Could this be the 1983 struck on a copper planchet ?

Hey guys ... I found this really rough looking 1983 Lincoln cent tonight that is not only in rough condition but it also has alot of the coins center missing from what looks like die deterioration . Now the crazy part is ... Although it's literally missing chunks of the coins center it's actually weighing 2.7 on my scale when it should actually be weighing less then that since the coin is missing pieces of it right ? So my question is what on earth have I found here ?

 

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A damaged, dirty 1983 zincoln.

 

I don't know about the weight, but it is obviously not on a copper planchet, the zinc is clearly visible on the reverse.

 

Too the contrary ... The part that I'm assuming you are referring too is a white substance from the deterioration not zinc ... Or are you referring to another part of the coin and maybe I can enlarge it for you ?

 

Yes that is Zinc Rot. That's what it looks like.
That won't happen on a normal copper cent only on a Copper Plated Zinc Cent.. You don't have a normal copper Cent.

Environmental damage caused the plating to bubble and tear apart. Water or chemicals reacted to the Zinc underneath..

 

what do you think zinc looks like ?

 

A grey or silver like surface ... Which is no where on any part of the reverse

 

I think you're mistaking the damage parts of the coin as showing zinc

 

Wow.. Buddy you don't give up do you

The weight is correct for a Copper plated zinc cent with zinc rot

 

Sorry but the only mistake is you not believing what you are being told.

 

The original one found was minted at the Denver Mint.. Yours has no Mint Mark so it's a Philadelphia Mint copper plated zinc cent

 

Wait so are you saying that there can not be any 1983 copper cents if they are minted at the Philadelphia mint ? LOL

 

This is very interesting ... Please show me more about these coins that weigh more when they have zinc rot because I'll be the first to admit that I've never heard of this theory before ??????

 

what does dirty, corroded zinc look like?

Also, doesn't copper exposed to the elements, etc turn a green then black? And not what your cent looks like.

fyi, a zincoln weighs 2.5
a copper weight 3.11
a DIRTY zincoln can weigh a bit more than 2.5 and is within the error parameters anyways.

Good luck.

 

If it's not Zinc Rot, it's probably bird droppings. Maybe mice. Nice find.

 

Yes

 

There definitely could be a + or - weight difference on any denomination of coins. When you understand this you will stop with the silly LOL comment

 

@paddyman98 has pulled so many cents from the ground that the man must see zinc rot with his eyes closed

 

There is one surefire way to tell zinc from copper cents when visual evidence (like can be seen on your coin), is not there. Hold it over a medium flame, zinc will start to melt pretty quickly, copper will not at all.

 

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