Will the cent last another 10 years.

"may" no will...
I believe it will happen... Either that, or we have our one world currency, which I am also dreading...

 

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I'm with the all electronic money guys. I can't remember the last time I needed cash. All the restaurants and grocery stores I go to take plastic, even the vending machines at work take plastic.

It's only a matter of time.

For the present, the cent is a waste and possibly even the nickel. They are difficult to carry and spend. I like the dollar coins over paper but I seem to be in the minority. I have spent time in Japan where there are no $1 and $5 bills they have coins for those denominations and start the bills at $10.

 

Not sure if the switch from paper notes to coins is such a cost issue for the Mint but rather coins typically last longer than do notes.

Coins are purportedly "greener" per US Mint marketing tactics to get consumers to use dollar coins when they put them out.
http://www.usatoday.com/community/tags/topic.aspx?req=tag&tag=Big Problem of Small Change

 

Do you think the mint is just going to stop minting coins and go bankrupt? Even if we go to a 100% plastic society, the mint will still mint coins for collectors in mint and proof sets.

 

It takes an act of Congress to change them, but it doesn't take one to stop making them.

But the clad coins DON'T have the same electrical resistance as the silver coins. That wasn't a consideration back in 1964 when the clad coins were developed because back then the coin mechanisms were strictly mechanical. The three layer clad composition was created because it would be extremely difficult or impossible to counterfeit.

No they had the composition already, the reason we got 1999 SBA's was bcause they were going to run out of SBA's and need new dollar coins before the end of the year, but by law they couldn't issue the Sac dollars until 2000. (They were actually making SBA dollars and the Sac dollars at the same time.) They couldn't make the 1999 SBA's out of the new composition because that would have required new legislation passed by Congress changing the alloy of the SBA.

I doubt that there are all that many vending machines out there that are over thirty years old and which haven't had their coin mechanisms serviced in the past thirty years. All vending machines manufactured in this country since 1979 are capable of accepting dollar coins, and probably most of the replacement coin mechanisms as well. The hing is they come form the factory set to reject the dollar coins but in most cases it is simply a matter of flipping a switch to make them accept the dollars.

Especially since they spent $60 million for the exact same thing in 2000 when the Sac dollar came out and it failed then. They could have looked back to 2000, seen that ads don't work and saved $45 million.

 

I don't think the sell campaign was a bad idea had it worked. It's true the mint was trying to make money...but they were also trying to generate interest in the dollar coin. I thought the Presidential Dollar coins were a great idea. Looking back at the state quarter series, everyone and became "coin collectors" overnight. People got excited about those quarters. I think people hoped the same would be true about a "collectible" dollar coin series. It might encourage circulation of the coin and help phase in the coin (and at the same time phase out the note).

As far as the USD being the world currency. We may not need to worry about that much longer. If we don't get things turned around, it might not be for much longer.

 

I think the "lose and make" concept here is kind of odd. The face value of a cent is less than its intrinsic value. The opposite is true for the rest of the coins (except that a while back the nickel had more metal value than face as well).

Historically, we have always kept our coins face value higher than the metal value it contains. The reason, we don't want people making a profit by melting the coins down. This also allows for metal prices to go up (which they do over time) without having to change the composition. But, sometimes we do have to change the composition. We've done it in the past...originally by making the coins slightly smaller, and more recently by changing the composition itself. It needs to be done again.

 

Are there any metals that would make the cent cheaper? reducing the size might help. Though estimates vary sooner or later the mint may have to stop production.

http://www.snopes.com/business/money/pennycost.asp

http://money.cnn.com/2006/06/01/news/newsmakers/penny/index.htm

 

Aluminum like the Japanese 1 yen coin for instance.

Plastic? like old state tax 'mills' used to circulate.

 

I'm sure there are. I know aluminum was tested in 1974 and rejected (but I know other countries have used it). I'm sure we could come up with something.

 

http://www.metalprices.com/

not sure how accurate this is but aluminum has a higher cost than zinc. How about a plastic polymer?

 

A polymer could work...I know other countries have done that. But, the metal price isn't as clear as it seems. Metal is priced by weight. I wonder if the amount of aluminum it would take to make a cent would be less than is required of zinc. If it weighed less, which it most certainly would (I believe the 1974 pattern cents weighed .93g) it should cost less than the 2.50g zinc planchet.

 

Aluminum is more expensive but you can make about three times as many cents from a pound of aluminum than you can from a pound of zinc. That makes it cheaper per coin.

 

That's what I thought. Thanks Condor!

 

Somebody may have made this point already (I didn't read the entire thread).

But the Government likely is reluctant to discontinue the cent (and the nickel) and is willing to subsidize the loss, lest they advertise the awful truth that the currency has been massively devalued.

In view of the likelihood that the devaluation will likely surge signoificantly in order to finance the deficit, though, I can't imagine they will afford to keep the charade going for more than 5-10 years (unless they just move the decimal point over a place or two).

 

Personally I hope the cent keeps going since I like to collect them, but at some point Ron Paul or someone else will convince congress that it really does cost too much.

 

Penny slots in the casinos.... oh yeah thats right you use a card ! Not cash LOL However 1/2 dollars & pennies are going going and just about gone! I give them < 5 years! Good write up on the wear on wheats vs Memoral cents ....A no brainer 1909 to the 40's pennies were used more due to the fact most middle class and below only made a few bucks a week as a salary. Post WW ll People made more money... credit accounts came into being... and with the repeal of most states Blue Laws Bling Bling the new plastic credit card took off! walk out side of any 7/11 or simular type store.... pennies are all over the ground... most don't want to be brothered pocketing them. mmmmmmmmmmm in 1960 a penny got ya one sweet piece of candy!

 

I saw three pennies in a row embedded in a tar crack in the street today... stopping to dig them out would have required the agility of Frogger. :eating:

 

AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW I love Frogger! "Eat the Fly...eat the fly! :goofer:

 

I don't think this has anything to do with the economy. It is a sign that inflation has occurred. The fact that the composition of the coins hasn't changed in so long and is only now becoming an issue is a good sign. It shows that a small amount of inflation has occurred which is the sign of a healthy system. I know the economy isn't good now, but this has very little to do with it.