Milk Spots....What would you do?

[Shoba]

First Thank you for taking the time to look into my post, as I am new to the forums. So I recently bought (9) 1.5oz Arctic Fox's produced by the RCM ( Go Figure Right? ) and they are covered with milk spots. I know this coin isn't as basic as a Maple or Lynx or something of that value I believe them to hold a little more value(Do you agree?). Since they have spotted what value if any do I lose on the coins? I notice these sell on Ebay for about 34+- on average and on Apmex they go for about the same price. Have I lost value of the coin since they have spotted, do spotted coins lose value? I was in hope that these coins over the year might grab some premium on them. Do I leave these coins as is and store them as is if I believe the premium might increase over time or do I use one of the milk spot removal techniques I saw on Youtube? I just want some opinions on these toipics and any input would be greatly appreciated! Have they lost value? What do I do from here on out? Store as is? Milk Spot removal? Just want some input! Thank you! 

[Bullionbilly]

Theyre always worth bullion / spot price, OR you could seek out @BackyardBullion and have them turned into something special

[metallica73]

Ask yourself this, put yourself in the position of a potential buyer of your coins. Would you pay for them in that condition?

I'd pay spot for milky RCM bullion but no more. It's why a lot of stackers these days stay clear of RCM coins, amongst others.

 

 

[BackyardBullion]

@ShobaI have to agree with the above sadly they will not be worth much more than the bullion price you might be able to clean them up with some of the milk spot removal techniques I have a video on my YouTube channel where I just use a simple eraser and it cleans them up nicely but they will still have a few Marks and scratches so they won't be perfect.

As bullion Billy said I would be happy to take them and melt them into a nice piece of hand poured silver and I can also get it home mark 2 so it would add value and make it easier to sell when the time comes.

Drop me a private message to find out more.

[Agpanda]

Welcome to the forum

I hope you have better luck in the future

White spots is killing a lot of the fun in collecting/stackin

[BackyardBullion]

10 minutes ago, Bullionbilly said:

Theyre always worth bullion / spot price, OR you could seek out @BackyardBullion and have them turned into something special

Thanks for the shoutout @Bullionbilly!

[Bullionbilly]

8 minutes ago, BackyardBullion said:

Thanks for the shoutout @Bullionbilly!

Credit where credits due mate ! 

[Shoba]

Thanks for the warm Welcomes! Sadly I just spent roughly 15 and some change getting Air Tites for them, but that was a waste. Well should I try to use the dry silver polish rag on them or no? Thanks for the melt option I will look into it!

[vand]

It's just silver.

[BackyardBullion]

21 minutes ago, Shoba said:

Thanks for the warm Welcomes! Sadly I just spent roughly 15 and some change getting Air Tites for them, but that was a waste. Well should I try to use the dry silver polish rag on them or no? Thanks for the melt option I will look into it!

You can probably get your money back for the capsules!

Here is my milk spot removal video...

 

[Pete]

On 30/06/2017 at 19:58, Shoba said:

First Thank you for taking the time to look into my post, as I am new to the forums. So I recently bought (9) 1.5oz Arctic Fox's produced by the RCM ( Go Figure Right? ) and they are covered with milk spots. I know this coin isn't as basic as a Maple or Lynx or something of that value I believe them to hold a little more value(Do you agree?). Since they have spotted what value if any do I lose on the coins? I notice these sell on Ebay for about 34+- on average and on Apmex they go for about the same price. Have I lost value of the coin since they have spotted, do spotted coins lose value? I was in hope that these coins over the year might grab some premium on them. Do I leave these coins as is and store them as is if I believe the premium might increase over time or do I use one of the milk spot removal techniques I saw on Youtube? I just want some opinions on these toipics and any input would be greatly appreciated! Have they lost value? What do I do from here on out? Store as is? Milk Spot removal? Just want some input! Thank you! 

I assume you are referring to the Arctic Fox that followed the Polar Bear ?
A few weeks ago I bought a tube of 1.5 oz Arctic Fox's seeing that the price had dropped substantially and was much closer to the Polar Bear.
Until relatively recently the Arctic Fox was at a premium of about 50% so no idea why but at least it is more affordable today.

Can you return / exchange your coins ?

All mine are perfect so maybe your supplier had bought them spotted ( and discounted ) and is passing them on.
Unfortunately badly spotted coins tend to sell for bullion prices and selling a spotted coin can be hit & miss.
Assuming you paid bullion Maple ( or thereabouts ) prices; that's what you've got and if bullion price, then if there were mine I would try to clean with good quality silver polish to at least make them look good. Who cares on common bullion silver ?

[Shoba]

Yes @Pete the one that followed the Polar Bear. Can't return, I obtained them in a trade with a friend. He had a tube and he showed me a few that looked nice but after trade and further inspection I noticed the milk spots. I got a great deal on 7 of the Foxs + Morgan for a 2oz Lunar Dragon 2000, 2oz 94 Kookaburra & 2oz 01 Kookaburra. I only had $190 in the 3-2oz'ers. So im at like 16.5 an oz on my trade which is AWESOME. I was just curious on more preservation of the coins in case the premiums go up on that coin. I tried the eraser on one didnt like what it was doing to the coin so I stopped. Im going to store them as is I think! I seen on Ebay they are selling the Foxs ( with abrasions ) for around 33/34. Like I said my concern was more on the condition and future premiums and I didnt want to damage them, Ill just store in the Air tites I bought and not do anything to them. I guess if there was a sure shot to make them look better without obvious damage I would give it a try!

[jayboat]

I have a tube of polars that have gone milky., It was i first ever full tube and they all went milky 

I got them at a good price so price them as bullion. But, with that said i also see milky stuff sell on ebay for the same price as normal bullion even with lots of pics. So who knows whats it worth

[PortsmouthStacker]

WD40 contact spray works a treat on milk spots. Just spray and lightly clean with microfibre cloth.

 

[augur]

57 minutes ago, PortsmouthStacker said:

WD40 contact spray works a treat on milk spots. Just spray and lightly clean with microfibre cloth.

Would Ballistol work as well? Also as a long term conservation? I just got my Royal Mint Bullion Silvers so still waiting for it to milk up...

[PortsmouthStacker]

I have only used WD Contact spray (not normal WD40).

 

cleaned up some spotted Silvers a treat 

[Mcraw25]

Hi, 

Im new to silver and had similar question +  situation. Bought my first 50 ounces in bars and coins and one coin has milk spots.  In reading silver forums and watching YouTube its not very clear if milk-spotted coins hold value.  Or if cleaning them helps retain value or makes it fall further than with the milk spots  Is there any community consensus on milk spots vs cleaned coins? From what little i read it seems this community deems both as untouchable/worthless/waste. TIA!

Is there a general guideline on mints that do not have spotting issues?  Or percentages of coins that spot by mint?  If the percentage is high does it not make more sense to just buy silver bars with no premium? Above it seems milk spot coins are just one ounce bars...but at least the bar collectors dont think milk spots are "gross"...seems like there is a market for imperfect silver in bars but not in the coins.  Curious on the thoughts of this forum.  Bars are certainly cheaper.  

I really like silver collecting!  Just want to minimize future regrets and learn from those who have been doing this awhile! 

 

 

[vand]

20 minutes ago, Mcraw25 said:

Hi, 

Im new to silver and had similar question +  situation. Bought my first 50 ounces in bars and coins and one coin has milk spots.  In reading silver forums and watching YouTube its not very clear if milk-spotted coins hold value.  Or if cleaning them helps retain value or makes it fall further than with the milk spots  Is there any community consensus on milk spots vs cleaned coins? From what little i read it seems this community deems both as untouchable/worthless/waste. TIA!

Is there a general guideline on mints that do not have spotting issues?  Or percentages of coins that spot by mint?  If the percentage is high does it not make more sense to just buy silver bars with no premium? Above it seems milk spot coins are just one ounce bars...but at least the bar collectors dont think milk spots are "gross"...seems like there is a market for imperfect silver in bars but not in the coins.  Curious on the thoughts of this forum.  Bars are certainly cheaper.  

I really like silver collecting!  Just want to minimize future regrets and learn from those who have been doing this awhile! 

 

 

 

Classic cars sell for much  during a depression than they do during a boom.

The only real way to know the value of your coin is to sell and and let price discovery mechanism work out the answer. The market is pretty efficient like that; gold/silver bugs above most others should appreciate this truism.

If you are not prepared to do this then best to just work on the basis of spot price. Look down a few threads and laugh at the moral outrage on display because a few unicorns were not received in pristine condition.

That's probably not what you want to hear, but there are no definitive answers when it comes to premium and value, as they say, is in the eye of the beholder.

[Mcraw25]

1 hour ago, vand said:

 

Classic cars sell for much  during a depression than they do during a boom.

The only real way to know the value of your coin is to sell and and let price discovery mechanism work out the answer. The market is pretty efficient like that; gold/silver bugs above most others should appreciate this truism.

If you are not prepared to do this then best to just work on the basis of spot price. Look down a few threads and laugh at the moral outrage on display because a few unicorns were not received in pristine condition.

That's probably not what you want to hear, but there are no definitive answers when it comes to premium and value, as they say, is in the eye of the beholder.

Hey thanks for the reply.  I did see the "moral outrage" and it scared me out of buying silver coins. I don't want the regret and frustration I see others having over milk spots.  I might try what you suggested with price discovery...go into a coin store and see if they view the milk spot coin as bullion or garbage.  Be an interesting lesson.  Its funny - at my local place they sell silver bars for spot that look very unappealing to the eye with tarnish and scratches.  But they wont even sell cleaned silver coins.  I perceive it like a double standard in favor of the bars.  

[Pampfan]

I have experienced milk spots on the entire range of silver products I have bought over the years - coins especially, but even on premium pamp suisse bars.  On the coins - the issue is the worst when it has been graded ms or pf 70 by ngc or pcgs. When spots develop On these coins - they will no longer grade 70 so they will definitely be worth less - with bullion coins they are just bullion. 

 

[augur]

1 hour ago, vand said:

The only real way to know the value of your coin is to sell and and let price discovery mechanism work out the answer.

 Look down a few threads and laugh at the moral outrage on display because a few unicorns were not received in pristine condition.

That's probably not what you want to hear, but there are no definitive answers when it comes to premium and value, as they say, is in the eye of the beholder.

 

I am guilty as charged about that unicorn commotion. But considering that the 5oz proof has a premium of over 600% attached you are paying mainly for the quality of the coin (and the presentation box.) Add the fact that Numistacker can't get his graded coin sold below issuing price and the worry that any of the silver coins can milk makes you wonder if you should buy any other than silver bullion. 

Although I am sure that the lion proofs will start to pick up a few years into the series. Try to get a 2014 Britannia in the 5 oz format...

[augur]

4 minutes ago, shortstack68 said:

I would agree, buying a proof is sheer luxury if you're just a stacker, so its a matter of personal choice if we buy both bullion and proofs, but as i always say, it's your money and the choice is down to you. Interesting to hear Numi can't get a graded proof sold, is this the Unicorn?

It is a luxury. That's why I am not grading them yet so I can open the capsule and look straight st the coin if I want.

Its the lion but they are selling below issue price right now. It's probably because they minted quite a few. Once the series is going that should be absorbed again. 

[vand]

On 7/30/2017 at 19:07, augur said:

 

I am guilty as charged about that unicorn commotion. But considering that the 5oz proof has a premium of over 600% attached you are paying mainly for the quality of the coin (and the presentation box.) Add the fact that Numistacker can't get his graded coin sold below issuing price and the worry that any of the silver coins can milk makes you wonder if you should buy any other than silver bullion. 

Although I am sure that the lion proofs will start to pick up a few years into the series. Try to get a 2014 Britannia in the 5 oz format...

 

IMO buying high premium coins has far more in common with buying jewelry than it does with stacking. You are paying mainly for premium for an item, where its uniqueness and low liquidity is also its main appeal. It's therefore up to YOU to be most knowledgeable about how much that premium should command and to be OK if there is no available market price. 

[MickB]

Milk spots don't bother me on bullion coins. Say when it comes to your coins being left to your family after you die, chances are they won't have as much of a clue about collecting coins or their value. They'll probably take them to a dealer and only be offered spot or under for them anyway. If you left them some proofs the same offer would probably apply from a dealer.

 

[Pete]

Milk spots & stains on silver coins seem to be more common on Canadian bullion coins like Maples but do appear on some other Mints like the UK Royal Mint.
Spotting on semi-numis ( premium coins that tend to come in plastic caps ) whilst possible is much less common and tends to spoil the look of a highly polished specimen.
This would most likely devalue the coin itself but on cheap mass produced bullion not at all.
Spotting on a perfect mirror finish proof coin is shocking though.

The best way to value lower priced bullion is to treat it as scrap and price it according to weight using the spot price.
Perhaps a stacker will pay market price for a bullion coin but a dealer would not care if the coin was spotted or not.

If you have milk spotted regular bullion coins then get some silver metal polish and buff them up without scratching if possible.
At least they will look good, clean and shiny.

As for the previous comment about silver bars being priced below their equivalent weight in coins that is something I haven't experienced.
A 10 oz boring bar can be higher priced than 10 ounces of lovely looking Kookaburras for example.
Perhaps in the USA it is different than over here ?
Also depends I guess where you go shopping.
A few years ago in Germany you could buy silver coins with VAT at 7% but bars were 19% so that instantly made bars more expensive.
Just checking at the time of writing, one of our main dealers in Germany; a 1kg Kookaburra coin is priced at £499.82 and a poured bar is £543.66 - so why would anyone wish to buy a bar, not as if it was polished and engraved with some fine artwork ?