Divmad

Any grading experts on here care to hazard an informed guess? I won't say what I put it at, subjectively and amateurishly, yet.

i would agree, EF, maybe a touch better on a good day

EF at least.
There's a little wear on the highest parts of Victoria's hair and on the dress. A few contact marks here and there, but nothing to sing home about.
A really nice looking coin.

Any grading experts on here care to hazard an informed guess? I won't say what I put it at, subjectively and amateurishly, yet.

It's a far lower spread than buying .999 Silver.

Grading British Coins is less than a tenner on Amazon, I’ve always found it useful.
 
Allen and Perkins, Coin Publications

I'd say it's probably been cleaned (dipped) at some point. The colour across a circulated coin should vary somewhat, darker around the lettering or in recessed places. This coin looks all one tone, thus most likely cleaned.
Grade-wise definitely VF. The tip of George's moustache has gone, flattened facial hair where the tash and the beard meet. The upper part of the ear is also showing wear. On the reverse you can see the 'I' in HONI is worn, as is the Y and P on the opposite side. There's also wear above the lions top left where the shield meets the crown. Slight wear around the edges of the shield - which always wear first on these slightly concave coins. All indicative of a solid VF grade.
It's a nice coin nonetheless and I have many, many examples just like it. I really love this design.

There are two very different markets. The scrap market where coins have passed through multiple dealers all of whom have sifted through it with varying attention to detail, so there is virtually no value left in it besides the silver content. In pre 1947 I charge around 5 percent premium for this stuff. Grades will vary from unreadable date to high grade 40s coins all of which have no rarity/low demand to justify selling individually. 
Pre1920 is far more sought after and goes for a higher premium for equivalent mixes of grades, say 8 to 10%. This is because even "fine" grade coins can be sold individually sometimes and coins back to 1816 are commonly found in these bundles. 
That's the scrap market. For coins of high grade, buy only from trusted sellers. I say this not because of fakes as I'm not aware of fakes, though this may be a factor, but because experienced sellers will generally know the grade and the value fairly accurately and know it is a futile exercise to attempt to sell overpriced coins. I'm talking about real experts with websites, high quality photos, grades and honest accurate descriptions on every individual coin. Silver coins in high grades will often sell for more than their gold value! I bought a Queen Anne shilling weighing 6g for £420 recently and a few have congratulated me on what a great price I paid! So the percentage premium is not a term that's relevant anymore. 
The scrap market is very easy to enter. You need to know what the silver content is so the lot needs to be accurately sorted by pre47/20 and weighed and then you can easily calculate the silver content and hence price. Do not pay over 10 percent unless you see a hidden gem. If it hasn't been weighed but you can see which denominations are included, that's more time consuming but you can pick up a bargain as not many people will bother to work out silver content. Just remember to make an adjustment for wear, maybe 90 to 95 percent of minted weight. 
The numismatic market on ebay is a minefield however. Prices will be all over the place, people will overgrade and overprice, photos will be horrendous. To enter this market, initially only buy from dealers and read up as much a you can first. Happy to recommend some books. 
It sounds more like you are interested in the scrap end market. I am happy to help with that and have about 18kg in stock right now. 

I have had hundreds if not thousands pass through my hands and have never knowingly come across a fake and have never bought from a dealer unless I can see the actual lot I am purchasing. There are constant complaints of people purchasing from a picture from the likes of the royal mint and not receiving when expected or poor quality. The beauty of pre decimal is what you see is what you get, junk or some nice examples. The hunt is far far better than just buying from a standard picture from a "reputable" dealer (if there is such a thing). 

All the old british currency is worth stacking. It is very safe, there are not counterfeits (excepting of course rare years or denominations), easy to sell on the private market, so in my opinion it is a good buy if you can have it at spot. If you are after small pre 47 coins, I am very sure you can find on forum people happy to sell them at spot.
I will tag on here @davidcaia and @arphethean who can help you with kilos of pre 47 british coins, but there are many members who accumulated big quantities and will be more than happy to sell or swap some weight.
About having for fun, what can I say more? Just imagine a pirate treasure chest full of cheap silver, with no fear about handling, fingerprints, milk spots, with a certain intrinsic value. You can play poker with your fiends using real money, you can have fun with your kids numbering and counting...
Cheers!
Stefan.🤗

When silver blasts through $50 on its way to the ultimate $700 target, it would probably be better to own a stocked up fortified bunker or at the very least, a cache of firearms and ammo because when that happens, good chance the s*** will have hit the fan.

Great post as $50 is my point to start selling. $200 is more probable IMO, but I cant see it staying there as so many powerful people need it for robotics, medicine, solar panels, weapons, spaceships - the list goes on. What to own?? Obviously capital gains need to be a priority as one tube of Brits could be at the limit if it gets that high. Owning mining stocks & even ETF physical would be the best thing to hold if its about making a profit? Personally im all in on KG's as I am fed up with coins milk spotting. Collecting the tudor beast proofs though.   

I would rather buy gold personally because if silver is at $50 you can bet your bottom dollar that gold will be at $5,000.  Waiting for another gold sell off top 2021 levels, but I think I might be waiting a long time. always other things to buy in the meantime - I bought 2 bottles of Foursquare last night, am pondering on purchasing a pokemon pack & eying up the GDX and GDXJ.  

I have a realistic disbelief in its protection under the "SHTF" scenario, above. I have 100% belief in Gold and Silver in the Stagflation scenario, which characterised the 1970s until demand destruction from out of control commodity prices forced a global deep recession in 1973/74. That's why I have been stacking since Covid started, in 2020. Ukraine is the second leg of this inflationary journey. It's deja vu, for those like me who lived and worked and paid a 20% mortgage through the 70s.

It's probably an 'old man hobby' because only those with a bit of spare cash (and no worries about owning the latest iPhone etc) can afford it.
 

Stamp collecting saw its heyday in the 50s and 60s. Now it is relegated to an old man's hobby, driven by the rapid obsolescence of postal communication, requiring a stuck on stamp. The investment implications are obvious.
Could specialised coin collecting go the same way? The drive to digital payments is even more rapid. Who wants or needs coins for most transactions these days? I can't get my head round folk paying incredible premiums to intrinsic value for new issue bullion or proof coins against this background.
That's my real concern about the state of numismatics. 

Stamp collecting saw its heyday in the 50s and 60s. Now it is relegated to an old man's hobby, driven by the rapid obsolescence of postal communication, requiring a stuck on stamp. The investment implications are obvious.
Could specialised coin collecting go the same way? The drive to digital payments is even more rapid. Who wants or needs coins for most transactions these days? I can't get my head round folk paying incredible premiums to intrinsic value for new issue bullion or proof coins against this background.
That's my real concern about the state of numismatics. 

Lovely coins. 
 
Would you be willing to share with us the sources you use to acquire such quality items? Apart from TSF, of course!
ATB.

Neither of the above! It was bought about 25 years ago when I was collecting Victorian silver. 
Like most Silver it will develop toning or patina over time. It’s been kept in a box up until now. The colouration started a few years ago, but that is just pot-luck. Mostly the Silver will just darken, but in this case it’s become very attractive. I think most collectors would prefer it in this condition. Motto: Never clean your old silver - certainly more valuable if left alone. I have no idea as to it’s value by the way!….. 
 

The first coins came into being almost 2,500 years ago, and a substantial part of our historical knowledge is based on coins, including those from coin hoards (evidence of early coin collecting / stacking).
Postage stamps only came into existence in 1840, and as far as I am aware, have never provided any sustantial contribution to our knowledge base.
True numismatists are primarily interested in coins for many diverse reasons, and investment is not one of the main reasons. 
I suspect the same is true of philatelists.
Those who primarily collect for investment value are missing out on much of the potential pleasure and enjoyment they could get from the knowledge they could acquire. As it happens, I believe that real numismatists often end up with better investments than those whose prime motivation was the investment potential, and who probably ended up learning little.
The most extreme examples of this are the "armchair collectors", who only or mainly buy from what I call "Coin Marketing Companies", who mainly but not exclusively sell new issues, at what most TSF members would consider to be rip-off prices. These people hardly ever learn much about coins, countries, history, geography, or anything. Eventually, some of them learn, too late, that they overpaid. Sometimes it is their beneficiaries who realise this. Neither of these outcomes is good for the long-term image of collecting.
I should add that similar applies to stamp "collecting".
It is very frustrating, as a dealer that, day after day, we get this type of "collection" offered to us, and often have to deal with the disappointment and fallout from it. 
One annoying question we often get asked is "Why is your offer so little compared with the original cost?". The response I always want to give is "Why did you or the buyer pay so much for it in the first place without learning anything about coins or the market?" 
Before 1970. most UK coin collectors formed collections of mainly UK or other coins which had originally been issued for circulation. Since then, the UK market has changed, and most "collectors" accumulate new issues, commemoratives, and other made-for-collectors material. Even when they do buy "real" coins, they often want them "graded" (slabbed) or accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity.
In another 50 years, who knows?
😎

I think coin collecting has already gone the way of stamp collecting.
Too many damn commemoratives, it's been over diluted. It doesn't create the interest of new collectors it just overwhelms them, and the poor returns given by some of the tacky commemorative dross basically reaffirms that it's not worth investing in.
It also hacks off longer term collectors who were trying to complete a set of new material when the goal posts keep moving and that the 20 coin set you started out on had somehow morphed into a 126 coin run with more spin offs than anyone can keep track of (like Prime Ministers).
Just look at the state of play since the Queen's passing and the commemorative fatigue that has shown up on here - and many on here (not me) are some of the most committed and interested supporters of such material and even here the will to live was approaching a crisis point.
Same with US material - it started out with the State Quarters (pulled in a lot of new collectors) and then they went all in... on parks, monuments, presidents, first ladies and tons of other stuff. Many of which ended up with ever decreasing mintages as clearly people just weren't that bothered.
But then they do this with films as well... so many Marvel films, and where are we at with Rocky films now? 12?? 😁

Do you think you would have listened had a friend told you that he buys/collects silver and gold coins for investment and wealth preservation.
I had this conversation once with a friend who was a keen stamp collector. He was rather defensive when I told him that stamps are pieces of paper at the end of the day and has no intrinsic value. I adopted a take it or leave it approach. So the discussion on the topic ended rather quickly.

LOL. I'm in the Old Git stamp collecting club as well. I just wish in my formative collecting years, someone would have steered me towards collecting coins with intrinsic value instead, but that's another story. 
 
What I have understood, from my stamp collecting, is that picking the very best quality of scarcer issues is the only way to have any chance of price appreciation over time. That's one way to look at it. The other, which I'm a sucker for, still, is admiring the innate beauty of design/colour/image on particular stamp issues. My favourites remain all those engraved Commonwealth definitive issues of GVI and QE2.  But as for keeping pace with inflation, .....forget it.

LOL. I'm in the Old Git stamp collecting club as well. I just wish in my formative collecting years, someone would have steered me towards collecting coins with intrinsic value instead, but that's another story. 
 
What I have understood, from my stamp collecting, is that picking the very best quality of scarcer issues is the only way to have any chance of price appreciation over time. That's one way to look at it. The other, which I'm a sucker for, still, is admiring the innate beauty of design/colour/image on particular stamp issues. My favourites remain all those engraved Commonwealth definitive issues of GVI and QE2.  But as for keeping pace with inflation, .....forget it.

People need to place a value on things. Always have and always will. Stamps have no intrinsic value yet it didn't stop collectors from buying them (i am one of the old gits who still collects them).
The fact that something isn't in everyday use is largely irrelevant - what does make a difference is perceived rarity. One could make an argument that as coins become less used (and therefore less common) then the perception is that they are rarer so worth more. 
The reality is that the media largely leads the masses into believing what has value (a good example is the Kew Gardens themed 50p coins). There will always be the next big thing but throughout all the fads coins have maintained a solid collector base. There is something basic about hoarding that i can't see ever going away. At the moment hoarding is still generally considered to be collecting tangible, real assets rather than digital ones. This may change in the future but it will take generations to do so. If it ever happens - there is a reason everyone loves Scrooge McDuck.
No easy answers then - it's a combination of politics / hyperbole and the basic human desire to own something with perceived value. 
Who knows, maybe stamp collecting will once again become a fashionable hobby once no-one bothers using them... The current RM strikes may well prove a windfall for old gits like me

Stamp collecting saw its heyday in the 50s and 60s. Now it is relegated to an old man's hobby, driven by the rapid obsolescence of postal communication, requiring a stuck on stamp. The investment implications are obvious.
Could specialised coin collecting go the same way? The drive to digital payments is even more rapid. Who wants or needs coins for most transactions these days? I can't get my head round folk paying incredible premiums to intrinsic value for new issue bullion or proof coins against this background.
That's my real concern about the state of numismatics.