$5 in copper pennies going for twice the face value

[cesariojpn]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ws/eBayISAPI.dl ... 1063468690

Bidding history looks....odd.......

[brexzz1]

what looks odd about it?

[Zincanator]

Not a terrible way to spend a spare ten bucks from where I'm sitting. I imagine a minor-league hand-sorting, low-volume hoarder like myself thinking:

"My buddy picked up the tab for lunch today, SCORE! Now I have a spare $10 dollar bill. Should I drive to a couple of banks and get 20 rolls, sort them and net 150-200 Cu Lincolns and maybe a wheat or two, then spend more time to re-roll zincs and deposit? Or should I jump on FeeBay and spend that same $10 and get a guaranteed 500 Cu lincolns with no effort whatsoever?"

My answer would depend on mood, location, to-do list, etc...

These are the thoughts that make you Ryedale guys smile .

[NDFarmer]

Yes they did go for two times face value but the shipping was FREE so by the time the seller pays the shipping and all FEEbay fees he actually lost money.

[itsmerobbyb]

I was watching that same auction hah. Farmer is right, after shipping hes making about $7 ? So still roughly 1.5 face like the rest of us

[NDFarmer]

I was watching that same auction hah. Farmer is right, after shipping hes making about $7 ? So still roughly 1.5 face like the rest of us

Shipping is about $5.50 (SFRB) The copper pennies at face value are $5.00 Then you take away all the FEEbay fees and seller lost money on the deal. He did not make .5 X face on the deal.

[itsmerobbyb]

Wow, my bad didnt realize shipping was so much for just $5 fv. Bad deal indeed

[OtusLotus]

According to the EBAY Fee app, with shipping at $3, the guy will make $1.83 after all fees.

[plus1hdcp]

Could you actually fit $5 in a padded mailer and get the postage for $3? I don't know and can honestly say never thought about it.

[barrytrot]

I wouldn't recommend putting that much relative weight in a padded mailer. Odds of a "good delivery" would not be good in my opinion.

SFB is your best bet, although losing money isn't good

[Doctor Steuss]

Unless my calculations are off (math is definitely not my strong suit)...

500 (pennies) x 3.1 (grams) = 1550 (grams) / 28.3495 (grams per ounce) = 54.67 (ounces). So, figure on the high end, 3 lbs 7 ounces. Using the postage calculator on the USPS website, it looks like the cheapest** way without using a flat rate box would be to send it Parcel Post. For me to send a package of that weight from Las Vegas to Miami, it says it would cost $12.09. That doesn't include having to pay for the envelope or box to ship the pennies in, so you can probably add another $.50-$1.00 to that number. Even if I were to mail it only 3 miles away (from 89110, to 89104), it would cost $6.17 via Parcel Post.



**Media Mail would technically be cheaper, but would also be dishonest.

[CardsNCoins]

First class mailing ends at 13 ounces, so the flat rate service is the cheapest option available for a 3.5 pound package.

The auction ended at $11.50 which is 2.3x face value.

Minus - $5.15 SFRB online price
Minus - $1.03 Final value fee
Minus - $0.63 Paypal fee
Minus - $5.00 for the pennies being sold

All that equals a net loss of -$0.31

[NDFarmer]

Could you actually fit $5 in a padded mailer and get the postage for $3? I don't know and can honestly say never thought about it.

I just got back from the post office and I took in ONE roll of wheats in a padded envelope and asked them to weigh it and figure the cheapest postage possible and they said it would cost me $2.63 to mail ONE roll. So if you are going to mail 10 rolls I don't see any other way to go other than a SFRB plus then you would get delivery conformation for free if you purchase the postage online.

[slickeast]

First class mailing ends at 13 ounces, so the flat rate service is the cheapest option available for a 3.5 pound package.

The auction ended at $11.50 which is 2.3x face value.

Minus - $5.15 SFRB online price
Minus - $1.03 Final value fee
Minus - $0.63 Paypal fee
Minus - $5.00 for the pennies being sold

All that equals a net loss of -$0.31

That is why you should not sell small amounts. You really can't make any profit until you sell 10lbs or more at a time

[cesariojpn]

I noticed the auction was shipping via Parcel Post. So Doctor Steuss has the right stats.

[NDFarmer]

Well then his loss would be even worse if it cost him more than $5.15 to ship the pennies.