How Good Are $50 Bags from Coin Counters?

[Recyclersteve]

I'm curious about those $50 heavy duty plastic bags they have inside the coin counting machines at some banks. Do you guys think they are worthwhile getting or are you just receiving someone else's rejects?

Also, are banks willing to sell them to you, or do you have to twist their arms? Yes, I realize that you will then need to have separate procurement and dump banks.

[Morsecode]

I haven't sorted since 2012, but the answer back then was always 'No'. I don't believe they can even use the coin themselves.

I did get bags from backroom coin counters, from branches that didn't have lobby machines for customer use. Never found them to be better or worse than $25 rolled boxes, but I suppose the potential is there to score big on someone turning in an old hoard of cents.

[NHsorter]

I particularly enjoy the $50 bags off of machines that are a little out of calibration. You can get a lot of 1c dimes that way!

Percentages for me are also about the same as boxes but I will get some decent wheat scores sometimes. You just need to watch out for people's zinc dumps. Never been a problem for me really but it could be if there are other sorters frequenting your bank(s).

I say go for it if they will sell them to you. It's always worth a try.

[henrysmedford]

If they were not good The Portland Mint would be out of business.

[RichardPenny43]

Bags are definitely the way to go if you can get them.
If you sort alot, opening all those rolls can be tedious. With bags you just cut them open and pour them into the Ryedale.
The other coins are a nice bonus too sometimes.
The pennies from bags seem to be dirtier though and there's other crud in there too. I get more jams from bags then boxes.
My percentages are about the same as boxes. I haven't got skunked yet or hit the mother load of wheats....
When the bank tells you they can't sell their bags ask them to order bags.

[spacemanX]

i like both the bags and boxes.
best part of the bags, is it is a quick look and you know if you have copper.

[baggerman]

That is the only way I get my pennies but mine come in a canvas bag. Always find wheats, and sometimes dimes, indians and today a quarter LOL. I also exchange my canvas bags for $1 store credit each at my LCS when I buy silver.

[knibloe]

I get bags from a customer fed coin counter. I did two bags about two weeks ago and they were just under 30% copper. The branch I buy them from is very happy to sell them to be because they pay Loomis per bag to haul them off. Every bag I buy saves them $$.

[MUTiger]

I get the bags off the counter from my local bank. I call first every Friday after work. Most weeks it is one bag but sometimes two bags and every once in a while they have none. As the others have mentioned, I typically get 2-6 dimes per bag. I think my bank is happy to see me because when Brinks comes I am sure they pay a percentage fee for the service. I bring a bag a chocolate about once per month and the tellers like that. I have been averaging about 21-25%. I dump mostly at Coinstar for Amazon, Home Depot, Sears or Lowes fee free.
I have dumped at another branch of this bank and one time they mentioned that someone just came in and dumped 7 bags of pennies. I asked if I could buy $200 of them and they loaded them on a two wheel dolly. I got to the car and they put 5 bags on there. I took the cart back and told them they gave me an extra bag and that I need to withdraw another $50. I got the bags home and after sorting I averaged around 70% copper on the five bags. There were many BU and AU examples from the 1970s and early 1980s.
My problem lately is having the time to go through the bags. I probably have about 40 of them that are unsorted including one that I spotted an Indian Head in when I brought it home. I continue to stockpile and added one more bag today.

mutiger

[baggerman]

I just opened a bag and got 4 quarters. I have no idea how quarters get in a penny bag.