FourNinesFine

I know what you're thinking. "Did he auction six shots or only five?" Well to tell you the truth in all this excitement I kinda lost track myself. But ... you've gotta ask yourself one question: "Do I feel lucky?" Well, do ya, punk? £175

Pew Pew £150

Regrettably, my pockets don't run nearly this deep. But it turns out a bump costs nothing. Lovely set. GLWS. FNF

I've been following this thread with interest and your comment seemed like a good jumping in point. No, I don't think it will be enough - broadly speaking. The 'red pill' analogy is the perfect one, obviously. But like in the Matrix, the problem to be overcome IMO is that people need to be actively pulled out by someone. There's just too much Matrix to overcome otherwise. I'm not too proud to admit that I'm massively guilty of being one of the naive ones for many years. Of belonging to the 'that's too horrible to be true' or 'I'll give them the benefit of the doubt' brigade. And that's how its seeded, as many on this thread have suggested. Under the guise of something 'honorable' or 'necessary'. Such as: We need to restrict movement in certain areas because of auto-emissions and global warming. We need to go cashless because of the virus. We need bank controlled digital currency to combat fraud. And the majority of people accept this... partly because it lines up with the approved narrative, partly because they can't comprehend a soveriegn government acting against the interests of its citizens - and partly because even if they did believe that, it's much easier to bury your head in the sand. I'm now very sceptical about most things. Certainly those things that are part of the mainstream narrative. But it's not easy. Information is currency now and it's tightly packaged. And it's not helped when stories such as 'Chinese Digital Yuan having an expiry date' (for instance) are hosted on the same page as UFO-sightings. I now wonder what really can be done. Acting en masse won't happen, as per the above. Is it about thhe minority groups organising bettter? Or just getting your own house in order and hoping you've done enough to weather whatever's coming? Not looking to derail this thread. Happy to receive input, info and links throuugh DMs. FNF

Welcome. I too am a big fan of backyard barbeques.

Hello and welcome.

Tempting... but you should wait until they release the special edition 'Premier League crests' versions. Bling AND style points.

Full disclosure, I'm no expert on gold prices. But this special offer at Bairds is the lowest price I could find on Gold Krugs. https://www.bairdmint.com/products/1oz-south-africa-gold-krugerrand EDIT: 'Non-expert' status confirmed. Please see posts below for better prices, seemingly everywhere. I shall retreat back to the shadow realm.

Thanks @LemmyMcGregor. I was referring to silver specifically. In terms of gold though, I pretty much stack sovereigns exclusively given their 'best value' status from what I can gather, across many different metrics.

Yes, it can feel like that. You mention silver so I'll assume that's what you're intending to as your first purchase(s). I'm also going to assume that you're using money that is specifically for this purpose (I mean, as the age old saying goes... only using money you could afford to lose). If that's the case, you really can't go wrong. I'm based in the UK where buying silver currently incurs VAT at 20%. This isn't helpful from an investment perspective. However, I don't believe you should have those issues. Therefore, what you'll need to be mindful of is the premium - the difference between the silver spot price and what you're paying for it (generally calculated per troy ounce (ozt)). And that is quite high - especially when compared to gold. Buying 'bigger' items - 5oz / 10oz / 1kg etc. usually brings the premium down but also pushes the unit price up depending on your budget. I believe there's usually a lower premium on bars compared to coins and rounds too... but I'm not an expert in that field. All this said..., as long as you're mindful of these factors and you're doing your due diliegence on price and vendor, then you shouldn't have too many things to worry about. Just go at your own pace and buy things you like. For what it's worth, I started with a view that I wanted to invest solely in silver as I believed gold to be too expensive to be viable. I've now changed my mind on that and I pick up fractional gold (individual items that weigh less than 1ozt) for my long term investment goals, whilst still buying very specific silver items that I like. Shout out to the Somali Elephant and St. Michael's shield. You're definitely in the right place. And you're doing the right thing. Keep asking questions. This forum loves a specific question... but even a vague one is OK because we've all been where you are. And some of us aren't that far in front.

Welcome. I remember my first purchase very well. That feeling of being like a child on Christmas morning, unwrapping something shiny, special; while simultaneously feeling all grown up... making investment decisions and spending my money 'sensibly'. Have a good look around the forum, there's plenty to help new stackers. Special mention for the threads that detail different members' thoughts on the merits of gold over silver and vice versa. Concepts such as 'VAT', 'CGT', 'premiums', 'liquidity' etc. It helped me a lot and was a good early grounding in the world of PMs. One example: FNF.

Welcome. Tons of silver to be found... and even some knowledge, if you look hard enough.

Welcome to TSF.

I agree with @SilverJacks, some basic advice would just feel like enhanced service to me and that the dealer was treating me with a duty of care, rather than just as a simple transaction. To date, I've only ever purchased bullion grade coins so I can't speak to proofs. But as a novice to stacking / collecting, I was very surprised at just how quickly my thumbprint was fully transposed across ol' Lizzie's head when I fondled one of my first ever Britannias. 'Fools'? Maybe. But if you don't know, you just don't know. I'd welcome a little 'handle with care' cheat sheet. FNF.

Most of that is from boating accidents by Forum members though, isn't it?

Welcome to TSF. Some very helpful and knowledgable people on here. Looks like we can add you to that roster now too, when it comes to proof sovereigns!

Beautiful!! The 1kg... Wow! I look forward to the day that you wish to part ways with it!

Wow, really? I think I'd be in the market for one of those kilo versions!

Thanks to @Panda6Pack for hooking me up with this absolute beauty. Pretty sure the pic won't do it justice but it's exquisite in hand.

Same thing happened to me. Nobody home, but apparently, we still managed to squiggle an eligible signature and 'refused to accept delivery'. Disgraceful. Hopefully, just a one-off.

Welcome. I'm more of 'red rose' man myself, but let's not let that come between us. We've got the Pennines for that. Happy stacking. FNF.

Greetings. Welcome to TSF.

You're right, the costs can seem prohibitive for a single coin, but the bottom line is that's the only way they're insured. For this reason, the vast majority of sellers on TSF state that buyer chooses postage at their risk. I recently used the Special Delivery option to send goods with a value of over £1000 (not precious metals) and while I can't remember the exact limit, I was well within the threshold. So I think SD covers your stated scenarios comfortably in terms of insured value - though I don't know if the weight of the PMs would impact costs.

QVC has been rubbish since you left

"Budget"... Definitely rings a bell, but I can't quite place it... Welcome aboard.