
The scrap or melt value of a United States silver quarter is determined by its metallic composition and the prevailing market price of silver. According to the provided reference materials, quarters minted for circulation between 1932 and 1964 were composed of an alloy consisting of 90% silver and 10% copper. This composition gives the coins an intrinsic value based purely on their silver content.
The fundamental factor in this is the coin's Actual Silver Weight (ASW). For a 90% silver quarter, the ASW is 0.1808 troy ounces. This figure represents the total amount of pure silver present in a single coin. The scrap value is therefore a direct calculation: the ASW is multiplied by the current spot price of silver.
To provide a specific example from the context, with a silver spot price of $29.11 per troy ounce, the calculated melt value for one silver quarter would be $5.26. It is crucial to recognize that this value is not fixed. As the market price of silver fluctuates daily, the scrap worth of the coin will change in direct proportion. This valuation strictly pertains to the intrinsic metallic content and does not account for any potential numismatic or collector value the coin may possess.


