An Introduction To Junk Silver
Junk silver is popular among people looking to invest in silver because of the amount of silver content. This silver content can vary from thirty-five to ninety percent or more.
What Is Junk Silver
Junk silver coins are old silver coins that collectors consider worthless because of their low aesthetic or historical value, but which investors value because they contain high amounts of silver. Although silver coins minted today don’t contain high levels of silver, junk silver coins--like half dollars, dimes and quarters--made in 1964 or earlier contain about ninety percent silver.
In 1965 a United States coinage act decided to stop minting silver coins with ninety percent silver content. It is for this reason that silver coins made before 1965 are now in high demand. They are considered valuable because they contain a high percentage of silver and are hard to find.
Junk Silver Available In American and Canadian Coins
An example of a popular junk silver coin is the Kennedy half-dollar, which dates from 1965-1970. This coin contains forty percent silver.
In today's marketplace, junk silver Canadian coins are rare, but only a few decades ago, they were available in dimes and quarters. Canadian coins were valued because they contained about eighty percent silver until 1966. In 1967, however, many were minted with only fifty percent silver. Then a year later, they were either minted with fifty percent silver or no silver at all, consisting only of copper and nickel.
Junk silver coins are still legal tender. Junk bags were valuable during the spike in silver prices in 1980 and during the scare related to Y2K at the beginning of the new century.
Where to Buy Junk Silver Coins
Junk silver can be purchased from coin dealers and from online dealers. The bags are generally sold at face value. If you were to buy a $1,000 bag, you would get about 715 ounces of pure silver. Junk silver coins are easy to buy or sell because they are easily recognized.