Only coin collectors know about this; but you can still find 40% silver-clad half dollars in circulation today. Here is how.
Go to banks or savings and loan companies, and buy rolls of halves at $10.00 each. Buy as many as you can afford, the more you buy the more you stand to find. Take them home and check them. Keep all halves made before 1971.
U.S. silver dimes, quarters, halves and dollars minted in 1964 or earlier are 90% silver. Then Kennedy half dollars of 1965 through 1970 have a 40% silver content. The 1970 half dollar was not released for public circulation, so any specimen of it would be a mishandled collector's coin or one which had accidentally been placed in circulation. A coin-collection is stolen and the coins are just spent as regular coins, especially by teenagers who do not know their numismatic value. Sometimes these teenagers just snitch a coin or two and go for a malted at the local drug store or malt shop. So always watch all your coins.
These 1970 half dollars command a sizeable premium.
Half dollars after 1970 have no silver in them with the exception of the proof and mint sets (which were not put into circulation - they were for collectors only.)
I have been a coin collector since 1964 and over all I have made money at it - however I collected, bought and sold everything.
I still find 40% silver halves, and once in a great while I find a 90% half. In addition to the banks and the savings and loan companies, I make it a habit to stop at small town banks, and especially country stores and ask them if they can or will sell me some half dollars. Usually they will.
Every time I make a purchase at any store, I ask them if they will sell me some or all the half dollars in their till. Most businesses are glad to get rid of them. No one wants to handle them any more. They all use quarters for making change.
Roll up all the halves that have no silver content and return them to the bank. Cash them in or trade them for more rolls or use them to buy groceries or other merchandise.
So keep at it and don't get discouraged when you go through several rolls and don't find any... The law of averages will even it up for you.
If you would like to join the most enjoyable and profitable hobby int he world, visit your local coin shops and attend some coin clubs, and coin shows. You should purchase a copy of A Guidebook of United States Coins, what the coin collector calls the RED BOOK.
You might also want to subscribe to a coin paper such as Coin World. Their address is: Coin World, Sidney, Ohio 45367.
Good Luck!
Thursday, December 4, 2008
MAKE SCRAP FOIL For Hobby, Pastime and Profit
A very interesting little practised craft, is creating effects with scrap foil. It is a cheap medium to work with, supplies being obtained freely from the wrappers of sweets, chocolates, biscuits, cigarettes, and other articles. If one prefers to use new foil, it may be obtained quite cheaply, and there is not waste at all.
Pictures of your own design, calendars, trays, advertising signs and firescreens are but a few of the articles that can be made in a wide range of patterns and colors. Materials required are few, and consist of a piece of glass, the size of the article being made, cardboard, Indian ink, photographic paste, and passe partout binding.
As an example, let us begin with a colorful picture of a basket of flowers, selected from a glossy magazine. Most pictures are suitable for this type of work, but those with small details should be avoided.
Transfer the main outlines of the design on a piece of tracing paper, then place the blank side of the paper against the piece of glass; back it with cardboard, and secure the whole with elastic bands or paper clips to prevent movement. The design should now be seen reversed, as in a mirror.
Thoroughly clean the front of the glass to remove any fingerprints of greasy patches. With Indian ink, black out all of the background, leaving the parts that will show the foil clear. When thoroughly dry, apply a second coat of ink. After allowing that coat to dry, the paper and card may be removed. Cut the foil roughly to the shapes required, and using photographic paste, place the pieces in their respective positions on the inked side of the glass, and smooth the foil gently. If the foil slightly overlaps the ink, it does not matter; it will not show.
Build the picture up from the center to the outside, and finish one color before starting on the next. Cover the finished work with paper, and smooth gently but thoroughly all over to ensure that every part is firmly fixed. When dry, coat with clear varnish, and leave to set.
Place the backing cardboard into position again, not forgetting to fix any hangers if they are required, and then bind the edges with passe partout.
Even the smallest piece of foil left over will have a future use, and every bit however small, should b e saved. In the case of buildings, remember that light windows should be shown in silver or gold foil, an skies should of course be blue, grass green, etc.
Pictures of your own design, calendars, trays, advertising signs and firescreens are but a few of the articles that can be made in a wide range of patterns and colors. Materials required are few, and consist of a piece of glass, the size of the article being made, cardboard, Indian ink, photographic paste, and passe partout binding.
As an example, let us begin with a colorful picture of a basket of flowers, selected from a glossy magazine. Most pictures are suitable for this type of work, but those with small details should be avoided.
Transfer the main outlines of the design on a piece of tracing paper, then place the blank side of the paper against the piece of glass; back it with cardboard, and secure the whole with elastic bands or paper clips to prevent movement. The design should now be seen reversed, as in a mirror.
Thoroughly clean the front of the glass to remove any fingerprints of greasy patches. With Indian ink, black out all of the background, leaving the parts that will show the foil clear. When thoroughly dry, apply a second coat of ink. After allowing that coat to dry, the paper and card may be removed. Cut the foil roughly to the shapes required, and using photographic paste, place the pieces in their respective positions on the inked side of the glass, and smooth the foil gently. If the foil slightly overlaps the ink, it does not matter; it will not show.
Build the picture up from the center to the outside, and finish one color before starting on the next. Cover the finished work with paper, and smooth gently but thoroughly all over to ensure that every part is firmly fixed. When dry, coat with clear varnish, and leave to set.
Place the backing cardboard into position again, not forgetting to fix any hangers if they are required, and then bind the edges with passe partout.
Even the smallest piece of foil left over will have a future use, and every bit however small, should b e saved. In the case of buildings, remember that light windows should be shown in silver or gold foil, an skies should of course be blue, grass green, etc.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
