Looks like environmental damage. Looks like a dryer coin and being in the ground to long ? Wait for more opinions...
Don't know, but it looks like that's how it was minted to me. Thanks for your input - we'll get some more opinions, hopefully. It is very shiny though so maybe.
Are you sure it is Copper Plated Zinc?.. 1982 Cents were also made with Copper Planchets. Could be corrosion. IMHO.
I weighed it at 2.5 grams so I know it's zinc. To me it does not look like corrosion. It is heavily "splattered" as many of this era are, and I don't see wear on the splatter spots. Also, look at IN GOD WE TRUST. That's not environmental damage.
Sorry but how could the raised rim fold over the lettering that was struck? Impossible. DEFDAM - Definitely Damaged Dryer damage.
one last time.. DEFDAM - Definitely Damaged.. PMD Cent. NO number 3 under the 8.. It would have to be struck over a Cent from the 1930's.. which was made of Copper. Come on guys. Use some common sense.
I saw that too. It does look like something is under the 8. Upper left and inside of the lower part of the digit.
I don't know, but it would really be a coincidence if it corroded down to the exact normal weight of a zinc. I too am skeptical of an error but if not an error of sorts what could have caused it? It really does not make sense either way to me.
I find that a lot easier to believe than that a Zincoln could sustain that degree of damage and have its plating intact. Put it on a table top next to a normal cent, and see how thick it is.
Never assume it's an error because you don't know what caused the damage. There are an untold number of ways a coin can be damaged but only a limited number of ways a error can occur. The minting process is well documented, so you need to explain how your coin could have left the mint looking like that There is no way it could occur in the minting process. It isn't a planchet issue, not a die issue and not a striking issue. The weak details and rough surfaces look like it was exposed to some acidic or caustic solution.
Thanks Oldhoopster, but I am not assuming it's an error (per the post you replied to). It could be that it was exposed to some acidic or caustic solution but wouldn't that have exposed at least some zinc in order to get that kind of corrosion? One thing that gives me pause is IN GOD WE and to a lesser extent TRUST where the tops of the letters are missing which to me does indicate a possible strike anomaly. We've all seen some of that but not to this degree very often if at all. Additionally, I've seen many early zinc pennies that do have this rough surface but again, not to this extent. Is it possible that the mint was trying to dial in the proper strike pressure? Might that explain both the weak strike and the extremely rough surface?