Flip worthy...fun find. Not valuable, but some premium. Die deterioration and grease filled as Furry notes. You'll note that the tops of the outer devices/letters are thinned out relative to the base. Later die state and grease.
good to know. Kevin, how long have you been doing this? You’re like a mad scientist with coin knowledge.
I started Variety and Error collecting about 7 years ago when I returned to the hobby after many decades off. I spend most of my time in the Variety and Error forums, so after paying my own dues and doing a good spot of reading, I accumulated some knowledge. The bit on the thinning devices and grease were learned from members...confirmed later by reading. Many of the folks getting into Varieties and Errors can really ramp up their learning by reading the whitepapers and articles at various sites and reading articles written by many of the experts (Ken Potter, Mike Diamond, BJ Neff, Brian Ribar amongst many others). They have broken it down far better than I can. And many knowledgeable members here contribute other interesting snippets of information. @coloradobryan wrote a post in another forum that helped me differentiate worn 1939 Jeffersons with the 38 Reverse Design from the RDV originally designated for that year. Lots to learn from others and file away. The trouble is that many don't file them fast enough...so learning is prolonged while great stuff slip away from their fingers. I didn't want that to happen any more than was necessary. I'm an still haunted by the ones that go away.
Well, if you have any “must read” articles, sites, send them my way. I’d rather not let anymore than necessary slip away myself. I already feel I certainly did. I had half a dozen 60’s & 70’s cents that had the “VBD” initials drastically doubled, and i think they got mixed in with the return pile. Hope that’s not a strong variety, if it is one at all lol. stupid mistake lol
We all have those moments and we learn fast from those mistakes. Painful. I let a 1995P-1DO-002 get away because I was so focused on the -001. The 002 is the second most valuable DDO for the date, the 1995D-1DO-001 being first. I recall staring at it for hours. Tossed it back. Learned about the error I made about 2 months later. I still am upset with myself for that.
I'm still 99.99% sure I had an 83P DDR-001 but I was too scared to ask questions and I eventually tossed it back.
I’m certainly sorry to hear that. I’m glad I have folks like you to assist and teach. side note! I NEED YOU TO LOOK AT MY ALBUM! No way that is not a a 1996 DDR I just posted!!!!
That 1983 DDR is a great one to have. I bought a bunch of ‘error coins’ as a grab bag. Looked at a bunch and mainly BIE type coins with a number of RPMs. I haven’t finished looking through them. It has been a couple of years. I moved some stuff around a couple months ago. I guess in that mix I bought was the 1983 DDR. With all I bought that day, I got that coin for about a dime.
Nice! This is only my second box of pennies, and it’s proven to be quite fruitful only 10 rolls in. A red 1957 wheatie, a beautiful red 1960, and now this 1996 which I’m certain is a DDR
Hello Kevin! I am new to this forum and I am pretty tech savvy but I cannot figure out how to post :/ so maybe I can ask you a question and you can answer it for me? I have some 1982 D pennies and I was wondering how I can tell they're valuable. I have a digital scale and weighed them all out and most were around 2.5 grams and 2 of them were 3.07 grams. Does a 1982 penny weighing around 3 grams make it valuable? Is any penny weighing around 3 grams valuable? thank you!
Hello @Junior King - The difference that you are seeing is the normal difference between a solid copper cent (3.11g) and a copperplated zinc cent (2.5g). Based on material alone, the copper cent has more value...but we aren't legally allowed to melt them down for material worth. Some folks set the copper cents aside, but I personally don't see any real value in doing that. 1982 was a transitional year from copper to copperplated zinc. For the year, they made both copper Lincoln and copperplated Zincolns at the Philly and Denver mints. Some reading online will get you mintages for each variety type including two different Obverse designs, normally referred to as Large and Small dates. By plan, there wasn't supposed to be a Copper Small date...but somewhat recently, I hear that folks have found them. These would be a very valuable find since it wasn't part of the plan (just like a 1983 Copper cent...the transition in metals happened in 1982 so there shouldn't be any...but they exist). Aside from the Copper Small 1982, there are a number of Variety coins (Doubled Die obverses, doubled die reverses, Repositioned Mint marks). There are a number of sites that list various known attributions. Variety Hunters, like me, scan through our 1982 P and D cents to find these scarcer items. Those generally hold a premium from negligible to quite valuable. With some time and study, you will create your short list of varieties for that date. Start with the most valuable listings and broaden from there. It can become unwieldy as you add other dates and denominations.