Hobby Collecting: Fun Silver Finds

         During this pandemic, precious metals have been difficult to come by. I've been a long-term customer at APMEX, and it hasn't been easy trying to get my hands on some silver. Often, the item is either out of stock or you'd have to buy cumbersome large bricks of said metal.

         There is a silver lining to this (pun intended). I was able to branch out and check out products other than the standard one-ounce bars.

         The above example is a one-ounce silver bar. There was only a few of them in stock, so I jumped on them. As you can see, the bar has the Ten Commandments on it. On one side, it's English. On the other, I assume Hebrew. It can make you feel a bit like Moses, if you have good enough imagination.

         You don't have to be religious to appreciate a good piece of art. It might also have monetary value than the trillions the governments of the world are printing. In the long run, anyhow.

         How much over spot did I pay? I can't remember, but when things are out of stock, you can't be the one choosing. One thing I can tell you is that it couldn't have been more than low $20s per ounce.

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         Point being, if you see something on the precious metal market right now, it's gonna be gone in a flash. Even at my local metal dealer, it's hard for them to keep up with demand. One of my colleagues overheard a family who went in and demanded to buy over ten thousand ounces of silver.

         If you like it and you don't jump on it, chances are it'll be gone the next day. The current market is very much "you snooze, you lose".

         I collect precious metals as a hobby and as store of value. Some may argue that crypto has more advantages than not. While I agree with their sentiments, I don't assume I live in a world where the grid would never go down. Now, that's opinion for another day.

         Carry on and stay safe, everyone.