Hi Hugh, I was just reading James’ blog on saving nickels again. I have about a year or more’s worth of coins I’ve been saving. My late wife had rolled $10 worth of halves which I’ve saved. Would it be wise to hold onto them?
How about Canadian silver coins? Aren’t they mostly silver?
HJL’s Comment: The base metal content of half dollars made from 1971 to 2014 is 91.67% copper and 8.33% nickel with a current value of less than six cents. Unless you are able to procure coins of high silver content, they are most likely not worth what you pay for them and cannot be considered a store of value. Coinflation is an excellent site to determine the melt value of coins based upon their base metal percentage. They also list the coinage of Mexico and Canada (among others) and the same rules apply.