Est. in Bucks County
A coin house, not a counter.
Bensalem Coin & Currency is a family-run shop at 3636 Street Rd, right where the PA Turnpike meets Street Road. We appraise, buy, and sell rare coins, paper money, and bullion the same way we did on day one — on certified scales, at posted spot, with the math shown.
The story
How the shop came to be
It started, as most coin shops do, with a collection that outgrew its albums: a run of Morgan dollars, a shoebox of Buffalo nickels, and a habit of reading the Red Book at the kitchen table.
In [year founded], [Owner name] opened a small storefront at 3636 Street Rd in Bensalem — a single showcase, a triple-beam balance, and a Whitman folder of type coins for sale. The trade in those early years was mostly local: Franklin halves out of dresser drawers, wheat cents by the coffee can, the occasional large-size note that had survived in a family Bible. The shop earned its reputation one appraisal at a time, by quoting the same number whether the customer was selling or just curious.
The precious-metals runs of the following decades changed the volume but not the method. When gold and silver spiked, the line went out the door; the scales stayed certified, the spot price stayed on the wall, and every payout was worked out on paper in front of the seller. That habit — showing the arithmetic — is still the house rule.
Today the second generation runs the counter. The showcase count has grown, the grading references now include PCGS and NGC population reports alongside the Red Book, and the estate work has become a specialty of its own. But the shop is still what the sign says: a coin and currency store, family-run, where the offer is explained before it is made.
How we work
Three rules the counter runs on
Fair offers on certified scales
Every lot is weighed on scales certified by the PA Department of Agriculture's Weights & Measures program, tested for karat or fineness in front of you, and priced against the spot quote posted that hour. The math is written out — grams, purity, spot, percentage — before a number is offered.
A transparent process, start to finish
No back rooms. Testing, weighing, and grading happen at the counter where you can watch. If a coin is worth more as a collectible than as metal — a better-date Morgan, a pre-1933 gold piece — we say so and price it that way, even when melt would be simpler for us.
No-obligation appraisals
Verbal appraisals are free and carry no obligation to sell — ever. Bring in a single Peace dollar or a whole safe-deposit box; you'll leave knowing what you have and what it's worth, whether or not any money changes hands. Written appraisals for estates and insurance are available by appointment.
Licensed & accountable
Regulation is a feature, not fine print
We operate as a licensed precious-metals dealer under Pennsylvania's Precious Metals Act and Bensalem Township ordinance. Those rules exist to keep stolen property out of the trade — and a shop that follows them is a shop you can trust with your grandfather's collection.
If a dealer skips the ID, skips the record, and pays cash out of a drawer with no paper trail, ask yourself whose interests that serves. Ours is the boring, documented way — on purpose.
- Photo ID on every purchase. Pennsylvania law requires us to record seller identification for each precious-metals transaction. It takes a minute.
- Itemized transaction records. Every buy is logged with a description, weight, and price, and reports are made available to Bensalem Township police as the ordinance requires.
- Statutory holding periods. Purchased items are held intact for the mandated period before they are melted or resold — a safeguard for rightful owners.
- Certified weighing equipment. Our scales carry current Weights & Measures seals and are inspected on schedule.
Milestones
The shop, by the years
First storefront opens
[Owner name] opens a one-showcase shop on Street Road, dealing in circulated U.S. type coins, silver dollars, and wheat cents by appointment and walk-in.
Precious-metals dealer license
The shop registers under Pennsylvania's Precious Metals Act and begins buying gold, silver, and platinum at posted spot — the start of the buying service we're now best known for.
Estate appraisal work begins
Local attorneys and executors start bringing whole collections for written valuation. Estate work — from single albums to multi-safe holdings — becomes a standing service.
Second generation joins the counter
The family's next numismatist comes aboard full-time, adding third-party grading submissions (PCGS and NGC) and a deeper focus on small-size and national bank notes.
Same counter, same method
Certified scales, posted spot, arithmetic on paper. The showcase inventory turns over weekly; the way we quote a price hasn't changed.
Beyond the counter
Part of the local hobby
Bucks County collector meetings
We host and sponsor local coin club nights — show-and-tell trays, grading practice with slabbed reference coins, and honest talk about what the market is actually paying. New collectors welcome; bring a coin and a question. Ask at the counter for the current meeting schedule.
Executors, attorneys & families
Settling an estate with a collection in it is stressful enough. We provide written, itemized appraisals suitable for probate and equitable distribution, explain which pieces merit third-party grading, and — only if the family chooses — make a documented offer on the whole or any part.
Starting collectors right
Every kid who comes in curious leaves with something — usually a wheat cent or a Buffalo nickel from the "starter" bowl and a folder to put it in. A collector who starts at nine keeps the hobby alive at ninety.
Free counterfeit checks
Bought a "silver dollar" at a flea market or online and want to be sure? We'll test it at no charge — weight, dimensions, magnet, and sigma testing where warranted. We'd rather catch a fake at our counter than see a neighbor learn the hard way.
The people
Who's behind the counter
A small shop, on purpose. The person who appraises your coins is the person whose name is on the license.
[Owner name]
Founded the shop in [year founded]. Specialties: Morgan and Peace dollars, pre-1933 U.S. gold, and estate valuation. Life member of the American Numismatic Association [member #].
[Family member name]
Second generation. Handles small-size and national bank notes, PCGS and NGC submission batches, and the want-list book. The one to ask about star notes and low serial numbers.
[Associate name]
Runs the scales and testing bench for gold, silver, and platinum buys — XRF and acid verification, weight documentation, and the compliance log. First face you'll see when you come in.
Come see for yourself
The best way to judge a coin shop is to stand at its counter
Bring a coin, a note, or a question. Appraisals are free, the scales are certified, and nobody will pressure you to sell.
3636 Street Rd, Bensalem, PA 19020 · Opening later this year, appointments welcome now · (833) 637-4653