| Story Views | |
| Now: | |
| Last Hour: | |
| Last 24 Hours: | |
| Total: | |
Action Step: Buy Junk Silver
Junk silver. From top left: Silver dimes in paper holders, a roll of dimes and a mixed-loose lot of half dollars, quarters, dimes and “wartime” nickels.
This action step is designed to help you dip your toe in the world of precious metals. It’s a lot easier than you might think.
I used to be very intimidated by the thought of buying gold or silver because I had never collected coins and had never been in a coin store in my life. Chris Slife, of Howling Coyote Silver Company, gave me a great tutorial, which I posted here and here, and I made my first venture into the world of precious metals.
This Action Step is to purchase one or more ounces of junk silver. Junk silver is just quarters and dimes that are dated 1964 or earlier. These coins are 90% silver and are an easy way to begin buying precious metals. They may also come in handy someday when the dollar is devalued because they are easily recognizable as legitimate silver based on their date and denomination
Purchasing either silver or gold is also a smart way to preserve your wealth, since the dollar has been declining in value over the past several decades. This trend will continue and will likely accelerate as the federal government pumps massive amounts of “new” money into the money supply. The value of the dollar is never going to increase, so you might as well invest in precious metals as you can afford to, because those will always have value.
So, here’s the plan.
1. Visit a local coin store and ask to see a pre-1964 quarter or dime.
2. Compare that coin with a quarter or dime you have in your pocket. It will look and feel different.
Junk silver is an informal term used in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia for any silver coin which is in fair condition and has no numismatic or collectible value above the bullion value of the silver it contains. Such coins are popular among people seeking to invest in silver, particularly in small amounts. The word “junk” refers only to the value of the coins as collectibles and not to the actual condition of the coins; junk silver is not necessarily scrap silver.[1
Silver US Mercury dimes dated 1964 and earlier are especially useful to own, because they can be easily traded. In Wiemar Germany, small silver coins were widely used as currency when paper currency lost its value. When acquiring dimes, cull out the ones that are worn down and only buy dimes that retain their sharpness and edge.