Widder, SASS #59054 Posted March 30, 2020 Share Posted March 30, 2020 For YEARS, we've seen all these commercials about buying GOLD. Kinda like......when the world turns upside down..."GOLD will be your most valuable commodity". You've seen them. I've often wondered if GOLD is so precious to have and invest in, why are those who have the GOLD trying to sell it? ANYHOW, the purpose of my thread is this: I wonder how many of those GOLD buyers have had to use those GOLD coins and GOLD bars to buy Toilet Paper? ..........Widder Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984 Posted March 30, 2020 Share Posted March 30, 2020 Two words Gold Foil use your imagination. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sedalia Dave Posted March 30, 2020 Share Posted March 30, 2020 Most people that fall for those commercials don't physically have gold in their possession. Instead they have a piece of paper that shows that "their" gold is being held for them in some remote location. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cold Lake Kid, SASS # 51474 Posted March 30, 2020 Share Posted March 30, 2020 I think in the type of catastrophic situations they are envisioning, gold will not be the most useful commodity. Lead on the other hand........... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chili Ron Posted March 30, 2020 Share Posted March 30, 2020 Howdy, I imagine most of that tp was bought with plastic...... If you notice gold coins from the 1880s may have 5 or 10 or 20 dollars clear as can be. That is the buying power of those at that time. Gold and silver metals just shrug off inflation. My Dad had a paper dollar dated 1937 in his wallet when he passed. IF that had been a nice old Morgan silver dollar it would have been worth at the very least, $25. And I bet in 1937 it would have that buying power. Some people like inflation because they like paying back cheaper dollars for loans. Something for nothing is the oldest con. Best CR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pat Riot Posted March 30, 2020 Share Posted March 30, 2020 Just to prove a point to my relatives that were trying to get to buy into a scam to buy paper that said I owned gold I dared them to go to a store and ask to pay using gold and see how far they got with that. They haven’t bugged me about it since. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Assassin Posted March 30, 2020 Share Posted March 30, 2020 I purchased some Krugerrands for $1320 each, that's one ounce of gold. Sold them for $1528 about 6 months later. Short term investment, I made $208 each. Gold is too valuable to trade for gas, food, ammo, etc. Can't break off a little piece or scrape some off, it's not feasible. Silver is a better trading commodity, considering it's only $14.50 +/- today. Usually the price of metals increases every time they do a stimulus package and devalue the dollar. It'll take a few months, gold and silver will spike and it's time to sell. What's the difference between numbers on a sheet of paper and something you can actually hold in your hand? I can go down to the local coin shop and trade the metal for greenbacks. The people selling gold and silver charge a fee per ounce. They always make money on the sale. Best deal is to find a local dealer and purchase direct from him/her. When silver hit $50 an ounce back in 2010 I know some folks that did quite well considering most of the silver they bought was below $7.00 an ounce, same with gold when it hit $1800. Buy low sell high, its an investment just like anything else. . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyrus Cassidy #45437 Posted March 30, 2020 Share Posted March 30, 2020 Pard, I'm a stock market / bond investor. I have IRAs and a 401k, but I also have an account I where I invest on my own (highlight: INVEST, *NOT* day trade). It works for me because part of my first master's degree (management) focused on finance, so I know what all the silly numbers mean when I read a company's fundamentals. Until the coronavirus business tanked the market I was beating the index, which is a rare feat. So apparently that means my interpretation of the numbers is good. In any event, the whole thing about investing in precious metals, including gold, is a marketing ploy. Investor 101 says precious metals are highly volatile, meaning their up-and-down price point is much riskier than traditional stocks. If you're a prepper, it may be wise to have some hard currency on hand (gold or silver) for when the dollar is worth zero. However, my take on times like that is metals will be worthless. Food and ammunition will be currency. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyrel Cody Posted March 30, 2020 Share Posted March 30, 2020 12 minutes ago, Cyrus Cassidy #45437 said: Food and ammunition will be currency. And toilet paper... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
irish ike, SASS #43615 Posted March 30, 2020 Share Posted March 30, 2020 The web sites for preppers are all over the place on what will be used for "currency" in a long term situation. But it ain't gold/silver/ or paper currency. Can't eat it drink it or use it to hunt! Food, seeds, medical supplies, and ammo seem to be the idea that will allow a barter system to come into play. Look at the PIC's from Venezuela with their paper currency laying in the street gutter. It's worthless. Short term like this the only way you can use gold/silver is to go to a business that deals in it to cash it in for "cash". We always have some "cash" on hand in case the system goes down or the banks close temporarily. Fun watching people try to buy gas when the system was down and all they had was a card. I walked in with a $20 bill and got mine. Station had power but no wire connection. Ike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Utah Bob #35998 Posted March 30, 2020 Share Posted March 30, 2020 We are tending to thing worst case apocalypse rather than Depression. In a total collapse of civilization gold won’t be worth much. Food, fuel, ammunition, various commodities, yes. Nobody was trading gold bars in the Mad Max movies. But the chance of an apocalyptic zombie downfall is teeny. A worldwide depression however, is worth consideration. In that scenario, precious metals will most always beat out currency. But I’m betting a big recession at worst might be in our future. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badger Mountain Charlie SASS #43172 Posted March 30, 2020 Share Posted March 30, 2020 16 hours ago, Widder, SASS #59054 said: For YEARS, we've seen all these commercials about buying GOLD. Kinda like......when the world turns upside down..."GOLD will be your most valuable commodity". You've seen them. I've often wondered if GOLD is so precious to have and invest in, why are those who have the GOLD trying to sell it? ANYHOW, the purpose of my thread is this: I wonder how many of those GOLD buyers have had to use those GOLD coins and GOLD bars to buy Toilet Paper? ..........Widder Have you ever thought about the problems of using GOLD bars for toilet paper. Perhaps GOLD leaf, but not coins or bars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cypress Sun Posted March 30, 2020 Share Posted March 30, 2020 SASS Classified in 3 months....... For trade: 1873 Uberti .357/38 rifle, straight stock, 3rd gen C&B short stroke, al. carrier, one piece firing pin, whisper springs, normal cart/table dings. Will trade for 1 troy ounce 99.9% pure gold. Shipping to your FFL is not included. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forty Rod SASS 3935 Posted March 30, 2020 Share Posted March 30, 2020 18 hours ago, Widder, SASS #59054 said: For YEARS, we've seen all these commercials about buying GOLD. Kinda like......when the world turns upside down..."GOLD will be your most valuable commodity". You've seen them. I've often wondered if GOLD is so precious to have and invest in, why are those who have the GOLD trying to sell it? ANYHOW, the purpose of my thread is this: I wonder how many of those GOLD buyers have had to use those GOLD coins and GOLD bars to buy Toilet Paper? ..........Widder Ask yourself what you would do if all you had was gold and you needed toilet paper, how small a bit would it take to buy a roll even at say $10.00 a roll? Would you have a certified scale to measure a piece that small, would you trust any one else's scale, and how would to transport any significant amount without being robbed or killed for it? Way to hell and gone beyond practical. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cold Lake Kid, SASS # 51474 Posted March 30, 2020 Share Posted March 30, 2020 Does anyone here remember when gold sold for $35.00 US per oz.? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyrus Cassidy #45437 Posted March 30, 2020 Share Posted March 30, 2020 1 hour ago, Cold Lake Kid, SASS # 51474 said: Does anyone here remember when gold sold for $35.00 US per oz.? I've retired from one career already and I have no recollection of it being below $500 / ounce. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyrel Cody Posted March 30, 2020 Share Posted March 30, 2020 https://onlygold.com/gold-prices/historical-gold-prices/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Barleycorn, SASS #76982 Posted March 30, 2020 Share Posted March 30, 2020 I added 5oz of silver to my stash when it hit $13 an Ounce. It dropped to $12 but I’m happy, picked up some nice coins. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alpo Posted March 31, 2020 Share Posted March 31, 2020 Gold is an idiotic thing to store. Gold is a yellow metal. Can you tell by looking at it if it is 24 karat, or 18 karat, or 12 karat? Can you tell by looking at it if it is brass? I had a guy one time that owed me $200. He offered me three $50 gold coins. Part of my job was acid spot test on metals. I went and got my kit and put a drop of nitric acid on each of the three $50 gold coins. The spot turned black on all three of them. Not gold. but without the nitric acid I would not have been able to tell. And even if it had been gold, how much gold would have been in it? Can you tell that? You have faith that a Krugerrand or Canadian Maple Leaf is .999. But is it? Did you just buy a counterfeit Krugerrand made of gold coated lead? How do you know? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984 Posted March 31, 2020 Share Posted March 31, 2020 1 hour ago, Alpo said: Gold is an idiotic thing to store. Gold is a yellow metal. Can you tell by looking at it if it is 24 karat, or 18 karat, or 12 karat? Can you tell by looking at it if it is brass? I had a guy one time that owed me $200. He offered me three $50 gold coins. Part of my job was acid spot test on metals. I went and got my kit and put a drop of nitric acid on each of the three $50 gold coins. The spot turned black on all three of them. Not gold. but without the nitric acid I would not have been able to tell. And even if it had been gold, how much gold would have been in it? Can you tell that? You have faith that a Krugerrand or Canadian Maple Leaf is .999. But is it? Did you just buy a counterfeit Krugerrand made of gold coated lead? How do you know? Archimedes! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Utah Bob #35998 Posted March 31, 2020 Share Posted March 31, 2020 4 hours ago, Cold Lake Kid, SASS # 51474 said: Does anyone here remember when gold sold for $35.00 US per oz.? Yup. Back in the 60s Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Utah Bob #35998 Posted March 31, 2020 Share Posted March 31, 2020 My grandfather, an Air Force pilot, began collecting gold coins during WW2. He tried to get gold crowns from every country he flew into. When I was a teen he showed me a strong box with his collection. Probably over 200 gold coins from countries in North Africa and Europe. When he passed away in the 70s, the box disappeared. The family suspects one of my uncles who lived nearby. He moved to the Midwest a short time later and started his own church. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Gauntlet , SASS 60619 Posted March 31, 2020 Share Posted March 31, 2020 The gold problem is an old problem. Long ago, if you had a lot of gold, you had to figure out how to guard it. So you hired trustworthy guards. They would still steal. You'd worry about it all the time. Then a guy comes along with a really good safe and good guards. So you deposit the gold with him, and he issues you a certificate proving that he has your gold. Paper money is thus born. Then smart vault guys realize that folks only come in at long intervals to claim their gold with their certificate. So he can issue 10 certificates per unit of gold, and as long as everybody doesn't come at once, it's great. And everybody in the city can make and sell much more stuff that they could before, because there's 10 times more money in circulation than there was before. All boats rise. You don't have to shave a few crumbs off of a coin to buy your TP, or your glass of wine. Then finally they figure out that the gold, in fact, doesn't have to be there all. Just some basically trustworthy authority, like a stable nation with a stable economy. But the stable nation and stable economy is important. That's why they give out a bunch of money to keep in going in troubled times. First heard all that in Econ 101. It's fascinated me ever since. Everything, in the end, is built on trust. Without that, all you have is numbers on pieces of paper; not even paper money anymore..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forty Rod SASS 3935 Posted March 31, 2020 Share Posted March 31, 2020 7 hours ago, Cold Lake Kid, SASS # 51474 said: Does anyone here remember when gold sold for $35.00 US per oz.? It was locked at $32.00 an ounce for years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyrus Cassidy #45437 Posted March 31, 2020 Share Posted March 31, 2020 11 hours ago, Red Gauntlet , SASS 60619 said: The gold problem is an old problem. Long ago, if you had a lot of gold, you had to figure out how to guard it. So you hired trustworthy guards. They would still steal. You'd worry about it all the time. Then a guy comes along with a really good safe and good guards. So you deposit the gold with him, and he issues you a certificate proving that he has your gold. Paper money is thus born. Then smart vault guys realize that folks only come in at long intervals to claim their gold with their certificate. So he can issue 10 certificates per unit of gold, and as long as everybody doesn't come at once, it's great. And everybody in the city can make and sell much more stuff that they could before, because there's 10 times more money in circulation than there was before. All boats rise. You don't have to shave a few crumbs off of a coin to buy your TP, or your glass of wine. Then finally they figure out that the gold, in fact, doesn't have to be there all. Just some basically trustworthy authority, like a stable nation with a stable economy. But the stable nation and stable economy is important. That's why they give out a bunch of money to keep in going in troubled times. First heard all that in Econ 101. It's fascinated me ever since. Everything, in the end, is built on trust. Without that, all you have is numbers on pieces of paper; not even paper money anymore..... Pard, that's literally the history of how paper money came to be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Black Angus McPherson Posted March 31, 2020 Share Posted March 31, 2020 As a child, my grandmother was given a $20 gold coin. When some president (Wilson?) called for all gold to be turned in to the government she turned it in. But she hated him forever for it. Years later, after the restriction(?) on civilian ownership of gold was rescinded, my grandfather bought her a $20 gold coin to replace the one she turned in. Sometime after my grandfather died and my grandmother was in the early stages of alzhiemers the coin was stolen. We're pretty sure it was stolen by her "cleaning lady/friend" but have no proof. When we moved her into a retirement home we found the empty display envelope the coin was in. Still marked $20 gold and some notation I would guess was about condition. It still p!&&e$ me off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badger Mountain Charlie SASS #43172 Posted March 31, 2020 Share Posted March 31, 2020 18 hours ago, Cyrus Cassidy #45437 said: I've retired from one career already and I have no recollection of it being below $500 / ounce. Yeah, but you is just a kid, Cyrus. But then, again, I am so old I can't remember what Gold was going for when I was a sprig. I seem to recall through the fog that FDR collected it all. IIRC it was $32.00/troy ounce at the time. And somewheres back in the sixties the government quit making silver coins and took back all the silver certificates they could find. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Assassin Posted March 31, 2020 Share Posted March 31, 2020 2 hours ago, Cyrus Cassidy #45437 said: Pard, that's literally the history of how paper money came to be. And, paper money still has to be kept in a safe and guarded, just like gold. It's a vicious cycle. Our country also has other resources to back up the dollar; land, lumber, coal, gas, oil, people, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chili Ron Posted March 31, 2020 Share Posted March 31, 2020 Howdy, I know a soldier stationed at Ft Knox. NO ONE ever gets in to see the gold. He has tried and might as well try to flap his arms and fly. Best CR ps folks like grammma who have a special coin or pin or jewel are begging to have it stolen by all sorts of scum. Just take a nice picture of the little item and put it in a safe. A gold coin collection should be put in a bank vault and listed in a will. Someone in an old folks home is a very easy target. On the other hand one friend of mine regularly bought great old used cars at the local old folks home. How easy is that?????? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Gauntlet , SASS 60619 Posted March 31, 2020 Share Posted March 31, 2020 2 hours ago, Assassin said: And, paper money still has to be kept in a safe and guarded, just like gold. Way easier to carry, though! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Assassin Posted March 31, 2020 Share Posted March 31, 2020 35 minutes ago, Red Gauntlet , SASS 60619 said: Way easier to carry, though! At $1587 an once, that's a whole bunch of paper. If I buried gold in the back yard I could find it with a metal detector. A little gold isn't a bad thing. Too much could present a problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trigger Mike Posted April 1, 2020 Share Posted April 1, 2020 Problem is that if you have gold coins, unless you have a coin shop , no one will take it, not even the bank. A pawn shop may give you 70% of its value. If a neighbor took it, are you really going to pay 1500 for a loaf of bread because I doubt they'll have change? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kid Rich Posted April 1, 2020 Share Posted April 1, 2020 A good jewelry store will buy gold at reasonable prices, been there done that. kR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capt. James H. Callahan Posted April 1, 2020 Share Posted April 1, 2020 1 hour ago, Trigger Mike said: Problem is that if you have gold coins, unless you have a coin shop , no one will take it, not even the bank. A pawn shop may give you 70% of its value. If a neighbor took it, are you really going to pay 1500 for a loaf of bread because I doubt they'll have change? I do believe it is still legal tender. I'd bet you the beer money a bank would be happy to give you $50 for a $1600 Eagle! JHC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capt. James H. Callahan Posted April 1, 2020 Share Posted April 1, 2020 On 3/30/2020 at 5:54 PM, John Barleycorn, SASS #76982 said: I added 5oz of silver to my stash when it hit $13 an Ounce. It dropped to $12 but I’m happy, picked up some nice coins. I bought a bag of "junk" coins a few years ago basically for bullion. A bunch are totally worn out, but a good number are REALLY nice old coins. Problem is they minted so many that they have no collector value beyond silver content if not in picture perfect condition. JHC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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