For those that were waiting for it, Here's the thread for our 1 oz. gold coins.

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=675359.0

There's lots of reasons why we chose to centralize the coin database and use our own coin ID, but I think they're probably all in the thread above.  Having fewer steps to verify that the coin's address is funded is the big one.  Anyone can pick up one of our coins and scan the back with a smartphone, regardless of whether they know what a bitcoin is or not. 

The 2-factor coins have less of a learning curve for people who are just getting into bitcoins.  They typically like the fact that they can redeem them on our website.  For people that understand bitcoins, we proudly sell the exact same coins with private keys.  We're not running any kind of fractional reserve, so if we need to shut down the business, we'll be emailing out links to download an encrypted version of the private keys for all our 2FA coins.  We'll also be keeping the site running for many years after we shut down.  The hosting and maintenance is already bought and paid for.  Nobody is getting screwed when we shut down. 

Ha.  I hadn't made that connection, but you're right.  They do share some similarities. 

We commissioned that poster to be done by a graphic-novel/comic book artist who is a friend of mine.  He's going to be doing a few others for us, all around the style of 1930s-1940s propaganda posters.  I'll make sure we don't have anymore fleeing bankers. 

Dude.  PM me your address and I'll mail one out.  Or a few.  We give them away at the bitcoin conventions we attend.

That's a high resolution shot of the coin.  We actually have to stitch a number of photos together to get everything in focus at that magnification.  Once the photo is stitched together, it get's a bit of retouching to remove dust and the odd reflections that show up under really bright lighting, but that's the coin.    

When you're buying proof coins of something like a 1 oz. krugerrand, the mint that produces them is typically also refining the gold or owns a partnership with a refinery operating at a volume of billions of dollars worth of throughput.  They are getting their gold significantly below spot value.

Since we're working on a much smaller scale our cost is much higher.  There is a margin built into that premium to allow for discounts for resellers and customers buying in quantity, but we're not trying to gouge anyone on the prices.  As such, you can expect to maintain that premium when you resell the coin.  

We're considering acting as market makers for this coin, buying them back on request to ensure that reselling them is easy for our customers.  
I don't expect many people will take us up on that though, because our other coins typically sell for a healthy markup when resold on craigslist or eBay.

Does it look like something that might have happened in transit?  

We don't have the capacity to produce truly proof grade coins, as the production facility doesn't have the handling procedures in place to maintain proof-grade, but we try to get as close as possible.

I'd like to replace it if it has a problem.  

Please do send a photo.  Tim@titanbtc.com

These come in H-sized air-tite cases.  The size is just about the same as our copper-alloy 1 BTC coins.  You can see a picture of one of those in hand here:  https://www.titanbtc.com/product/titan-one-gold/

Thanks Blazed.  I'm biased of course, but I think these are stunning.

Glad you like it!

These are 34 mm in diameter.  Just slightly larger than a 1 oz gold buffalo coin.

Platinum is definitely on our to do list, we've just been slowed down by our partners that produce the precious metal blanks for us. 

The gold on these is already thin enough that it cause production problems for a deep relief coin, so 1/2 oz would definitely need to be smaller diameter.  When we started production on these, BTC was in the $900-$1,000 range, so the cost was closer to a 50/50 split between gold and BTC value which is what I'd prefer.  If the price of BTC stays down around $600, a 1/2 oz coin makes a lot of sense and we'll look into it.

The premium is high, but I can honestly guarantee based on our past experience that you will recover that premium and more when you resell the coin later.

Fair enough    We're catering to a crowd that likes a high-quality product.  I have some of Mike's coins and I'm a big fan of his, so there's no love lost for Casascius.  I will say though, that you seem to be in the minority.  

The "human" is a symbol of the warrior spirit that the members of the bitcoin community have exhibited as they have pushed bitcoin onward towards global acceptance.  The letter B just doesn't quite communicate that as elegantly as we desired.

Oh.  We'll throw in an awesome bitcoin propaganda poster for free as well.  Just ask.

The solid gold Titan One coins are here.

It was worth the wait, because these are really beautiful coins.  The depth of relief on these is higher than our other coins and I've gotten some extremely positive feedback from gold dealers and industry leading coin collectors on the quality of these pieces.  



While we can't make any guarantees, we are conservatively suggesting that they will grade at MS66 or better (for those are numismatically inclined.)   These coins are all assembled with private keys underneath the hologram (Casascius style).  



We're happy to accept BTC or wire transfer as payment.  These won't be available on our website until we've replaced our current merchant account provider with another one that isn't evil...so this is a bitcointalk exclusive right now.  If you've bought from us before, you know that we add a fixed dollar premium over the current spot.  

These coins are priced as follows.   Spot price of gold  +  Spot price of BTC (bitstamp)  +  $475.  
At the moment, that's BTC 3.76 per coin (includes shipping and insurance within the U.S.) and we'll adjust the price for each order as the market changes.

Shipping gold overseas is way more complex than you might imagine, so please reach out if you want them shipped internationally.

These are extremely limited edition coins.  The production of this batch took over 6 months and almost a dozen iterations to get to the level of quality we demand out of such a high value coin. 27 have been sold so far and we have 99 remaining in the current batch.  The edition is limited to 1,000 coins this year, but given how long they are taking to produce, I would be surprised if we're able to make more than a few hundred in 2014.  If you were on the email list for these coins, we'll honor your place in the queue regarding low serial numbers.  Just PM me.


Email sales@titanbtc.com with your shipping info, or PM me here to purchase.  

Thanks for being an awesomely supportive, guys.  I've met a lot of you at different events and I continue to be impressed by the caliber of people that count themselves members of this community.  



  

I'm bummed that you guys are "exiting the space".   

If you recall, I loaned you a heavy gauge extension cord at BTC Miami to get you the juice needed to keep this machine running without tripping the circuit breaker.

$26k is solid deal and I would jump on it if we didn't already have access to one.  I'll talk to our local laser shops and see if they might be interested.

We were actually registered with FinCen before they ever bothered Mike and we're going through the process of determining our state by state registration requirements.

Thanks for your interest.  I'm glad you like the coins!

I'll admit that we haven't done a great job keeping the community informed, and that's on me and my time constraints.   We're putting out at least one update on Facebook a day now and twitter will be following soon. 

Making any product WELL necessitates a decision to target a particular market.   Titan Bitcoins are made by fine artists that were selectively recruited and paid to design, hand sculpt and engrave the tooling for these coins.  The coins themselves are made to exacting quality standards and on top of that, we often cull more than 75% of a given production run because of small defects.  The goal is to make physical bitcoins that look and feel like real currency and have an unspoken impression of value.  This costs much more than merely stamping out tokens, and I realize that added cost makes the price prohibitive for many.   While we're working on new products that have a lower barrier to entry...I hope you understand that owning these coins comes with a modicum of exclusivity that we hope elevates Titan Bitcoins to the level of "investment" for serious coin collectors. 

The bigger picture is hard to articulate in forum posts, but I will tell you that ALL of the profits from our sales are being reinvested into making more cool stuff that gets people excited about digital currency and grows the bitcoin community, so every coin you buy is an investment in mainstream bitcoin adoption. 

We're still selling the 2013 edition of the Titan One coins in both brass and silver and we'll be transitioning those to the 2014 editions in late Spring.  All other coins are currently in the 2014 edition, with the quarter and the 5 BTC coin coming out in the next couple months.  We're really close to having the Titan One 1 oz. Gold coin in stock as well.

We don't sell any unfunded coins right now.  Anyone selling coins unfunded has either purchased them from us at full price and redeemed them, or is selling one of the odd coins that was lost or stolen in the mail.  If you see an unfunded coin with the hologram intact, its a good idea to steer clear as it may not be legit. 

LTC is in the pipeline. 

Yeah.  Those are Chinese "look-alikes". 

I thought they had gone away but apparently they're back.  We're trying to get them banned from eBay as a counterfeit/copyright violators.   Apparently they are sneakier then we gave them credit for?

Love it!

Just PMed.

Michail explained the problem perfectly.  The holograms are a security feature, as they are destroyed when removed and it is important that we're the only ones with the ability to apply them, as we're certifying their authenticity and value by putting that seal in place.

We do OFTEN get requests for DIY coin kits and I'd love to accommodate.  We may put together a non-denominated coin design with a completely different hologram design later this year.