1981P Lincoln - Improper alloy mix (edit: roller marks)

Now you've got me thinking, Eddie, and I have another question. I've read several places that the roller lines are because the rollers are 'dirty'. I'm guessing that the 'dirt' in there is not mud or dust. Is it residue from other sheets of metal that have previously rolled? Is it possible that the rollers are laying down new thin layers of metals from previously improperly mixed sheets? I don't know enough about the machinery to know.

 

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Improper alloy can be seen on any of the cents predating 1983 (just some of the 1982s when they switched to copper coated zinc). all it really takes is blobs of one of the base metals in the alloy not melting and alloying correctly.
it's pretty necessary to have an alloyed metal in order for it to be improperly mixed.
it's more prevalent in the earlier years of the mint to be sure, but I think it was the earlier manufacture methods, and it took a while for toning to manifest and point it out.

On zincolns, it's hit or miss whether it's roller lines, or it's linear plating blisters.
On this 2005, there are some linear plating blisters there to be sure and some plating bubbles also in the mix, but it's not all of the lines that are present, it's hard to tell from the picture, but the vast majority of the lines on both sides of the 2005, are indented grooves, not raised lines which is why I pegged it for roller lines, there's so many of them it can't all be linear plating blisters, not that uniform at least.
I honestly thought it was a matte finish or something, maybe that "satin finish" that they started, when I found it, but it looks nothing like those should really look either so I settled on roller lines/ planchet striations.

"narrow striped cents" are really common, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982 not sure why though, it's assumed it's some sort of a roller line, maybe a grit in the rollers that left grooves, or even grease lines left behind during rolling. you find it on nickels too from this time period.

 

Dust. Debris. Air particles. I don't rightly know. But I figure both rollers will have them. And just look at yours, both did have them.

Does static electricity develop as the rollers are "getting busy?" That would help pick up things. Just guesses, though. I really don't know.

 

that's a beauty also, try photographing it in a cold blue color led light. you get the toning to pop more and see where it's going to be if allowed to tone further. I think on this 1941 it's got more on the obverse (like mine) but it's still mostly "red" and not really toned yet so it's hard t see it.


Example of same 1915 with cold LED lighting. change the lighting color and you might get to see what's going on better. I thought my reverse was relatively clean until this, then I noticed the triangle wedge at about 4:30 pointing at the T.



Anyways, I think the 1941 just needs more time to slowly develop toning to really get the colors to contrast each other, it's no doubt a woody. the stripe above "ONE" on the reverse tells me that along with the area above Liberty on the obverse, the colors just haven't developed yet.

 

No way