Gold coins or bars?
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justatrey
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I'm no expert, but I've learned a few things mostly from this forum before I first started buying gold & silver a few months ago.
The most important thing I learned is that "gold is gold" so you should simply buy the cheapest coin or bar available. I buy coins and I've found that the South African Krugerrand is many times the best buy. A different type of coin may cost more but not because the 1 oz of gold in the coin is worth more than the 1 oz of gold in the Krugerrand. The same applies to bars. A 1 oz. bar holds the same real value as a 1 oz. coin, regardless of who made it. Bottom line is that I imagine holding bars or coins is just preference. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.
The most important thing I learned is that "gold is gold" so you should simply buy the cheapest coin or bar available. I buy coins and I've found that the South African Krugerrand is many times the best buy. A different type of coin may cost more but not because the 1 oz of gold in the coin is worth more than the 1 oz of gold in the Krugerrand. The same applies to bars. A 1 oz. bar holds the same real value as a 1 oz. coin, regardless of who made it. Bottom line is that I imagine holding bars or coins is just preference. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.
NinjaPirate
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I guess it's based on preference. Personally, I'd buy a few bars just for SnG's, and the rest will be in coins. From what I've read here, it's better to have coins for bartering purposes (hopefully it won't come down to that)
Try buying locally first. Sites like apmex.com offer good prices, but hit you hard with shipping ($10 to ship a 1oz silver eagle, WTF?!?!). I called a local dealer, and they were charging about $24 for a 1oz silver eagle, which apparently is awesome because people won't budge below
~$28. I also asked about silver rounds, and the local dealer was asking $.30 lower than what apmex was charging (and that's before factoring in the shipping).
...I want me some silver.
Try buying locally first. Sites like apmex.com offer good prices, but hit you hard with shipping ($10 to ship a 1oz silver eagle, WTF?!?!). I called a local dealer, and they were charging about $24 for a 1oz silver eagle, which apparently is awesome because people won't budge below
~$28. I also asked about silver rounds, and the local dealer was asking $.30 lower than what apmex was charging (and that's before factoring in the shipping).
...I want me some silver.
"gold is NOT gold" and you should research what you buy before you purchase. There is also a reason your Krugerrands are cheaper than say the maple or US coin.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krugerrand
Wikipedia said:
Personally, I like to own the coins that are purest. Granted, you will pay a little more of a premium but the gold content of the coin will never be disputed.
The Canadian Maple is .9999 fine. The Austrian Philharmonic is also .9999. Many of the other gold coins available are .999 fine.
Do your research but in the end all that matters is just getting your hands on as much as possible
justatrey
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"gold is NOT gold" and you should research what you buy before you purchase. There is also a reason your Krugerrands are cheaper than say the maple or US coin.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krugerrand
Personally, I like to own the coins that are purest. Granted, you will pay a little more of a premium but the gold content of the coin will never be disputed.
The Canadian Maple is .9999 fine. The Austrian Philharmonic is also .9999. Many of the other gold coins available are .999 fine.
Do your research but in the end all that matters is just getting your hands on as much as possible
Thanks - I guess I got bad advice from some others on this board. Basically, I was told that the gold content of a krugerrand is the same as any other 1 oz. coin.
Dianne - to answer your question I think most gold you will find on the market is 22 k. EDIT: I think this is wrong, wiki says now most coins are 24k.
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justatrey
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gold
The Canadian Gold Maple Leaf coin contains the highest purity gold of any popular bullion coin, at 99.999% (.99999 fine). Several other 99.99% pure gold coins are currently available, including Australia's Gold Kangaroos (first appearing in 1986 as the Australian Gold Nugget, with the kangaroo theme appearing in 1989), the several coins of the Australian Lunar Calendar series, and the Austrian Philharmonic.
The Canadian Gold Maple Leaf coin contains the highest purity gold of any popular bullion coin, at 99.999% (.99999 fine). Several other 99.99% pure gold coins are currently available, including Australia's Gold Kangaroos (first appearing in 1986 as the Australian Gold Nugget, with the kangaroo theme appearing in 1989), the several coins of the Australian Lunar Calendar series, and the Austrian Philharmonic.
asgardshill
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I've always wondered if it is cost-effective to recover the gold plating from old computer circuit boards (motherboards, modems, video cards). I have a friend who's sitting on a ton of these old boards but haven't figured out a way to recover it. Maybe liquid mercury?
ARealConservative
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Your advice was correct:
Since the Krugerrand is minted from gold alloy that is 91.67 percent pure (22 karats), the actual weight of a "one ounce" coin is 1.0909 troy ounces (33.93 g)
A 1 oz Krugerrand weighs more to make up for the purity difference.
The price difference is based on all factors that go into the amount charged over spot, not based on a difference in melt value.
Dr.3D
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The Krugerrand has 1 troy ounce of gold in it.
The gold content of the Krugerrand is the same as any other 1 oz. coin. It has exactly 1 troy ounce of pure gold in it. The actual weight of the Krugerrand is 1.0909 troy ounces. The difference is that they added some copper to make the wear better.
The gold content of the Krugerrand is the same as any other 1 oz. coin. It has exactly 1 troy ounce of pure gold in it. The actual weight of the Krugerrand is 1.0909 troy ounces. The difference is that they added some copper to make the wear better.
justatrey
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Thanks so much for clarifying this, I think I finally understand:
Bottom line is the value of the physical gold contained in the these coins is the same. The krugerrand's "fineness" is .9167 (91.76% pure) but it still contains exactly 1 oz. of gold. Some may be willing to pay more for more "fine" coins, but their melt value is no greater than coins with lower purity.
NocturnalC
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If you can get gold bars, you are doing well. So I'd go with bars instead of coins. Wish I could ask the same question.
Definately buy coins!
Coins are more liquable than bars and are safer (ie more trusted and more used). I'm not sure why people buy bars aside from large quantitites.
There are some good books available maybe from your local library that would be helpful.
EDIT:
And secondly, worth of coins with historic value will vary depending on how much the historical value is with to the particular person buying them. If they are pre-1933(??) coins and there is a gold sezuire by the government, you might be able to get away legally by keeping the coins because they have historic value.
Coins are more liquable than bars and are safer (ie more trusted and more used). I'm not sure why people buy bars aside from large quantitites.
There are some good books available maybe from your local library that would be helpful.
EDIT:
And secondly, worth of coins with historic value will vary depending on how much the historical value is with to the particular person buying them. If they are pre-1933(??) coins and there is a gold sezuire by the government, you might be able to get away legally by keeping the coins because they have historic value.
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LibertyRevolution
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I dont buy gold, but If I was going to buy gold I would buy Canadian Maple Leaf coins.
Then again I like the silver maples more then the american silver eagles. I dont like the look or the feel of silver american eagles.
Far as buying bars i dont trust them, they are much easier to drill and fill than coins are.
Then again I like the silver maples more then the american silver eagles. I dont like the look or the feel of silver american eagles.
Far as buying bars i dont trust them, they are much easier to drill and fill than coins are.
OptionsTrader
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If you want to hold for a long time in a vault, bars for geometry. Otherwise, coins for liquidity and convenience.
I have heard that coins are a safer investment because the coins are worth more than just the precious metal in them. This makes them unable to be confiscated by the government if they do another gold and silver confiscation. I am under the belief that gold bars are confiscatable.
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