Stacker/Collector

[Shamatti]

This just came up in another thread and it got me thinking.

 

I was only interested in stacking ounces when I started. Had loads of bars, 10oz, 20oz, 1KG. KG Pamp and half Kilo Pamp (Just cos...... I know it was pricey but I started to get the bug see?)! So I had close to 20KG of low premium stuff. But all the time I was learning more about silver, about coins etc - and coming across the most amazing coins which I decided I just had to have!!! lol So the semi numis and other collectables started to creep in.

 

Then I had a stroke of bad news, and had to unexpectedly leave Australia and return to the UK, and there was no way to get all my stack back here. So all the bars, cheap bullion, tubes, Pamps etc had to go! :(
Most of it I decided to swap for gold, not trusting FIAT. So now I have a larger than expect collection of gold coins and bars!  And some silver! So I had to start again with collecting silver, but now it is all semi and numi stuff, very little bullion.

 

I do feel I should be getting back to my roots though, so other than one or two can't live without coins and rounds which I need to complete existing sets I am not going to start any new collections. I am going back to cheapest bullion for a while, to get the ounces back up!

 

I think most people take convoluted routes to a place where they feel comfortable. For some, they end up obsessing on the best possible ration of pounds per ounce. For others, this is the least important factor, it is all about getting that set completed at any cost.  And a million shades of grey between the two too!

 

I do like my collectables, and will undoubtedly buy more. But just for now, whilst prices are so low, it is time to ounce up! :D

 

So!

 

What's your story?

[Danny-boy]

I think you know my story.

Started out semi-numi (older britannias) and have continued down that path.

I have dabbled with low premium silver in the past, but always ended up doing swaps with somebody going the other way (semi numi back to low premium).

I like my collecting and date runs, and much as I'd like to smash a tube of crocs right now, there are lunars that I need more.

[Iceblue]

With silver keep the core cheap, then I have my more expensive bits, some have appreciated in value quite well, some are still speculators. Silver is just a toy, am a gold bug!! lol

With gold I dont buy numis or anything like that, cheap and generic most bang for my buck, I dont really care as long as it is gold, and I like fractionals mostly.

Reason I like fractional is mainly for my exit strategy, which is sell off bits and pieces thru my retirement, is to top up my superannuation. 

[SilverPirate]

I think as we travel through our stacking we diverse this way and then that way, we wish we had done that wish we had stayed only with them ,should i have stayed with gold not silver,all silver no gold, 

It is a journey of discovery till we settle down with what the present game plan is, and for me the end game was and still is a 100 oz silver @ £20 i am slowly getting there.I know it is not a massive stack by other standards but for me it is on a low income.

I started out with an A.S.E. being my first bullion and it will always be my favorite but, i could not care less what it is relay as long as it is .999 and a 1oz so it fits in an Eagle tube

I admire the collections on here and totally understand it and realize the potential for premiums staying put when the spot is low.Maybe one day i will go that route never say never.But for now i am a stacker of cheap as i can get it silver.

My present game plan is not to buy silver at the moment but just to let my family buy it for me for my birthday and Christmas unless  i see a bargain.My new plan is to save up and buy sovereigns, whether i will succeed in saving up and not getting the buy silver bug along the way we will see but that's the past and the future plan.

The exit strategy has been to sell in my retirement to boost my income, but i also have a side exit strategy of if silver hits £30 and i am @ £20 an oz i will sell everything and wait till silver goes back down then buy all Philharmonics from Estonia and boost the stack, then repeat till retirement on the ups if any then sell in retirement again. 

. 

[Cointreau]

With silver keep the core cheap, then I have my more expensive bits, some have appreciated in value quite well, some are still speculators. Silver is just a toy, am a gold bug!! lol

With gold I dont buy numis or anything like that, cheap and generic most bang for my buck, I dont really care as long as it is gold, and I like fractionals mostly.

Reason I like fractional is mainly for my exit strategy, which is sell off bits and pieces thru my retirement, is to top up my superannuation. 

Sovereigns are fractionals and highly tradeable. They are even part of an SAS soldier's kit when out on a mission.

[silversword]

I started as a stacker and that's what I intend to continue doing primarily. My metals are there to hedge against inflation, just like an alternative savings account, and when needed, they will be sold off. This means most purchases are bullion bars and coins. I have very little in the way of collectable coins, but in addition to the main stack I also have a side collection of silver coins that I just like. They will be there to remind me of my stack when it's gone; they aren't for resale, just for me to look at. I have no interest in completing date runs, sets, or buying graded coins. A nice design will join the collection, ugly coins will not, regardless of worth.

[ChrisSilver]

That's a good idea Shamatti. I seem to be be buying illogically recently and purchasing more numismatic stuff, which doesn't make sense. Is a much better idea to buy low priced bullion whilst spot is low!

Also, bars are quite expensive in Europe because of VAT, so a good time to buy bars for the collection. Though if wanting the cheapest price per ounce is cheaper to buy coins.

[motorbikez]

I started as a collector in 2012 and am still a collector although I have bought bullion now and again , I've a few bits and pieces of collectable numi & semi numi I need to buy to complete sets,then I'm upping my gold purchases this year.

[Keithoil]

I just buy anything at the moment both bullion and semi numis stuff. I am in for the long haul.

 

I am also trying to get my £/oz average down also. I am in a very fortunate position were I can spend a lot of money on PM's (that is for now).

 

So will keep buying and stacking.

 

I like the idea of selling off small amounts for retirement, but over two thirds of my stack is earmarked for the two grand daughters many many moons from now!!!

 

We do however eat really really well Toast, Beans, and as an absolute extravagance the ones with the little sausages in!!

[thesoundman]

I hate this forum, I have stuck to my guns on the buying bullion coins and bars for the last few years and finally gave in and got some of the £20 coins.... It's the start of a slippery slope me thinks. 

 

So a stacker first, however starting to see the light in collecting 

[HighlandTiger]

Ah yes those £20 coins that will have to wait until the silver spot price hits £40 before they are worth more in silver than face value.

 

I think I'll give those a miss

[Danny-boy]

Already selling for £25-32 from what I can see.

Even with eBay / PayPal fees, a better return than a savings account right now.

I have one in my wallet to remind me how much I love silver, and as a lucky charm.

[SilverPirate]

I class my self as a stacker, i was thinking on the end game as always and all my stack are in tubes,but i will sell individually when the time comes,to look at now it is a very boring way to stack but when i sell they will be put in capsules, so i am thinking put everything i have in caps now and put in my monster box so it looks appealing now to oggle over.To buy caps now will be cheaper than in 15 years time with inflation.It will look very pirate too ARRRRRR.I am getting the urge to stack some premium stuff now and again so capped stack as apposed to a tube looks good.

[HelpingHands]

Work out how many caps you'd need and what they'd cost you and then consider how many ozs you could buy instead.

[tael]

Stacker here, but over time I have seen the spot price climb and plummet for all the wrong reasons.

During a downturn (which was quite often) a large portion of my stack would decrease in value, but I noticed that collector series, semi-numismatics, etc... held their value much better.

Now I (for lack of a better word) HEDGE my silver stack with a few mint collector series coins and private rounds as well as various other silver mint coins from other countries and of course, a small amount of fractional gold.

[motorbikez]

 

During a downturn (which was quite often) a large portion of my stack would decrease in value, but I noticed that collector series, semi-numismatics, etc... held their value much better.

Now I (for lack of a better word) HEDGE my silver stack with a few mint collector series coins 

 

You are absolutely right,collectors aren't really that worried about the spot price of silver.they will still pay good money at any time for a particular coin they want.

I was bidding last week on a few  2oz proof kooks that I don't already have and they were making very good money.I am not shy when bidding but didn't win a single coin, the 1 ozers were making silly money as well,but luckily I have the full set bar 2 coins

[SilverPirate]

Work out how many caps you'd need and what they'd cost you and then consider how many ozs you could buy instead.

That is a fare comment. I have 72 pieces that need capping,mmmmmmm i think that's is a lot of caps.

[tael]

You are absolutely right,collectors aren't really that worried about the spot price of silver.they will still pay good money at any time for a particular coin they want.

I was bidding last week on a few  2oz proof kooks that I don't already have and they were making very good money.I am not shy when bidding but didn't win a single coin, the 1 ozers were making silly money as well,but luckily I have the full set bar 2 coins

 

Yes a double edged sword, collectors will pay more than "open market" value if they "HAVE TO HAVE THAT COIN" which sucks if you're bidding against them

[Shamatti]

Yes a double edged sword, collectors will pay more than "open market" value if they "HAVE TO HAVE THAT COIN" which sucks if you're bidding against them

 

Pretty damn cool if you are selling though huh!? Stacking the right coin for a big sell Vs collecting sometimes there is little difference when it comes to what we buy. It is what we sell that tells us apart! lol

[Ares]

Collector all the way, Morgans lead the way! Might be picking another one up today too.

[HawkHybrid]

I was thinking :

 

do stackers have to wait a longer time to sell for a profit?

 

or given hindsight how long does it take before a stack

can be sold for a profit?

 

HH

[Hookythestacker]

I was thinking :

 

do stackers have to wait a longer time to sell for a profit?

 

or given hindsight how long does it take before a stack

can be sold for a profit?

 

HH

I can't ever see a silver stack selling for a significant profit, unless a series of unlikely events transform our social and economic system stacking is just a hobby for storing wealth outside of mainstream banking.

It's the collectors making clever/fortunate buys that are most likely to get the highest return rather than ground level stackers. Unless I can get really lucky by having a large wedge to hand that coincides with a

once in a lifetime low PM price it is probably my family who are going to benefit most from my hobby. Anybody in it purely for profit needs to find a different hobby really.

[HighlandTiger]

I can't ever see a silver stack selling for a significant profit, unless a series of unlikely events transform our social and economic system stacking is just a hobby for storing wealth outside of mainstream banking.

It's the collectors making clever/fortunate buys that are most likely to get the highest return rather than ground level stackers. Unless I can get really lucky by having a large wedge to hand that coincides with a

once in a lifetime low PM price it is probably my family who are going to benefit most from my hobby. Anybody in it purely for profit needs to find a different hobby really.

 

I don't quite agree with you there Hooky. The silver high of 2011 at around £28, (and the price was knocking around the £20 mark as well for a couple of years) is 2.5 times today's price. That high will be matched and beaten within the next 10-15 years of that I'm certain. By using that and the playing the GSR game, I can see bog standard bullion stackers making very good profits over the next few decades.

 

If the prices sky rocket to the oft repeated £50 an ounce, (possible, but I'm not banking on it), my 5 ounces of allocated silver bought at £10.50, will now be worth over £500. I very much doubt that a bog standard Perth Mint Lunar II Horse Proof bought at £50 will have enough collectors with deep enough pockets willing to shell out £500 for a single proof coin...........

 

The other point you have to remember, and it's one that people often forget is the currency rates. With Silver priced in dollars, the pound dollar rate has an effect on our prices. Even today whilst silver has risen in price in dollars it has dropped in price in pounds, due to the pound becoming a little bit stronger. That can also be played to an advantage when thinking of selling. If the rate heads back towards the £1-$2 mark as it did only a few years ago, (currently in the $1.50, $1.60 mark), it could be worth selling your stack on the US ebay sites, even with taking into consideration postage costs and fees 

[Hookythestacker]

I was looking for but couldn't find a video link for a Pawn Stars clip (and yes I know it's staged) of a man wheeling in his stack including a monster silver ingot which he had bought at a low. He had hung onto it for maybe less

than ten years? without the clip I can't be sure. Silver had risen and he made a decent profit demonstrating physical silver can be a very competitive alternative to paper investments.

   I think the seller was more speculator than stacker but then we are all speculating a bit as well I suppose. I think he must have sold around the 2011 high you mention HT, so yes it can be done, and in a relatively short time frame too. For myself I get more pleasure from trying to find bargain silver and owning the odd collectable piece than having a big TV or other luxury item. It's there if the wolf comes to the door, other than that I can't really see myself selling no matter what the price, so as far as financial gain stackings a bit of a loser for me.

 

  I'm just hoping whoever gets it when I'm gone doesn't blow it on tat.

 

(Still can't find that clip for the ingot, anybody got one?)

[HelpingHands]

I'll have a look. The only one I've seen in the past was videoed with a camera at the TV. Let's see if I can find it.