So How Much Would You Pay For A Nickel?

Hello:

This is LeBlond, Gerard LeBlond with the question: "How Much Would You Pay For A Nickel?"

But first, a true story.

A couple years ago I noticed that a McDonald's cashier handed me a 1964 Jefferson nickel as part of my change.

Back then I was laboring under the false impression that all 1964 U.S. coinage, except for the penny, had 90% silver content. So...

When I spotted a 1964 nickel I thought that coin had 90% silver content or about 0.03 ounce of silver.

I was wrong, of course. But...

Not knowing so at the time, and knowing that silver was trading at $5 per ounce I figured the cashier had handed me a coin that was worth at least 15 cents in silver!

Later I discovered that the only nickels that ever had silver in them were ones minted during 1942-1945 and that the silver content of those coins was not 90% but only 35%.

Those 35% silver content nickels were known as World War II Nickels... or

War Nickels, for short.

I've since come across some of those nickels and they feel different from the non-silver containing ones and...

They even look a little different in their surface sheen and patina.

But what I find curious is the absence of reeding -- those are the little ridges along the edge of dimes, quarters, half dollars and dollars -- in the War Nickels.

Why the curiosity?

First, we need to understand the purpose of the reeds on the edge of coins.

Nowadays, with the absence of precious metals in U.S. coins, the reeds exist only as a traditional design element of the coins but at one time those ridges served an important role.

When coins contained silver or gold it was important to know if a coin contained roughly the minted amount or a lesser amount and...

The way that you would be able to tell would be by feeling the sharpness of the reeding pattern along the edge of the coin.

If the coin's edge was worn smooth it indicated that the coin was either highly circulated and showed its age or...

Some previous owner shaved some of the metal off the edge of the coin.

By shaving the reeds off of enough coins a person could collect a pretty valuable little pile of gold or silver filings. And...

Those filings could be turned into money. So...

The reeds' conditons were indicators of whether or not the coin had been reduced in precious metal content value.

Now, back to the original question.

How much would you pay for a nickel?

Most people wouldn't pay more than 5 cents but some are worth considerably more than that.

For instance, all proof nickels that are in their original mint envelopes and which have not been touched by naked human fingers are generally worth considerably more than non-proof coins.

Also, any coin that is encased in a hermetically sealed "slab" is worth more than ones that are not "slabbed".

Furthermore, any coin that is "slabbed" and which has a provenance -- written history of previous ownership -- will be worth an awful lot more than an ordinary nickel that is pulled out of circulation.

So the answer to how much you'ld pay for a nickel should be as little as possible and the answer to how much you'ld sell a nickel should always be: "As much as possible."

From sell info products online dot com and West-Gate Press, this is LeBlond, Gerard LeBlond, and...

I'll see you there.