Why buy coins at multiple banks?

[lukesquires]

I usually buy $500 pennies at a time and my bank is happy to get them for me (they really don't mind). They order them and a week later they are there. So am I missing out on something by not buying from other banks as well? I should say that I am in a small town and it is a small bank, so when they order pennies they come in from all over the county and are usually a good mix of 60% post 82 and 40% pre 82. I appreciate comments I am new at this. Thanks

[merchoarder]

40% coppers?? If you're really getting that you should buy from every bank in your town! That is a super high percentage, browse around here a little and you will find that 30% copper is considered very good. Congrats on those numbers!

[lukesquires]

I am just getting started with this. Maybe it was just beginners luck but I hope not. So, if I am averaging 30% at one bank there is no reason to go to others instead? I can only buy so many at a time.

[merchoarder]

Forgot to say welcome!! Perhaps a cashed in collection? I would keep getting as many as I could afford, like I said, those percentages are super awesome! To answer your question, why not check out some other banks and see how they measure up? It all depends on what you can afford but you seem like you're doing well, keep it up!!

[lukesquires]

Thanks, if you don't mind me asking, how many dollars in pennies do you usually dump at one time? My dump bank makes me hand the teller the coins and she puts them into the machine. I don't want to P*** them off and have been dumping 50 - 75 per visit.

[JobIII]

I'd be surprised if you continue to get 40% if you're ordering $500 a week. That is pretty high. IF you keep ordering so many pennies I am certain your percent will come down to around 30%. Also it really doesn't matter the bank you order from. It's rare to find a bank that consistently supplies you will pure zincs. And they tend to be BU if that happens

Returning zincs, This depends on the bank. If they know AND tolerate you, you may be able to do a huge amount. Others will limit your access pretty quickly followed by ending your access completely if you're not careful.

I'd try to find 2-4 banks that will allow returns of $200-$600 each week because gas isn't cheap and at >4 bucks a gallon it will start to eat your profits.

good luck

[highroller4321]

I usually buy $500 pennies at a time and my bank is happy to get them for me (they really don't mind). They order them and a week later they are there. So am I missing out on something by not buying from other banks as well? I should say that I am in a small town and it is a small bank, so when they order pennies they come in from all over the county and are usually a good mix of 60% post 82 and 40% pre 82. I appreciate comments I am new at this. Thanks

Even if you are in a small town they will all come from the same fed depot in 1 location. (Probably the closest "major" city to you.)

[Morsecode]

Sounds like a great situation. I'm jealous

If $500 is your max spending limit, AND your bank is ok supplying all that coin, then no...there's no reason to buy anywhere else. You've already discovered the hard part of this: getting rid of $300 zinc each week. Especially tough if they insist on counting the coins themselves.

[henrysmedford]

I go to about twenty branches a week at four different bank brands. It cost a bank more than face to order in coins and it cost a bank more than face to ship out. So if you bank starts to hurt and the manger is told save money you might be at the loss. Also if you go to more than one branch and they know that you collect coins and they like you they might call you. I got a call from a Chase vault teller that she made a mistake and ordered a large amount of boxes of cents and if I could get her out of trouble by buying them. I have more than once gotten calls when the old woman has came in with all that coin "junk" he had in the closet. All the branches have my son Franklin's card he is the collector and will/have call us when they get over stocked in CRW .

[dannan14]

i haven't counted them all up, but since i started sorting in late January i have probably gone into at least 25 different institutions to a total of at least 45-50 branches. Most of those i only ask for halves since it is much more likely to get them without an account. i get all my pennies from the 3 institutions i actually have accounts at. Also, i've never ordered boxes. i just ask for what they have and occasionally get boxes of pennies, but the vast majority are customer or teller wrapped rolls.

[JobIII]

I think some of you might want to look at the costs of traveling from branch to branch. I like the enthusiasm, but if you're going to over 20 branches a week your energy costs have to be eating into your profits.

Think small. 1-5 supply / dump banks.

~JobIII

[henrysmedford]

I think some of you might want to look at the costs of traveling from branch to branch. I like the enthusiasm, but if you're going to over 20 branches a week your energy costs have to be eating into your profits.

Think small. 1-5 supply / dump banks.

~JobIII

I just do this to help keep my son Franklin busy he has autism. Its easier than putting him on drugs and has no side effects .

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[JobIII]

I think if you're into this as a hobby or hobby/investment and are enjoying it, who cares, enjoy what you are doing I'm happy for you and franklin, please continue to post your counter reject finds!

If you're seriously looking at this like an investment and track opportunity costs, then my advice may be applicable.

I stress that even then it really still only 'may' apply

~JobIII

[fasteddy]

I buy from multiple banks because i get their bags off of the lobby counter...once they ship out those bags, they are gone to the wrapper in some dark secret building I suppose. There is a cost and as Joe wrote

it cost a bank more than face to order in coins and it cost a bank more than face to ship out.

they may tire of the cost and turn off your supply. If the bank is happy with your ordering process then go for it. My BoA will order me as much as I want, but I limit the amount to $300. The tellers can barely move that amount. So multiple BoA's during the week and one sort on Monday. And today is Monday...

look at the costs of traveling from branch to branch

Some maybe contractors or ones the drive alot. I drive alot, right past the same banks every week. Only cost is time to stop in and make the P/U or dump and chat with the tellers.

[NHsorter]

I just do this to help keep my son Franklin busy he has autism. Its easier than putting him on drugs and has no side effects .

Just like drugs, the penny habit is addicting. And side effects include dirty fingers and occasional neck and eye strain

Seriously though, that is great that you are willing to take all the time that you do to help Franklin instead of just drugging him. I see way too many parents just drugging their kids to make their own lives easier. It's pretty sad. And I am not talking about serious issues either. Things that much easier to deal with than autism. Good for you Joe.

[lukesquires]

Penny dumps are a hot topic

[dannan14]

I think some of you might want to look at the costs of traveling from branch to branch. I like the enthusiasm, but if you're going to over 20 branches a week your energy costs have to be eating into your profits.

Think small. 1-5 supply / dump banks.

~JobIII

My largest gas bill for any of my excursions has been about $8. On that day i drove about 30 miles away. The main purpose of that trip was to buy some Philharmonics from a guy on Craigslist (who happened to teach investing at an online school, i told him to check RealCent out) so i made the most of the trip and hit a bunch of banks in that area that i would never have gone to otherwise. It paid off in multiples of silver. It will also yield 15-20lbs of copper.

What are my opportunity costs? Well, i could have gone to a bar for the same amount of time and drank $40 in beer. i could have ordered a box of halves and saved on the gas money. i'll go to the bar when i feel like it so that isn't really a missed opportunity. i think i am getting a much better return on loose halves than i would on boxes, so the few dollars in gas i spend are truly inconsequential.

i now have 4 routes of at least a dozen banks each with two more in the planning stages. That way i don't become "too familiar" at any given bank and i get a shot at a much wider base of halves. For me, this is equal parts hobby and investment, but as i stated above i think that cutting back on gas cost would be the less lucrative choice. Perhaps i'm just leveraging my searching with petroleum lol.

[JobIII]

My largest gas bill for any of my excursions has been about $8. On that day i drove about 30 miles away. The main purpose of that trip was to buy some Philharmonics from a guy on Craigslist (who happened to teach investing at an online school, i told him to check RealCent out) so i made the most of the trip and hit a bunch of banks in that area that i would never have gone to otherwise. It paid off in multiples of silver. It will also yield 15-20lbs of copper.

What are my opportunity costs? Well, i could have gone to a bar for the same amount of time and drank $40 in beer. i could have ordered a box of halves and saved on the gas money. i'll go to the bar when i feel like it so that isn't really a missed opportunity. i think i am getting a much better return on loose halves than i would on boxes, so the few dollars in gas i spend are truly inconsequential.

i now have 4 routes of at least a dozen banks each with two more in the planning stages. That way i don't become "too familiar" at any given bank and i get a shot at a much wider base of halves. For me, this is equal parts hobby and investment, but as i stated above i think that cutting back on gas cost would be the less lucrative choice. Perhaps i'm just leveraging my searching with petroleum lol.


I would disagree that the few dollars spent on gas are inconsequential. Perhaps they are a necessary loss and so you choose to ignore it. But every week that we do this, and that adds up $4 in gas each week adds up to around $200 dollars. If you're sorting copper that could be a significant cut into your expected profit. I agree silver may make this less significant but still something to consider. Maybe not important to everyone, but I'd say it's something to consider.

[dannan14]

I would disagree that the few dollars spent on gas are inconsequential. Perhaps they are a necessary loss and so you choose to ignore it. But every week that we do this, and that adds up $4 in gas each week adds up to around $200 dollars. If you're sorting copper that could be a significant cut into your expected profit. I agree silver may make this less significant but still something to consider. Maybe not important to everyone, but I'd say it's something to consider.

Well, i do think it's worth considering, which is why i took the time to break it down As i mentioned, that was the longest trip i've taken to get coin. Two of my routes cost under a dollar...even at current gas prices. But that post was actually about opportunity costs. i could easily have driven that same amount of miles for some other entertainment purpose that did not result in extra income (or rather increased wealth).

[slvrbck]

Penny dumps are a hot topic

Speaking of penny dumps. . . When I was a little kid my younger brother swallowed a penny. The doctor said it should be harmless but we had to make sure that it passed. Guess who got the pleasure of doing the checking?

[uthminsta]

Penny dumps are a hot topic

Yeah, man. It's what we DO!
Oh, and one thing you fellas might not have considered when calculating cost versus reward, is that if you go to a lot of banks, like I did with my two daughters on Tuesday afternoon, you get a LOT of lollipops. That certainly made it worth going all over town -- in their eyes at least!