# Valuing Coins **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 27, 2020, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/valuing-coins/921680 "2020-09-27T17:23:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![FinsToTheLeft](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/finstotheleft/32/2930_2.png) [@FinsToTheLeft](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FinsToTheLeft)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2020, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/valuing-coins/921680/1 "2020-09-27T17:23:42Z")
In the wake of my father’s death last week, my mother has passed over a medium-sized stash of coins to me for valuation. Most of these were my grandfather’s and were probably assembled in the 1960s. With the exception of a proof 1983 Canadian Silver Dollar that was given to me for my bar mitzvah (2020 value of $14!!!) and a bunch of proof coin sets (1c/5c/25c/50c/$1) from the 60s, these are Canadian circulated coins in average condition. There are some US silver dollars/half dollars and a bunch of smaller foreign change. What’s the best way of going about this? I expect that this is all melt-value only, but I don’t want to miss out if there is anything good mixed in. Thanks in advance! ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2020, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/valuing-coins/921680/2 "2020-09-27T17:44:09Z")
Paging resident coin dealer @Sam_Stone. The cool thing about Discourse is he’ll actually get a notification from this, unlike vBulletin. The OP might also choose to send him a message. Click his name in my post and click the big blue [Message] button in the pop-up. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2020, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/valuing-coins/921680/3 "2020-09-27T18:34:48Z")
The formula I always use for coins is to take what the collector thought it was worth and divide that by 20. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2020, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/valuing-coins/921680/4 "2020-09-27T18:51:25Z")
Coin dealer? You must be thinking of someone else. I don’t even collect coins. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2020, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/valuing-coins/921680/5 "2020-09-27T18:55:31Z")
Samclem, probably. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2020, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/valuing-coins/921680/6 "2020-09-27T19:37:29Z")
I collect US coins. You didn’t say how old the coins are. You said “average, circulated,” but are they just stuff your grandfather pulled from circulation, or are there older coins mixed in? FWIW, my mother had a huge stash of coins we found when she died. She apparently had saved every Kennedy half dollar she was ever passed in change, ever. She had hundreds of dollars worth of them, in just the ones that were clad coinage, plus a crap load of part silver, and even silver ones. I rolled the part silver ones, and had four rolls of them, which I sold on eBay for close to $100/roll. They were really nice, because even though they were regular-issue coins, my mother had pulled them from circulation when they were new. She also was saving Sacajawea dollars, presidential dollars, state parks quarters. I put what she had into books, and then finished the sets, and took the rest to the bank. I also got books, and put together a whole set of Kennedy half dollars (except for things like the silver Bicentennial coins) from what she had before I cashed everything in, or sold stuff on eBay. ---
**Author:** ![FinsToTheLeft](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/finstotheleft/32/2930_2.png) [@FinsToTheLeft](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FinsToTheLeft)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2020, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/valuing-coins/921680/7 "2020-09-27T19:47:01Z")
> [@RivkahChaya](#): > > I collect US coins. You didn’t say how old the coins are. You said “average, circulated,” but are they just stuff your grandfather pulled from circulation, or are there older coins mixed in? There are some US Silver Dollars and Half Dollars, I think back to the 20s. I expect that they were pulled from the cash register. My grandparents had a cigar store back in the late 30s and then got into the schmatta trade with ladies clothing in the 40s or 50s. They were probably hoarded for the silver value as opposed to any numismatic interest as they are just in a bag. Unrelated, an easy fast to you! ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2020, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/valuing-coins/921680/8 "2020-09-27T19:51:03Z")
US silver dollars and half dollars in the condition they’d be in if they were pulled right from circulation shortly after being released, back in the 20s and 30s, could well be worth more than melt value. Not hundreds, but still, enough more than melt value that it’s worth shlepping the lot to a coin dealer. Easy fast to you too, although I’m a little worried, considering there’s no shul to go to to spend the day. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2020, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/valuing-coins/921680/9 "2020-09-27T20:48:33Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > Coin dealer? You must be thinking of someone else. I don’t even collect coins. Oops. Sorry. I wasn’t 100% sure I remembered the name correctly, so I even searched up a thread with your name and “collect” where you were commenting on the value of silver-based collectibles. That find convinced me I’d remembered the name rightly. As soon @Dewey_Finn said @samclem I did a :smack: Close, but not close enough. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2020, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/valuing-coins/921680/10 "2020-09-28T18:05:48Z")
Since the OP describes some older coins in the collection, it might be worth checking dates to make sure you’re not overlooking a rarity. There should be online sites to give you a general idea of what a dealer might offer. Condition of course could dramatically affect value. Or you could track down a dealer with a decent reputation and see what they’d pay if interested. ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2020, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/valuing-coins/921680/11 "2020-10-01T04:07:43Z")
Don’t feel too bad, **LSLGuy** , my first reaction was **Sam\_Stone** , too. If you hadn’t already posted that, I might have taken the wrong Sam’s name in vain. So thanks for taking that bullet for me.