gm loafs), that was not on the menu at Scottsdale. But a quick phone call, and they special ordered a couple for me and had them on my doorstep in just a couple of weeks. Gotta love customer service. :cool:
 
Pykrim said:
Thank you everyone! I do have some silver coins but not that many. The half dollar idea sounds good and I haven't thought of doing that one before.

I've seen a lot of ads for jmbullion.com also but with online companies I just wanted to be careful.

Thank you all for the advice and tips!

Oh yeah I do have some infi and more on order =]
Click to expand...

Buying coin boxes from banks to fish through for silver is old news. Years ago this was feasible but now that Grandma is savvy to this so are the banks and the percentage of silver coins that might show up is not worth the labor it takes to pick through these boxes.

Quite frankly the easiest and most liquid method to buy and sell silver and gold is just to purchase the ETF's on the stock exchange. GLD for gold and SLV for silver. These have the advantage of no issues for storage and possible theft and instant liquidity to buy and sell. Also no dealer markup with purchase and selling fees, no shipping fees, etc.

The argument of having physical precious metal makes no sense to me. If the proverbial SHTF scenario does take place the new currency will be ammo. Precious metals has it's place as a currency and inflation hedge but some go way overboard with this.
 
I have been picking up silver eagles every chance I get. Using a local shop and ebay as long as the price is right.
 
Apmex has never done me wrong.

Imo it's not about "shtf" it's about alternative currency after the dollar meltdown to help PREVENT "work shtf"etc. It worked before. We're just getting in on the bottom floor, trying to stay civilized.
 
Bugs57 said:
Buying coin boxes from banks to fish through for silver is old news. Years ago this was feasible but now that Grandma is savvy to this so are the banks and the percentage of silver coins that might show up is not worth the labor it takes to pick through these boxes.

Quite frankly the easiest and most liquid method to buy and sell silver and gold is just to purchase the ETF's on the stock exchange. GLD for gold and SLV for silver. These have the advantage of no issues for storage and possible theft and instant liquidity to buy and sell. Also no dealer markup with purchase and selling fees, no shipping fees, etc.

The argument of having physical precious metal makes no sense to me. If the proverbial SHTF scenario does take place the new currency will be ammo. Precious metals has it's place as a currency and inflation hedge but some go way overboard with this.
Click to expand...

You're talking a bit extreme about a few things here IMHO.

I just got 8 ounces of silver out of one $1000 delivery of half dollars 3 weeks ago. Likely only spent 20$ for 8 oz.

Ive run across a couple bugs bunny franklins worth 20$ or so each and some walking libertys. There are half dollars other than silvers that will also bring a profit during the search. You can then use that money to purchase silver if you like.

So to say its not worth the labor depends on how lazy you are.

To say that in a SHTF scenario, gold and silver wont be currency is kind of silly. There are many ways that S can HTF. In most of them, the rest of the world around you is still operating just fine. Gold and silver will still be worth alot making it sought after so when the scenario is over, you didnt skip a beat.

Youre right that trading consumables will also be a method, but not necessarily the only or even the standard. It really depends on the issue.

It makes sense to prepare for multiple scenarios. Not just for zombies...
 
Buy from eBay. But make sure you know how to calculate and measure density and weight per volume to verify that you didn't get brass. (If you did PayPal will refund without any issue, except that you might have to pay to ship it back)
Make a spreadsheet where you enter the current market price for gold and then it calculates how much worth various coins are based on their gold content.
Then check if the eBay stuff is below or above. Track auctions from new members who might seem to risky to others and auctions which end around midnight when less people are awake.
Never bought anything above spot and so can you :-)
Works for silver as well.
 
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