Do you ever think to reevaluate your stack?

[jayboat]

As the titles asks, Do you ever think to reevaluate your stack?

I dont have a huge stack but its decent at around 500 oz with 30 on the way. I have 132 different pieces according to my excel sheet, of course this number grows with every order. This in time will make my exit plan very time consuming. I often think about what if i stuck to buying my core coins, the 12 coins i stack every year religiously and cut out the rest, all the fun coins i buy just cause they look nice are, are new release coins that everyone else is getting them so i have to get some too  What if i sold everything i have except for my core 12 and used the money to reevaluate my stack into those 12 coins from years 2015+ I started stacking at the end of 2013, learnt from mistakes in 2014 and got more organised in 2015. I know if i did this, i would roughly gain 25-35 oz's in the process and i would have a clean catalogued stack that would be easier and quicker to exit with. 

Core 12 - China panda, Congo gorilla, libertad, koala, Kookaburra, Perth lunar 1/2 oz, 1oz & 2oz, Somalian elephant, Uk britannia, Uk lunar series and finally kangaroos added in 2016. 

Some may think that 12 is still to many but i stack these because everyone knows them, they are easy to resell and i enjoy watching the date runs grow every year. I would make some personal stack with my brit date run, SBSS coins  and 1 offs for under the bed, no more than 50 ozs. 

The master plan is to stack my core 12 for 5 years. Then each year after i will flip the oldest coin and buy that years. So in 2020, i will flip my 2015 coins to buy 2020's, maybe sell 20 to buy back 23-24 and get my stack to become self-funding. Oz's over premiums. Plus i would like to invest else where in a couple of years so my pension is not in 1 pot, still have 30+ years to go so plenty of time. But the self fundng thing is important to me, semi-passive pension fund with a few weeks of selling and buying each year. Nice wee pot off the rader away from the tax mans preying eyes. 

Second thought, my new avg per oz would make me cry 

Anyone ever thought of doing something like this are has done it? It seems like a good plan but it maybe boring not getting those 1 offs, the spice to the stack, Any thoughts?

[Bullionbilly]

Ive just sold off a fair chunk of my stack roughly 2 tubes philies, 2 tubes maples and 2 tubes roos and a few other loose bits n bobs. lve done this to fund a holiday and now we're moving house. Ive made losses on some and won on others, id say over the whole of what ive sold im up £200 (ish) so better than the banks pay and a lot of fun along the way !

When i resume stacking ill not bother with odd coins unless they are really cheap but instead stick to full tubes of roo's and rolls of kooks, they both sell easily enough and are sold in 1 go rather that 1oz here and there. Kooks should always do ok and roo' s are cheap bullion grade coin.

This is MY new plan anyway ( when funds allow) ill try and stick to it next time. For me its going to be stacking lowest possible oz per £ and not been distracted from it this time .

[shawy2510]

Ive just sold off a fair chunk of my stack roughly 2 tubes philies, 2 tubes maples and 2 tubes roos and a few other loose bits n bobs. lve done this to fund a holiday and now we're moving house. Ive made losses on some and won on others, id say over the whole of what ive sold im up £200 (ish) so better than the banks pay and a lot of fun along the way !
When i resume stacking ill not bother with odd coins unless they are really cheap but instead stick to full tubes of roo's and rolls of kooks, they both sell easily enough and are sold in 1 go rather that 1oz here and there. Kooks should always do ok and roo' s are cheap bullion grade coin.
This is MY new plan anyway ( when funds allow) ill try and stick to it next time. For me its going to be stacking lowest possible oz per £ and not been distracted from it this time [emoji185][emoji3].

Good luck not being distracted

[sovereignsteve]

I don't have a plan. I'm a collector but buy an amount of bullion and semi's as well. I'm in it for enjoyment and if I can make a little by trading and flipping along the way, it adds all to the fun. I don't have an endgame plan but I know my wife and kids will be able to sell the bullion and will be sensible enough to maximise the return on the collectables (well, 'ish, and with a litlle bit of guidance from me beforehand)

There again, I may decide to sell it all at some point if the fancy takes me and go on a big round the world trip.

[Pampfan]

@sovereignstevelet's hope that you are around a long time so your kids don't have to worry about selling your stuff.  (The trip around the world sounds like a great idea)

I find that every year or so I need to adjust my stack because I buy stuff just because I get bored and need to have the anticipation of a package coming - so I tend to buy a lot of stuff - spur of the moment.  

Just this past month - I took a long hard look at my collection and decided that I was going to do two things - Convert some silver to gold and cleanup the collection to only stack silver eagles.  Did both and probably at some point I'll change my mind again and do something different.

 Don't remember who said it - but "a fluid stack is a happy stacker."

 

[oliversw5]

I run my stack like a business now, I have everything on a spreadsheet and I aim to make money on everything. I am constantly rotating my stack and reinvesting to grow the stack and have designated costs and targets for all of my items. 

I do have 3 separate areas though. My flipping stack, my core stack and my collection. 

[Roy]

2 hours ago, Pampfan said:

 Don't remember who said it - but "a fluid stack is a happy stacker."

A wise man! I also stack fluids, and I'm happy too 

[NewMSmatist15]

I like your idea @jayboat - especially the part about the self-funding stack - but would like to suggest 1 thing. All of the coins you mentioned that you want to maintain as your core were either bullion (like the Canadian Maple Leaf coins), semi-numismatic (like the Chinese Panda coins), or less popular modern silver series (like the Somalia Elephant). I would ask, are you trying to stay with modern silver or are you trying to find what collectors are going to want 5 years from now? Either way it seems profit is your goal with those dozen mentioned. Since past performance is no indication of future profit, and the coins you mentioned have some "risk" as numismatic pieces, I'd suggest replacing one of your core 12 coins you collect with either an older US series (like Franklin Halves or Silver Washington Quarters), modern or classic fractional gold, or plain old silver bars so you can have a waterline of precious metal value in your portfolio. Just trying to look at your silver as different stocks in a portfolio and your 12 shown as some type of investment set for profit.

[Pete]

Living in a decent care home these days costs more than a 5 star cruise per night minus the cocktails, entertainment and fine dining.
Since the nation is still heading deeper into the smelly stuff, state pensions and care will continue to deteriorate as they cannot be sustained, so plan to flip a couple of tubes of Kooks, Phillies, or whatever bullion you have, per week, to ensure you get your shower, bed, bottom wiped and horlicks in your twilight years.

[Roy]

Doesn't that make you mad? (sorry jayboat, last post on your thread),

Welfare state? I paid in my 30+ years! Take care of me! 

It's ok, I can take care of myself. Others cannot.

[4Nines7Hills]

 the state pension wasn't designed to support the people we have now, it was originally available only to men over 70 when the average life span was late 40s.

 

 if you want the state pension to support you, we need to pay vastly more, stop giving the pension to women or  let people die and not treat them, all these are unpopular options.

[4Nines7Hills]

 Like  most things in life it's always a good idea to re-evaluate yearly to  ensure your plan is still suitable for your particular needs  that's true  whether you are a  stacker, collector, flipper or anything else.

 Over time your experience and education on the subject should have improved leading to better conclusions. Maybe your available resources  have changed due to career or family circumstances. Maybe the law changes regarding CGT, or  vat on gold or silver including losing access to vat free eu silver etc. Maybe eBay rules change who knows what may happen.

Blindly doing what you always have just because that is what you have always done  isn't the brightest move and that is true for everything in life.

[jayboat]

10 hours ago, shortstack68 said:

Frustration might come into it at some point because if the mints release their coins at around the same time then you'll be waiting another 12 months for the next addition from them while watching some of the nice designs that get uploaded here on the forum.....

Thats the killer, i would always have a personal stack that i could add a few coins to every year. I dont think i could go cold turkey 

9 hours ago, sovereignsteve said:

I don't have a plan. I'm a collector but buy an amount of bullion and semi's as well. I'm in it for enjoyment and if I can make a little by trading and flipping along the way, it adds all to the fun. I don't have an endgame plan but I know my wife and kids will be able to sell the bullion and will be sensible enough to maximise the return on the collectables (well, 'ish, and with a litlle bit of guidance from me beforehand)

There again, I may decide to sell it all at some point if the fancy takes me and go on a big round the world trip.

Pension funding for me Steve, end end goal is swapping into gold when GSR is 40ish-1. I hope to see it in my lifetime, if not the wife and kids will prob be selling the bulk of mine also. Silver stacking has been the most fun way to invest for me so far .......by far. I dont we'll ever stop if even only adding a few here and there every year 

8 hours ago, Pampfan said:

Just this past month - I took a long hard look at my collection and decided that I was going to do two things - Convert some silver to gold and cleanup the collection to only stack silver eagles.  Did both and probably at some point I'll change my mind again and do something different.

 Don't remember who said it - but "a fluid stack is a happy stacker."

i have taken action every year to change my buying habits but never to re arrange my 90% of my stack. Thing is i still have to pop my cherry for selling silver, i have swapped a few oz's thought this forum but never sold any. I am a little gun shy and worry about taking money out after selling. For me its no problem, but if theres 12-13K in the saving account and the wife sees that, she'll want a holiday  I have ''another account'' i could use 

6 hours ago, oliversw5 said:

I run my stack like a business now, I have everything on a spreadsheet and I aim to make money on everything. I am constantly rotating my stack and reinvesting to grow the stack and have designated costs and targets for all of my items. 

I do have 3 separate areas though. My flipping stack, my core stack and my collection. 

Oz's over £'s.

 

@Roy, I started and stopped collecting johnnie walker whiskys a few year back. I have a few green labels, gold labels, x2 blue labels and i think 4 red labels from the 80's. I had completely forgotten about them until i seen the post. Ty 

6 hours ago, NewMSmatist15 said:

I like your idea @jayboat - especially the part about the self-funding stack - but would like to suggest 1 thing. All of the coins you mentioned that you want to maintain as your core were either bullion (like the Canadian Maple Leaf coins), semi-numismatic (like the Chinese Panda coins), or less popular modern silver series (like the Somalia Elephant). I would ask, are you trying to stay with modern silver or are you trying to find what collectors are going to want 5 years from now? Either way it seems profit is your goal with those dozen mentioned. Since past performance is no indication of future profit, and the coins you mentioned have some "risk" as numismatic pieces, I'd suggest replacing one of your core 12 coins you collect with either an older US series (like Franklin Halves or Silver Washington Quarters), modern or classic fractional gold, or plain old silver bars so you can have a waterline of precious metal value in your portfolio. Just trying to look at your silver as different stocks in a portfolio and your 12 shown as some type of investment set for profit.

Nice post  First off i will never stack everything from the USA, i don't like the stuff. I even made another thread about my hate for american stuff. I would however stack old 90% uk coinage. I only ever looked into them for the first time a few months back and the £ to oz is so much better compared to bullion. I will not be changing my core 12 until i have completed at the end of 2019. I have started so must finish. But after that downsizing the core to maybe 4-6 is a definite possibility. I will have a better understanding by then if what sells best and would to cut. Risk in the beginning is ok for me, i have time to take risks and time to narrow that core down to the best coins and 90% old coinage will got at some point im sure. 

Thanks for your advice  

 

[vand]

I would be careful that you don't get so greedy with the  "self-funding stack" dream - it is the same sort of greed mentality that is rife amongst property landlords.. the idea that the income from their asset will just allow them to buy more of the same assets over and over to self-perpetuating wealth while they just kick back and sip pina coladas on the beach.

Although I do think that there is some scope for this if you buy good coins (hey, who doesn't like a bit of premium appreciation), there is always risk that the premiums won't grow as you expect, especially nowadays as more and more series are la is more competition than ever. Silver is silver at the end of the day, and its primary role is to preserve purchasing power, not to create wealth.

[vand]

Do I reevaluate my stack?

I guess I'm pretty aware of the composition of my stack, as I record everything in a spreadsheet I know how much of each coin I hold. I stack with a long term plan in place, but adjustments can and are made each month, plus if I like the look of something then I'll typically buy it, as I know I already hold plenty of what I deem necessary and the odd deviation from the plan isn't going to make much difference in the long run. That said, I'm primarily a stacker - not a collector or flipper, so I tend to stick to the cheaper series and go for what I deem is most liquid and recognizable. Anything more expensive than a panda is too fancy for me.

[Kman]

On 3/4/2017 at 09:04, jayboat said:

 get my stack to become self-funding.

You could also mix in some gambles on new numi products you think could do well - http://thesilverforum.com/topic/7970-what-were-the-best-profit-buys-of-2016/

 

Also opportunities pop up on Ebay and elsewhere occasionally, like that Britannia 2014 5 oz proof I posted BIN £500 that I didn't get, one sold recently for £1000 so doh

I bought an 1887 double sovereign for +3% spot from HGM once and sold it on Ebay shortly after for around £150ish profit (can't remember exacts off top of my head) 

The more you know about collectibles the more able you will be to spot a bargain and flip it for a profit, doesn't always take years.

 

 

 

 

[jayboat]

2 hours ago, vand said:

I would be careful that you don't get so greedy with the  "self-funding stack" dream - it is the same sort of greed mentality that is rife amongst property landlords.. the idea that the income from their asset will just allow them to buy more of the same assets over and over to self-perpetuating wealth while they just kick back and sip pina coladas on the beach.

Although I do think that there is some scope for this if you buy good coins (hey, who doesn't like a bit of premium appreciation), there is always risk that the premiums won't grow as you expect, especially nowadays as more and more series are la is more competition than ever. Silver is silver at the end of the day, and its primary role is to preserve purchasing power, not to create wealth.

Nothing is set in stone, you know that. 

The self funding is more of a way add oz's, nothing to do with money are income. I will of course at the time see what is selling for what i decide what to flip. I have little faith the brits are libertads will grow any decent amount in premium. To be honest the cheapest bullion i have in my stack is the bullion with the highest % profit. Mainly 2oz turtles - £11.46 per oz and 1.5 oz maples - 12.26 per oz. Those days are gone. I have no dreams of sitting by the beach, i prefer a swimming pool 

1 hour ago, vand said:

I'm primarily a stacker - not a collector or flipper, so I tend to stick to the cheaper series and go for what I deem is most liquid and recognizable. Anything more expensive than a panda is too fancy for me.

Pandas are pretty much my limit also. To date i have only stacked, never sold any and only swapped 3 brits for 3 brits to complete the date run. When i started, i had a 1 year flipping plan, then a 3 year, now im on a 5 year plan. You see the pattern? I want to do it but i never will, it will become a 10 year plan.

Im full of hot air  Its just interesting to talk about it and have honest knowledge people to talk about it with  

[jayboat]

37 minutes ago, Kman said:

You could also mix in some gambles on new numi products you think could do well - http://thesilverforum.com/topic/7970-what-were-the-best-profit-buys-of-2016/

 

Also opportunities pop up on Ebay and elsewhere occasionally, like that Britannia 2014 5 oz proof I posted BIN £500 that I didn't get, one sold recently for £1000 so doh

I bought an 1887 double sovereign for +3% spot from HGM once and sold it on Ebay shortly after for around £150ish profit (can't remember exacts off top of my head) 

The more you know about collectibles the more able you will be to spot a bargain and flip it for a profit, doesn't always take years.

It might take years for me to learn. I'll check the link after posting here

Im banned from selling on ebay and i can only get an honest price for selling stuff here. I looked into it a little bit. I got a 2004 kook off ebay for £22 to resale but decided to keep it, then i got x4 SBSS coins from 2015 and i decided to keep them also. Its deffo a good way to make extra silver money if you can but im going to stick with my matched betting, i know how to beat the bookies. 

Im a sucker for silver from 1985, if its .999 silver and its not a stupid price, ill have it. Thats maybe more collectable stuff but its not part of my stack. 

[Moi]

Lot of good points there. For me silver is always more speccy, for long term considerations if premiums have proven to be consistent that might be some mitigation against the swings. 

[Pampfan]

Just a thought - in looking at all my holdings - I have three categories to my collection:

1) the master collection - which I have no desire to ever sell

2) the semi-numismatic - which I currently collect - and may sell only if the right situation arises.

3) the fluid stack - which I use as sort of a temporary holding account - i.e. To accumulate enough value to sell off to make purchases for the master collection or the semi-numismatic or when I need cash.

The balances in the master will only go up - the semi and the fluid stack are always changing depending on what my current goals are.

And that brings me to the main point - which is to set up some goals ( like 20 ounces of silver or 2 ounces of gold,etc.) after a few months you just look at what you have and then re-evaluate and set up new goals.  

As you age and change - so does your collection. Heck - I started off collecting nickels - now I am Pampfan - LMAO.

[Oldun]

Dumped majority of bits and bobs of silver and gold I had last week  in order to refocus and increase holdings of Brit gold sovs and brits and Mexican silver and gold.

[oliversw5]

35 minutes ago, Pampfan said:

Just a thought - in looking at all my holdings - I have three categories to my collection:

1) the master collection - which I have no desire to ever sell

2) the semi-numismatic - which I currently collect - and may sell only if the right situation arises.

3) the fluid stack - which I use as sort of a temporary holding account - i.e. To accumulate enough value to sell off to make purchases for the master collection or the semi-numismatic or when I need cash.

The balances in the master will only go up - the semi and the fluid stack are always changing depending on what my current goals are.

And that brings me to the main point - which is to set up some goals ( like 20 ounces of silver or 2 ounces of gold,etc.) after a few months you just look at what you have and then re-evaluate and set up new goals.  

As you age and change - so does your collection. Heck - I started off collecting nickels - now I am Pampfan - LMAO.

I think we have pretty much identical strategies for this