Hello. A friend of mine just showed me this 1960 Penny that has a completely shiny silver appearance to it. I attempted to scan this penny the best I could but the scans are terrible compared to what the coin actually looks like. It almost looks aluminum color. He says that he might have bought the coin years ago, from a coin show but can't remember. Any info would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!
Unfortuantly, we don't have anything to weight it with right now but, the coin does seem to be noticebly lighter then a normal penny. Thanks for your input!
Held in bright light, the coin has a very, very slight copper tinge to it, but is definitly more of a silver look.
Since it is a 1960, it should be a 95% copper coin and weigh 3.11 g. If it is lighter, it could be an off-metal error on some kind of blank. Most likely it is plated and should weigh the 3.11 g or more. A popular high school chem lab is to zinc plate cents and then change the thin zinc coating to brass by heating the coin. The safest thing is always - Take it to a dealer. You may not agree with what they say, but they can see the coin "in-hand".
Seems is very misleading. Balance a ruler on a pencil, place your cent on one end and a "normal" cent on the other AT EQUIVALENT PLACES for example with the edge of the cent at the edge of the ruler. This will tell you a little better if it is the same weight or not.
