Only cents and nickels are illegal to melt - and there is an exception for the 1942-1945 war nickels since they are 35% silver. All other coins are legal to melt - but they're worth far more as a coin than as scrap. It is also illegal to export more than $50 of cents or nickels. Most people I know aren't melting them, they're hoarding in case TSHTF.

There are two major schools of thought on that. The first is that if things really go south: gold, silver, and copper will be worthless and only bullets and food will matter. The second is that gold, silver, and copper have been used as a convenient medium of trade for thousands of years and will continue in that function as long as they are relatively scarce.

I saw someone post something (I forget who now - sorry) about how aluminum was more valuable than gold at one point due to it being so difficult to refine. While true, that is no longer the case - enough has been mined and refined that it can't come close to gold. Aluminum (in various ores) is one of the most common metals on the planet.



I prefer a more balanced approach - plenty of precious metals and plenty of bullets to protect them.