How do you get rid of all the 10 yen?

I have enough 10 yen coins to sink a battle ship, and thats not even counting those 1 yen little buggers...I was told I can't go to a bank and exchange them unless I buy special sleeves for the coins and count them myself first. Would they even take it then? Every time I try to use them, I can't very well just buy my drink and use 12 10 yen coins, because it stops accepting them after a certain number. Even the machines don't want them! I have to have about 5,000 yen in 10 yen coins, and I can't change them...anyone have any ideas?

Hi,

I was in a supermarket once (not huge hypermarket, but bigger than the convini).

I bought some food, and since I was taking too much time to count my little coins to give the correct amount of money, the cashier took the coins from my hand and counted VERY FASTLY using the small coins.
That's how I get rid of most of them.

I collect a mix of all coins in large Nescafe jars. I take the jars to my UFJ bank and they just asked me if I knew the total, put them into their auto count machine, then gave me the resulting cash in bills. No problem at all from them, and never has seemed to faze them.

Perhaps the vending machines stop accepting 10 yen coins if you try to use 12, but what I often do is use 7 and a 50 yen coin- I have never had any coins rejected doing this. Otherwise it's just a matter of getting rid of them in your day to day transactions, for example if you are buying something that is 123 yen and you pay with a thousand note or 500 yen coin, add the 23 yen from your coin collection, so you don't get any back.

Some people seem to think this is a huge effort and can't be bothered doing it, but it's actually expected in Japan so the cashiers are happy to wait for you to get the coins out out (I often get a few coins ready in advance so it doesn't take too long), and it's not that hard to do.

I have also taken large collections of coins (500 yen coins that I had saved in my case) to the bank in plastic bags and they were quite happy to put them in a counting machine and deposit the amount into my account. I haven't come across the idea of having to put coins into special sleeves anywhere in Japan, although I have heard that American banks require it.

Have you tried to take them to the ATM? I used to deposit them at the ATM right next to my station (there is a limit to how many you can put in at once, I think my machine was 100) but it's quick and easy.

What to do with them?

USE THEM.
While you can't pay with 50 10 yen coins for 500yen you can certainly use parts of it,when paying for stuff, use your reserves down, pay with 5 10 yen coins before using your 50yen coin. If something is 150 then pay with either 5 10yen coins and a 100yen coin, or ten ten yen coins and one 50yen coin, I find Japanese clerks aren't as snobby about it as in other countries, it also gives the cashier more change to give out to other customers paying with big bills, so some of them like it.

Use them when buying train tickets at the train station, 10 will be 100yen worth. You'd be amazed how fast it runs out.

What I'm getting at is use them as you get them, you seemed to collect a whole wad because you weren't using them.

As for banks, each bank has a different procedure, some can depost at ATMs others you cannot, some might require a special wrapper, others may not, check with your bank, or just slowly spend it down instead.

When you pay, for instance, 942 yen, instead of just give the cashier a 1,000 yen bill, give him 1,042 yen. That's how I get rid of bulky coins.

I found the 10 yen very useful. Once I got my head around the different currency and whatnot, it wasn't that hard to get rid of the small change, especially with the subway tickets, cigarette machines, or buying coffee/drinks/snacks from Lawsons and am/pm.

My issues was with the 5 yen coins. God, I hate those holy little things. No ticketing machines would take them and pretty much all vending machines spat them back out at us and being stupid foreigners, it took us awhile to work out what they were worth and by that stage we were heading home. They will haunt me. ;)

Needless to say, look into your purse BEFORE going up to the cashier.

Grab a small set of coins such as four 1 yens and nine 10 yens, and keep them in your hand.

When the clerk shows you the bill, just place all those coins on the counter ALONG with one 1000 yen bill.

They will be nice enough to assume you want to use the small change, and they will pick them up, and then they will give you back the least amount of coins they owe you.

I do something like that whenever I queue at a busy supermarket cashier.

available in 100 yen shops are coin holders, makes it very easy to see at a quick glance how much in small coin you have on hand, and use it as you go.