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Ok, good. I assumed you thought it was some warning that the economy is terrible, and that American money won't be worth anything, and that the world will explode, etc...

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You get all that AND profit

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Where is the best place to buy silver?

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If you as an American want a good online connection for silver or gold, I hear very good things about your domestic supplier http://apmex.com/ who are said to often sell VERY close to spot.
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Please don't take my word on silver but websearch it yourself.
There is RISK, so take your responsibility.
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If you think of spending about $1.000 on silver, then this might be for you:
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http://www.apmex.com/Product/27/100_Face_Value_Bag_of_90_Silver_Coins.aspx
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Basically its a bag of old circulated US silver coins (90% pure)
Its nothing fancy to look at but it has the distinct advantage of being very cheap per troy ounce (almost spot price) and it comes as a lot of individual coins, which could be ideal in barter-type situations if the US Dollar tanks. Its called "junk silver" in the trade but it's no junk, there's 2.2 kilos of pure silver in there.
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If you want shiny stuff, get Canadian Silver Maples. If you want bars, get 6 or so bars of 10oz, so that you can always sell a few and keep the rest.
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Remember: this is at your OWN RISK.
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Good luck man, may wisdom guide you.

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Do all banks have safe deposit boxs for your silver?

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I have just about given up on on convincing people, WS. When it goes through the roof everyone will know and by then it will be too late.

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In a few hours the thread got 233 views, so there is some curiosity there. Since last years Buying Gold thread we can also show 37.5% profit in response to posts. Thats what a savings account yields in a decade.

I'm consistently letting out a thread or two on Precious Metals to those who want to listen. Even if one doesn't invest themselves, people start realistically thinking about their financial future and on a site where many blow 100s of dollars a month on pot and drugs that's a refreshing thought in itself. I let $25.000 go up in smoke myself in the 1990s, if I had been savvy on metals back then instead of stoned memories I could've bought a house off that right now, and by buy I mean zero mortgage from day one.

We got a lot of really intelligent people on board, you're right that for the man in the street it'll all be too late, but Shroomerites deserve to be notified of potential gains, community spirit 'n' stuff

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The train will be leaving the station soon..

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I'll ask the traders and advisors tomorrow what they think about silver and will let you guys know what they say.

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Great, I'd love that!

Know that their opinion is no good whatsoever unless they specifically looked into silver though. Just because you know apples, doesn't make you an expert in oranges

I'm especially interested in their reasoning for whatever their opinion is.

badchad said:

Quick question to the precious metal traders out there: Do you guys physically handle your metals?

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Briefly yes - though I am not a precious metals trader, rather an investor. Therefore I don't often handle the gold at all. I have a share of numismatic gold coins (coins which are valued for their rarity, condition and beauty beyond the value of their gold content), kept in a safe deposit box in the city. It has been no trouble, as I only held them in my own possession for a matter of hours between receiving shipment and driving them to the bank in a plain unmarked shoebox. In fact, these gold coins could have easily been held on my person with no need for a separate transport vehicle. Sure there's always the chance you'll get jumped for just the cash in your wallet, but in a good area it would seem a bit paranoid to worry about carrying around concealed gold (or anything for that matter).

To note, had I the choice I would have bought gold bullion, but the numismatic coins that have been granted to me were purchased by my grandmother who wished to have something of even greater rarity than regular ol' 24 carat. If the shit really did hit the fan, the numismatic (collector's) value of the gold I hold would fall much faster than the underlying value of the gold itself. During the interim, while the world economy remains relatively stable, these coins that hold additional collectors value have actually proven to offer a considerable positive upside over their standard gold counterpart.

The gold is kept not to trade, but to preserve value. I also have an equal value of my own assets at work in the stock market, which requires me to take a more active approach to my money management. If you are diligent about investing, stocks can be as good as gold in terms of wealth preservation, so long as the world economy hangs on - which at this point in time, it should.

Since the start of '07, gold is up 28.6%, the S&P 500 index up 7.3%, and my personal portfolio of stocks (diversified between 5 - 8 companies at any given time) is up 30%.

It should also be noted that one of the largest contributing factors to the sudden rise in gold over the last few months has been the rapid decrease in the value of the US dollar. Gold is a hedge against a weakening dollar, and indeed as most commodities are priced in dollars, they will fundametnally react inversely to the movement of the dollar, at least in part. With the dollar at historic lows and gold quite high, it is perhaps not the best time to start a new position in gold... however, there is no telling where things may go and with our incredible national debt and geo-political risks around the globe, there may indeed be quite a stretch left for this precious metal. With a longer-term view, I suppose now is a good a time as any to start a new position.

As with any investment, it would be wise to scale into and out of your position over time. Do not buy all at once, no one is that good!

And to toot my own horn a bit as I'm pretty stoked,
but also to show ya'll that stocks can be just as exciting as gold,
here's what happened with my portfolio today:

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I don't think the ride of rides will depart soon

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I guess it depends on what one means by "soon". I was all aboard the last train in the 80's so our relative time references are probably a bit different.

Anyway, I think it's commendable that you are recommending silver (as I have for the last few years) even though most will not heed the advice.

Also, I think you are underestimating where silver and gold will be in a decade. However, it is best to err on the side of caution when recommending these types of investments.

I have gold at $2,000/oz. and silver at $100/oz within five years.

Adjusted for inflation, this would equal values of both at their eighties peaks. When they hit those marks, look for both to absolutely skyrocket. In markets there are certain mental barriers..and when they are broken anything becomes possible- a herd mentality kicks in. You want to be the one at the turnstile charging admission when that herd comes in!

Historically, there are three legs to a precious metals bull market( we are at the start of the second now) and that event would mark the third, and most explosive leg. That is also the most tricky one by far to manage when you are holding. It takes nerves of steel to not cash out early at those altitudes.