timsk

2000 Queen Mother 100th Birthday £5 Crown Piedfort Silver Proof I appreciate that it's struck in 56.56 grams of 925 sterling silver as opposed to 2oz of 999 fine silver but, even so, on the face of it this looks like a good deal to me. Am I missing something, or should I be backing up the truck to the door of Britannia Coin Company's dispatch department?

Hi pm, I was aware when I wrote my last post that I might be served a helping of humble pie! Thank you for pointing out the error of my ways, as I was indeed under the (mistaken) impression that a piedfort coin was nothing more than a fancy name for a 2 oz coin. That said, I don't feel too silly, as I feel the mistake is an understandable one for a newbie like myself to make! 😉

Hi paulmerton, As a newbie to this game, I hate to question someone with your knowledge and reputation! Just to be clear, these are the coins that I'm referring to and want to buy if anyone has one of them / all of them for sale: The Queen's Reign The Commonwealth 2022 UK £5 Silver Proof Piedfort Coin The Queen's Reign Charity and Patronage 2022 UK £5 Silver Proof Piedfort Coin The Queen's Reign Honours and Investitures 2022 UK £5 Silver Proof Piedfort Coin

If anyone has any 'spare' Piedfort 2oz coins from this range - please PM me!

👍 Nice one DrDave. May I suggest you include example shots using the setup(s) you advise? If you did that using a coin that everyone is familiar with, say a 1oz silver Britannia, then that would provide a useful benchmark against which others can compare their results. Also, I suggest a bespoke thread with an easy to find catchy title* so that members can refer back to it and, perhaps, post their results and any questions they may have etc. Just my £0.02p worth. *DrDave's Smartphone set up for Photographing Coins DrDave's 'How to' guide for Photographing Coins DrDave's 'How to' guide for Photographing Coins with a Smartphone / Point 'n Shoot / DSLR / Hasselblad X2D 100C Medium Format Digital Camera DrDave's . . .

@DrDave Praise for your excellent pics has been loud and well deserved. Obviously, most of us here will never be in a position to take pic's as good as yours but, by the same taken, many of us (me included) could probably do a great deal better than we're managing to do currently - if we had a few tips and pointers from someone who knows what they're doing. Do you see where I'm going with this? 😉 Looking at my own pic posted a few days ago of the Tutankhamen coin, I forget to remove the cap lid, so the pic is of the coin through the cap and the camera has focused on the cap and not the coin. Doh! A rookie error. If everyone avoided making this one simple mistake, I suspect that alone would make a significant difference to the quality of images posted on here. The post above by Silverlocks got me thinking that it would be useful to have a basic - VERY basic - 'how to' guide for taking a decent snap of our coins using a smartphone. This would be good for our own records and improve the standard of posts (photographically speaking) on here for others to enjoy. If this is a challenge you felt able to accept, I'm sure it would be very well received and much appreciated by the great and the good on TSF - and me! If it's something you'd consider doing, my suggestion would be that you keep it super simple and, unless absolutely essential, shy away from buying any kit. Or perhaps you could do two versions: 'beginners' (no special kit) and 'intermediate' (using some kit along the lines Silverlocks suggests, perhaps?). In other words, most members will be able to take better pictures with what they already have and follow what you advise from memory without the need to refer back to a long list of complicated instructions. Just a thought DrDave - but if you don't have the time or inclination, I'm sure everyone will understand and be more than content to enjoy your fabulous pic's as and when you post them.

I'm pleased with this as it looks better in real life than the flat 2D images by the Royal Mint. Just wish I had DrDave's camera skills to do it justice!

Seconded. Even better pic than the first one DrDave - and that was seriously impressive! In this day and age when anyone with a decent smart phone thinks they'e a photographer - your pics prove that there's real skill and art to it that takes years of serious application to master. Now, where's that tenner you promised me! 😄

Lovely pic' DrDave. I can see BYB enlisting your services for future promotional material! 😉 For the nerds amongst us, would you care to furnish us with a few details about the shot: camera, lens f stop etc? Looking at it, I'm guessing the 'set' is your kitchen sink drainer - a bit of simple texture to offset the shiny smoothness of the dice. Works well!

Interesting! I take the polar opposite view - I think it's great. Here's why . . . It's highly stylised, obviously, which is in stark contrast to most RM offerings. The thick lateral lines of the pharaoh's headdress give a real sense of depth and scale, further helped by the way they break out of the circular dot and arrowhead detailing around the coin's edge. The viewing angle is slightly upwards, indicating the pharaoh is positioned above us - as befits a king. His androgynous characteristics are very evident: perhaps weighted slightly too far towards female? - but I guess that's a sign of the times! The fine radius lines in the background are an old trick, but used very effectively here to frame the head and thrust it forward. They also provide a lovely textural contrast to the 'skin' of the face. The only areas where I think the artist could, possibly, have done better is to define the features of the right hand serpent a little better and, for my liking, the two parallel(ish) lines on the pharaoh's neck look a tad out of place. I'm not sure what they're supposed to be: some evidence of jewellery perhaps - but surely they're not meant to wrinkle lines? These minor criticisms aside, I think the design is simple, bold and very striking and I'm surprised the coins haven't sold like hot cakes. Needless to say, I've bought one! I give the design 7/10!

I'm in the camp that believes the current financial crises is - to some extent at least - orchestrated and that the powers that be want either to crash the system or degrade it to such an extent that they can then 'build back better' by ushering in Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs). When that happens, there will be a literal stampede towards PMs, as they'll be the only universal home worldwide where people can store their wealth outside of the financial system. A place where governments and their agencies can't see who has what and where etc. Sure, crypto sort of comes into this bracket, but there's nothing quite like having a lump of shinny stuff in the hand! So SidS, IMO, your $50.00 per oz will definitely be realised and long before 2030. Just my £0.02p worth of course, and I fully accept and appreciate that my view is a tad controversial! 😄

Yes, fair point ak74 - I didn't think of that. Perhaps I was a tad harsh in my criticism of them in my post that you quoted. Sorry RM!

Thanks for the reply, SJ. Would you care to elaborate on the part of your post that I've quoted? 😉 Courtesy of another SF member, I hope to secure the Edward VII coin that I missed out on last Monday. Can't say more than that just yet in case it doesn't work out. For future launches, I'm considering trying to buy two of the coins that I collect (2oz silver proof) and, if I'm lucky enough to secure them, offering the second coin at RM list price plus P&P to forum members who - through no fault of their own - missed out. My thinking being that if I'm unlucky again - which is possible if not probable - then another forum member who does something similar might return me the favour. I understand and accept the counter argument to this is that if everyone did this (rather than just buying one coin for themselves), then each edition will sell out twice as fast and twice as many people could end up losing out. It's a tricky one with no obvious solution that I can see?

Thanks for your post, SJ. Unfortunately, the timetable is of almost no value as RM can't even get the month right, which might explain why they don't publish a specific day and time! I only decided to start collecting this series fairly recently and did not participate in the launch of the first three monarchs - so I don't know if they were released in the month's specified on the calendar. However, the fourth in the series, the Edward VII coin released last Monday 17th October was - according to the timetable - supposed to have come out in September! I couldn't be in front of my lappy at 12.00pm last Monday due to a hospital appointment and, by the time my wife returned home at 1.00pm after dropping me off (to buy the coin I wanted for me) - it was 'No Longer Available'. How then are we supposed to plan our time down to the hour of the launch if we don't even know the month - let alone the week or day? It seems that with future releases, it's just pot luck whether or not one will be in a position to join the RM queue or - due to circumstances - be left to the mercy of eBay flippers or to kind hearted SF members who might be in a position to help out those who lose out. I'm new to this - so still green about the gills. Perhaps it's always been this way and one just has to accept that these are the somewhat unsatisfactory rules of the collecting game? The one positive I suppose is that at least everyone is in the same boat!

For anyone able and wanting to buy 250+ then Sharps Pixley are offering the 2023 1oz Britannia for £23.96p Inc VAT. Their quantity price reductions appear to me to be the most marked from any of the main bullion dealers. So, anyone in a position to buy a 500 monster box might do well to contact them to see if they'd be prepared to shave off a little extra - not least because beneath the price breaks they state: "For larger quantities please call us on 0207 871 0532 to discuss". No harm in asking! Oh, and delivery is free.

Curiously Jeff, my offer has been 'declined'. I can't imagine why! 😆 The seller is an out 'n out chancer. There's someone else offering the 5oz version who's 'only' asking about £800. At least those coins are no longer available from the RM and so, with a fair wind and strong demand, I can see that price at least has the potential of being realised. Maybe!

I've just offered £500 for the 10oz Silver Proof coin! 😄 Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2022 UK 10oz Silver Proof Memorial Coin Pre-Order

Just glancing at the RM site again for the first time since Monday and I see that 'Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2022 UK 10oz Silver Proof Coin' limited Edition of 1,000 is still available to order. I could have sworn that when I last looked on Monday they were 'No Longer Available'. Anyway, just a a heads up in case everyone's thinking the limited edition stuff had all sold out.

Thanks for the reply. Sorry if I'm being super thick, but am I correct to infer from your post that there are coins being offered (not listed on the FAQ page) that are subject to a MCM? If so, what are they?

Hi all, I'm new to this - as in I've never been in a queue on the RM website before. RM say: Between Monday, 3 October 2022 and Saturday, 31 December 2022, the following coins will not be subject to a Maximum Coin Mintage (MCM): Each edition of the UK £5 and 50p Proof and Brilliant Uncirculated coins One ounce platinum, one ounce gold and one ounce silver Proof coins Quarter-ounce gold Proof coin In light of this, is there any point in queuing given that the mintage limits will only be set after everyone has had an opportunity to buy what they want? It's a genuine question as I'm green about the gills and may be missing something very obvious!

I'm looking at the best deal for a monster box of 2022 silver Britannia's and the prices from Sharps Pixley look to be about the best, followed by Chards and Tavex. The issue is timing! I've taken the gamble that spot would drop to the £16.00 mark and had it in mind that as this is a clear support level I would buy when it got there. Now that it has, I'm hesitating! There are three factors that are causing this, so I thought I'd share them here to see what other members think: is my reasoning sensible or waaaaay off track? Here goes. . . 1. The Ukraine war. Spot price rose at the start of the conflict but failed to breach the Feb' 2021 high - let alone the Aug' 2021 high before that. As and when we hear talk of a settlement - hopefully soon (please god!) - I think that will have a negative impact on price as the threat of nuclear war recedes. Safe haven - risk on : risk off principle. 2. I expect that inflation and recession to get much worse, which will result in a worldwide downturn in economic activity, i.e. a falling demand for PMs - along with everything else. Falling demand will be reflected by a falling price. 3. Looking at the weekly spot chart below, we can see that price has flirted with the £16.00 level repeatedly over the past year or so, with relatively few bullish moves, so downward pressure appears (to me) to be dominant. Taking the three points together, I'm now thinking a move even further down is more likely than a full blown reversal that sees spot sky rocketing. I think that will happen eventually but, in the meantime, I'm inclined to sit tight and wait and see what happens. As I say, I'd be interested to hear your thoughts?!

Does anyone know the story with Tavex? They were very competitive but, according to their website, no longer sell silver - although they will still buy it: Tavex 1oz Silver Britannia Coin (Hover your cursor over the green 'You receive' dot.)

Hi BYB, Many years ago, I remember looking around the magnificent Alhambra Palace in Granada and marveling at the exquisite craftsmanship that festooned every wall and ceiling. I overheard one of the tour guides telling their group that all the tiles in every room - of which there were many thousands (tiles, not rooms!) - were hand made and that on all of them, somewhere, there is a deliberate flaw - albeit very small. The reason for the imperfection is that only god is perfect and it would be an insult to him/her if something made by a mere wo/man was 100% perfect! That concept has always tickled me and I've used it ever since as an excuse for everything I do in life which always falls short of the standard I set for myself and that others expect of me. With regard to your purchase, it would appear that The Royal Mint also subscribes to this view, perhaps not for religious reasons, but for philosophical ones. Namely, that perfection is a worthy goal that everyone should strive for - but that no one should ever achieve. 😉

Thanks everyone for your replies and interesting observations - much appreciated. One thing that I hoped someone might comment on is the 6603 A serial number. At least, I assume that's what it is? Presumably, somewhere, there are records of all JM bars produced and this number will help identify when, where and how many were made etc. Also, the records might hint at what could have happened to all the others in the edition (if that's the right term?), as you'd think Google images would throw up one or two lookalikes. That there is virtually no information about it, other than that stamped on the bar itself and shown on the receipt, surprises me. If anyone is interested in making an offer for it, please contact me via PM. Thanks again.

I have a friend who owns a silver bar - as per the thread title - which was bought by his late father in 1968. One of the pics shows the original receipt and is the only mention of the bar's unusual weight, which does not appear anywhere on the bar itself. I suspect it may have collector value - not least because I've done an extensive search and can't find anything similar. The information that I have is as follows . . . Bar dimensions: 84mm x 34mm x 15mm. Wooden box dimensions: 104mm x 58mm x 34mm excluding the external ribs. There is tissue paper lining the bottom of the inside of the box and the grey toning of the surface of the bar is only due, I think, to tarnish. If anyone has any info' about the bar and a rough idea of its value, or can suggest where I go to find out about it, I'd be very grateful. Additionally, if anyone is interested in making an offer to buy it - please contact me via PM. Thanks in advance for your help! 🙂