Buying physical
This course explains how physical bullion is priced and sold: the spot price, the premium over it, and what each part of a premium pays for. It tours the coins, bars, rounds and classic American silver on the market, then covers how to evaluate a dealer and how counterfeits and misleading sales work. By the end the reader understands what is being paid for in a bullion purchase and which questions bring it into view.
Lessons
- How to Identify Counterfeit Gold and Silver Bullion (Reading): An article on how counterfeit bullion is made and how buyers check a piece. It covers the tungsten-core technique, which pieces are copied most often, the checks a buyer can make, the warning signs in a sale, and when professional assay is used.
- What Are You Hunting For? (Check yourself): A one-minute check for collectors on the series you collect, whether your coins are raw or graded, the set you are building and the piece you are looking for next. It makes no claim about rarity or value. It helps you see your own collecting focus laid out in one place.
- Your First Ounce: Where Would You Begin? (Check yourself): A two-minute check for someone who has not yet bought any physical metal. It asks what has held you back, whether you would rather learn, talk or look at a purchase first, and what you most want to understand. It never asks how much, and it does not tell anyone what to buy, how much or when.
- What Should You Buy Next? (Check yourself): A quick check on which kind of product matches your own priorities: straight bullion, government coins, graded and rare coins, a gift piece or a mix. It lays out your preferences so you can compare them with what the lessons describe about premiums and recognition. It does not tell you what to buy.