Curiosity ....? is CURRENT market value?.... copper pennies

[Rubbadubba]

I've been sorting now for several years just as many of you have been. My initial hopes that I might someday be able to realize a bit of a "gain on investment" (despite a possibly extended time of holding) is still my hopeful anticipation. Who knows? Maybe my grandchildren will be able to redeem a few thousand $ face value copper pennies into a 3 or 4 fold profit given the "then current" base metal value and well after any melt prohibitions have been repealled. WHATEVER! Anyway, my question of the moment is ... what if any is the current (early 2013) "market value" for pre 1981 copper pennies? Could I hope to sell any quantity of coin for a penny and a half on the cent?... Would I have to settle for 1 1/4 c on the penny? could I even get that today? What prospects for the future market and continued waiting? Just a lot of thots for thinking about!!!! At almost 70 years of age, I have some minimal hopes for the security of my grandchildren, possibly connected to my sorting efforts! Your comments are coveted!

[creshka46]

There are a couple offers to buy right here on Realcent in the market section. The have essentially put a floor on the market. Highroller is offering to buy up to 10 tons (I think) at $136 per CTU (one CTU = $100 face value). Since it costs about $12 to ship a CTU, your profit would be 136- 100 - 12 =$24. You can get that price any time day or night right now so consider that a minimum. Personally, I've sold via Craigslist to some guys around town for as high as 1.35/penny but that's with no shipping. On ebay they seem to often go for around 1.5/penny but then you have fees and stuff. Bottom line is that the current market value is at least 1.36 shipped, but can be as high as someone is willing to pay.

[wagsthadog]

Hi there!

I'm not a big player by any stretch, but I've had the same questions as well- I've been all-in on cents, I've been none-in on cents, and everywhere in between. Looking forward to hearing responses.

I dont really expect to get wealthy on pennies, but with Canada getting rid of theirs I'm utterly convinced that its just a matter of time before ours goes too. I dont want to go all in with pennies, but I would like to have around 500-1000 lbs just in case theres a buying frenzy I can cash in on

Ebay seems to have a few very tantalizing prices realized, in the 1.5X range, but there are fees and shipping costs to factor into it as well.

People are buying here at around 1.3-1.4X face, but again usually shipping is on you-

You might be able to set up some local or craigslist deals to get a bit better deal-

I personally havent seen anything (besides flukes) past like 1.5Xface....though again, I'm not big time-

Their time will come, though- it's just that it may take a looooong time!

Still, youre an excellent example of a conscientious grandparent!! I say that equally important in hoarding you cents for your decendants is to EDUCATE them as to the nature of real money vs. fiat, and WHY youre holding these pennies, so they have an appreciation and understanding of them. When one of my grandfathers passed, my brother and I divided up his modest bullion collection. It was about 100 ounces of silver, but my grandmother had no idea what they were worth. Thank God we did! I shudder at thinking of her taking them to cash for gold and getting $500 for it :O

Jmo, any other thoughts?

wags

[brexzz1]

Canadian CTU'S trade for much higher

[HoardCopperByTheTon]

I agree with what the others have said here about current market value. The floor is now $136 shipped for a CTU. There are other buyers here offering up to $140 shipped per CTU. I generally offer a CTU in the monthly KSA auction just to test the pulse of the market. They generally sell in the $140-142 range and go with no bids if I try to press the starting price shipped up to $150. Occasionally you will see prices a little higher on eBay, but by the time you subtract the eBay and PayPal fees the net is not much more. If you sell here to other members at least you are keeping it in the family. Ideally you could hook up with a local buyer to take the shipping out of the equation.

[Catfish4u]

Someone with more knowledge can please correct me if I am wrong. $100 worth of copper pennies weighs 68 pounds. Those pennies are 95% copper and 5% zinc. Would this be considered 'red brass'? Red brass is currently bringing $2.30 per pound at my local scrap yard. 68 x $2.3 would be $156.40 for $100 face or 68 pounds of 'copper pennies'. That would make the 'worth' of one copper penny 1.56 cents if the melt ban were to be lifted. Does that sound like a proper value for a 'copper penny'?

[HoardCopperByTheTon]

Proper value is what you can actually get. Prices of metals change on a daily basis. Currently you cannot sell them to a scrap yard, so that value is irrelevant. I originally found this forum several years ago while trying do do a 2 ton penny deal with my local scrap yard. They were willing to pay me #2 prices if I could prove to them that it was legal to melt the pennies. Back then, it was.. but the federal register had only been scanned to the internet for the previous 10 years and did not go back far enough. When they finally passed the melt ban my metals dealer called me up and said "I guess you were right all along.. but we can't do it now." I started selling a few on eBay and got some pretty good prices.. but as soon as you get some good prices all the copycats come out and the prices go down.

[TwoPenniesEarned]

I won't sell for more or less than the cost per pound of copper. I'm going to sort mine by weight into one pound baggies and wait for the market to mature.