Coin Shows VS Bullion Dealers

[diggin4clad]

This past Sunday I went to a coin show and in addition to buying some coins for my collection I bought some gold and silver bullion items to put away. I bought two rolls of 90% silver Washington Quarters and a British Half Sovereign.
The silver coins cost me 17.5 times the face value. Checking the prices of two major bullion dealers the prices quoted were 20.7 times face value for APMEX and 21.3 times face value for JM Bullion.
My two rolls cost $350 at the show but would have cost $414 from APMEX and $426.40 from JM Bullion....quite a difference.
My Gold Half Sovereign cost me $235 which at the time was just $10 over melt. That same day the coin from APMEX was quoted at $244 and JM's price was a whopping $293. This is why I never buy bullion from online bullion dealers.

 

[KOB]

That's not really surprising. Coin shows will always have better bullion buys. Though I haven't been in years , you used to be able to sift through boxes and find a semi-key or variety for your collection. Not always in the greatest condition , but it was fun searching. I imagine now it's totally different and they have been thoroughly picked through.

 

[diggin4clad]

That's not really surprising. Coin shows will always have better bullion buys. Though I haven't been in years , you used to be able to sift through boxes and find a semi-key or variety for your collection. Not always in the greatest condition , but it was fun searching. I imagine now it's totally different and they have been thoroughly picked through.

There are still a few dealers who put out what I refer to as "junk boxes" marked 50% off, or some other "bargain" rate but I don't bother looking through them.