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"We have sold everything we can produce in silver and have demand for at least twice that volume," said David Madge, head of bullion sales at the Royal Canadian Mint, which produces the silver Maple Leaf coin. Silver coin sales at the US Mint and the Austrian Mint also hit record levels in January.

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DieCommie said:
There are a lot of things that you could have bought two years ago and be a millionaire though.  Many investments have out performed gold in the past two years.  This is the danger of hindsight that geo mentions.

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DieCommie said:
Personally, I sold about 90% of my silver this past year and now silver makes up less than 5% of my meger holdings.

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teknix said:
I have accumulated silver in coins over the past 10 years or so. The value of the coins that I 1st bought have more than quadrupled!

I guess I'm wondering what you guys think about the silver market or the precious metals market in general? Should I liquidate now, or keep on investing in it? The risk of investing more money into silver is marginal unless I take into account the realized gain.

Thoughts and opinions welcome.

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Junk-silver coins may be a desirable method of investing in silver for several reasons:

Low premiums
    Coins can often be purchased for little or no premium over the spot price of silver, particularly during periods of economic stability.
Legal tender
    Coins remain legal tender and maintain their face value regardless of the price of silver.
Recognition
    Coins are familiar and less likely to have their value disputed than silver rounds or bars.
Divisibility
    Coins can be easily spent or traded in small amounts. In contrast, minted silver bullion is rarely smaller than a troy ounce, while minted gold bullion (and other precious metals) is highly valued in even small amounts, like the American Gold Eagle coins.

For these reasons, junk silver is popular among survivalists. In the event of a crisis or catastrophe during which traditional currency collapses, it is speculated that silver coins could provide a viable alternative, temporarily or indefinitely, while fiat currency, which is not backed by precious metals or other commodities, has no inherent value and can be subject to extreme inflation, even hyperinflation, similar to Weimar Germany and, more recently, Zimbabwe. Proponents of junk silver and other precious metals adhere to the principle that, while fiat currencies have historically been subject to hyperinflation, precious metals will always have inherent value and can act as a medium of financial exchange when fiat currencies are obsolete.

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Low price and divisibility are a killer combination.

My main "currency" is the silver Dutch Gulden from the Juliana era:



Crossection: 25,0 mm
Thickness: 1,8 mm
Gross weight: 6,50 gram
Purity: 72% (alloyed with nickel, extremely durable)
Net silver weight: 4,68 gram

10 of these coins make 1.5 troy ounce so currently 1 such coin represents a value of $5. If you have 10 coins minted (like eagles), expect to pay $5 on top of the silver price just in minting cost. Nothing like that with junk silver, it was state minted long ago (like American, Canadian, UK, Australian etc junk silver) so theres no minting cost involved. If the currency ever does collapse, junk silver from your own nation makes extremely versatile bartering goods - people know what it is, know it is genuine and know it has value.

In most nations that have junk silver, it is the cheapest form you can get silver in, cheaper than 1oz bullion coins, rounds or bars. And it IS in fact a bullion coin: a round with a precise amount of silver minted by a national mint, assuring its content.