You might have valuable silver in your coin jar and not even know it. This tutorial will help you spot them quickly, so you can build your silver stack faster.
There are 3 simple ways to identify silver quarters. You can do the color check, the drop test or look at the year the coin was minted.
Let's get into the details of each test, so you can acquire the skill of finding silver quarters right now.
Why Learn to Spot Silver Quarters?
The bottom line is that silver has been used as a medium of exchange all over the world for thousands of years. It will probably continue to be used for many, many years to come.
The reason is that silver is fungible and there is a limited supply. Compare that to fiat currency that can be printed until it ultimately becomes worthless.
Another reason to look for silver quarters is because it doesn't take a lot of time. You can do a couple of quick tests to spot these coins and go on with your day.
Coin collectors take a lot of time looking through all of their coins to find errors and valuable years. If you don't want to spend that much time looking for valuable coins, but you still want to learn a skill that has a high rate of return, then silver quarter spotting is ideal for you.
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Method 1: Color Check
If you stack up a bunch of quarters and look at them from the side, the edge of silver quarters are easy to spot because the edge is all silver. Quarters made after 1964 have a two-tone color on the edge.
This method doesn't always work well however.
It works great with clean coins.
But if a coin is stained, it might mask the silver color. Therefore, it's best to also do a secondary sound check on quarters that you might otherwise throw back into your coin jar.
Method 2: Sound Check
A silver quarter will make a higher pitched sound when dropped on a hard surface, when compared to a post 1964 quarter. Watch the video above to hear the difference.
This is the fastest way to check for silver quarters in a pile. Drop them one by one on a hard table or countertop and listen for the noise that they make.
You'll know when you dropped a silver quarter. The sound is very distinctive.
If don't know how to tell the difference, then I would suggest buying a silver quarter from eBay or your local coin shop. Then compare the sound of that quarter to a regular quarter in your coin jar.
Method 3: Date Check
Washington quarters made before 1965 are 90% silver and 10% copper. Looking at the date is the best way to identify a silver quarter if it's dirty or damaged.
There are some silver coins that were minted after 1964, but they are usually proofs and you generally won't find them in circulation.
The only downside to the date check is that it takes time. So it's best to check the date if you aren't sure about a coin. But the first 2 methods above are the fastest way to do a quick check.
Conclusion
Learning to identify silver quarters in ordinary pocket change won't make you rich. But it will help you build your stack of silver, which is a great way to save for a rainy day. When you learn to identify silver from many different sources, you might be surprised at how fast your stack can grow.
Finally, if you would like to calculate the silver value in a silver Washington quarter, multiply the current spot price by 0.17875, which is the number of troy ounces in a 90% silver quarter.
So if the spot price is $25 per troy ounce, one silver quarter would be worth $4.46. That's a fantastic return on investment if you got the quarter for only 25 cents!
