Today I found this blank penny. Its very smooth and has never been stamped. Is this real? Is it valuable? How do I find out?
It is considered a Blank Planchet. If it's copper or copper plated zinc they are worth about $2.00 - $5.00 depending on its condition. The only way to find out is to weigh it with a gram scale. 3.11 grams is copper. 2.5 grams is copper plated zinc. It's nothing really major.. I have dozens in my collection.
There were years where the mint put them into mint sets to fill the empty 6th slot in a 5 coin year (they've also done minted P and D tokens and plastic ones). They've given them out on tours. They're in one of this year's kids sets. And of course, sometimes planchets slip through without being struck.
The other things you mentioned are correct, but the mint has never put blank planchets into the mint sets to "fill an empty slot".
@Tim Cahooni it's considered rude to hijack somebody else's thread with a completely unrelated question. Start your own thread with a good title and you might get a response.
