Lost interest?

[highroller4321]

Hi everyone,

It seems like there is a decent amount of people who have simply lost interest in metals.

Care to share why??

[ScottyTX]

Not completely lost here but very distracted every since the big downturn. Found another hobby that has been very satisfying to take up my time, the ryedale collects dust and my silver/gold stash was sold to buy lake front property. I still have the itch but the full on passion has dimmed.

[rainsonme]

the interest does seem to have cooled. Kitchen Sink auctions are far thinner than they used to be. As Mr. Roller knows, I sold 1600 FV of Cu pennies (or some similar number) just to get them out of the way.

If this was an indicator, I would say its a buy signal. Buy when people have lost interest.

[Recyclersteve]

I agree that this (lack of interest) is a potentially positive sign from a contrarian standpoint. I think one thing that has changed is our expectations about the timing of a rally. It seems like there were a lot more people 2-4 years ago who would get excited about something like silver crossing above its 50-day moving average or 200-day moving average. Also, just my opinion, but it seems like there were more people who got excited about someone posting a bullish article on kitco.com or some other site.

Nowadays, it seems like the vast majority of the people think it could easily be at least several years more before there is a decent rally in metals (let's just say that means silver going to $35+ or gold to $1,750+).

Another thing that may be hurting the situation is the increased frequency regarding stories about counterfeit coins. I know for myself it would be quite an undertaking to go back to every single silver/gold coin I've got and test it. I've got the Sigma Metalytics PM Analyzer, but found out that mine has been replaced by a better one that costs roughly twice as much. Even more frustration- how do I explain that to my wife?

If anyone asks me about taking an initial position in silver, I'd strongly urge them to be absolutely prepared for a potential 20-40% pullback and not to take a position if they will need their money in the next five years or so. I have no way of proving those numbers to be accurate. I'd rather underpromise and overdeliver.

I did lose interest in stacking Jefferson nickels (except for better dates), as I like .999 Canadians better than .250 U.S. nickels. I don't know how I ever got sucked into stacking Jeffersons in the first place. Bad investment on my part- not that I lost money, but the time spent could have been spent on Canadians or elsewhere.

[68Camaro]

I agree RC is less active and less competitive at this point, but these things come and go in waves. At times the waves synchronize and they end up at lower lows.

RC was formed around a higher price of copper, which has since dropped and remains depressed. Because of the lowered price that market is nearly dead. Other base metals like nickel also dropped, and that adjacent activity has also declined. Many of us also had, or formed, interest in silver and gold - for different reasons - and that activity sustained the board for several years, but seems to have also waned for many, for the moment. Maybe that decreased interest, as noted above, indicates that a true low is here or approaching; time will tell.

I personally believe it's a great time to buy PMs and has been for several years and I continue to buy, though in a more selective way than in the past. I do see fewer significant accumulators here at RC than we had in the past. Some of those I know - and I can name many names - moved to BS. I personally don't like the BS environment as much so have stayed here, at least socially. I do have a BS account and if I needed to move metal and didn't get action here, I wouldn't feel any limitation about posting for sale on BS.

While many of the things I've done related to RC are not going to result in a financial windfall (or even break even in any foreseeable near-term, for copper or nickel), the learning opportunities - and lessons learned - have been priceless. Those have allowed me to attain, thanks to the collective wisdom shared by those on this board, what I would consider the equivalent of a PhD in base and precious metals, at a level that I would view as nearly impossible to obtain anywhere else.

So no regrets on any of it, and I will continue to participate as I have time.

(For some reason the KSA has never been my favorite thing, but that's just me. If activity is down there I'll leave those active to try to sort that out. I could see it being more interesting, but not sure what needs to change.)

To the original question, reasons for overall decreased interest, I would say that I haven't, but I understand that many have, and the top reasons are probably in these:
- long-term (multi-year) relative depression in metal prices
- metal bulls perpetually stirring expectations of a pending bull market that seemingly "never" comes
- cyclic changes in metal prices at relatively low levels, leading to expectation fatigue
- perception (I believe reality) of manipulation of metal prices
and I'll add this one
- long-term metal buyers refining their acquisition strategy and limiting their buying focus

I started this with a wave analogy. The corollary is that what goes down, comes up. The only question is the timing.

[aloneibreak]

i have not lost interest - just funds !

personally , im working on paying down debt - mostly hospital bills from my last child

and things are stretched really thin here now - just really no extra for anything, especially pm's

i dont think enough attention is being payed to the amount of capital being taken away by the crypto market

market cap of 130 billion currently -- was 180 billion earleir this month

no way of knowing how much of that should have been going to metals but it has to have had an impact

its not just RC though - im having a hard time flipping anything , but still the occasional success

have sold the bulk of my copper and nickel --trying to hold on to whats left of my silver but somethings gonna have to change soon...

[IdahoCopper]

I sold my copper to the bank at face. No luck selling my Ryedale. I began to sell the silver, but spot dropped below my cost basis. I pulled the ad before any sold. So I looked through my dollars for the most numi value. Sold one so far.

I want to sell it all and pay off the mortgage on my rental house to get rid of the mortgage payment. As soon as I do that the bottom will fall out of the real estate market and metals will moonshot.

If I didn't have bad luck, I wouldn't have any.

[JadeDragon]

This is a penny board primarily. That market is morbid due to low copper prices. I don't need to sell my Canadian copper pennies and Ni Nickels and the mint continues to destroy every penny and Ni nickel that comes into the banks from people's sofa cushions and coin jars. Maybe my grandkids will sell them. I look at my base and precious metal much like I look at my blue chip stocks and acreage behind the rental house. It's all long term holdings undergirding family wealth that will be passed down someday and ensure we never go hungry.

[coppernickel]

My interest is still there. Right now putting four through college, there are few funds for stacking.

Cents are the topic of the forum, and I enjoy the banter about other metals and topics.

RC is my sanity check. I visit daily.

[theshoenlebens]

I did get rid of most of my penny hoard but I'm considering starting it back up mainly for wheats. I keep all my wheats and probably have a couple hundred face value sorted by year.

I do buy silver coins when I can find a deal with available funds.

I have no problem selling at anytime to purchase something I want or pay a urgent bill.

I check here and on B.S. multiply times a day because evidently, I also have no social life either.

[johnbrickner]

With only one in college, the girl in prep and little debt . . . you guys with four and a mortgage I can feel your squeeze just not as strongly. I don't "feel" particularly good about the economy and the people I talk to in the trenches are not euphoric to say the least.

I came across a great line from Chaperhouse Dune by Frank Herbert (1985). A naïve youth is asked if he knows what a democracy is. He starts to answer "that's where you get to vote . . . ". He gets interrupted by the long experienced one who says "a democracy is where you are wary of anyone who has power over you."

Trying to keep things in balance regarding allocation. Have sold some smaller holdings of stocks given the recent highs of the world stock index including our own exchanges. Humanity has a short memory and it was under 10 years ago we were within hours (maybe less) of a financial meltdown of the world.

Can that be said differently? Worldwide financial ruin.

Another from the same book: “Politics: the art of appearing candid and completely open while concealing as much as possible.”

I must be the ultimate contrarian. I've got the Ryedale on the kitchen table but not running due to the late hour. Got 2 boxes to run thru, some organizing and take the pile of zinc to the bank counter. The deposit to go into the college man's tuition account.

I still like really good deals and keep comparing what is offered to the $16.95 ASEs many got from govmint. My brain keeps telling me that is the new standard for price comparison so maybe I'm just a little to tight (cheap) right now.

All I can say is give it time. All the red flags are still pointing to shat hitting fan. It can take more than decades for empires to finally collapse. It's the ultra slow motion train wreck along the way you've got to watch for. I can't describe what I see any better than that.

[Market Harmony]

I wish I had some insight to this. I can tell you what I see in the shop... tire kickers, people who are looking for outrageous pricing (both buy and sell), and people buying onesies and twosies. I still have regular clients that schedule their buying and amounts. They happily come in to pick up the cheapest premium stuff and buy anywhere from $400 to $4,000. A few people call in to liquidate gold and silver holdings and are looking to re-invest the proceeds into something else (primarily real estate here). Others sell and say that they are going to buy it back later but need the money now... most haven't come back in the last 4 years. I have none, I mean absolutely ZERO customers buying in order to flip in a few days/weeks/months if price goes higher. The buyers are coming in to pick up long term holdings and to diversify their wealth.

I can't really draw any conclusions from the activity in the shop.

Personally, I grab the stuff that I find interesting in what comes through the business and I sock it away into a drawer telling myself, "someday everyone will want this." I have what I deem to be some really cool stuff building up. But for the most part, I churn, and I wait.

Playing the GSR is fun. I enjoy making some trades and building ounce-wealth.

[Recyclersteve]

Market Harmony: It is great to get candid comments from someone actually in the business. Thanks very much for your input!

[Rosco]

Market Harmony: It is great to get candid comments from someone actually in the business. Thanks very much for your input

Could not Say it better

Turned 80 and less income than 10 years ago
Insurance is more Expensive

[Changechecker]

Everything is more expensive. Seems like the younger generation is not interested in precious metals. They tend to like the Bitcoin and Ethereum. Also they ones with decent jobs are saddled with student loans and if lucky enough mortgage debt. Beyond core holdings lately the roller coaster in prices makes it tough to expand the holdings. I see lots of overpriced 90% being offered to the public, any reasonable stuff is gone quickly.

[slickeast]

I started reading this post, but i lost interest

[Tourney64]

I am not as active, but still stacking. Haven't run my Ryedale in a while, but since I won't be watching any NFL football any more I should have time to do more.

I have stopped buying half dollars because my source credit union is now charging to get them for me, and my last batch of $4000 was a skunk. I still go thru CWR of dimes and nickels, and will be picking up $95 today.

[Recyclersteve]

$4,000 is a lot of halves. Did you ask for that many at a single bank? If so, I'd charge you for them as well. Even $1,000 or more from a single bank would (I think) result in them trying to find a way to charge you.

[hobo finds]

$500 a box? Correct?

[Recyclersteve]

$500 a box? Correct?

Yes, $500 in halves per box.

[frugi]

related to the slowdown of realcent interest I think also is the fact it isnt as easy as it was 10 years ago to go to the bank and buy a box or bag of cents and find 1/3 to 1/2 of copper, its a lot less now....... that is why I simply stopped that procedure and just look at coin shops to buy Canadian pennies and nickels at face, i get more for my investment and dont need to sort anything, the penny bags are like 90% copper. I think the original folks here on this forum are still interested and are still here. Fads come and go, so when the markets start rising again we will see an uptick in our members coming back.

[Tourney64]

Yes, I got the halves all at the same credit union. They had just started doing that. I am the board treasurer of the credit union, and had done that numerous times in the past.

[Recyclersteve]

Yes, I got the halves all at the same credit union. They had just started doing that. I am the board treasurer of the credit union, and had done that numerous times in the past.

$4k in halves at one time without being charged a premium. That's impressive, even if you are a board member.

[knibloe]

Just don't have time.

Is the traffic way down on other forums as well? Say Bullion Stacker?

[frugi]

Just don't have time.

Is the traffic way down on other forums as well? Say Bullion Stacker?

one thing I noticed awhile back is most of the most recent posts are 6 months old in a majority of the forum.