Topic: Bitcoin Specie Project sponsored by the makers of New Liberty Dollar - page 13. (Read 88390 times)

Nice! Looking forward to some pictures as well

Hope you'll show off the gold one tomorrow night!

Could you please provide some photos? That would be awesome, because this sounds awesome

GOLD TEST #1 - SUCCESSFUL

We received our Gold electroplated silver quarter bitcoin test pieces back today.  The QR is readable, so that is good news, and wow... I like the look of them in gold.  If anyone is looking for something special for the holidays, a .999 fine silver quarter bitcoin specie electroplated in gold would make a nice surprise.  After seeing these, I may make some ornament for special friends and family that celebrate the winter holidays.  If anyone else has a similar notion, let me know and I will hook you up.

The 1 oz Gold piece will be a TEN BITCOIN nominal value, but of course the actual price will vary as the BTC/AG rate changes, hence the need for the QR.

The best reading I've done on a practical gold standard for a backed currency is a volume by Richard Salsman called "Gold and Liberty" published by A.I.E.R.
http://www.amazon.com/Gold-liberty-Economic-education-bulletin/dp/B0006PFFZO
In this excellent treatise, Salsman describes the history of the many different gold standards (including some detail on the 3 gold standards that have been tried in the US) and how and why each one fell, and broadly hints at how a durable, flexible, free-market gold standard along with Free Banking are the way forward for a market driven currency whose value is not dependent on a central bank or government structure.  Though it was authored in 1995, it calls out the need for a system such as we are working toward with this project.
A decentralized currency, with decentralized backing, and a flexible gold standard based on the free market valuation of the underlying precious metals. 
Salsman also, I think rightly, offers his skepticism that this sort of system will be fostered by government institutions and if it is, will fall prey to the political expediencies of the day.

It is our delight to be adhering to this model closely along with the innovative additions provided by Bitcoin that make it possible to achieve together in our lifetimes.  Bitcoin will be the best global online currency, backed and redeemable in the bimetallic standard of gold and silver, with a real-time exchange rate accessible directly from the specie itself.

We have available such an offering, it isn't a hole through the coin though (that would not be as nice), it is a clear holder that turns it into a pendant.
We can include these with any order for 0.02 btc each.  It is just the holder, you would still need a suitable chain.

They are kind of a nice way to give it as a gift, holiday ornament, or keepsake. 

Primarily we would like to see these used commercially, but we do love our collectors

You know what would be awesome, to have a little hole on the top side of the coin so you could like make a thread trough it and wear it and show people you have bitcoins

Yes, this is true.  It was mentioned in this context because it does provide a contact form.  We are as yet a bit reluctant to offer direct retail online yet as we are in negotiations with other online retailers to provide this as a retail offering direct to consumers.  Primarily we focus on design, manufacturing, production and wholesaling because this focus allows us to create the very best, and also gives the retailers the opportunity to make the best profit at the retail market.  

This strategy has worked very well for us in keeping quality and production value high.  If it turns out that these discussions become protracted we expect that we will offer direct retail in competition to the existing retail marketers.  We feel it is in all our best interests to not compete with our market channel even knowing that those that are buying from us directly are making a LOT more per piece than we do.  (Wow, those eBay prices are unreal!)
http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=silver+bitcoin+msrp

However, we expect to continue to offer retail purchasing to this bitcointalk.org community in gratitude for the support and dedication to our common mission of extending the Bitcoin economy.  Anyone buying from us and selling or trading profitably to others we consider an ally and a partner, and so are reluctant to push them out of the market by offering our pricing directly to the broader market.  We are only a little surprised that the discussions are taking as long as they are, but it is what it is.

Fundamentally, a virtual currency alone is incomplete without specie to accompany it, and our mission is to create the best complementary specie pieces for worldwide use.

Anyone here is of course welcome to enter that market place of offering these in retail channels to the markets they know best how to serve.

Now is probably a good time to announce this:

http://www.bitgild.com/ is offering Bitcoin Specie direct online retail through their excellent site, and listed prominently on their home page.  We welcome them and encourage our EU customers to get these directly through them.  This is their first offering in Silver and their first non-government produced pieces, so CONGRATULATIONS TO BITGILD for taking this positive step forward in extending the Bitcoin economy!

The website only shows the Liberty Dollar, not the Silver Bitcoin.

To buy, you can contact me through this forum, or through email, or the website posted in my profile here.  If we have already done business together, you probably also have my phone number.
In the (hopefully not too distant future) this will become even easier.

This is an ongoing project, not a one-time endeavor.
We expect to be minting continuously, and with continuous incremental improvements all around, ease of ordering, ease of use, etc.
There should never be a shortage of the standard Bitcoin Specie pieces.

Any chance you'll have the silver coins for sale at the 10/10 LA Bitcoin Meetup?

How to register with you to get some of them fine coins?

Yes only better :-D
Cringly repeats the criticism of Bitcoin not being backed in this http://www.cringely.com/2013/09/30/doubts-bitcoin/ but we will prove that a decentralized bank can provide more robust backing for our currency.
everyone of us holding at least one specie piece is backing Bitcoin.

  Like these:
    https://www.bitmit.net/de/item/62656-stunning-new-physical-bitcoins-limited-edition-casascius

Yes, I don't know why they are being bid that high, it is surprising.  The title may be misleading (it uses "Physical" which for some people has come to mean that the piece is able to store bitcoin like a wallet)  But the description is clear.  We are hoping (and daring to expect) that these will become the new pocket currency as Bitcoin becomes more broadly accepted.  We think there may be still a need for the perfect anonymity that coins provide, as well as the easy of use for in-person transaction compared to anything needing electronics and networks.  We envision a world where these Bitcoin specie are jingling in pockets most everywhere and hope them to be quite common.

It is often said that the winners in auctioning are the ones that know the most about the item.  The readers of this thread know more than anyone outside our team, and so are not likely bidding at these prices (though maybe could earn some more by selling).

There was another of our pre-order buyers who switched their order from the New Liberty Dollar to the Bitcoin Specie after they had sent payment.   They told us that they put up 10 separate auctions with buyout and all were bought out within 10 hours which was very exciting for them.

We use a variety of external contracted minting and sources.  
We have the responsibility for the assurance of silver purity and the weight of each piece directly
There are many simple tests for the purity if you would like to do a little science.
http://www.ebay.com/bhp/silver-test-acid
and some more complicated ones with specific gravity measurements.

We are also very happy to have added a new mint Great American Mint and Refinery, who have gathered some of the best minting and refining engineers in the business.  And since they are so close, we are now able to accept "junk silver" as payment-in-kind which can be refined here to the .999+ purity required for our pieces.  So those old silver .925 candle-holders can become sparkling new Bitcoin specie.

The people involved have also been responsible for making some other very popular silver pieces, including American Silver Eagle, Canadian Maple (which is .9999+ ) and others.  We think that they do a pretty good job.

We have had this question often, but never any complaint about the quality of the silver, or the weight.  It is consistently higher quality than .999 and if the weight is off, it is only because it is over, not under, but within the tolerance of .005 ozt so not too much over.

Fixed Let me know if you see any problem.  We think we have tested all the mobile browsers that are hitting it, but there is always something unexpected.
You should see the premium change as the quantity changes.


Also fixed.

hi, quick question- who acctually minting that. is there any assurance about silver in each coin?

Your coins seem to be very interesting to bid on and that are just the normal ones.

I won't be bringing any back from http://Http://theconference.eu, those have all been snapped up, but there is plenty waiting yet to ship out in the second set.
It looks like some are up on eBay as well, Looks like they are getting bid up to the prices of the other folks.  By the description, I do not believe that seller is yet on Bitcointalk.org
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Physical-SILVER-2013-MSRP-of-0-25-BITCOIN-1-Troy-999-ONE-ounce-round-bullion-/370908280045

And some others (which are not ours):
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Physical-SILVER-2013-MSRP-of-0-25-BITCOIN-1-Troy-999-ONE-ounce-round-bullion-/281176924876?pt=US_Bullion_Bars_Rounds&hash=item41777362cc

Yes.  That is on the todo list as well.
Great minds think alike.  

These should be done ahead of formal launch at month end.  Maybe by the end of the day.

A little later I am thinking of changing the color of the # of ozt field to RED when the number is close enough to the next higher tier that it would be less expensive to get more...  but we are still doing a few baby steps right now.  No one should be getting 99 pieces...