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[rono]

Howdy all, The mint announced that the new 24K gold 1 ounce coin will go on sale as planned June 22. This is the one made in the pattern of the old buffalo nickel and is .9999% pure gold. Their regular gold eagles are .91% pure but large enough to contain a full 1 ounce of gold. However, some countries, notably Canada, produce a pure gold coin and they're looking for another revenue stream. At this time, they'll be released in two forms - Proof (sold directly from the mint) and Uncirculated (sold thru their network of coin dealers and other vendors). The Proof version is limited to 300,000 and orders are limited to 10 per household. Their selling price is $875 plus $4.95 S&H. Note that this is a STEEP premium over the spot price of gold ($582). Proofs always carry a premium over regular Uncirculated versions, but this is large. The regular versions will be selling thru dealers at market price which will also contain a premium although it's hard to say how much. Some will be because it's a US coin, some will be because it's a buffalo, some will be because it's new and some will be due to pure demand factors. Regardless, it will be cheaper than the Proof version. One thing to keep in mind about buying coins from the mint is normally the issue price serves as a fairly strong floor to the price. It could be broken if the POG drops signficantly, but folks really hate to sell something for less than everyone originally paid for it. If you should choose to buy a proof, you will want to buy it online (or call) on June 22nd. In the world of coins, 300,000 is a small mintage and even with purchase limits, this will sell out quickly. For bullion stash purposes, you will want to buy the uncirculated versions as they will have the smallest premium. You can pick up a copy of Coin World or Numismatic News weekly newspapers at your local book store and find the cheapest vendors. For purely speculative purposes, or collecting, or a gift to the grand child, the Proofs would be very attractive. As for predictions, it's tough because so much is going to driven by the POG in the future. If gold goes to $800 an ounce, the proof would go to $1000 or more. If gold drops to $400, the proof would drop to or below its issue price. From a numismatic perspective my gut feeling is that it will double or triple shortly after release. I could be wrong, but historically, these special issue coins have tripled and stay there. And this could be compounded by the POG. For example, the earlier Buffalo silver dollar went up 5 fold and stayed there. The marine corps dollar tripled. The new Franklin dollar tripled. Folks have always really liked the buffalos and so even at this price, I'm feeling double or triple and thereafter based upon the price of gold. peace, rono