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Steel pennies

I'm not sure what I have here, because I have 2 other sets of 43's steel pennies and they not even close to looking this clean

Comments

  • abcde12345abcde12345 Posts: 3,404 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Might be plated. It was a tradition among immigrants back in the 50's and 60's to plate these coins (in case they were swallowed by their youth).

  • lkeigwinlkeigwin Posts: 16,892 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Yes, plated. I never heard of that tradition but I agree these cents were often plated.
    Lance.

  • Type2Type2 Posts: 13,985 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Umm like they said up top they are plated. Keep looking and have fun just look at them and look at how others look in holders so you know what to look for. No charge to ask to look at them in holders and will save you a lot of $$$ later when you want to buy. They should have that satin flat finish look not a shiny chrome bumper look.



    Hoard the keys.
  • PQueuePQueue Posts: 901 ✭✭✭

    Cents, not pennies...

  • cameonut2011cameonut2011 Posts: 10,161 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @abcde12345 said:
    It was a tradition among immigrants back in the 50's and 60's to plate these coins (in case they were swallowed by their youth).

    This makes no sense. Your stomach acid would eat through the plating in any event so what would be the point?

    Many steel cents have been reprocessed in the after market to try to improve them and keep them from deteriorating.

  • WaterSportWaterSport Posts: 6,764 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Not to steal this thread, (no pun intended) but I agree that Plating to prevent consumption is a new one to me. However, is there anybody here with known fact, as to who and why where these cents replated???

    WS

    Proud recipient of the coveted PCGS Forum "You Suck" Award Thursday July 19, 2007 11:33 PM and December 30th, 2011 at 8:50 PM.
  • 291fifth291fifth Posts: 24,323 ✭✭✭✭✭

    They are "aftermarket processed" steel cents. These were made and sold in large numbers in the 1960s. This was done to make them more saleable during the big coin collecting boom of the early 60s. I suspect the "immigrants" story related earlier in this thread is urban legend and not fact. I never heard of such a thing before.

    They have very little value since they are nothing more than "doctored" coins.

    All glory is fleeting.
  • STLNATSSTLNATS Posts: 1,601 ✭✭✭

    @291fifth said:
    They are "aftermarket processed" steel cents. These were made and sold in large numbers in the 1960s. This was done to make them more saleable during the big coin collecting boom of the early 60s. I suspect the "immigrants" story related earlier in this thread is urban legend and not fact. I never heard of such a thing before.

    They have very little value since they are nothing more than "doctored" coins.

    +1. Some war nickles were similarly reprocessed and sold in sets. In fact, I think I still have a set somewhere that I bought as a kid for something like $3 - maybe now I can finally make a profit (LOL) on them.

    Always interested in St Louis MO & IL metro area and Evansville IN national bank notes and Vatican/papal states coins and medals!
  • JBKJBK Posts: 15,476 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @291fifth said:
    They are "aftermarket processed" steel cents. These were made and sold in large numbers in the 1960s.

    I recall those ads.

    I think there is still an outfit in NH that will sell you a set of reprocessed steel cents. ;)

  • jmlanzafjmlanzaf Posts: 33,921 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @cameonut2011 said:

    @abcde12345 said:
    It was a tradition among immigrants back in the 50's and 60's to plate these coins (in case they were swallowed by their youth).

    This makes no sense. Your stomach acid would eat through the plating in any event so what would be the point?

    Many steel cents have been reprocessed in the after market to try to improve them and keep them from deteriorating.

    He was joking. @abcde12345 has a very dry sense of humor.

  • jmlanzafjmlanzaf Posts: 33,921 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @JBK said:

    @abcde12345 said:
    Might be plated. It was a tradition among immigrants back in the 50's and 60's to plate these coins (in case they were swallowed by their youth).

    I'm still trying to figure this one out.

    Why did only immigrants plate their coins? Was it a tradition in their home countries for the kids to eat the small change? Or was it only steel cents they ate? Was it considered a cheap source of iron, especially for the kids refused to eat their broccoli?

    What were they plated with? Fresh zinc? :o

    So many questions... Do we have any first or second generation immigrants on the forum who can shed some light on this practice? :p

    While I'm sure @abcde12345 was joking, it is common to put money in a Christmas pudding. So maybe they were English immigrants trying to keep the Christmas pudding intact.

    https://whychristmas.com/customs/pudding.shtml

    Ho Ho Ho...Let me be the first to wish you all a Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, joyous Kwanzaa, or Glorious Holidays!

  • jmlanzafjmlanzaf Posts: 33,921 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @abcde12345 said:
    Might be plated. It was a tradition among immigrants back in the 50's and 60's to plate these coins (in case they were swallowed by their youth).

    I would like to nominate this post for the Best Post of 2018!

  • lkeigwinlkeigwin Posts: 16,892 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited October 8, 2018 9:12AM

    @PQueue said:
    Cents, not pennies...

    It's a lost cause. And the Mint isn't helping things.
    Lance.

  • JBKJBK Posts: 15,476 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited October 8, 2018 9:27AM

    @lkeigwin said:

    @PQueue said:
    Cents, not pennies...

    It's a lost cause. And the Mint isn't helping things.
    Lance.

    Technically those are not from the mint, but rather from coin processors such as Loomis, NF String etc., but I am sure the mint does the same thing.

    I recall when Ike dollars first came out in the early 70s some businesses had promotions offering free "silver dollars" with a qualifying purchase, and occasional lawsuits over the misleading terminology seemed to be rejected by the courts every time.

    But, I am guilty also. I get rolls of "nickels" from the bank - that is what the rolls say and that is what I can them.

  • rickoricko Posts: 98,724 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Just looks like a processed cent (as mentioned above) I have a couple of rolls of steel cents, rolled when new.... and the finish is bright, but satiny....Cheers, RickO

  • BillJonesBillJones Posts: 33,942 ✭✭✭✭✭

    1943 steel cents, that have their original skin, have a frosty not bright appearance. The bright pieces result from pieces that have been stripped of their dull oxidized zinc coating and then re-plated. You can also get this look, if your rub off the tarnished zinc with an abrasive. I know because I did it when I was kid.

    Here is a 1943 steel cent in “pristine condition.”


    Retired dealer and avid collector of U.S. type coins, 19th century presidential campaign medalets and selected medals. In recent years I have been working on a set of British coins - at least one coin from each king or queen who issued pieces that are collectible. I am also collecting at least one coin for each Roman emperor from Julius Caesar to ... ?
  • SwampboySwampboy Posts: 12,984 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited October 9, 2018 8:07AM

    I heard that it wasn't immigrants at all but it was stalwart Americans who plated these and passed them off as BU to unsuspecting immigrants at coin shows.

    Nice cent @BillJones

    "Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working" Pablo Picasso

  • SwampboySwampboy Posts: 12,984 ✭✭✭✭✭

    On another note.
    When I first got back into coin collecting I bought what was said to be a BU roll of steelies from an eBay seller.

    I quickly found out they were reprocessed and it was because of that that I gravitated to graded coins, NFC on eBay and then after I found this Forum, just PCGS and NGC.

    "Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working" Pablo Picasso

  • Namvet69Namvet69 Posts: 8,949 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I read that there was also a common practice of coating zinc cents with clear nail polish because the steel rim was often exposed and rusted. Peace Roy

    BST: endeavor1967, synchr, kliao, Outhaul, Donttellthewife, U1Chicago, ajaan, mCarney1173, SurfinHi, MWallace, Sandman70gt, mustanggt, Pittstate03, Lazybones, Walkerguy21D, coinandcurrency242 , thebigeng, Collectorcoins, JimTyler, USMarine6, Elkevvo, Coll3ctor, Yorkshireman, CUKevin, ranshdow, CoinHunter4, bennybravo, Centsearcher, braddick, Windycity, ZoidMeister, mirabela, JJM, RichURich, Bullsitter, jmski52, LukeMarshall, coinsarefun, MichaelDixon, NickPatton, ProfLiz, Twobitcollector,Jesbroken oih82w8

  • Namvet69Namvet69 Posts: 8,949 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I read that there was also a common practice of coating the zinc cents with clear nail polish because the steel rim was often exposed and rusted. Peace Roy

    BST: endeavor1967, synchr, kliao, Outhaul, Donttellthewife, U1Chicago, ajaan, mCarney1173, SurfinHi, MWallace, Sandman70gt, mustanggt, Pittstate03, Lazybones, Walkerguy21D, coinandcurrency242 , thebigeng, Collectorcoins, JimTyler, USMarine6, Elkevvo, Coll3ctor, Yorkshireman, CUKevin, ranshdow, CoinHunter4, bennybravo, Centsearcher, braddick, Windycity, ZoidMeister, mirabela, JJM, RichURich, Bullsitter, jmski52, LukeMarshall, coinsarefun, MichaelDixon, NickPatton, ProfLiz, Twobitcollector,Jesbroken oih82w8

  • Aspie_RoccoAspie_Rocco Posts: 3,259 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @jmlanzaf said:

    @abcde12345 said:
    Might be plated. It was a tradition among immigrants back in the 50's and 60's to plate these coins (in case they were swallowed by their youth).

    I would like to nominate this post for the Best Post of 2018!

    Hahaha! And here is the runner up. I did not expect such a good laugh this early reading about Coins. Well done

    @lkeigwin said:

    @PQueue said:
    Cents, not pennies...

    It's a lost cause. And the Mint isn't helping things.
    Lance.

  • Rich49Rich49 Posts: 190 ✭✭✭

    A Flawed Manufacturing Process by the U.S. Mint
    To help the war effort by eliminating copper from U.S. pennies, the United States Mint came up with a new metallic composition for the one cent piece. They decided on using steel for the base metal and plating it with pure zinc. Unfortunately, zinc oxidizes over time and turns into a dull and dark gray color.
    Moisture came in contact with the coins as they circulated in commerce. The moisture caused the zinc coating to turn to an ugly blackish color. As the zinc coating wore off the steel core the exposed steel underneath began to rust.
    The manufacturing process for producing the planchets was also flawed. Mint workers first rolled a sheet of steel to the proper thickness. Next, the steel sheet was plated with zinc and passed through a blanking press. The blanking press punched coin blanks punched out of it. The manufacturing process resulted in bare steel exposed on the edge of the coin. As moisture attacked the edge of the coin, it would rust regardless of the surface condition of the rest of the coin.

    I remember a bus ride back in the late 50's and early 60's was a dime.When you dropped a replated cent into the drop it would look like a shiny dime . Someone would get a ride for 1 Cent if the driver wasn't alert to the scam.

    photo index.gif

  • mustangmanbobmustangmanbob Posts: 1,890 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @PQueue said:
    Cents, not pennies...

    Lincoln Penny :

    https://www.usmint.gov/coins/coin-medal-programs/circulating-coins/penny

    The US Mint refers to them as both Pennys and Cents

    Since they make them, they get to name them. Correcting people that get their information from the government who makes the item, who names it a penny or a cent, interchangeable, then why be a whiny or mean person.

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