~$~BLACK PENNYS 2001D~$~ (pictures)

[trish76642]

I've posted before about the 2 black pennies that i have, thought they might of been steel pennies from the 40's but i finally found them and they are 2001's (D), they are slightly larger than a regular penny, and dark grey in color,if you turn them over the edge is raised higher on the back side, and they both have a slight 'bow' to them, as you can see, the detail on them is more intense than a regular penny, definately not a copper penny! But the fact that they are larger brings another question,also they are not as heavy as a 'regular' penny, what could they be made of and why?... Here are a few pictures.
thanks for taking the time!
Trish

 

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[eathabs]

The detail on the two coins are totally different than a real penny. Look at the shoulders and lapels. Very unlikely from a mint. JMHO

Hal

 

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[Vrent]

my first thought was they were type coins but I do not think they would make them for pennies under current production but I still say the right one is different than the left on the top image when you shot the bottom pic was the coin on the right moved to the obverse on the left and the left to the right? can you take a shot of one front and one back then the reverse?

The detail on the two coins are totally different than a real penny. Look at the shoulders and lapels. Very unlikely from a mint. JMHO

Hal

look close the upper left and the regular penny are very close except for color but the upper right is different, even the numbers are different

 

[trish76642]

Kinda thinking out loud here but...it looks like in the picture that they are double rimmed. Meaning the penny die was stamped on a larger blank than originally intended. There is a small fraction of an edge outside the "normal" rim on these. Very odd...I just wonder if they were not struck on the wrong blank.
Just curious but are they the same size as a nickel?

yes~they are the same size as a nickel

 

[trish76642]

Re: Black Pennies 2001 D (pictures)

I do know the mint makes coins for other country's. once in a while a blank will be run through a US coin stamping machine. That is a possibility. . . You may have a mint error or you may have just a counterfit.
DG

I think my former post pointed in the right direction. Did you have it checked?
DG

i did talk to a coin dealer in waco, he didnt have a clue!

 

[trish76642]

my first thought was they were type coins but I do not think they would make them for pennies under current production but I still say the right one is different than the left on the top image when you shot the bottom pic was the coin on the right moved to the obverse on the left and the left to the right? can you take a shot of one front and one back then the reverse?

The detail on the two coins are totally different than a real penny. Look at the shoulders and lapels. Very unlikely from a mint. JMHO

Hal

look close the upper left and the regular penny are very close except for color but the upper right is different, even the numbers are different
Sorry Vrent, tried to get you more photos, but my camera wouldnt let me....Have you checked out the websight Treasure-Diver sent? There are actually other people with the same exact pennies,same size, bowed in the center, just different dates, their trying to figure them out also.....very interesting websight Treasure-Diver sent.....

 

[Bigcypresshunter]

The detail on the two coins are totally different than a real penny. Look at the shoulders and lapels. Very unlikely from a mint. JMHO

Hal

Pictures can be deceiving. I dont see any dsifference that cant be explained by shadows and different picture angle. You can even see the VDB under the shoulder.

 

[rebelLT]

Why would someone counterfeit a penny? And the ultra rare 2001 zincoln at that. Some stupid terrorist trying to topple the US economy one cent at a time maybe?

 

[Vrent]

Trish your pennies are bowed?

 

[trish76642]

Trish your pennies are bowed?

yes, and they are big and GREY! And i just wanna know why, and no one can tell me!....

 

[Bigcypresshunter]

Im just guessing but because they are bowed that would make me think they were exposed to heat. That would also explain the color and larger size. I dont think a coin would come bowed from the mint. I dont know what others are seeing but to me they are otherwise identical to a 2001 Lincoln Memorial cent.

I have some pennies that got bowed from heat but I cant find them.

 

[l.cutler]

I think heat, the zinc core melts at a lower temperature than the copper outer layer causing the coin to spread out and warp while the outer layer remains intact.

 

[trish76642]

ok can we pretty much say this one is solved?
Heat sounds logical to me? What do you think?

 

[texan connection]

http://forum.treasurenet.com/index.php/topic,138259.0.html

 

[rockhead]

I've had very similar pennies before. There are several school classes that are coating pennies with zinc to make them look like a steel penny. While plating if you were to apply to much electricity it would bow or warp somewhat like yours do. Like you I was very excited about until I did a bunch of research on it. They are pretty cool though keep them around.

 

[Bigcypresshunter]

I've had very similar pennies before. There are several school classes that are coating pennies with zinc to make them look like a steel penny. While plating if you were to apply to much electricity it would bow or warp somewhat like yours do. Like you I was very excited about until I did a bunch of research on it. They are pretty cool though keep them around.

Here is a link on how to remove the zinc and leave the copper shell.http://everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=1675398

 

[Bigcypresshunter]

Txlady, you may want to send your black penney pics to this coin error forum. I think they can settle this. You may have to register to post. Let us know if they are any help.
http://board.conecaonline.org/

Maybe not. Here is a black cent sent in by someone. http://board.conecaonline.org/showthread.php?p=2357#post2357

 

[BIG61AL]

I've collecting error coins for awhile and I hate to burst your bubble but it appears to me that what you have is some pennies exposed to some condition to start the corrosion process. Could be from moist sea air or combination of dirt and an unknown agent. Excessive heat was also mentioned earlier in the post. Or perhap it was on another surface with some kind of corrosive element. Those cheap zincolns are not well made and are basically on par with a token given away in a cereal box.
{Lincoln cents were actually given away in cheerio cereal boxes at one time}

 

[JARMAN]

I have two black / gray cents like yours, it made me dig them out. Little larger then the norm.After looking under a 10 x mag-glass I could see tiny specks of copper. I have seen the Dryer do some funny things to coins,and this may account for the heat as well. Just a guess.

 

[mrs.oroblanco]

I found a 1983D black penny - I recently took it to a shop we know, and he told us that there are about 7 or 8 dates that are known to have "missed" the copper plating. They aren't heated, or have chemicals on them, or whatever, they just missed the copper plating part of the process. (maybe because the size is not quite right or was rejected for some reason).

He also said they vary in what they are worth, depending on date, condition, and all the other normal stuff. I did not get a price, as he said he would have to look it up individually, as new dates pop up here and there.

From "All Experts Coin Collectors" website:

Answer
Hi Jonathan,
Unplated Lincoln Zinc Cents:
Zinc cents with copper plating have been minted since the middle of 1982. Sometimes the plating is partially or completely missing, resulting in cents with a silvery looking surface on part or all of the coin. Estimated values based on wear and demand:
Completely unplated $100.
95% plated $50.
50% plated $20.
10% plated $10.
You might find similar pieces on Ebay.com for comparison.
Brad


B

 

[trish76642]

Thanks everybody for all the info!....
It would be nice if they were worth $100 bucks! lol
I'll check into that websight Mrs. Thank you!


I did look on ebay, the 1983's are worth some money!

http://coins.search.ebay.com/unplat...tZ11116QQssPageNameZRC0022?_trksid=p1638.m120