I don’t think that’s true. I think the Sackie is the same diameter, thickness and weight of the Suzie. They’d have to, or else they wouldn’t work in vending machines.
You would be correct: (bolding mine)
I liked them and wanted to use them, but unless they popped out of a train ticket machine, I couldn’t get them. Like SoP, I couldn’t get them from my bank. If I asked for a roll of them, the teller would only have whatever few ended up in her coin holder. She’d usually start asking the other tellers if they had any and start making exchanges, but that was obviously a pain in the neck.
I asked if they couldn’t order in rolls of them. They told me that they asked for rolls all the time, as they had had many requests from people who WANTED them, but that they never did receive them!
Since I live in the NYC area, cashiers around here weren’t surprised to see them and had no trouble accepting them. They were used to getting the occasional Susan B. But they didn’t give them in change. Occasionally, if I could see into the cashier’s drawer, I’d see some and ask for them. I’d ask why they didn’t give them out. They’d tell me that some customers disliked them, so it was safer to just give them paper dollars. Having manned a cash register myself, I can certainly relate.
But there were other problems. The name itself was a GIGANTIC problem. People just weren’t sure how to say “Sacajawea.” People don’t want to embarrass themselves with words they can’t say. Plus, it’s just too long for a coin name. The nickname “Sackie” was never in wide use. If I asked for Sackies at the bank, they didn’t know what I was talking about. Calling it a “golden dollar” just lacked that je ne sais quois (sp?). So, if the U.S. government wanted us to use it, they should have given us something to call it.
Furthermore, the look of the coin was unappealing. I loved the way Sacajawea herself was portrayed. But the pretty gold coins soon became discolored and ugly. Like StarvingButStrong, I thought there should have been a hole in it. Even without a hole, it should have had some features to increase the “wow” factor and make it seem more valuable than an ordinary coin. Last time I was in England, the low-denomination coins were much like ours. But the pound coin seemed way more substantial. I don’t know if it was heavier per se, but it was thicker and more finely detailed. It was actually smaller in diameter than some of the pence coins, but it was obviously not spare change.
Anyway, while the failure of the Sacajawea dollar was definitely caused in large part by the public’s reluctance to use a dollar coin and the government’s refusal to stop printing the ones, there were certainly other factors. I thought the Sackie was doomed from the start, but by “doomed,” I meant that it wasn’t going to replace the paper dollar unless the paper ones were discontinued. I didn’t think it would be a total failure! I assumed that some measures would be taken to ensure that it was circulated to some degree. But now, it’s just gone the way of the Susan B.
Well, I’m not from here, but I’m in Budapest for the month and it didn’t take more than a couple days to adapt. One of the guys I share a room with for this conference (stacked in like cordwood) takes his change from his pocket at the end of the day, sets it on his bedside table, and has now built up what must be easily 6000 Ft. ($30) in change since he just refuses to alter his change habits.
Here’s how I did it: I noticed that the coins decrease in radius as they decrease in value, except for the 100 Ft. piece, which is between the 10 and 5 in radius. Then again, I’ve never actually recieved a 5 Ft. piece in change since (a) the prices are all set nice and even – none of this “.99” malarkey – and (b) the tax is always already in the price, being a VAT. Anyhow, When I’m getting ready to pay for anything, I can quickly and easy sort the change into 50, 20, 10, and 100 Ft. pieces in that order. It also helps to know roughly what you’ll be paying in advance and use leeway in tipping at restaurants to round out any numbers and avoid change. Honestly, it’s really not that difficult.
I’m an american currently in norway. The largest coint is 20NOK or about USD$3 (which really isn’t all that much purchasing power here) and I absoultely hate it. The smallest bill is the 50NOK (or about USD$7). I carry so many coins in my wallet it’s ridiculous - but since they are actually worth money, I have to use them. Coins make sense from a circulation point of view, but bills make much sense from a user point of view (imho).