kimchi

A 2020 Sovereign is selling at Bairds for £318.84 and at Hatton Garden Metals for £336.48. You can also get one on here for £315.00. It pays to shop around is my point but invariably, the prices on here are the best because most people check in so that their prices make sense. I guess trust and reputation play a good part in all of this.
I do not think anyone on TSF just buys an item on here without checking Bairds/Chards/Atkinsons/HGM or other trusted sellers first. 
I have today listed a load of items for the first time in a while. I took a break from selling on here for personal reasons, but have come back today. I had been listing items elsewhere and they were selling for more than I would have got here (or been comfortable asking), but have noticed a slight change recently where I actually think that sales have picked up. If my items on here don't sell I know they will absolutely sell elsewhere and possibly for more money as for some crazy reason (totally unfathomable to me) any item I sell off the forum really does sell for more.
I just much prefer buying and selling on here.  

Silver for me hasn't been worth while since the premiums rocketed after March 2020. The premiums have been falling steadily but nowere near enough and there is also now the VAT issue. I am glad for the silver I hold and managed to buy leading up to March 2020 but I doubt there will be much added to that moving into the future. Gold I feel a bit more confidence in but even then I'm only after specific items that I feel will appreciate better than just bullion.
In a way its a shame as I quite enjoy all this as a hobby but it just doesn't make sense to me to be paying such high fees on top of the metal value for the coins.

A bit of hype bubble popping
A bit of disenchantment 
A bit of feeling overextended
A bit of wait and see

They were Nigerian dwarves according to the upcoming BBC historical drama

Free markets act on self interest. The self interest of what are usually multi-nationals who have no allegiance to anyone but the profit line. 
The USD is stuffed - if the free market system worked well we would not be in this mess for what is in reality for decades. The currency should be by the people and for the people. i know that is a bit American Revolutionary but that is how i believe it should be. Handing over control to faceless bankers is spelt out in this quote.
We have entered the inflation stage - funny how things play out.
The US was spending dollars hand over fist. They reneged on the promise at Bretton Woods in 1944 not to issue excessive currency. Foreign governments could see they were issuing dollars hand over fist and started demanding the gold. Nixon 'temporarily' suspended the convertibility of the dollar into gold because the British economic representative to Washington went in person to the Treasury and demanded $3 billion in gold. Nothing to do with not knowing how many dollars out there - everything to do with the gold disappearing at a rate of knots.
More currency can indeed grease the wheels but the problem is they don't know when to stop and they do not introduce currency for productive reasons. It gets hosed in to get elected, to grease palms, for follies, to pay for wars, to fuel speculation. This is what has happened. You cannot say it has worked well b/c for decades it has been heading down the road to ruin. That road gets steeper and steeper - it is now out of control. The USD is going to collapse. They have lost control of the bus and it is going over the cliff. They cannot stop pumping in exponentially increasing amounts of currency and they cannot increase interest rates. 
 
The Western financial system died in 2007 / 08 - we have been witnessing the corpse rot since then. 

Thanks for the mention. I'm glad you like the word "minty".
Good question, and lots of good answers already.
If in doubt, put them in capsules, providing you have enough storage space. If you haven't got enough storage space, try to acquire some more.
Tubes are OK if you handle the coins carefully, and certainly OK if they are older circulated ones, again unless there are some particularly good condition ones.
I have seen many sovereigns and other coins spolied by careless handling or storage.
When we buy sovereigns, we tend to look more favourably at coins in capsules, or other suitable protection.
At the worst, even if you did not get more for better coins, they would almost certainly be easier to sell, whether to dealers, or fellow stackers, investors, or collectors.
It can't do any harm to store in capsules, and could help, so once again, yes.

I’ve only just started stacking sovereigns and looked fo ages for something to store them in. Tried quite a few but eventually ended up with these 100 coin cases with capsules from Amazon for under a tenner. They fit whole sovereigns perfectly.

They were Nigerian dwarves according to the upcoming BBC historical drama

They were Nigerian dwarves according to the upcoming BBC historical drama

I don't think they'll reach enough entrants, these competitions usually don't and many people will know or even expect it. They'll have factored this in and decided that the increased exposure (it's worked on me as I'd forgotten all about them, and I'm not even entering!) is worth it.

See i have the same problem. American software fails to erect my problem, so i have dig deeper on redtube.....  But theres a diferernce I wont go down browns golden bottom hole... thats a bridge too far

The United States revolution was about monetary policy, same applied with the Civil War. The "founders" were part of the "Rights of Englishmen" group which believed in political representation and taxation without representation. The FF didnt want to pay for the Stamp Act (1765) - this was the debt on the Seven Years War. Plus, the payments on the Stamp Act/Taxes were to be paid in GBP (to keep the value). Years later the Patriots took on the British Empire and won, as we all know.
Thing is with the American civil war, the South wanted to use fiat currency, wheres the North wanted to use Gold and Silver. But theres a catch... The Indians/Tribes were subject to genocide as they were on top of massive amounts of Gold and other resources.
The FF borrowed from France and the City of London. George Washington was the largest beneficiary out of them all given the size of wealth he had.
EDIT: Thomas Jefferson was the most intelligent out of them all. He knew how the Bankers operated. The United States today have fallen on deaf ears on Jeffersons vision. Its actual disgusting. The United States will fall, its inevitable and China will replace its Empire status.

Yep, exactly. As an American I've wondered over the years whether the official stories we're told, the American mythology, are true or how true they might be. You know, the stories of George Washington, Paul Revere, etc, etc.
Some of us wonder if there was any actual independence or if it was just another scheme by the royals, and if the DC Capitol is their London 2.0 or whatever, and it's just a new version of the East India Company. 
If that made any sense...

they profit at least 15%
"As detailed at clause 3.3(c) above, if the requisite number of tickets have not been sold by the Closing Date, the Promoter at its sole discretion may change the Prize. This will be a lesser cash prize in a value equal to 85% of ticket sales for the prize draw."

The Britannia Coin Company is raffling a 2020 James Bond 2 Kilo proof gold coin.  In order to enter it is necessary to answer a question and then buy raffle tickets costing £5 each.  Entries close on 30th April 2022.  They seem to be hoping to sell at least 30,000 tickets.
https://britanniacoincompany.com/james-bond-2-kilo-gold-coin-raffle/
Anyone entering?

Sovs if you don't plan on adding to your stack much in future or are not sure at the moment. if you go on the run internationally they are pretty much as good as Krugs If you want a couple of ounces Brits are a nice gold coin imo compared to some, some people like ASEs etc, I like Somali Elephants but not sure what the premium is like. Yes you can take a punt on the extra premium for e.g available Beasts (I like the Completer myself and that's out now, but so do many others, not sure what else apart from the Greyhound I've just seen - not the most popular Beast so may actually be one of the better bets in the future).
We have a resident HMRC* Inspector on the forum, @HerefordBullyun I'd like to see you try to run round his ring!
 
 
 
* Her Majesty's Rectal Cavity

fork handles or handles for forks or four candles?

Hi Green Dragon, 
i have put lot of time into the bearings so far, as they are key to the product. 
We will seal them for dust etc.
This product will be built to optimize for longevity. We will offer a service to maintain / replace the bearings if need be, but to be honest I haven’t formulated that yet, I need to do further analysis on what the best approach will be, How ever I will address this question fully before launch.
Very good and relevant question, thank you.

hi
can i ask about longevity and maintenance?
I can see there are not a lot of moving parts, but the pivot point has a bearing?
is this sealed for life? does it need regular oiling?
and can replacement parts be fitted if needed? either by the owner or do you offer a repair service?
I am happy to bash wheel bearings out of cars and motorcycles etc, but i imagine these are a little delicate
I imagine all the parts have a very long lifespan, however i would not be happy with the inbuilt obsolescence that new products seem to have 
Very interested in this though, would love to get one of the first ones 

It looks like a "struck thru" mint error. It's where a piece of debris, be it solid or liquid, is on the coin during strike. I believe that's the case because I had a similar issue on a bullion coin that, mainly out of curiosity, I sent for grading which came back with a "mint error, struck thru" notation. 
As previously mentioned, it is baffling how a proof coin gets through quality control with this flaw. A bullion coin, fair enough, but proofs should be more stringently checked.
Most people would see that as an unwanted defect. Personally, I would keep it. The coin is not altered or damaged post production. It is in the condition it came when made, making it actually quite unique. I understand anyone's disappointment when seeing it as a defect, which it is. But I like them as they come. They can even add value when particularly prominent, especially if the foreign object is still on the coin, which in this case it isn't, but being centre of the Queens face still has prominence. 
If you sent for grading, you'd likely get the "mint error" notation if you paid the extra fee for it. Although that would mean 69 grade or less, since they do not grant both 70 and mint error on a coin. Once you have "mint error" on the slab, it is collectable, not to everyone's taste, but still collectable to some, including myself. I like it.

Hi Rory, very interesting product and stunning design! One question popped to my mind regarding the answer above.
I take my privacy very seriously as I bet other stackers on here also do, even though we deal frequently and exchange names, bank/paypal details, addresses/PO boxes, etc... I would rather only myself and (a partner or close family member) know what coins/bars I've got. Is there any way to have accounts or entries be anonymous to the company, or accounts not requiring much (or any) personal information upon registration? I'm not saying I don't trust the company, nor am I saying the company would be involved in any such thing - but in this digital era, hundreds of private/public companies and individuals are targeted by hackers or people with malicious intent on a daily basis. The idea that there's an account with my name (and probably shipping/billing address) on it showing what gold/silver coins/bars I've tested as legitimate is a bit freaky. 
The app "ping coin" for example has the option of users uploading recorded audio of coins being pinged to be added to the database. The addition of such audio is made fairly anonymously, with any privacy concerned individuals (such as myself) being able to be mostly (or probably completely) anonymous with their information and data in regards to how the recording is sent, what number, user, IMEI or other information is sent to the app creator, etc. 
Disclaimer: I am not implying the creator of the app "ping coin" records and keeps personal data of users that submit samples, I am saying it is possible for the app creator to do so with/without malicious intent and I am also claiming that with this - or any other - app, if weary, the user can go the extra mile to not be identified in any way.
Hope my response wasn't too convoluted. I would be more than happy to expand on this if needed  

Hi Kimchi
    Yes of course,  @kimchi, @skyfiller, @coverte
I really appreciate you guys being potential first adopters on this forum, anything I think to offer to any later people who sign up will be by default true for you too.
It is very helpful to me to get some idea of demand, ultimately I will be able to price the testers based off a price demand curve, while still taking into account the cost to manufacture.
So it is especially appreciated that you register your interest early. My career has actually been spent in financial risk management, by signing up first, you in way take the most risk, even though you have nothing committed on the line yet, this helps me as I can move forward with reasonable confidence that there are orders in the pipeline. I would like to think of rewarding those who sign up earliest and convert to a sale, in the order for which they sign up. leave this with me, while i think of something fair. There will certainly be a need for a critical mass of orders reached for us to go to manufacture even on a small scale.
Thanks Again.
Rory

Hi Coverte.
  Yes, you are are added to the list, The first batch of the featured product will have a limited order,  as many of the parts etc will be hand made, I think a nice feature might be to have these first items engraved? let me know what you think of this idea. I will make sure to contact you to ensure you have the priority option of joining this limited order. I will also contact you directly with news, pricing etc, as we progress. I am already working on another render of the tester in a glass or perspex case, that will cover the top of the tester this is based of the feedback I have received here.
Thanks Again,
Rory

No, I suspect I would have been wasting my time, and that it would have been resented.
I don't like being discourteous and not replying, but I have learnt to do it sometimes, especially with:
Spam phone callers, where I have stopped any attempt at being polite.