Hello, I just found this forum because I recently came upon a bizarre penny after looking through some change. It seems to me that it might be a zinc blank that was not copper coated which made it through the stamps and into circulation. I have weighed the coin, it is slightly around .1 of a gram lighter than a typical newer penny @ around 2.4 grams. My scales do not display weight more than .1 gram. The Penny is also just slightly larger in diameter than a copper penny, laying a copper on top of it leaves a slight ring of the zinc blank and it is also slightly deformed and not exactly circular. The back side shows Lincoln's cabin and is struck slightly off center. Please let me know if the photos help and what I might have in my hands. I have had the coin for at least a year.
I have one of these, it a 1990. I believe it is the results of a classroom science experiment due to the surface being so rough. If it was minted without the copper plateing it would have a smooth surface like a normal cent.
If you look closely at a normal cent you can see the slight rough pitting. This penny has a texture quite similar but what you might expect with out a slight copper coating. Also, there is the weight discrepancy as well as the squish factor that this penny was subjected to during the press. Having a copper coating will result in a slightly greater resistance to the force of the press. This penny is deformed a bit, environmental damage couldn't account for the off set back side stamp, the weight, that it is a bit flatter than a regular penny.
Trust me Warchild, Paddy knows his stuff.......plus he digs a lot of stuff out of the ground while dirt fishin'. Welcome to the forum.
The coin appears, to me at least, to be missing the copper coating, but I would speculate that it was removed post-mint because if it had done been pre-strike, the surfaces of the coin would be smooth and not rough as we see them. this would also account for the light weight of the coin. HTH
The copper plating and a small amount of zinc was removed with acid. The weight of the copper plating is microgams and undetectable given the small variations in normal weight.
No offense, but if you're so certain you have the answer, why ask for help? Also, I cannot help but to wonder how one could "recently come upon this bizarre penny" and also "have had the coin for at least a year"?
Yeah, about 50,000 micrograms. The weight of the plating is about .05 grams, that's 50 milligrams or 50,000 micrograms.
