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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;frech001, post: 2149302, member: 20616&quot;]Wow, This thread sure spurred interest, and that is why I chimed in and look forward to checking this site.&nbsp; Another forum I like is currently sadly too quiet.</p><p><br /></p><p>I received a copper colored 1964 bronze colored nickel from an elderly friend who had saved it in a sock for 40 years.&nbsp; I weighed it and examined it closely and thought I had an off metal coin.&nbsp; Then I remembered my high school chemistry class when we plated a coin with copper.&nbsp; So I examined the coin very carefully under a microscope and saw a tiny electrical contact spot which was still silver.&nbsp; It was not visible even under 10 power, but clear at 200 power.&nbsp; I weighed it on a lab scale and it weighed the same as a regular 1964 nickel.</p><p><br /></p><p>Despite my personal experience with plated coins and my knowledge of coins and metals they were made from, I took the time to investigate possible explanations to help with this post.&nbsp; First, a copper penny would not exhibit magnetic properties even if it were plated with nickel, which in pure form is magnetic.&nbsp; So, it had to either be pure nickel, steel or plated steel, and there are nickel plated steel coins of this size used in other countries that have used the Denver Mint.&nbsp; This could not be a plated copper penny unless it was plated with steel, which would be very unlikely and probably would have rusted in that milk carton.&nbsp; I discovered that the Denver Mint did produce foreign coins in 1972 and discovered a list of countries that used U.S. Mints.&nbsp; I discovered that some of the coins for the countries that were listed were 19 mm in diameter and were of a magnetic metal like pure nickel or nickel plated steel.&nbsp; I could not find out what specific foreign coins were minted by the Denver Mint in 1972, likely because the receiving countries do not like to advertise that they don&#039;t mint their own coins, and likely for proprietary reasons, since the U.S. mints were at that time competing with other world mints for the ability to mint coins for profit.</p><p><br /></p><p>Coin collecting for me has always been about learning.&nbsp; A coin is just a piece of metal if you don&#039;t know and understand the history behind it.&nbsp; I&#039;ve recently cataloged over 6000 coins for a friend who inherited them.&nbsp; They were from virtually every country in existence during the middle of the last century and dating back to 650 AD.&nbsp; Though I&#039;ve been collecting for almost 60 years, I&#039;m still learning.&nbsp; I&#039;ve discovered some unique rarities like coins struck over other coins including coins struck over coins from other countries.&nbsp; But I&#039;m no expert, so had I found that curious penny with magnetic properties and a pewter color, I would have invested in the cost of sending it to PCGS myself.&nbsp; People spend a lot more at casinos with less chance of a return and no chance at all of learning from it.&nbsp; So, I applaud girldly for her efforts to find this forum, and seek some answers.&nbsp; And, I am also dismayed by the negativity expressed by one individual who seems quick to draw conclusions with insufficient information about the coin and to characterize people he has never met.&nbsp; I am also a political person, though, so am used to such negativity and strong opinions based on limited information.&nbsp; It just doesn&#039;t seem appropriate for a coin forum IMHO.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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