Silver Stacking 101-Where to Buy Silver- The long list of options and my analysis of each.
If you a new silver collector/stacker you may be lost even where to buy silver from. When I started I had no idea and I kind of though you could just get it from the banks. Yeah right...okay some banks do, but it’s not cheap and you wait because they have to order it, so let’s just rule them out as an option. I will present them in order based on my suggestions.
From us at Pheli Mint...the end. Just joking, but you should consider it.
Online dealers
This is actually where I buy most of my silver from, they have huge selections, great prices and shipping is free with a minimum order, which seems to usually be around $500. They are quick and reliable if you stick to the big ones. I have really found this to be the best option and I’ve never had a problem. If you’re in Canada I will give you a list here of the big bullion dealers. They are order of my personal suggestions/preference (no affiliations)
Silvergoldbull.com
Colonialacres.com
Torontogoldbullion.com
Canadianpmx.com
Thebullionpeople.com
Local coin Shop (LCS)
If your online you will often see people say they bought from the LCS (when I was a novice I googled LCS so many times to try to find this one dealer that everyone was getting great prices and unique pieces from...embarrassing). Any ways this would honestly be my personal preference if it was an option for me, but there are none where I live. I do frequent a few down in the GTA or Eastern Ontario when I am there and really do enjoy the experience. Once you make connections with the owners they are usually willing to give you better deals or may even let you know when they score some pieces that would be perfect for your collection or stack. I would really recommend cultivating this relationship locally if it’s an option. You can often find gold/silver at pawn shops as well, or occasional jewelry shops that buy silver/gold. These can be very hit or miss and often have high prices but other times you can be very surprised, it’s worth checking them out if that’s all you have locally.
Other online sources/social media sites.
This is honestly the other place I buy a lot of silver from, but this one come with a caveat and warning....be careful/smart. If the deal is too good to be true it probably is, there are lots of fakes and scammers out there and make sure you know a little bit, and if not double check. The online community of silver collectors can be amazing people. They are willing to help you out, I see lots of people ask other options about the great deal they think they may be getting. They can reach out to group members to verify or vouch for other uses. Many sites have a feedback system. I’ll try to give you a full list here. Disclaimer- be careful and when/if you get scammed please don’t come back here to complain because I suggested them.
Ebay
Everyone knows ‘ol Ebay, there are so many options here it can be totally overwhelming, but it is an amazing place to find some really unique things. Again there are a lot of scammers, so be cautions. Most of the big dealers have Ebay stores and listings and sometimes offer better deals there. I would recommend finding a few sellers you like and buy from them often, build a report and relationship with them and it can really help (I’m cheap and often try to negotiate for deals off platform (we all know how big those fees can be) with trusted sellers, but this is against the rules and can get you in trouble with Ebay I don’t recommend it (Winky Face)). I could devote a single post about Ebay only, but I’ll stop here.
There are all kinds of groups devoted to silver and coin collecting, I have got a lot of great pieces and great prices here but I have also been scammed (luckily not for much). Ask for reference within the groups if you are buying or selling and start with small transactions. Once again the community there is massive and I could takes days to tell you about all the groups I am members of, but I’ll only mention one here Silverbugs. It’s great for sharing information and knowledge and they only hold sales on the weekends. It’s a great place to start and learn, make friends or just lurk there.
This is also a huge community, they are also at the subreddit Silverbugs as well. They only showcase and discuss silver and have no sales there. There is a subreddit devoted for sales called pmsforsale. It has some sort of rating systems and is very active, although I have little experience buying from there.
Forums
There are a few great forums floating around with huge stacking communities. BullionStackers.com is by far the biggest and my most favorite. It is very active and very community focused. They have a rating system for buying and selling and locations for different types and categories of transactions. It is very organized and strongly suggested. Metalsmafia.com is a new forum I’ve check out a few times, it’s got a great core group of members. Thesilverforum.com is also a very large forum, the main bulk of users seem to be located in the UK but it’s a great resource and does have other regional sections.
Steemit
This is an exciting new social media/blog platform where the content you make/post is voted and you earn a crytpocurrency called STEEM. (This whole sentence would have sent my head spinning a few months ago. What is cryptocurrency, think bitcoin.) If you curious head over and check it out. There is a great group of users using the tag #steemsilvergold and it is very community focused. There are very rare sales happening at this time, but it’s really growing and expanding rapidly. You find us there @phelimint, we are extremely active and totally in love with the platform.
YouTube
There is an amazing community of silver pourers and artist. If you want something unique and beautiful look around there a little bit. It’s impossible to shout out everyone so I’m not even going to try, they should be easy enough to find.
I was surprised to see there is a lot of buying and selling going on there, and a lot of raffles if you are the gambling type.
Coin Shows
This is another great and fun option, they can be pretty big. There is usually a small fee to enter and huge options of vendors all around the floor. We routinely attend the Toronto Coin Expo and will be there again this September, it is held spring and fall. There are also smaller local shows usually sponsored by a local coin club as well and don’t overlook these.
Coin Clubs
Most medium sized towns have a local coin club. There are always a few members who collect and stack silver and some willing to sell and trade. These groups can be lots of fun and strongly recommended.
Local classified/yard sales/flea markets etc.
You can certainly come across some items this way. This can also be a great way for more experienced collectors/stacker to get “junk” silver. Once again this can be riddled with scams and problems so be careful and be educated; you may want to bring a scale, magnet, calipers etc to be sure. Be smart, don’t meet in dark alleys, don’t invite strangers to your house, don’t carry around massive wads of cash, and all the rest. This is last on the list for a reason, don’t die.
Feel free to drop any other suggestions or any discussions and tips in the comments.
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When auctions are lightly attended, I have had a little luck picking up a couple of coins at a time. I think I got a 1/10 oz gold panda for like $143 once...
That's great actually, and thanks that is one I totally forgot about.
I think its very important to shop as local as you can, we have to support the few remaining family businesses and offcourse phelimint...
Thx man, I do really think it's important to shop local and support small business. I always do whenever I can here, I refuses to shop and Walmart and many other big change stores. My father was actually a small business owner and eventually got rolled over buy bigger chain stores.
G'day. Some very good, useful advice. Thanks.
One great source is the Perth Mint in Australia - very unique coins and they ship worldwide.
Other places where you can sometimes pick up a random bargain are Second Hand Shops and Charity Shops.
Your right about that as well, I should add that to the part with the yardsales and flea markets
Wow, great post! I wish I had all this information when I started 👍 I'm up voting and resteeming and all that jazz but also keeping this link handy to share it when I'm asked 'where should I start buying silver' Thank you!
Thanks I wish I had it too. I literally started my quest by calling banks. Then I new a guy who has some silver so asked him and he sent me to silvergoldbull.
I thought you could only get it coin roll hunting! Man, I thought I was so lucky to find so many 1964 nickels in those days. Haha, I still have some as a gentle reminder that I'm really good at being stupid!
That's another one I forgot to mention actually. You can still find the rare one there.
@phelimint got you a $1.54 @minnowbooster upgoat, nice! (Image: pixabay.com)
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This post has received a 0.31 % upvote from @drotto thanks to: @banjo.
Don't meet in dark alleys...lol. Hey, whaddya need? I got Maples over here.
FeeBay is the one place I tell people to avoid. Then I go and find a great deal there and spend way too much time looking for another. Good mention of the forums and social media sites!
Yeah, FeeBay can really suck you in. I've spent too much there along the way, but such a great place to find that one rare coin your looking for if your willing to spend crazy amounts.
Great advice thanks, think i will try the local pawn shops, never really considered them before.
Yeah, like I said it can be hit or miss, but you never know.
I must say your Temptation of the Succubus is a Beauty. Only 2 and 5oz???
Thanks so much man, only 2oz in fact, but with 3 finishes. Brilliant Uncirculated,
Proof and Antique. We choose 2ozs, since it gave us extra physical space to portray the art and also to help lower the per ounce premium due to the high costs of custom minting.
I read your post are good.
upvote for u .