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Mint your own coins


spike

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I was thinking the other night about the type of coins I would like to have, and it occured to me that some of the coins I want don't yet exists. I have an idea for a specific design - or series, rather, that I think would be really cool and somewhat apealing to a niche market.

 

So, give that the coins I want don't yet exist... I was just wondering - what would it take to mint your own coins? I'm not talking about serious mass production here... more along the lines of artisan-quality silver bullion coins of my own design and minted on a small, hand operated hydrolic press, in quantities of, say, 50 or 100 at a time.

 

Speaking hypothetically, how would one even go about doing this? How would you make dies? What kind of press would you need? Where could you get blanks? What other problems would you have to solve? Does anybody do this now?

 

Just thought I'd throw that question out there.... who has ideas?

 

- Spike

 

You could probably get a Challenge Coin style of coin for $3-$5 each for 100 or more, if you are still looking to do this.

 

Jesse

http://ChallengeCoinAssociation.org

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Been there, done that. Lol, actually I started making them for my metals smithing class, and just kept making more....about 78 total. It's a hoot! I made these to commemorate my town, most are 2006, there are about 20 2007 ones. Once the planchet is annealed, and clipped to a 2"x2" square, it takes about 1-2 minutes to make each one. Then simply cut, treat the edge, and tone.

 

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>Consider this, the smallest US coins, the cent and dime, are struck at 40 tons. Silver dollar or silver round size is around 140 tons.

 

Hmmmm.... maybe I'll have to stick with gold. Thats pretty soft, right? :ninja:

 

How about Aluminum (or Aluminium, depending on which version of English you speak!)

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Aluminum has a low break point, it likes to crack before it likes to mold to a die, it's just brittle. I know many coins are made from it, but I don't think the average joe should bother. Take copper, brass, even bronze, get it red hot, quench it, and it will take nearly any impression with less than a ton of pressure. In other words a hammer, or roll mill. Silver and gold are the same way, but getting them red hot normally just melts them lol, so get them.....uhm, mighty close to red, maybe a dull orange glow. Annealing metals makes them very easily worked, and once they are worked, they are very strong again.

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How about Aluminum (or Aluminium, depending on which version of English you speak!)

 

 

Aluminium(I write in the unadulterated English) is easy to use in making dies for striking other low melting point metal coinage. I have a pair of dies I used to make medievalesque coinage many years ago, I used lead air rifle pellets as blanks.

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Thanks De Orc!

 

I used aluminum dies to impress a real coin into, then rolled that die over another coin. I got a Ireland stag (forgot the coins value) coin with the head of a 5 franc from WWII embossed on it lol. The stag coin is oval now though, I am going to turn it into a broach.

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  • 8 years later...
  • 4 weeks later...

Little bit of a necro post, but I thought I'd chime in that I've written a book about how to make and design your own coins. It focuses on the design aspect and how to approach manufacturers rather than doing the labour of striking the coins yourself:

 

Here's a link to the thread I've started on the book :)

http://www.coinpeople.com/index.php/topic/36316-coin-making-guide/

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  • 2 years later...
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It is hypothesized soldiers throughout history took local "monies"  i.e. coins and put them in personal forges or presses to make desired items such as spear heads, fish weights, musket balls, bullets, military figurines, or new repurposed coinage and tokes.  This activity had two purposes.  First. it had a negative impact on the enemies economy. Second, it generated difficult to obtain items soldiers needed or wanted.  So a good place to start if you seek to mint your own coins; is places that sell equipment to make items like the ones in the list above.  Maybe take a class in how those hobbies work, and what basic minting or forging equipment is needed.  Don't be afraid to ask the practitioners how they make souvenir coins in their particular craft.  They have all probably tried it, seen it done, or heard a particular methodology.  You don't have to make on like your planning to set up a major counterfeiting ring.  Letting people know you'd like to know how to make souvenir coins is fine.  You might just get your answer.  Best wishes.  

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