Making Money on eBay Selling Coins

For a while, I was actively buying coin lots on eBay to flip and earn money to purchase new coins for my collection. I can be hard to find a deal good enough to make money on eBay because of all the fees associated with doing so. Both eBay and Paypal will take their cut from your sale. About a year ago, I purchased a couple of silver Roosevelt Dime sets in Dansco Albums (1946 - 1964). These coins had very attractive toning and the price was right. I sold many of the common coins for around $20 each. These generally bring $3-$5 untoned. This price provided me to make a profit selling these and the proceeds went to my commemorative silver dollar set.

My Commemorative Silver Dollar Set

With all of the additional finishes of coins coming out, I decided to forgo the madness and stop participating in these releases. I've been down this road years ago when I collected Baseball Cards. Too many versions of the same card to keep up with and the values kept falling because there was a never ending sea of product.
I wanted to take up a new project and since the RP coins are made as collectible version of "circulating" coinage, why not look at a series whose intent was made as just a collectible and not intended as currency. I liked the look of some of the Commemorative Silver dollars and prefer the uncirculated finish to the proofs. Most of the Unc coins have a dramatically lower mintage compared to the proofs so that was the deciding factor.

Coin Roll Hunting: Nickel Bank Box Break #5

I purchased a box of nickels from my bank and these are the results:


Pre 1959: 16
Silver War Nickels: 0
2009: 0
Total EF - BU Coins For Albums: 119
Key Find(s):1971 (BU)


Verdict: These were customer wrapped rolls.  I haven't seen any machine wrapped rolls in a while.  I was skunked on silver war nickels and 2009s.  The rolls did contain some nice coins and I was able to upgrade a few of the coins in my collection

Coin Roll Hunting: Nickel Bank Box Break #3

I purchased a box of nickels from my bank and these are the results:

• Pre 1959: 9
• Silver War Nickels: 0
• "S" Mint Marks: 8
• 2009: 0
• Total EF - BU Coins For Albums: 125
• Key Find(s): 1939, 1954D(AU)

Verdict: Since I was shorted in the last box, I picked up this lot at another branch.  The teller seemed confused when I inquired about a box and asked "how much that was?".  So I ended up with $100 in customer rolls.  I was a little worried about the quality I might receive from these since I've been getting terrible condition coins in customer rolls lately.  After opening several of these rolls, I got the feeling these were already searched.  This was later validated when I looked at the total numbers. There were no war nickels, 2009 dates, and very little pre 1959.  Normally this would of been a complete waste of time; except I did find some great coins!  The previous roll hunter left me a complete run of BU 1990 - 2004 (P & D), most 2005 - 2012 in BU, and many 1980's in BU.  I was able to fill a large chunk of my uncirculated set, and upgrade some other pieces!  Even my circulated set go some nice upgrades.

Coin Roll Hunting: Nickel Bank Box Break #2

I purchased a box of nickels from my bank and these are the results:

• Pre 1959: 15
• Silver War Nickels: 1 (1945P)
• "S" Mint Marks: 0
• 2009:  0
• Total EF - BU Coins For Albums: 120
• Key Find(s): 1945P 

Verdict: After the last bank box I was excited to try another. Unfortunately, this box was resealed and I was shorted 3 rolls!  There was a mix of machine and customer rolls in the box. While I did find a war nickel in this box, nothing else really stood out.  I was able to fill holes in mine and my daughter's set.

Coin Roll Hunting: Nickel Bank Box Break

I purchased a box of nickels from my bank and these are the results:

• Pre 1959: 17
• Silver War Nickels: 1 (1943P)
• "S" Mint Marks: 3
• 2009:  2 (2009P (AU) 2009D (Rusted))
• Total EF - AU Coins For Albums: 158
• Key Find(s): 1938 (EF) 1941, 1943P, 1962 (BU) 2009 (AU)

Verdict: After the last couple of bad lots of customer rolls, I decided to get a bank box to help reduce the chance of receiving other CRH's tailings. I'm sold on getting nickel boxes although the initial cost is more than I've been spending.  Also, there is a lot more back end work cashing in all of the unwanted coins.  For the first time, I pulled a silver war nickel and two 2009s (even though one of the 2009s had to go to the scrap pile for condition).  While there were still some rusted, run over, and corroded pieces, the percentage was much lower than the customer rolls I've been searching.

Coin Roll Hunting: 50 Roll Cent Bank Box Break # 6

I purchased a 50 roll box of cents from my bank and these are the results:

• Wheat Cents: 17
• Canadian Cents: 4
• "S" Mint Marks: 0
• Copper Lincoln Memorial Cents: 26%
• Total AU - BU Coins For Albums: 35
• Key Find(s): 1956D Toned Purple, Red(AU)  1962 Proof 

Verdict: These were machine rolled cents. The box had good copper results and there was a nice number of wheat cents with some rolls having 2.  This box provided slightly better Canadian Cent results than my last, but the curse of the Canadian Small Cent folder seems to be going strong.  As usual, there were multiple corroded and "road pennies" in this lot.  For the first time, I was skunked on "S" mint marks.  My favorite cent in this box was a monster toned 1956D with purple and red.

Coin Roll Hunting: 5 Roll Nickel Break # 4

I purchased 5 rolls of nickels from my bank and these are the results:

• Pre 1959: 3
• "S" Mint Marks: 0
• Total EF - AU Coins For Albums: 8
• Key Find(s): 1948(EF)

Verdict: These were customer rolled nickels from the same account holder that produced poor results. The majority of the coins were corroded or rusted.  I did get a few older coins, however, anything minted in the last 30 years was completely ruined.  The coins looked like they were recovered from a flood.

50 Roll Cent Bank Box Break # 5

I purchased a 50 roll box of cents from my bank and these are the results:

• Wheat Cents: 8
• Canadian Cents: 2
• "S" Mint Marks: 3
• Copper Lincoln Memorial Cents: 32%
• Total EF - AU Coins For Albums: 122
• Key Find(s): 1962D(AU) 1963D(AU) 1971D(AU)

Verdict: These were machine rolled cents. The box produced the best copper results to date even though there was only a small number of wheat cents.  Interestingly, this box provided the least amount of Canadian Cents to date.  This is ironic since I just bought a folder for Canadian Cents (since I have been pulling so many).  Even though there were multiple corroded/green cents in the box, there was a massive amount of AU-BU Lincoln Memorial Cents from the 1980's - 1990's.

2 Roll Dime Break

I purchased 2 rolls of dimes from the bank and these are my results:

• Pre 1969  EF - AU : 0
• Silver Coins (1964 - Older): 0
• Total EF - AU Coins For Albums: 6
• Key Find(s): 2010P (Unc)

Verdict: I've toyed around with collecting a set of circulated dimes and decided to get a couple of rolls from the bank.  If anything, the potential for silver coins sounded tempting.  The 2 rolls I opened were customer rolled dimes.  One thing I noticed with these coins, was the considerable amount of wear they displayed. Many of the coins has rust spots on them or were badly discolored.  The copper was showing through many of the pieces.  After searching the 100 coins, I found 6 I might want to keep for a collection.  To be fair, these 2 rolls may have come from the same person, so I can't give a good determination of the series.  I may take another stab at this run in the future.

50 Roll Cent Bank Box Break # 4

I purchased a 50 roll box of cents from my bank and these are the results: 

• Wheat Cents: 15
• Canadian Cents: 18
• "S" Mint Marks: 5
• Copper Lincoln Memorial Cents: 30%
• Total EF - AU Coins For Albums: 31
• Key Find(s): 1958D(AU)

Verdict: These were machine rolled cents. The box produced the best copper results to date with a larger number of wheat cents.  There were multiple corroded/green cents in the box. I pulled a large quantity of key error dates and will inspect them in the future.

5 Roll Nickel Break # 3

I purchased 5 rolls of nickels from my bank and these are the results: 

• Pre 1959: 1 (1940)
• "S" Mint Marks: 1 (1969S)
• Total EF - AU Coins For Albums: 15
• Key Find(s): 1940(AU), 1966(Unc.) 1971D(AU)

Verdict: These were customer rolled nickels that produced great results. There were multiple corroded and cruddy pieces mixed in with the brillant older coins, so I believe these may have been part of an estate cleanout.  The only thing that would of made me happier would of been a war or buffalo nickel in the lot.  I was completely floored with the 1940 and 1966 copies!

50 Roll Cent Bank Box Break # 3

I purchased a 50 roll box of cents from my bank and these are the results: 

• Wheat Cents: 8
• Canadian Cents: 2
• "S" Mint Marks: 5
• Copper Lincoln Memorial Cents: 28%
• Total EF - AU Coins For Albums: 28
• Key Find(s): 1973(AU)

Verdict: These were machine rolled cents that might of come from someone's penny jar they were saving for many years.  There were plenty of dates from the 1960's including at least 30 1969D copies.  There were multiple corroded/green cents in the box.  The box produced better than average copper results. I pulled a large quantity of key error dates and will inspect them once my magnifier arrives.

5 Roll Nickel Break # 2

I purchased 5 rolls of nickels from my bank and these are the results:

• Pre 1959: 5 (1938S, 1946S, 1952, 1956, 1951)
• "S" Mint Marks: 2
• Total EF - AU Coins For Albums: 10
• Key Find: 1938S

Verdict: These were customer rolled nickels that produced great results. There was multiple corroded pieces mixed in with the old coins, so I believe these may have been sitting around in a can for many years.

Coin Roll Hunting Tip: Sorting Like Dates

One way to make the hunt for errors easier is sorting the dates of the coins prior to looking at them for errors.  This will allow you to examine all of the same date / mint mark and compare the coin with your reference material.  I use an inexpensive tray I purchased from A.C. Moore for under $3.

Coin Roll Hunting Tip: Getting Rid Your Unwanted Change

What do you do after you sorted through all that change?  All of those unwanted zinc cents really add up. You could roll the coins but that would take time away from searching new rolls. Some coin roll hunters open up accounts at other banks to "dump" rolled change or take advantage of a free counting machine in the bank's lobby.  Another option is to take the coins to the Coinstar machine.  If you want to get past the 9.8% service fee these machines charge, you can opt for a gift card to merchants like Amazon.  This works well if you were already going to make purchases through these vendors.

50 Roll Cent Bank Box Break # 2

 I purchased a 50 roll box of cents from my bank and these are the results: 

• Wheat Cents: 6
• Canadian Cents: 4
• "S" Mint Marks: 3
• Copper Lincoln Memorial Cents: 25%
• Total EF - AU Coins For Albums: 35
• Key Find: 1964 (AU) 

Verdict: These were machine rolled cents and they may of been partially searched for wheaties and nice memorial coppers.  There were multiple corroded/green cents in the box.  The box produced average copper results. I pulled a large quantity of key error dates and will inspect them once my magnifier arrives.

50 Roll Cent Bank Box Break

I purchased a 50 roll box of cents from my bank and these are the results: 

• Wheat Cents: 12
• Canadian Cents: 8
• "S" Mint Marks: 5
• Copper Lincoln Memorial Cents: 27%
• Total EF - AU Coins For Albums: 75
• Key Find: 2000 Off Center 

Verdict: These were machine rolled cents and they produced ok results.  I found some really nice AU cents including a 1960D, 1964D, and 1970.  The box was light on Lincoln Wheat Cents but produced decent copper results.  I pulled 8 Canadian cents with the oldest being a 1957.  I pulled a large quantity of key error dates and will inspect them once my magnifier arrives.

10 Roll Cent Break

 I purchased 10 rolls of pennies last week from my bank and these are the results: 

• Wheat Cents: 9 
• "S" Mint Marks: 6
• Copper Lincoln Memorial Cents: 25%
• Total EF - AU Coins For Albums: 10
• Key Find: 1962 (AU)

Verdict: These were customer rolled cents and they produced odds results.  I found some really nice AU cents including a 1962, 1968, and 1973.  There were multiple "S" mint marks in the rolls.  On the other hand, many of the coins were severely corroded or run over by a car; including a 1973S that could of graded MS 65 (RD) if the face wasn't scratched off.  This lot of coins seems to of been from a hoard of cents that either fell in the street or got mixed with some pennies collected by the homeless.

10 Roll Nickel Break

 I purchased 10 rolls of nickels last week from my bank and these are the results: 

• Pre 1959: 9 
• "S" Mint Marks: 4
• Total AU Coins For Albums: 144 

Verdict: These were customer rolled nickels and they produced good results  I was able to get many of the coins needed for the 2 sets including "S" mint marks.  One interesting note was the condition of the coins from the 1980's.  They showed considerable wear.