Author Topic: Challenge Coins (Read 29922 times)

Sister Wolf · « **on:** November 03, 2009, 07:52:26 PM »

Wanted to give you guys a preview on the TSP Challenge Coin that is going to be coming in the next few months. We're working on a design for the back of the coin, but in the mean time, here's what the front of the coin will look like:

Val (the logo head) is raised up above the "S", so that the coin is 3d, which is why his head is the same color as the coin beneath it.

What do you guys think? Would you be interested in purchasing these at $15 a coin?

ncjeeper · « **Reply #1 on:** November 03, 2009, 08:11:51 PM »

Obverse looks good. How about and ant eating a grasshopper on the reverse.

Sister Wolf · « **Reply #2 on:** November 03, 2009, 08:38:08 PM »

Quote from: ncjeeper on November 03, 2009, 08:11:51 PM

Obverse looks good. How about and ant eating a grasshopper on the reverse.

That's a good idea! We were thinking of a compass rose with some words and symbols on it.

Morning Sunshine · « **Reply #3 on:** November 03, 2009, 08:49:27 PM »

nah - I am liking the ant idea. That was the symbol of the show for a long time on this forum. the ant.

speaking of which, we need an ant smiley, just because.

Mr. Bill · « **Reply #4 on:** November 03, 2009, 09:02:59 PM »

Looks pretty cool!

Missing an apostrophe in "DON'T".

Can you put thesurvivalpodcast.com somewhere on the coin?

Sister Wolf · « **Reply #5 on:** November 03, 2009, 09:17:32 PM »

Quote from: Mr. Bill on November 03, 2009, 09:02:59 PM

Looks pretty cool!

Missing an apostrophe in "DON'T".

Can you put thesurvivalpodcast.com somewhere on the coin?

Apostraphes are no-nos on coins this size when there is color filling involved. Doesn't turn out well at all - or so our coin guy says.

Putting thesurvivalpodcast.com MIGHT work.... Somewhere... Maybe on the back, where there's no color.

Sister Wolf · « **Reply #6 on:** November 03, 2009, 09:18:59 PM »

Quote from: Morning Sunshine on November 03, 2009, 08:49:27 PM

nah - I am liking the ant idea. That was the symbol of the show for a long time on this forum. the ant.

What about JUST an ant (instead of an ant eating a grasshopper)?

As for your ant smiley, I'll see what I can find.

Mr. Bill · « **Reply #7 on:** November 03, 2009, 09:29:32 PM »

Quote from: Sister Wolf on November 03, 2009, 09:17:32 PM

Apostraphes are no-nos on coins this size when there is color filling involved. Doesn't turn out well at all - or so our coin guy says.

Aha -- so that really is going to be filled in black like it looks in your picture. Neato!

Sister Wolf · « **Reply #8 on:** November 03, 2009, 09:39:32 PM »

Quote from: Mr. Bill on November 03, 2009, 09:29:32 PM

Aha -- so that really is going to be filled in black like it looks in your picture. Neato!

It's dark blue, actually.

*pokes you*

madcap1one · « **Reply #9 on:** November 03, 2009, 09:51:45 PM »

I am in for a few at that price, and concur that the ant, as opposed to compass ordinal points would be fantastic.

As an aside, and of course, depending on the "coin guy" you are using, one of the best challenge coins I have ever received has a very cool scalloped edge on both sides (not the side walls.)

ogreboy · « **Reply #10 on:** November 03, 2009, 11:17:25 PM »

I'd be more apt to buy it if it was silver in the $25 price range, maybe $30. $15 just seems a little steep to me for a non precious metal coin, but I'm sure it's expensive to get something like that made so I'm just giving you my opinion. Looks very nice though.

Sister Wolf · « **Reply #11 on:** November 03, 2009, 11:42:04 PM »

Quote from: ogreboy on November 03, 2009, 11:17:25 PM

I'd be more apt to buy it if it was silver in the $25 price range, maybe $30. $15 just seems a little steep to me for a non precious metal coin, but I'm sure it's expensive to get something like that made so I'm just giving you my opinion. Looks very nice though.

No, it's not a precious metal coin. But yeah, it is really expensive to have them made. The issue is more the die (dye?) than the per coin price, though. As for the Silver Coins, we can have those done too. But the price would be a lot closer to $30 a piece.

Just so it's clear - the price on these isn't set yet. This is just an idea, and your input is very much appreciated, because it helps us gauge stuff like member interest.

Sister Wolf · « **Reply #12 on:** November 04, 2009, 12:26:24 AM »

here, does this work for the back? Just note that unlike the front side, where it's pretty true as far as color, etc, this is NOT color true.

The black parts will not be black - they'll be raised metal.

Edit - I guess it would help if i posted a pic.

KC8SON · « **Reply #13 on:** November 04, 2009, 06:47:06 AM »

Actually, I was hoping for the ant eating the grasshopper myself.

I would be in for one for $15 in non-precious metal. I'm not sure if I would pay for silver since it's not going to be widely recognized.

Maddog · « **Reply #14 on:** November 04, 2009, 06:51:54 AM »

Sis,
I Like the front and back designs you have at this point. As for materials, I vote for silver, as they would make excellent gifts at any time of the year, plus seeing .999 fine silver would make me want to visit the website just to see what it's all about.

Maddog · « **Reply #15 on:** November 04, 2009, 06:53:59 AM »

PS - How many here are old enough to remember wooden nickels? You can't get much lower cost than that.

mamabear · « **Reply #16 on:** November 04, 2009, 08:20:19 AM »

Okay, I do remember wooden nickels.

I have a question though. What is a "challenge coin"?

ncjeeper · « **Reply #17 on:** November 04, 2009, 08:45:45 AM »

I would prefer a non precious metal coin. That way I can carry it around in my pocket and when i reach for some change and pull it out people will ask "whats that?"
Yes wooden nickels would be cheaper, but wouldnt last very long in my pocket.

bartsdad · « **Reply #18 on:** November 04, 2009, 09:00:04 AM »

Quote from: mamabear on November 04, 2009, 08:20:19 AM

Okay, I do remember wooden nickels.

I have a question though. What is a "challenge coin"?

WIKI Challenge coin

Maddog · « **Reply #19 on:** November 04, 2009, 09:13:34 AM »

Guess I should have understood what a Challenge Coin was before posting. I agree wooden nickels are not good for this purpose, nor silver for that matter. Note to self: Research before opening big mouth.

Orionblade · « **Reply #20 on:** November 04, 2009, 09:37:04 AM »

Are these cast, struck, or MIM'd?

For the reverse - how about an ant or an ant head with crossed garden trowels behind it, or a garden trowel and an old fashioned break-open shotgun? Kind of fits the theme of self reliance and hunting/fishing/gardening/etc.

As for a background... *ponders*

Ann · « **Reply #21 on:** November 04, 2009, 09:46:09 AM »

The pictures of the coins are not coming up for me (probably has something to do with work).

Will the coins be thick enough to possibly stamp the edge of the coin? Granted, this will be too hidden for those that don't think very far (like me SOMETIMES), but it is available space. Much like the "in God we trust" on the larger coins these days...

Mr. Bill · « **Reply #22 on:** November 04, 2009, 10:01:56 AM »

Quote from: Sister Wolf on November 04, 2009, 12:26:24 AM

The black parts will not be black - they'll be raised metal.

In that case, I think you'll want a physically bolder design with less fine detail. If people will actually be carrying these in their pockets, the thin ant legs will wear off pretty quick.

If you did it the other way, with the ant incised instead of raised, the detail would be protected from wear. But that might look weird.

Oh, yeah, speaking of wear: either move the lettering in from the edge a bit, or put a raised rim around the edge. Otherwise the tops of the letters will wear down and it'll turn into inesurvivaipoocasi.com.

(Yes I was a nerdy coin collector as a kid, how did you guess?)

Quote from: aeellis2002 on November 04, 2009, 09:46:09 AM

Will the coins be thick enough to possibly stamp the edge of the coin?

That would probably be extremely expensive to have done.

Quote from: KC8SON on November 04, 2009, 06:47:06 AM

I'm not sure if I would pay for silver since it's not going to be widely recognized.

This is a very good point. So if the silver version had on its reverse the well-known logo of the well-known mint that will be making the coins, that would actually be a plus.

mxitman · « **Reply #23 on:** November 04, 2009, 10:22:28 AM »

Any thought of making these coins in silver?

I would be up for a whole roll of 20 coins if they were .999 silver

Northwest Territorial Mint http://custom.nwtmint.com/ does custom coin minting. I think there even the ones who did the coins for Tea Part Silver. NWMINT is located about an hour from my house and I have gone there many times, it's a pretty cool place they will even give you a tour of their mint. It's also easier walking in with cash and being able to walk out with gold and silver.

Sister Wolf · « **Reply #24 on:** November 04, 2009, 11:20:07 AM »

Yes. NWT is our "coin guy". Thanks.

So let's see what we have here.

Some of you want silver coins (on which there will be no color, obviously).

Some of you want challenge coins (maybe most of you).

aeellis - I cannot have the edge stamped (sorry).

Orion - I don't know the answer to your question. Does it matter? If it does, I'll ask NWT.

Mr. Bill - you rock. The edge is raised on both sides, but I will probably have to make "thesurvivalpodcast.com" be all in caps anyway. They're picky about that sort of thing.

Mad Dog - NO. You post regardless of what you know, okay? It helps me get a feel for what people WANT, regardless of the product (challenge coin, silver coin, or otherwise).

However, I am so not making wooden nickles.

KC8SON - If you can find me a drawing of an ant eating a grasshopper that isn't copyrighted, let me know. Otherwise, this is the ant I have. I can make this ant less detailed, but I can't add teeth and a dead grasshopper to it. I'm cool, but I ain't that cool.

Also remember that the coin is LITTLE. Like a normal challenge coin. So adding a detailed pic of an ant eating a grasshopper probably won't look really all that good. At all. I don't want this to be awful, or amateur.

madcap1one · « **Reply #25 on:** November 04, 2009, 11:51:28 AM »

I also vote for a silver coinage option, key being optional - that of course begs the question of whether or not NWT then demands payment for two dies, or will use the same die on both metals.

I have used http://www.coinsforanything.com/sample_coins.asp successfully in the past, if you are looking for options.

They do cool things with negative relief cutouts as well.

Sister Wolf · « **Reply #26 on:** November 04, 2009, 12:55:17 PM »

I appreciate the help, but really, I'm good on suppliers, guys.

Sister Wolf · « **Reply #27 on:** November 04, 2009, 01:02:01 PM »

madcap - they would use the same die for both coins, but it won't look the same (because the silver coins won't have color added to them). Also, the option may be there eventually, but not right off the bat. 3 people telling me that they might be up for "a" silver coin doesn't justify the expense that it would be to make 50 or 100 (or more), when you consider that a hundred (or more) people said that they wanted t-shirts, and the t-shirts are not selling. At all.

I'll make them eventually, when there is money for it. But for now, the challenge coins are going to be the only option, until business picks up, and there's something on paper to show that investing a couple of thousand dollars will be worth it.

Orionblade · « **Reply #28 on:** November 04, 2009, 01:17:54 PM »

Struck = forged = minted = smacked in a die = pressed

cast = poured = not great for wear and tear

MIM = metal injection molding = really not as good as cast for wear and tear, all other variables being the same. Cheaper, though.

In all honesty, if you're going with an actual mint, then there's little question that they're struck.

Be sure to hang on to double-struck coins - oopses in other words. Some folks might pay a premium for them in the future.

I can hear my grandkids now... "Oh yea, well I got a brilliant uncirculated double-struck morgan silver podcast! Your silver eagle is CIRCULATED!!!"

:-p

Sister Wolf · « **Reply #29 on:** November 04, 2009, 01:42:46 PM »

LOL! Will do, iron boy. Will do.

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Author Topic: Challenge Coins (Read 29922 times)