What is wrong with this 1918 d penny?
It appears to be a solid au coin on the obverse, but on the reverse the wheat ears are close to non existent. The thick and smooth surface and the stretched "e plurbus unium" made me think that this isn't just a beaten to hell reverse, some kind of die error maybe? (Note the extra metal on the rim by liberty.)

Comments
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A lot of early Denver mint pennies have that stretched look to them towards the outside edges. Probably from overused dies and incorrect pressure during the minting process. It really wasn't until the late 1920's that the overall quality of D mint pennies improved.
Lincoln coin lover, especially Matte Proofs0 -
@deefree49 said:
A lot of early Denver mint pennies have that stretched look to them towards the outside edges. Probably from overused dies and incorrect pressure during the minting process. It really wasn't until the late 1920's that the overall quality of D mint pennies improved.This is correct, although I would opine that it wasn't until 1935 or so when this problem was significantly corrected.
1934-D coins are usually very weak on the reverse, as are some 1935-D.
Even at that later date, occasionally specimens of 1936 show up with the same look.
From 1937 forward, the reverse dies apparently were changed with greater frequency, resulting in decent strikes.0 -
"Closed in D". Rare in anyones book. (I'd suggest having pcgs authenticate after a currate but that gets lots of negative reviews on this page.)
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@abcde12345 said:
"Closed in D". Rare in anyones book. (I'd suggest having pcgs authenticate after a currate but that gets lots of negative reviews on this page.)What is a Closed in D?
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@Jcld said:
@abcde12345 said:
"Closed in D". Rare in anyones book. (I'd suggest having pcgs authenticate after a currate but that gets lots of negative reviews on this page.)What is a Closed in D?
I think I would ignore that comment and move on. Never heard of such a thing.
The other posts seem right, the reverse die was overused causing this result. Kinda like the opposite result of the 1922 Plain with strong reverse.
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Are you suggesting it is an altered 1948? If so, is there a VDB on Lincoln's shoulder?
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It appears to be a genuine 1918-D cent. I see a rim cud die break on the obverse from 8:00 to 9:00.
The reverse die looks like it was worn out - a very late die state. When dies are worn, it is not always the case that both the obverse and reverse are changed out at the same time.I think there are two possibilities here:
1) The obverse was struck by a relatively fresh die and the reverse was struck by a worn out die.
2) The reverse was struck through a very late-stage die cap.1 -
Could be a magican's penny. Check to see if the center is hollow.
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I agree with Dan's assessment.... nothing really strange about that coin.... A good album hole filler. Cheers, RickO
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@abcde12345 said:
Are you suggesting it is an altered 1948? If so, is there a VDB on Lincoln's shoulder?All genuine 1918-D's have VDB on Lincoln's shoulder. So I'm not sure what you are getting at.
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@Batman23 said:
@Jcld said:
@abcde12345 said:
"Closed in D". Rare in anyones book. (I'd suggest having pcgs authenticate after a currate but that gets lots of negative reviews on this page.)What is a Closed in D?
I think I would ignore that comment and move on. Never heard of such a thing.
The other posts seem right, the reverse die was overused causing this result. Kinda like the opposite result of the 1922 Plain with strong reverse.
I think in addition to "Flag", "quote", "Disagree" "Agree", "Like" and "LOL" we may need an additional option or two in order to respond to a certain alpha-numeric poster.
Perhaps a "???" or "WTF?" might help.5 -
@mannie gray said:
@Batman23 said:
@Jcld said:
@abcde12345 said:
"Closed in D". Rare in anyones book. (I'd suggest having pcgs authenticate after a currate but that gets lots of negative reviews on this page.)What is a Closed in D?
I think I would ignore that comment and move on. Never heard of such a thing.
The other posts seem right, the reverse die was overused causing this result. Kinda like the opposite result of the 1922 Plain with strong reverse.
I think in addition to "Flag", "quote", "Disagree" "Agree", "Like" and "LOL" we may need an additional option or two in order to respond to a certain alpha-numeric poster.
Perhaps a "???" or "WTF?" might help.I have to agree 1000%!
Thanksgiving 2026 National Battlefield Coin Show November 27 & 28, 2026 at the Eisenhower Hotel Ballroom, Gettysburg, PA. No Early Bird passes for this show. WWW.AmericasCoinShows.com2 -
@mannie gray said:
@Batman23 said:
@Jcld said:
@abcde12345 said:
"Closed in D". Rare in anyones book. (I'd suggest having pcgs authenticate after a currate but that gets lots of negative reviews on this page.)What is a Closed in D?
I think I would ignore that comment and move on. Never heard of such a thing.
The other posts seem right, the reverse die was overused causing this result. Kinda like the opposite result of the 1922 Plain with strong reverse.
I think in addition to "Flag", "quote", "Disagree" "Agree", "Like" and "LOL" we may need an additional option or two in order to respond to a certain alpha-numeric poster.
Perhaps a "???" or "WTF?" might help.I am not convinced said poster is human.
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Thanks Dan! Welcome Anthony, nice coin!
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Nice coin anthonypacy, just a worn reverse die. Unfortunately, hard to sell for more than the VG or F that the reverse grades at. Though not in all cases, 'split' grade coins tend to sell for the value of the weak side.
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I have a 1918 penny with extra metal on the edge. So my question to you guys is? Is this penny worth more or no?
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The edge of the penny extra metal
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It's called rim Cud. Check this site out to learn more.
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.0 -
Sometimes the dies were just this bad on these earlier branch mint coins, particularly late teens to mid 20s.
Also @abcde12345 cents from 1909 until 1917 did not have a VDB on Lincoln's shoulder. All 1918 and later cents should have a VDB (a couple of very late die states throughout the years have resulted in a missing VDB, but these carry very little if any premium).
"You can't get just one gun." "You can't get just one tattoo." "You can't get just one 1796 Draped Bust Large Cent."
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