Do they still make Kennedy halves for circulation?

[Zoins]

I think I read in a coin magazine that the Mint has stopped making Kennedy halves for circulation and only for collectors. Is this true? Have they made business strikes every year since the series began? If they still make business strikes, can you only get them from the US Mint website in collector rolls?

[pendragon1998]

It's my understanding that they stopped releasing them for circulation after 2001. I believe they're also available in bags from the mint.

[bsshog40]

They are still available in rolls, bags, and all the annual mint sets from the mint.

[cpm9ball]

They began re-releasing 2001 specimens in 2004 (and still do by the way!) in rolls and $100 Mixed P&D bags. It was from one of these bags that I found the 2001-D Kennedy Missing the Clad Layer that you see on my sig line. Cost to me...........68c.

 

Chris

[Snowman24]

Yeah, the 2001 Kennedys are still available from the US mint after all these years. There is probably a vault full of halves someplace just like dollars coins. The mint made too many Sacs in 2000 & 2001 and dwindled down the productions of those also just like the halves. If there is a rush on halves at banks I bet the mint would crank up the presses to make more but i doubt it. Most everyone like 2 quarters over 1 half dollar

[pendragon1998]

Yeah, but half dollars make such a satisfying plunking sound when you drop them in tip jars.

[Dwaine]

I am not sure but I got a few in Vegas this past weekend while playing BlackJack. I forgot to look at the year though.

[TJ'S Coins]

There are billions hoarded in homes, bank and mint vaults that will never see circulation. In 2006, 4.5 million were made for collectors which was down from the 7.3 million in 2005.

[cladking]

There are billions hoarded in homes, bank and mint vaults that will never see circulation. In 2006, 4.5 million were made for collectors which was down from the 7.3 million in 2005.

 

It's interesting to investigate the composition of this enormous hoard. There have been a couple billion cu/ ni clad Kennedys made for circulation and these are worthy of a looksee. The hoard people have are mostly lightly circulated coins and the casino coins from the '80's and early '90's. Some of these were actually uncirculated when they were obtained but decades of sliding around in a sock drawer or change jar has ended that. There are also substantial numbers of most dates in BU rolls in safety deposit boxes but generally none of these are common in this form and some are not often seen. Bank rolls tend to have the dates fairly well represented by mintage except for later dates which are very underrepresented. There are a few sliders from the '70's but the later dates tend to be worse. An occasional unc will even be seen.

 

This can be broken down further but the quality of the hoard is of great importance to collectors. While finding nice attractive circs is easily done one quickly realizes that this is the condition of most of the two billion coins made since 1970. Nice choice uncs are much more widely available for this denomination than any other but there is a far higher demand and these are not available in rolls or in the public hoard.

[Dcoin]

I buy about a roll a week, esspecially when I see small banks that may have older rolls in the vault. I average about three unc piece in a roll and a BU every now and again. I'v put together 60% of a biz strike set using this method, and people love getting them as payment.

 

To answer the original post, I've never gotten a post '01 in my ventures.

[TJ'S Coins]

Thanks for the added information Cladking!