Does anyone know how many lincoln cents there would be to a pound? If all cents were made before 1982 what would they weigh? What about all cents made after 1982? What about a mix? just seeing if I can pick somone's brain... thanks in advance
General rule of thumb is that 3 rolls (150) in a pound. Of course, it depends. Here are the specs: Pre-1982: 3.11 grams/each 1983+: 2.5 grams/each 1 oz = 28.35 grams, 16 oz in a pound so 454 grams in a pound Pre-1982 ---> 146 cents 1983+ -----> 181 So if a roll weighs more than 125 grams, there is at least one copper penny in it. Basically there is one copper penny for every 0.6 grams above 125 grams in a roll. So say you weighed a roll and it weighed 131 grams. That would mean there are 6 grams more than zinc - therefore you have about 10 coppers in that roll. A roll of 50 coppers should weigh about 155 grams.
Base Metal Calculator There is a great website that will help you to calculate the base value of all circulating U.S. Coinage. It is a great site..... Coinflation Calculator Link
Once upon a time I used to sell "searched" wheaties on ebay in lots of 3 rolls. Mainly 40s and 50s and I'd "salt" the lot as well. I was very up front about the whole deal as it was aimed at people selling "Rare, Unsearched Wheats" by the pound. Going rate then was about $9.99 a pound. I started them off at $4.49 Woke a few people up when they realized a pound of wheats was just under three rolls.
A friend of mine ordered a pound of wheat pennies off coin vault (though I had taught him better) . He split this roll with another person. Man a pound of pennies sure sounded like it should have been more than what they got. lol
I ran into this same problem on Ebay... A pound sure sounded good! Until I did a little expeirimentation with my powder scales (That measure in grains) and converted to oz's and lbs... I found out that it was a nice lil' marketing ploy they had going on...
You must remember that all such calculations as noted for establishing the amount of coins to make a pound of any denomiation would be based on the coins being new, not worn. For example if you treid to put pre 82 pennies (cents) in a plastic roll there SHOULD naturally be 50. However, if you've done that you would have noticed that occationally you can put 51, 52 and sometimes 53 cents in those plastic rolls. Are the plastic rolls different. NO. The more worn any coin is the less it weighs and the less room it takes up anywhere. Also, some coins such as pennies, have occumulated darkening from exposure to Oxygen. This has added weight to each one making a pile of 50 weigh as much more than a roll should wiegh. Very, vey noticable in bulk quantities. Summation is the calculations for weight of any coins are noted as if they are perfect as from the Mint.
I've been thinking about getting a powder scale because of the implied precision of weighing grains (1/480th of a troy ounce!) Are you using a balance scale or a digital? If it's a balance scale what range of weights do you have, and how precisely calibrated are they? What is the maximum weight it will measure and what is the tolerance?
I have two digital scales that are SUPPOSED to be accurate to .01 and .001 grams depending on which one. Both are usually fairly accurate but at times slightly different readings and don't know why. I use a fairly accurate balance scale for comparisons of coinage. Also, for some chemical experimentations. I hae a few of them and usually not the best for accuracy. However, great for differentiating between the 1982 cents.
