Will there be a gap between a jump in precious metal prices and total SHTF?

[Tibbs735]

The recent thread by Me_Again got me thinking. Sorry for the long question, but...

Do you think there will be any significant amount of time between a jump in the price of precious metals (as many people in the alternative media suggest) as people scramble to get into tangible assets during the our slow slide into oblivion (however fast that is, years or days) and the total disintegration of law and order?

I ask because I am pondering the use of silver before, during and after SHTF. I think that it will have some value during, but will be below food and other essentials in terms of demand, and it will probably make you a rich man in the long run, if you live that long. But before SHTF, would it be worth buying silver to sell when the price jumps, turning it into paper before putting it into preps, clearing debt etc? This also poses another question about whether silver would jump in price before conventional prep items, like food and other supplies, because if it didn't, you would lose out on much of its value.

Any thought/opinions would be appreciated.

[Scythe13]

This is something I think greatly about. As BP always says "You can't eat gold." But for me, I like to increase value in relation to goods, then transfer one to the other, e.g. gold to goods. But goods can mean Houses, Food, etc.

It would all depend on the way that the financial system was collapsing as to the amount of time there was between the jump in price and the total collapse.

For me, I've set levels that once silver or gold hits my Sell Level, I'll be selling it out and either paying down debt, e.g. mortgage, or stocking up on assets, e.g. houses or preps.

If it all collapses and goes to crap, the houses would be pretty useless. But I foresee more like the Great Depression style event, but more extreme. I don't see a Mad Max style apocalypse style event happening.

[Tarrel]

Why silver? If you buy silver in the UK you pay VAT on it, and immediately take a 20% drop in your asset value. Gold coins, on the other hand, are regarded as legal tender and don't attract VAT. Gold coins such as quarter sovereigns are available for modest sums, making them relatively easy to acquire, and potentially a viable medium of exchange post-SHTF.

If I was purely looking for a store of value to be used post-SHTF, I'd probably go for silver as it has multiple uses and is available in smaller denominations. Either gold or silver would be useful as a way of paying a large sum in order, for example, to be smuggled across a border (as Selco suggests on SHTF-school). But for bartering, I'd suggest there are other things that could be acquired more cheaply that would become highly valuable (Paracetamol for example).

So, in my personal opinion, it boils down to making two types of investment:
- Post-SHTF barter goods (cheap to buy now and easy to keep); painkillers, water purification tabs, matches, batteries, Stanley knife blades, etc, etc)
- Pre-SHTF precious metals, betting they'll go up in value as the S approaches TF. (Gold coin to avoid the VAT)

[TOF]

I like the Asian method of holding on to your wealth; wear it. A lot of my jewellery is valuable enough to be barter material. That's why I bought it and why I keep it. It doesn't have to be coinage.

[Tibbs735]

I haven't gone for gold as I was a little scared of committing to buying it. Silver seemed like a better first step (I only hold around 11 ounces.) Some gold will definitely be my next investment, after other preps of course.

[Timelord]

Gold & Silver necklaces are good. They can be worn safe and easily concealed. As TOF mentions about the Asian way of wearing ones wealth, this was also the way in the West historically, but one note of caution, that was when times were reasonably secure or you had the means to defend yourself. Otherwise it was a hole in the ground for one or the other:-)

[bigpaul]

I'm not going for gold or silver, either as a financial use or barter post shtf, but I am slowly getting barter goods together. if and when total SHTF goes down I don't think gold or silver will be much in demand for a long,long time, people will need food predominately and if someone can produce an abundance of that, rather than subsistence farming, then they will be the one to reap the rewards.

[Steve]

It depends on your situation. If you live in a rented house and have a remote bol then an easy to carry store of wealth like gold is a wise investment. If you have built your homestead and have no intention of leaving then you might be better buying a big stash of nails and barbed wire.

I'm optimistic that I can stay put, so I have invested in fencing and machinery, a couple of tractors, lathe, shaper, milling machine, steel stock, welding rods, copper wire. You can buy old HSS drills for scrap value, they can be easily sharpened up, I used to buy up carbide inserts on ebay for silly prices like 99p for a box of 10 but they have got a lot dearer now, I guess they are being exported to chindia.

[Barneyboy]

for me i don't see the point in buying gold ,arrows pellets knives meds food boots and most importantly skills to make, bake ,and take, but that is just my way of thinking may be wrong

[bigpaul]

(11 December 2013, 12:05)Barneyboy Wrote: for me i don't see the point in buying gold ,arrows pellets knives meds food boots and most importantly skills to make, bake ,and take, but that is just my way of thinking may be wrong

your not wrong BB me old mucker!!