HERE'S HOW TO TELL A 1982 ZINC CENT FROM A COPPER CENT!

Shamika · July 20, 2004 12:05AM

JUST FLIP THE COIN!

It's just that simple. The copper cent will have a very noticable ring to it. The zinc cent will have no ringing sound whatsoever.

Try it on a pre-1982 cent (copper) and then a post-1982 cent (zinc). It's easy and 101% accurate.

coinguy89 · July 20, 2004 12:09AM

Nice job, I had alot of trouble with these, it works.

kranky · July 20, 2004 12:26AM

The popsicle stick balance test is good also and quicker if you have a lot of them.

LanLord · July 20, 2004 12:42AM

<< <i>The popsicle stick balance test is good also and quicker if you have a lot of them. >>

Please elaborate

mgoodm3 · July 20, 2004 12:56AM

get a popsicle stick and a round pen. mark the center of the stick. put one pennie on it that you know it's comp. the new ones are quite a bit lighter than the old ones.

NoGvmnt · July 20, 2004 1:00AM

"get a popsicle stick and a round pen. mark the center of the stick. put one pennie on it that you know it's comp. the new ones are quite a bit lighter than the old ones. "

Hmmmmm, I guess that's better than using my triple be......, Uhhhhh, never mind.

Jim

kranky · July 20, 2004 1:01AM

Yes. Lay a pen or pencil flat on a table. Put a popsicle stick across it so it's balanced. Put a 1981 or older cent on one end, and your 1982 on the other. If it balances, the 1982 is copper; otherwise it's zinc. If you need to do a lot of them, glue the 1981 or older cent to the stick and glue the stick to the pencil so it stays together.

SarasotaFrank · July 20, 2004 1:04AM

wouldn't the glue add weight?

kranky · July 20, 2004 1:07AM

Just use a tiny drop - just enough to keep the known copper cent from falling off the stick. It won't affect the results.

nwcs · July 20, 2004 2:02AM

Or buy a scale that measures in 1/100th of grams.

Schmitz7 · July 20, 2004 2:16AM

P.S. if you flip the coins while in slabs, the zinc and non-zinc both make the same noise.

Shamika · July 20, 2004 3:19AM

<< <i>P.S. if you flip the coins while in slabs, the zinc and non-zinc both make the same noise. >>

Shamika · July 20, 2004 3:24AM

<< <i>The popsicle stick balance test is good also and quicker if you have a lot of them. >>

It's MUCH faster and easier to just flip the coin. My seven year old is trying to complete his set of 1982 Lincoln's and uses the coin flip method with great satisfaction.

HERE'S HOW TO TELL A 1982 ZINC CENT FROM A COPPER CENT!

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