So is the sorting still happening?

[coppernickel]

Still sort some, but my record was never more than a box or two each week.

Recently I have been resorting / repackaging the copper cents I already have to make them more manageable.

Currently I do not have any raw boxes ready to sort. I have found the spring is mostly new coins, and the fall is better for more mixed coins.

A side note; In pocket change I have found two silver dimes in the past two weeks in my change.

[mtldealer]

At the height of my sorting, I was sorting 25,000 in Halfs and a couple hundred in pennies a week. I was on a roll. I stopped the Halfs and am now just doing a couple hundred in pennies a week.

[fasteddy]

If I could still get bags of coin I would be sorting...but busting open those rolls really sucks.

[Chief]

If I could still get bags of coin I would be sorting...but busting open those rolls really sucks.

What you need is a Roll Cracker 2000™.
2 ft of 1" pvc tube with a cap on one end, with a plug. A slit running the length of the tube, but not the top 3".
Load up 5 rolls of pennies, slide razor blade down the length, and from 3 ft up, dump rolls into 5 gallon bucket. The coins will jump out of their paper rolls.

100_3333.jpg (294.84 KiB) Viewed 2410 times

[CardsNCoins]

What you need is a Roll Cracker 2000™.
2 ft of 1" pvc tube with a cap on one end, with a plug. A slit running the length of the tube, but not the top 3".
Load up 5 rolls of pennies, slide razor blade down the length, and from 3 ft up, dump rolls into 5 gallon bucket. The coins will jump out of their paper rolls.

100_3333.jpg

That needs to be a you tube video.

[Doctor Steuss]

If I could still get bags of coin I would be sorting...but busting open those rolls really sucks.

What you need is a Roll Cracker 2000™.
2 ft of 1" pvc tube with a cap on one end, with a plug. A slit running the length of the tube, but not the top 3".
Load up 5 rolls of pennies, slide razor blade down the length, and from 3 ft up, dump rolls into 5 gallon bucket. The coins will jump out of their paper rolls.

100_3333.jpg

SCIENCE!

[JobIII]

I've been sorting $400- $600 per month with a constent 25% +/- 5% EVERY month for the past few years. But I just recently stopped since all the TD Bank coin machines have been shut down till further notice. But I guess I'm a pretty lucky guy because I have sold 40 CTU's ( 5 at a time ) to the same buyer for $160 shipped....and I keep the wheats.

If you haven't heard about the TD Bank issues check this out :

http://www.today.com/video/rossen-repor ... 9979331847

It's so funny, that all penny arcades are on hold because of this report. I have not been sorting pennies for a long time. Anyways those machines are decently accurate. And a great way to fast track returns...

~JobIII

[slickeast]

The roll cracker idea is great.

My advice is to talk to every bank head teller you can. Ask if they can order bags for you. Also ask at all banks and credit unions if they will sell the bags off the coin counter. Just because 1 says no don't give up on that company. I have had a few BB&T's tell me they can't order bags. Then I drive 15 min up the road and they can order as many as I want.

[Dave]

I still sort, not as much as once did. My % has been higher this year than any other year. people are dumping their copper at my banks. I have @3 tons sitting in my basement and my wife is starting to get on me about them. I have not seen any buyers lately.

[galenrog]

There is always a market for copper cents. Right now it is low and slow. I do not do much sorting of cents right now because I am finding quite a lot of nickel varieties. I do sort enough to put a few $100 bags together each month. Took about 2 weeks with Craigslist to sell each bag at $115. I also found several errors and varieties and actually made more with that than just the common coppers.

Yes, it is slow. But there is still a market. And at least a little money to be made.

[Dave]

%"s have been much higher these past 3 weeks. Sorters are dumping Cu and wheats in my area.

[narragansett]

I was getting 2 boxes every week at my bank for years and now they put a stop to it. They will call me if someone brings in a bunch of rolls. This is the problem with small towns.

[Zincanator]

I was at the checkout of my local grocery store today and they had one of those clear plexiglass boxes for charity change donations. I could see two wheats in there. Makes me wonder if copper and wheat collections are being returned or fed to Coinstar for face value with the copper market being cooled off for so long now?

[wheeler_dealer]

I still hand sort. Few boxes here and there. Tonight the thermometer outside said 88 degree, inside the a/c was cranking as I sorted away in comfort. Glad I did because I had a long streak of wheats, couple hundred so far from contents of two bags.

[SilverDragon72]

My first post in a while!

I'm getting the itch to start sorting again on a small time basis. I liquidated my mini hoard over a year ago due to a temporary cash crunch. I have been collecting
the coppers I get back in change. That's about it.

[misteroman]

Had an odd 50 ( hate when I have only one) and asked teller if he has 2 boxes of pennies.
He did.....all 82 and older so someone in my area is saving!!

[TwoAndAHalfCents]

Had an odd 50 ( hate when I have only one) and asked teller if he has 2 boxes of pennies.
He did.....all 82 and older so someone in my area is saving!!

Those are the best boxes to get. Maybe it's time to make regular pickups at that branch.

[wolvesdad]

Had an odd 50 ( hate when I have only one) and asked teller if he has 2 boxes of pennies.
He did.....all 82 and older so someone in my area is saving!!

Soooo, all copper? Or all zinc??

If someone is saving, seems u got the zinc dump....82 and recent.
If 82 and older, someone used to be saving, but has now started dumping their hoard.

[Recyclersteve]

Had an odd 50 ( hate when I have only one) and asked teller if he has 2 boxes of pennies.
He did.....all 82 and older so someone in my area is saving!!

I would spot check a bunch of the '82's to make sure they are the higher weight copper '82's instead of the zincs.

[misteroman]

Ugh, my mistake!!! All 82 and NEWER!!!
Definitely not checking 82s lol

[TwoAndAHalfCents]

Ouch!! Those have got to be the WORST boxes to get.

[Morsecode]

I learned a lot in sorting. Ironically I think some methodologies carried over to what I do now so the concepts were worth it 10x fold

Good answer.

I was out before the Penny Arcades went bye-bye. I still look at change for numismatic rarities, but will spend a common wheatie without remorse.

Lately I have discovered that my new bank (ditched TD Bank altogether) is installing coin counters of their own, despite the Penny Arcade class action suit. And they - Liberty Bank - have been steadily multiplying their branch locations since 2010. Somewhere around 50 now, all in Connecticut. This bank chartered in Middletown, CT in 1825...and, until very recently, had just the one location. Wouldn't you know the two nearest branches both have the lobby counters. Trying to entice me?

Tried them both out this past week with $500 bags of dimes I had accumulated. The first run ticketed $499.40 with 6 rejects. Perfect! Pretty amazing actually...Penny was never that accurate, especially with dimes.

Yesterday's run came to $513+...so it's still possible to benefit from a previous user's misfortune...which instantly made me nostalgic for my Arcade days.

I believe the machines are distributed by a company called Magner. They're smaller overall than Penny, and not as blazing fast - while not painfully slow as Coinstar. Neat feature: the small screen displays a running tabulation while counting. Sad feature: no coin magnet, so no free Canadian money

Liberty Bank is a super friendly, no minimum balance free checking bank. I had been buying quarter & dime boxes for temporary hoarding giggles and they never balk. In fact, when I don't ask, they ask me if I forgot. They'll even order half dollar boxes! Only issue there is the new machines don't accept them in return dumps.

All of which to say that if...big if...I felt like getting into it again, the infrastucture is in place.

[beauanderos]

At the height of my sorting, I was sorting 25,000 in Halfs and a couple hundred in pennies a week. I was on a roll. I stopped the Halfs and am now just doing a couple hundred in pennies a week.

just curious what it was that made you stop sorting halves? In my case, it was the threat from the banks to start charging $5 per box, when my avg take was just one 40% per box I turned to grabbing as many extra
shifts at work (RN) as I could, and then just trying to pick up relative bargains for cash. I think I found somewhere in the neighborhood of $4000 in silver value during the fifteen months I sorted, but that was mainly very
few "Eureka" boxes with the majority being skunks.

[Morsecode]

The Magner coin counter is pretty slick. I ran some more dimes this afternoon, and slipped two canadians and a 1957 FDR in the mix. All 3 were sent to the reject bin.

It continues to impress me with it's accuracy.

[Shazbot57]

If I could still get bags of coin I would be sorting...but busting open those rolls really sucks.

What you need is a Roll Cracker 2000™.
2 ft of 1" pvc tube with a cap on one end, with a plug. A slit running the length of the tube, but not the top 3".
Load up 5 rolls of pennies, slide razor blade down the length, and from 3 ft up, dump rolls into 5 gallon bucket. The coins will jump out of their paper rolls.

100_3333.jpg

SCIENCE!

I gave up sorting pennies a while back, but wondered if the "Roll Cracker 2000" works with the plastic shrink wrapped "penny condoms" (as I like to call them). The Penny condoms are a pain to deal with. Unfortunately here paper wrapped or bags don't seem available. I used to slit them with a utility knife which worked ok, but I was always fearful of damaging the edge of a nice Indian Head cent or a nice wheat like a vdb.