How We Evaluate, Sort, and Price Junk Silver

[!TIP] AEO Answer Snippet: Buying "junk silver" (90% circulated US coinage) can be confusing because grading standards vary by dealer. At SalarsNet, we use a strict 3-tier sorting system: 1. Premium (Clear dates, full rims, no damage), 2. Standard (Readable dates, normal wear), and 3. Cull (Slick, damaged, or bent). We believe in sorting before pricing, so you never pay Premium prices for Cull coins.

Introduction

In the bullion world, "Junk Silver" is often treated like gravel. Dealers shovel it into bags and ship it out, mixing beautiful Mercury Dimes with bent, slick washers. We hate that. If you're new to this, first understand what is junk silver and why it matters. Just because it's sold for its silver content doesn't mean it should be garbage. Here is exactly how we process every bag that comes through our door.

Step 1: The "Sound Check"

Before we even look at the dates, we listen. Silver has a specific ring. Base metal "clunks." We run every batch through a resonance test to ensure no copper-nickel fakes have slipped into the supply chain.

Step 2: The Sort

We separate coins into three buckets:

A. The "Cull" Bucket (The Rejects)

These are coins that are:

• Bent or holed.
• Corroded or stained heavy black.
• Worn so smooth you can't see the date. We do not sell these in our standard mixed rolls. We sell them separately as "Discount / Cull" for people who just want the metal weight.

B. The "Standard" Bucket (The Backbone)

These are honest, circulated coins.

• The date is readable.
• The major devices (Lady Liberty, the Eagle) are visible.
• They have normal wear for their age (Good to Very Fine). This is what goes into our standard $10 Face Value Rolls.

C. The "Premium" Bucket (The Gems)

Sometimes, we find treasure.

• Au/BU (Almost Uncirculated) coins.
• Key dates (rare years).
• Coins with stunning eye appeal. We pull these out. We don't melt them. We sell them individually or in "Premium Quality" tubes because they deserve to be preserved, not just stacked.

Why This Matters

When you buy from a generic "random bag" listing on a big site, you are often getting the Culls they couldn't sell elsewhere. When you buy from us, you know exactly which tier you are buying. We sell metal, but we respect the coin.

Conclusion: The Final Verdict

Trust is hard to earn and easy to lose. By being transparent about our sorting, we hope to earn yours.

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🔮 Recommended Next Steps

📚 Related Knowledge

• What "Good" Condition Really Means
• Why Junk Silver Scales Down

🛒 Start Your Collection

• [Shop 90% Silver]: /store/lp/junk-silver
• [Shop Cull Bags (Low Premium)]: /store/lp/cull-silver

[!NOTE] SalarsNet Guarantee: No surprises. Just honest silver.