1979 lincoln steel cent ?

I've had this sitting around for a number of years now.
after reading that 43 cents stick to magnets ( makes sense ) I tried it with this coin ... it sticks too
Any thoughts guys ?( or gals )

 

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You have me stumped? If its magnetic its steel!!!!!!

 

Barely sticks or "jumps" to the magnet? If it barely sticks it probably has a heavy nickel plating.

 

There's a slight chance some mint employee threw a 43 cent in the mix. Try a magnet on a 43 and this cent and look for a difference.

some details of the over-struck cent would show.
I would think it would mess up the plating also.

 

There's a 99.9999% chance this coin is either plated with a silver like metal or coated with mercury. When one finds an off colored coin, the first test should be to weigh the coin within a 100th of a gram.

 

Thanks for all your responses ! * barely sticks * to a magnet might be the best description. So i will go with an odd plating. I'll also assume it holds little value as such.

 

It's plated, probably nickel or chrome. Either would stick to a magnet.

It was done outside the mint and is technically a damaged coin.

Thanks,
Bill

 

Not chrome, Chromium is not magnetic (but chromium dioxide is.)

 

Thanks Conder..of course, you are correct!

 

i have one too

hey guys i have this same penny 1979 d looks like steel of some kinds of white metal. is there anywhere i can get more info.

 

Could be toned silver/metal looking, could be copy, got to see a photo.

 

Check out this video on making your own gold and silver colored cents.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q4puQhfJg-o

or search for "making gold penny" on google.

This is a standard chemistry experiment in some middle and high school's chemistry lab manual, as it is low risk , and the students love to make them. But then what to do with them after the novelty has worn off? Spend them. So there are quite a few of different dates in circulation. Definitely post- mint damage.

Jim

 

It also could be a un-plated cent, I have several, I get a chance I will try to take pictures

 

That could be the case on any zinc plated Cent 1982 and beyond, but the Cents struck in 1979 were not plated.

 

Lets see, this week I found a plated cent, two plated halves, and a plated quarter as I searched through rolls. They were sold by the millions , especially on shopping networks. With the current economy many people, finding out that they are worthless are just rolling them up or spending them.

They are everywhere. Also, when you get used to seeing ones that are plated, it is easy to tell even from a poor picture when a coin posted here is plated.

Thanks,
Bill

 

I also have a silver penny from 1979. I've had it as long as I can remember but I do not remember where I got it from?

 

First, welcome to the neighborhood!

I'm pretty sure that it didn't come from the Mint that way.

Chris

 

What's the weight of the coin? It could be from a foreign country's metal.

 

I

Have a 1979 penny that sticks to a magnet and is off colored, looks good but not gold.

 

They didn't make no gold ones in 1979, so that's not unusual.