Hare-Brained (or not) Prepper Schemes?

[Doc Safari]

We're always hearing that we should buy gold to have on hand in case the entire economy goes down the crapper, or there is an upheaval such as a multi-state disaster, or civil war, or something.

Without regard to whether any of these things are actually likely to happen, one killer to the gold theory is that most people just flat out can't afford gold, and even if they can, there is the pitfall that you have to ensure you have physical gold rather than just gold certificates.

So after a few beers one night I hatched the hare-brained idea that if society really, really were to break down then ANY gold is better than NO gold.

So, what if a person were to simply convert a few hundred dollars in paper money to dollar gold coins like the Sacajawea dollar?

Even with a face value of one dollar, in a SHTF situation just the fact that it's verifiable genuine gold might make it the currency of choice.

In other words, the coin would eventually be worth whatever you can get with it, not necessarily the "dollar" value. People would trade their goods for one or more of the coins just because they know it's gold. The fact that the coin is in small, easily passable units makes it more likely to be accepted in a barter economy.

Thoughts?

[joe138]

To me it would depend upon the type of SHTF. If I only had a limited amount of food for me and mine, there would not be enough gold to buy it. I think in a truly bad situation where there is a barter economy, ammo would be the hot commodity. I see gold as a hedge against depressions and such, but not much else.

[Jaysop]

Those aren't really gold though are they? Just like a super thin plating? I remember someone telling me pennies had more copper than those things had gold.
I may be wrong though.
What gold value would they/do they have?

[Kain]

Those aren't really gold though are they? Just like a super thin plating? I remember someone telling me pennies had more copper than those things had gold.
I may be wrong though.
What gold value would they/do they have?

It doesn't have any gold in it. While I am sure it might have some value to some who think it really is gold, it ain't.
Composition is as follows from my brief digging.

Core: 100% Cu
Cladding: 77% Cu, 12% Zn, 7% Mn, 4% Ni
Overall: 88.5% Cu, 6% Zn, 3.5% Mn, 2% Ni


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sacagawea_dollar

You'd be better off buying up silver if precious metals are on your list.
Or more ammo.

[uffdaphil]

According to this only 12 real gold coins were minted. The ones that went up in the space shuttle. http://www.usacoinbook.com/coins/582...22-karat-gold/

The problem I see with gold coins and prepping is that if they skyrocket in value in a SHTF situation how will you spend them? A Maple Leaf has a current value of over $1100. Will it be worth $2-3000? Might be good for buying guns, but smaller essentials? 'Excuse me, got change for $2000?" If you do find the rare seller with bulk supplies you would need a decent sized force to survive the transaction and hold onto the goods.

Silver or ammo seems more fungible. Buy the bulk now.

Edit: I see Kain beat me to it. Gotta write faster.

[Doc Safari]

I did not know it didn't have at least some gold in it. I figured it was just plated or something, but I'm surprised it has no gold in it at all.

My other "prepper" currency (Hare-Brained Scheme, Take TWO), may be Everclear.

It can be bartered, drank, used for antiseptic, and many other uses.

[kerplode]

I never understood the whole store gold for SHTF thing. Sure, it's a fair way to diversify wealth in normal times, but what are you going to do with a sack of gold coins in SHFT? Trade them for a loaf of bread or TP? Even the smallest gold coins are worth hundreds of dollars...Would be some stupid expensive TP!

For "SHTF" silver is much, much better than gold. Hell, a few cases of toilet paper and some bottled water would be much better than a sack of gold coins IMHO.

I like your Everclear idea, though! :-)

[thopkins22]

Rather than spend a bunch of money on booze, you could buy a still and research how to make spirits safely.

I dunno how you get licensed to produce spirits for personal consumption, but I know that legally/more practically if anyone in your house wears a CPAP, you can make your own distilled water with it.

Plus you manage to avoid stockpiling crappy booze. In a world where people are bartering, I'd rather be able to actively produce something than simply hope I've saved enough.

[Doc Safari]

Rather than spend a bunch of money on booze, you could buy a still and research how to make spirits safely.

I dunno how you get licensed to produce spirits for personal consumption, but I know that legally/more practically if anyone in your house wears a CPAP, you can make your own distilled water with it.

Plus you manage to avoid stockpiling crappy booze. In a world where people are bartering, I'd rather be able to actively produce something than simply hope I've saved enough.

Good point. I'm thinking: do both. Stockpile the commercial stuff while you research what it takes to brew your own.

[CRAMBONE]

My other "prepper" currency (Hare-Brained Scheme, Take TWO), may be Everclear.

It can be bartered, drank, used for antiseptic, and many other uses.

My wife used to work in jewelry. When I asked her store owner about buying gold for teotw, he advised me to buy booze. Said booze would trade better and be easier to barter with. He advised buying gold only to diversify my "wealth".