1943 copper penny?

Hey guys,

Does such a thing exist, a "1943 copper penny"? I know they're all supposed to be made from steel because it was during a time when the US was at war.

The reason I ask is because I had a gentleman (old guy) come through my cash register line at work a few months back. I remember he said "I always keep my eye out for 1943 pennies" and he explained how it was the year when they were all made out of steel, but if you had a copper one it was priceless. He said he knew a lady that had a few of them.

Do such things exist? I could have swore they were all steel, but were some of them copper? I've never read that they were, I just wanted to see if this old guy was right or not.

Thanks,
Andrew

 

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If you ever come across one it is 99.99999% likely a fake. People with a bit of skill alter dates all the time. For example an "8" is easy to alter to a "3".

 

1943 coppers do exist but they go for millions. i have heared of only 1 copper cent being sold. i donbt the lady had a few of them. they were probaly conterfeit. she probaly made them. :smile

 

I think I remember reading somewhere that there were only 13 made, but I could be wrong.

 

Here you go Andrgo,this should tell you what you need to know about these:
http://www.coinsite.com/content/faq/1943copper.asp
AND
http://www.usmint.gov/about_the_mint/fun_facts/index.cfm?flash=yes&action=fun_facts2a

 

Well I have heard that the mint made some steel 1944 cents. True or no?

 

And where would THAT BE!

 

Look what I found on Ebay.http://cgi.ebay.com/THE-IMPOSSIBLE-...goryZ524QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

 

Okay:
As per Walter Breen's reference:
1943 bronze: very rare: estimate of 40 known.
1943 D: bronze: about 24 known;
1943 S: about 6 known.
They were struck from left over planchets from 1942.
1944: Steel: P: no estimate of known, simply very rare.
1944 D: no estimate of known, simply very rare.
1944 S: no estimate of known, simply very rare.

So, they esist. Recent auctions for the 1943 coppers, range from $10,000 and about $40,000 (I think , this is from memory, for the 1943 S.

 

Two words - Pho Nee!

Looks like all site visitors agree - no bids - with seller's "probably plated" comment. :headbang:

 

Right here...its on the main page of the forum---right below the Paper Money Forum.
http://www.cointalk.org/forumdisplay.php?f=33

Speedy

 

The easiest way to figure out if your 1943 is a copper-plated fake (for when the date doesn't look altered) is to try to stick a magnet to it. If it sticks, it's a plated steel cent.

I actually had this used on me by Ken Potter when I saw him at a show a few months ago. He was looking at errors/varieties, and I brought a coin a relative had. I knew it was fake, you could even see the copper flaking off, but I figured what the hell. He looked at it for a second, said something to the effect of "I've always wanted to try this" and pulled a magnet from his wallet. Of course, it stuck.

Fish