Big dollar coins

[JHZR2]

Was at the bank, and the teller had an Ike dollar. Not silver, only worth a dollar, but you just don't see them anymore, so I figured it would be good to keep it in circulation so people stay interested in coins.

Only worth a dollar and won't be worth more, just fun.

So, for the older folks who were spending big bucks before 1964:

Did you typically carry/spend silver dollars of this size, or did you use paper?

After 64, how fast was the silver out of general circulation?

If you liked silver dollar size coins, did you use Ike dollars?

 

[larryinnewyork]

I had a couple of the Ike dollar coins.
I would spend them at the Chinese restaurant.
The lady behind the counter had to look twice.

Next time I went, I took:
Kennedy Half Dollars & Susan B Anthony Dollars.
They were only worth their face value.

Growing up in the early 60's, it's now interesting to think about coins from that era.

Dimes, Quarters - All Silver
Ben Franklins (.50) - All Silver
Indian Head Nickels were around. * The lunch lady in grammar school use to save them for me.

Back then, Coin Collecting meant something.
Now, modern coins are just cheap tokens.

I'm always facinated at the 1943 Lincoln Penny.
That was the year it was made out of "STEEL" so the military had more COPPER for bullets.

 

[Tom NJ]

Americans tend to like paper. I never see any coins in circulation above 25 cents, and like you bought an Ike silver dollar at the bank recently just because it looked cool. In Europe, large denomination coins are very common and I always wind up with many 2 Euro coins ($2.68) and 1 pound coins ($1.57) in my pocket. The lowest paper denominations I see are 5 Euros ($6.70) or 5 pounds sterling ($7.85).

Tom NJ

 

[2oldtommy]

To add to the Lincoln penny post above, the 1943 steel cents were so disliked that the 1944 cents were made from salvaged used shell casings. The color, when new from the mint was slightly different from the normally used copper spec, but after they were in circulation, the difference in color was not apparent. Our lowly penny today consists of copper plated zinc that costs the mint more than 1 cent to make. North of the border you Canadiens have been getting along without the cent for some time now. How is that working you fellow BITOGers? FWIW--Oldtommy

 

[NHHEMI]

Even the non silver Ike dolalrs can be worth good money. I picked up one a month ago and it went into my collection.

 

[JHZR2]

Originally Posted By: NHHEMI
Even the non silver Ike dolalrs can be worth good money. I picked up one a month ago and it went into my collection.


I collect seated liberty dollars

Worth and scarcity are relative...

 

[NHHEMI]

Originally Posted By: JHZR2
Originally Posted By: NHHEMI
Even the non silver Ike dolalrs can be worth good money. I picked up one a month ago and it went into my collection.


I collect seated liberty dollars

Worth and scarcity are relative...


99% of my dollar coins are Morgans.

Worth is relative to a coin price guide.

 

[Rick in PA]

Originally Posted By: JHZR2
...
After 64, how fast was the silver out of general circulation?...


I would have been 7 in '64. As I remember, the silver coins went out of circulation pretty quickly. As soon as they became more valuable than their face vale, people would keep them. I remember looking for non-"sandwich" (silver) coins when young. Occasionally, you'd find one, and you'd keep it. I would say by the early '70s you pretty much never found a non-"sandwich" coin, only very very rarely. You kind of felt like you found something special.

 

[Turk]

Nice. I got LOTS of them & LOTS of other old coins.

 

[NHHEMI]

Originally Posted By: Rick in PA
Originally Posted By: JHZR2
...
After 64, how fast was the silver out of general circulation?...


I would have been 7 in '64. As I remember, the silver coins went out of circulation pretty quickly. As soon as they became more valuable than their face vale, people would keep them. I remember looking for non-"sandwich" (silver) coins when young. Occasionally, you'd find one, and you'd keep it. I would say by the early '70s you pretty much never found a non-"sandwich" coin, only very very rarely. You kind of felt like you found something special.


They really disappeared when silver prices went through the roof in the early 80's( can't recall exact years ). Millions upon millions of silver coins melted down. I still find a coin now and then in my change that is silver. By far the most common occurence of that would be Mercury dimes followed by Washington quarters.

I am in good with a local bank teller who saves dollar and 1/2 dollar coins for me. I get to buy them at face value if I want them. Have got a few good silver 1/2 dollars and even a few Peace dollars.

 

[DBMaster]

I have a number of old silver coins to which I am not very attached. But, I wouldn't sell them right away unless the value were high.

1888 O Morgan dollar
1885 Morgan dollar
1879 Morgan dollar
1939 and 1942 dimes

They have no sentimental value, but since my mom gave them to me I wouldn't sell them unless I were needing money badly, or if the price were right. That's practical, not sentimental.

 

[Garak]

Originally Posted By: 2oldtommy
North of the border you Canadiens have been getting along without the cent for some time now. How is that working you fellow BITOGers?

I'm glad they're gone. It's fine even from a business perspective. They should have gotten rid of the nickel while they were at it, but that's another matter.

 

[JHZR2]

Coin collecting is a dangerous hobby... When you like bust and seated coins (halves and dollars), and large cents...

Used to buy gold 20s as a novelty, they are just so neat. Was a good buy when gold was 300, now too $$$ to buy/own, IMO.

 

[skyactiv]

The coin changer at my job spits out 4 quarters and 4 dollar coins when you stick a $5 in it. I didn't know the Susan B. Anthony dollar was made in 1999 till I got one.

 

[DBMaster]

We need to do away with pennies here. Honestly, I think we could live without anything smaller than a quarter.

There are penny hoarders out there waiting for just that. If the U.S. decommissions the penny they have piles of pennies from the days when they were almost 100% copper. Those coins are worth 2-3 times more than one cent melted down, but you can't melt down active currency - legally.

 

[Mr_Incredible]

I remember late 60's at the grocery store. One of the clerks was taking silver money out of the till and paying it back in pocket copper coinage.

I paid for a pistol purchase permit at the sheriff's office in 5 $1 coins last year. The lady looked at them as if they were martian money doo-hickies. She was prob in her early 30's.

 

[Kestas]

20 years ago I used to go to my bank and ask for half dollar coin to circulate. I used to get a tiny thrill from the cashier's reaction.

 

[andyd]

Eisenhower dollar's back is the eagle and the moon. Space Tokens. In the early 60s, I was a paper boy. The paper guy gave me a handout on how to spot a counterfeit coin. A 1965 quarter pretty much fit the description, dull and greasy, with a dull ring. Silver coins disappeared so fast, I thought the gummint pulled them in. The half dollars, Liberty , Franklin, and Kennedy are beautiful. As art, they should be worth more than their weight.