About 40 copper pennies were struck in 1943. One possible reason for this is because the copper plates were accidentally left in a few machines. While the 1943 steel pennies are worth a few bucks, the rare copper version is worth more.
How can you tell if a 1943 wheat penny is fake?
A good test is to place the coin near a magnet. If the coin sticks to the magnet – then it has steel content and is therefore fake. Also to watch out for: Scammers will sometimes take a copper 1948 wheat penny and file down the left side of the “8” into a “3” – to trick people into believing it is the rare copper 1943 wheat penny.
What’s the value of a 1943 Lincoln cent?
In 2016 a Bronze Lincoln Cent 1943-S AU58 BN was auctioned off at $282,000 (a record for a single copy at auction). That same year an AU55 BN reached a price of $211,500. In 2018 an AU53 BN reached a value of $228,000 and last year, another copy of identical graduation was sold for $216,000.
What was the Penny made out of in World War 2?
Currently, a modern penny is made out of mostly zinc. But for many decades, the penny was actually made out of other materials like copper. However, that changed in World War II. In 1943, the U.S. was in a bit of a copper shortage. It seems that copper was critically needed for the war effort.
How much copper is in a pre 1982 Penny?
A pre-1982 penny consists of 95% copper and 5% zinc. It contains about 2.95 grams of copper, and there are 453.59 grams in a pound. The price of copper on Dec. 10, 2019, was $2.75 a pound. That meant the copper in each penny was worth about 1.7 cents. Thus, the meltdown value of a pre-1982 penny was about 70% more than the face value.
How much copper and zinc is in a penny?
The Copper and Zinc in a Penny A pre-1982 penny consists of 95% copper and 5% zinc. 4 It contains about 2.95 grams of copper, and there are 453.59 grams in a pound. 5 The price of copper on Dec. 10, 2019, was $2.75 a pound. 6 That meant the copper in each penny was worth about 1.7 cents.
