[Hotelier]

I was reading an article about people in india melting down coins, cos the value of the metal was greater than the coin face value.
Are that any british coins that are worth more for the metal than the face value?
(Not that I'm planning anything!!, just curious!)

[Praxidike]

Originally Posted by Hotelier

I was reading an article about people in india melting down coins, cos the value of the metal was greater than the coin face value.
Are that any british coins that are worth more for the metal than the face value?
(Not that I'm planning anything!!, just curious!)

No...

[DaisyBumbleroot]

i always thought that say if you melted down a 2p piece, the value of its metal would be - 2p. same with all other coins, if you melted down a 100 pound coins the value of an ingot made from that would be worth £100... is that not the way it works then?

[HenryGarten]

Originally Posted by DaisyBumbleroot

i always thought that say if you melted down a 2p piece, the value of its metal would be - 2p. same with all other coins, if you melted down a 100 pound coins the value of an ingot made from that would be worth £100... is that not the way it works then?

I think that was true a long time ago but not true today.

[BigJohnMcCarthy]

Originally Posted by DaisyBumbleroot

i always thought that say if you melted down a 2p piece, the value of its metal would be - 2p. same with all other coins, if you melted down a 100 pound coins the value of an ingot made from that would be worth £100... is that not the way it works then?

lol. no.

[blueblade]

Originally Posted by Hotelier

I was reading an article about people in india melting down coins, cos the value of the metal was greater than the coin face value.
Are that any british coins that are worth more for the metal than the face value?
(Not that I'm planning anything!!, just curious!)

No coins currently in circulation, no. But old "silver" coins dated 1946 and before, have a silver content. All the ones in circulation prior to the bigger 5 & 10p pieces being demonetised, were soon removed from circulation for their silver, rather than numismatic value, many years before the demonetisation.

[TommyGavin76]

Originally Posted by DaisyBumbleroot

i always thought that say if you melted down a 2p piece, the value of its metal would be - 2p. same with all other coins, if you melted down a 100 pound coins the value of an ingot made from that would be worth £100... is that not the way it works then?

Errr no. Going by that, then the paper in a £5 note would be worth £5.

[ianx]

Copper coins dated before 1992 have more than 2p worth of copper in them, but you'd need loads of them to make it worth the effort of melting them down. More recent 'copper' coins are copper-plated steel, and worth less than face value.

Silver coins dated before 1967(?) have more silver in them than face value, but you very rarely see them in circulation these days.

[thebigcheese]

And it's illegal to melt down English (British) currency as you are defacing the queen.

[jon8769]

Were you reading about the beggar in india? In that it told how there crooks melt down coins to make razor blades which are sold on at profit! Here's a related article.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/6766563.stm

[blueblade]

Originally Posted by ianx

Silver coins dated before 1967(?) have more silver in them than face value, but you very rarely see them in circulation these days.

You will never see them in circulation. The earliest dated coin you will ever encounter in circulation in the UK these days, are 1 & 2p pieces dated 1971.

The earliest dated "silver" coins in circulation, are 20p pieces dated 1982 and beyond.

Prior to decimalisation in 1971, the old "silver" coins then circulating the UK, really did have a silver content if they were dated 1946 and before. See below.

click here

Prior to 1920, British silver coins contained high purity, 92.5% (Sterling) silver.
From 1920 to 1946, British silver coins contained 50% silver.
From 1947 to 1971, some denominations of British pre-decimal coins issued for circulation were "silver-colored," however these coins were made of copper-nickel, and contained no silver.

From 1971-on, some denominations of British decimal coins issued for circulation were "silver-colored," however these coins were made of copper-nickel, and contained no silver. In addition, there have been some silver decimal coins minted in limited quantities as commemorative or bullion issues, typically in Proof condition; these coins were not intended for circulation.

[tanstaafl]

Originally Posted by ianx

C<Snip> More recent 'copper' coins are copper-plated steel, and worth less than face value.
<Snip>

As you can easily confirm by putting a magnet on them.

[chrisjm]

Originally Posted by thebigcheese

as you are defacing the queen.

boo hoo

[flowerpowa]

Some crooks are melting down war memorial plaques, you can't get much lower than that.

[NatSav]

Originally Posted by DaisyBumbleroot

i always thought that say if you melted down a 2p piece, the value of its metal would be - 2p. same with all other coins, if you melted down a 100 pound coins the value of an ingot made from that would be worth £100... is that not the way it works then?

So by your logic a 2 pence coin would weigh exactly twice that of a 1 pence coin.

[NatSav]

I just had a look and copper is currently around £4,300 per tonne.