Numismatist. 50 year member ANA. Winner of four ANA Heath Literary Awards; three Wayte and Olga Raymond Literary Awards; Numismatist of the Year Award 2009, and Lifetime Achievement Award 2020. Winner numerous NLG Literary Awards.
This is a iron/steel knock out from an electrical box that is a standard item used in building construction. This forum is forced to go over this same topic half a dozen times per year.
@BillDugan1959 , This is actually a quarter, not an electrical punch out, I have several other unstruck quarters dimes nickels and penny's , this just happens to be the only one that looks like this. Here's a pic of some, the other quarter even matches the curved imprinted Line on the discolored one.
@Mcsmooch said: @BillDugan1959 , This is actually a quarter, not an electrical punch out, I have several other unstruck quarters dimes nickels and penny's , this just happens to be the only one that looks like this. Here's a pic of some, the other quarter even matches the curved imprinted Line on the discolored one.
clads are worth 3-5 bucks when you can tell what they are. If what you have is one, it is damaged and has a notch sticking out. If you see any coin design anywhere, then a different story.
Assuming that it is an un-struck planchet, as it appears that it may have left the Mint in the bottom of a rather wet load of dirt - it has no particular numismatic or market value in that condition. Certainly a curiosity and, assuming verification, a cool oddity. Thank you for taking the time to post photos. How did you come across this?
You can buy a fairly nice one for $8 with free shipping on ebay (consistent with values cited above),
so that should give you an upper bound on the value. https://www.ebay.com/itm/Washington-Quarter-Blank-Planchet-Error/123592099747?hash=item1cc6a9c7a3:g:FHAAAOSw651cOoQA:rk:1:pf:0
You can see the ebay planchet has a raised rim, like what we see in your photos.
It looks like there is a raised circular edge near the middle of yours with a copper color?
The clad edge view looks appropriate, too.
It's consistent with yours being either a blank planchet or a struck quarter.
It looks like it was in wet ground for awhile and absorbed impacts from other things.
Given that there could be metal loss from the wet soil or other materials deposited on it,
I would not rule out it having once been a struck quarter.
Did you dig it up after using a metal detector?
@Mcsmooch said:
It definitely is a quarter planchete, and it definitely came from the mint.
If you know, then why ask?
By the way:
plan·chette
/planˈSHet/
noun
noun: planchette; plural noun: planchettes
a small board supported on casters, typically heart-shaped and fitted with a vertical pencil, used for automatic writing and in seances.
"the planchette jerked and skittered to the upper left-hand corner of the paper"
It is nothing more than a worthless piece of scrap metal. Even if it were an unstruck quarter planchette it would have little or no value in that condition.
@Mcsmooch, rust comes from iron reacting to oxygen. Are quarters made of iron? This is a knockout from a steel electrical conduit box. Nothing more. Take a metal detector around the perimeter of any modern sub-division house and you'll find a handful of them.
Numismatist. 50 year member ANA. Winner of four ANA Heath Literary Awards; three Wayte and Olga Raymond Literary Awards; Numismatist of the Year Award 2009, and Lifetime Achievement Award 2020. Winner numerous NLG Literary Awards.
@Mcsmooch said:
It definitely is a quarter planchete, and it definitely came from the mint.
Great! Since you know it's an authentic clad quarter planchet* and it came from the a US Mint, what more information do you need? Sounds like you already have this dialed in!
*It would be a blank and not a planchet as it has not gone through the upsetting mill to raise the rim.
Numismatist Ordinaire See http://www.doubledimes.com for a free online reference for US twenty-cent pieces
It looks like a Chinese counterfeit - I'm not kidding.
If it is indeed a genuine US quarter planchet, it is
absolutely worthless in that burnt and corroded
condition.
Retired Collector & Dealer in Major Mint Error Coins & Currency since the 1960's.Co-Author of Whitman's "100 Greatest U.S. Mint Error Coins", and the Error Coin Encyclopedia, Vols., III & IV. Retired Authenticator for Major Mint Errors for PCGS. A 49+-Year PNG Member...A full numismatist since 1972, retired in 2022
An unfortunate thread...the cynicism of some responses that always assume an OP is looking to uncover a pot of gold, rather than trying to educate themselves.....and the OP response of seeming to be entrenched with an opinion that doesn’t consider answers given.
For what it’s worth, the item seems to have the extended tab piece of a knockout, though the side view is unusual.
"A happy person is not a person in a certain set of circumstances, but rather a person with a certain set of attitudes"--Hugh Downs
@windwhispersintrees said:
An unfortunate thread...the cynicism of some responses that always assume an OP is looking to uncover a pot of gold, rather than trying to educate themselves.....and the OP response of seeming to be entrenched with an opinion that doesn’t consider answers given.
For what it’s worth, the item seems to have the extended tab piece of a knockout, though the side view is unusual.
Look at the thread I posted above from the same person. In this case, there is no question that the OP has no interest in educating himself.
When you punch out the outlets on electric boxes you get a similar shape and the layers is due to sheet metal. I have my suspicions that’s what you have.
Please know in your heart or mind that no one on
this site -- collectors, dealers, authenticators, etc.
etc. think your 'slug' (or whatever it is) is a product
of, or related to, the U.S. Mint.
It's your piece of metal, so you can believe
what you'd like, but your attitude (and word
use) shows you really don't care what it is,
as long as you can think it's what you want
to believe it is.
Same reason people see a picture of the
Virgin Mary on a piece of toast....because
they want to see it.
Retired Collector & Dealer in Major Mint Error Coins & Currency since the 1960's.Co-Author of Whitman's "100 Greatest U.S. Mint Error Coins", and the Error Coin Encyclopedia, Vols., III & IV. Retired Authenticator for Major Mint Errors for PCGS. A 49+-Year PNG Member...A full numismatist since 1972, retired in 2022
@FredWeinberg said:
Before you go (or are 'gone') --
Please know in your heart or mind that no one on
this site -- collectors, dealers, authenticators, etc.
etc. think your 'slug' (or whatever it is) is a product
of, or related to, the U.S. Mint.
It's your piece of metal, so you can believe
what you'd like, but your attitude (and word
use) shows you really don't care what it is,
as long as you can think it's what you want
to believe it is.
Same reason people see a picture of the
Virgin Mary on a piece of toast....because
they want to see it.
And about the "quarter" I posted about turns out it was made from a type of metal that the mint was testing, and when it reached the annealing process this was the outcome. It's fairly rare because the majority if not all of the test pieces were destroyed .
That thing does not look like it was "annealed" - it looks like it was incinerated. Or buried for 10 years. Or incinerated and then buried.
Please educate us - who provided the explanation about its origin? Clearly we all have a lot to learn.
BTW - the Chinese counterfeiters are not content to simply make fake coins for sale to collectors or even for circulation, they also make counterfeits to mangle and burn so they can claim they were found in scrapped cars shipped to China for recycling. They then sent the mangled "coins" to the Mint to be redeemed as damaged coin. So, there are other possibilities in addition to the obvious ones.
Comments
Round piece of scrap metal. Not coin related.
Here's a side view showing clad
This is a iron/steel knock out from an electrical box that is a standard item used in building construction. This forum is forced to go over this same topic half a dozen times per year.
It definitely is a quarter planchete, and it definitely came from the mint.
Does it stick to a magnet?
@BillDugan1959 , This is actually a quarter, not an electrical punch out, I have several other unstruck quarters dimes nickels and penny's , this just happens to be the only one that looks like this. Here's a pic of some, the other quarter even matches the curved imprinted Line on the discolored one.
@yosclimber , nope not magnetic .
You are wrong.
clads are worth 3-5 bucks when you can tell what they are. If what you have is one, it is damaged and has a notch sticking out. If you see any coin design anywhere, then a different story.
Assuming that it is an un-struck planchet, as it appears that it may have left the Mint in the bottom of a rather wet load of dirt - it has no particular numismatic or market value in that condition. Certainly a curiosity and, assuming verification, a cool oddity. Thank you for taking the time to post photos. How did you come across this?
Check out my current listings: https://ebay.com/sch/khunt/m.html?_ipg=200&_sop=12&_rdc=1
Of course, the 'notch sticking out' is from where the knockout was pried out of the electrical box.
And agreed, unstruck clad Quarters are of low value. The most recent Redbook says five bucks. That value may be too optimistic.
Send it into PCGS using the Express tier and let us know how it works out and what auction it will be sold in! Thank you!
In honor of the memory of Cpl. Michael E. Thompson
You can buy a fairly nice one for $8 with free shipping on ebay (consistent with values cited above),
so that should give you an upper bound on the value.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Washington-Quarter-Blank-Planchet-Error/123592099747?hash=item1cc6a9c7a3:g:FHAAAOSw651cOoQA:rk:1:pf:0
You can see the ebay planchet has a raised rim, like what we see in your photos.
It looks like there is a raised circular edge near the middle of yours with a copper color?
The clad edge view looks appropriate, too.
It's consistent with yours being either a blank planchet or a struck quarter.
It looks like it was in wet ground for awhile and absorbed impacts from other things.
Given that there could be metal loss from the wet soil or other materials deposited on it,
I would not rule out it having once been a struck quarter.
Did you dig it up after using a metal detector?
If you know, then why ask?
By the way:
plan·chette
/planˈSHet/
noun
noun: planchette; plural noun: planchettes
a small board supported on casters, typically heart-shaped and fitted with a vertical pencil, used for automatic writing and in seances.
"the planchette jerked and skittered to the upper left-hand corner of the paper"
BHNC #203
It is nothing more than a worthless piece of scrap metal. Even if it were an unstruck quarter planchette it would have little or no value in that condition.
@Mcsmooch, rust comes from iron reacting to oxygen. Are quarters made of iron? This is a knockout from a steel electrical conduit box. Nothing more. Take a metal detector around the perimeter of any modern sub-division house and you'll find a handful of them.
I don't think it's a quarter. I've been detecting for decades and I find similar knockouts often. IMO. 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
Got the dead horse one?
Great! Since you know it's an authentic clad quarter planchet* and it came from the a US Mint, what more information do you need? Sounds like you already have this dialed in!
*It would be a blank and not a planchet as it has not gone through the upsetting mill to raise the rim.
See http://www.doubledimes.com for a free online reference for US twenty-cent pieces
Looks like a rusted electrical box thing to me. The layers are probably due to the galvanized steel.
It looks like a Chinese counterfeit - I'm not kidding.
If it is indeed a genuine US quarter planchet, it is
absolutely worthless in that burnt and corroded
condition.
for PCGS. A 49+-Year PNG Member...A full numismatist since 1972, retired in 2022
Another **TROLL ** to ignore. This thing posted a similar question before.
https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/1006717/are-unstruck-planchette-worth-anything#latest
An unfortunate thread...the cynicism of some responses that always assume an OP is looking to uncover a pot of gold, rather than trying to educate themselves.....and the OP response of seeming to be entrenched with an opinion that doesn’t consider answers given.
For what it’s worth, the item seems to have the extended tab piece of a knockout, though the side view is unusual.
Look at the thread I posted above from the same person. In this case, there is no question that the OP has no interest in educating himself.
I keep looking at the edge shot thinking it's a petrified Girl Scout Thin Mint cookie?
When you punch out the outlets on electric boxes you get a similar shape and the layers is due to sheet metal. I have my suspicions that’s what you have.
Best place to buy !
Bronze Associate member
Prove the naysayers and dead horse beaters wrong.....do it. Just send for authentication to our host. Think of the fun you will have laughing!
bob
While the edge picture is strange, it is nonetheless a worthless piece of metal.... Cheers, RickO
noice
The last pix reminds me of one of the moons orbiting Saturn or Jupiter.
poof
Forum filters did not work. This is going into the forum abyss.....
You spelled 'you're' wrong
Before you go (or are 'gone') --
Please know in your heart or mind that no one on
this site -- collectors, dealers, authenticators, etc.
etc. think your 'slug' (or whatever it is) is a product
of, or related to, the U.S. Mint.
It's your piece of metal, so you can believe
what you'd like, but your attitude (and word
use) shows you really don't care what it is,
as long as you can think it's what you want
to believe it is.
Same reason people see a picture of the
Virgin Mary on a piece of toast....because
they want to see it.
for PCGS. A 49+-Year PNG Member...A full numismatist since 1972, retired in 2022
you were too kind.
and polite
BHNC #203
That thing does not look like it was "annealed" - it looks like it was incinerated. Or buried for 10 years. Or incinerated and then buried.
Please educate us - who provided the explanation about its origin? Clearly we all have a lot to learn.
BTW - the Chinese counterfeiters are not content to simply make fake coins for sale to collectors or even for circulation, they also make counterfeits to mangle and burn so they can claim they were found in scrapped cars shipped to China for recycling. They then sent the mangled "coins" to the Mint to be redeemed as damaged coin. So, there are other possibilities in addition to the obvious ones.
A lot of good information in this thread. Glad the thread was not sent into the abyss. Thanks mods!
Yes, thanks moderators!
At least he had the decency to get only himself banned and didn't drag anyone else down with him.
Buhbye.
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
Seems the info was NOT greatly appreciated after all.