Just received my latest copy of COIN WORLD WEEKLY (June 24, 2019). One of the two first page articles is titled "NGC confirms 1943 tin cent". We've been inundated with: -- is my 1943 "penny" silver? -- has my 1943 cent been struck on a dime planchet? -- is my 1943 cent copper? -- is my 1944 cent on a 1943 planchet? -- other variations on a 1943 find? We can now prepare ourselves for the newest version of the question. "Is my 1943 'penny' made of tin?" According to the article it took "... a nondestructive metallurgical analysis, an X-ray fluorescence, or XRF, analysis." The result: "... 86.41 percent tin, 8.37 percent antimony, 1.75 percent copper and 1.02 vanadium." The weight is 2.7 grams vs. 2.69 grams for the standard 1943 cent. At least we can tell the person asking the question to submit the coin for "a nondestructive metallurgical analysis, an X-ray fluorescence, or XRF, analysis." I bet THAT'S a pricey test.
Why did they suspect it wasn't aluminum to begin with? The weight was almost the same... did it *look* different...?
Beside the fact that it's dated 1943, the article stated that it was found in 1969. And from the picture it didn't look anything like aluminum, even toned aluminum.
It I remember correctly the tin/antimony alloy test pieces are mentioned in Roger Burdette book on the experimental wartime one and five cent pieces. (can't check for sure, loaned my copy to someone at the local coin club last week.)
hey, I have a 1943 penny that looks silverishly tin-like ... think I'll make a YouTube video about it now ...
Enjoyed the post. Thanks. XRF analyzers are expensive. However, at any of the major coin shows, there are usually several dealers that have a handheld XRF analyzer. If not too busy, they'll zap a coin for free. And, yes, it works through the plastic of a slab. Cal
