| Author |
 Topic  |
|
lewbo
Penny Pincher Member
USA
221 Posts |
 Posted - 07/22/2009 : 12:09:01
|
|
I have read that some of you are hand sorting a box of pennies in 1-2 hours. I am nowhere near that fast, can somebody give me some pointers? I use a magnifing glass (my eyes are bad) to read the dates and a small scale for the 1982 ones.
|
|
|
Corsair
Penny Hoarding Member
811 Posts |
Posted - 07/22/2009 : 12:15:55
|
| I can go very fast. I guess I'm lucky. I have bad eyesight as well, but I have wonderful glasses. My vision up close is very good with them on. I'd say that my reflexes are pretty good, so I can flick the coins in whatever direction I want with ease. My tips would be to make sure you use both hands. If you are holding the magnifying glass with one hand, you should get one that can clip on to your table or something around it. It will help enormously. Take breaks. I would be willing to bet that you sort faster if you take breaks than if you just go at it for a few hours straight. And I usually try to drink something with caffeine while I'm sorting. Usually a 8 oz glass of Coke does the job. |
So long, Realcent 1. Come visit us at Realcent.org! |
 |
|
|
Ant
Penny Hoarding Member
USA
894 Posts |
Posted - 07/22/2009 : 12:16:36
|
I sit at the dinner table, where there's good light and plenty of room.
1. Slit all the plastic condoms with an x-acto knife. This is the step that takes me the longest.
2. Once all the rolls are slit, break them open into a bucket.
3. Scoop them out by the handful and go go go! 
4. Put the coppers in another bucket, the 82s in a smaller bucket, for weighing later. Keep the zincs on the table, just push them to the side -- you can throw them in another bucket later.
I put each handful on the table and pick out the obvious zincs without doing more than glancing at the date. After a while, you can pick out a zinc from several feet away, because they aren't stamped as deep.
Shininess (or lack thereof) is not always a reliable indicator of age, since there is a remarkably high number of AU coppers floating around.
|
Lovely dimes, the liveliest coin, the one that really jingles. --Truman Capote
Coins are the metallic footprints of the history of nations. --William H. Woodin |
|
|
|
CoinHunter53562
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
1805 Posts |
Posted - 07/22/2009 : 12:29:20
|
I use a table and sort this way...
1959-81 coppers go to the left in piles (I sweep the pile into a bigger container when it gets big enough)
1983 and later zincs go the right (and swept into a container when it gets big)
Wheats go into a small cup straight ahead of me
Canadian cents go into a small cup straight ahead of me
1982's or any where I can't read the date go in a cup straight ahead of me
Any oddball stuff like foreign coins, counterstamps, etc go in a pile next to the 1982's
I usually break open 2 rolls at a time and move the coins into the piles mentioned above. For any that I look for varieties (1998-2000 and 1996 wide America, 1992 close America, 1983, 1984, and 1995 double dies among others) go in front of the cups. When there is enough of them, I will do a quick sort by dates so all 1995's are together, all 1998-2000's are together, and so on. From there I will check for the varieties, and if no variety, then it goes into either the zinc or copper pile.
When it comes time to counting the coppers, I put them into heavier ziploc bags and weigh the bags in batches of 500 (1550 grams) for easy counting. I also keep a desktop lamp to the upper right of the sorting area for easier viewing.
Here is a top down look of how it would be:
xxxxxxxx(WH) (CA) (82's) (Odd)xxxxxxxx [DESKTOP LAMP]
(Cu)xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx(Zinc)
(Cu)xxxxxxxxSORTING AREA xxxxxxxx(Zinc)
(Cu)xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx(Zinc) |
My hobby: collecting real money 1 copper cent or nickel at a time.
|
Edited by - CoinHunter53562 on 07/22/2009 12:31:11 |
|
|
|
Gr33nday43
New Member
Uzbekistan
10 Posts |
Posted - 07/22/2009 : 12:43:06
|
I haven't ever heard anyone use my method, and I tried to set it up so I will use my time as efficiently as possible. I now have a Ryedale sorter, so I no longer have to sort the pennies. What I to used do is get $25 of boxes, usually 4 of them at a time, which equals $100 face. For paper rolls I used to get a knife and make a slit where the wrapping paper meets the main body of the roll. I then pulled both "tabs" until the pennies fell out, and pushed the left overs out of the end of their respective ends. For brinks (The plastic rolls that are very common), It is much easier. I cut off one end and pushed the pennies out of the opposite end of the roll. This requires strong hands. If you do not have the strength to do this, you can sort of "squeeze" the coins out of the rolls. I then collected the coins in a "coin"tainer.
Afterword, I brought the pennies to a flat surface such as a table, or desk (most of the time) that was a comfortable height. I got a small handful, and spread them out on the table. I then flipped all of the coins that were on tails to heads, so the dates were be displayed. I did not use a magnifying glass as I have excellent vision up close (it's just horrible far away), but you could use one if you needed to. I then scanned the coins, and put the coppers in one hand, and did not pick up the zincs. Wheats are separated and put on the side. After the copper was gone, I raked the zincs off the ledge of the table into my hand, and these were stored for dumping later. I then placed the coppers in a $50 bag. I took me about 5 hours to do $100 watching TV and listening to music. I used to do this once weekly. |
|
|
|
CoinHunter53562
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
1805 Posts |
Posted - 07/22/2009 : 12:51:20
|
quote:
Originally posted by Gr33nday43
I haven't ever heard anyone use my method, and I tried to set it up so I will use my time as efficiently as possible. I now have a Ryedale sorter, so I no longer have to sort the pennies. What I to used do is get $25 of boxes, usually 4 of them at a time, which equals $100 face. For paper rolls I used to get a knife and make a slit where the wrapping paper meets the main body of the roll. I then pulled both "tabs" until the pennies fell out, and pushed the left overs out of the end of their respective ends. For brinks (The plastic rolls that are very common), It is much easier. I cut off one end and pushed the pennies out of the opposite end of the roll. This requires strong hands. If you do not have the strength to do this, you can sort of "squeeze" the coins out of the rolls. I then collected the coins in a "coin"tainer.
Afterword, I brought the pennies to a flat surface such as a table, or desk (most of the time) that was a comfortable height. I got a small handful, and spread them out on the table. I then flipped all of the coins that were on tails to heads, so the dates were be displayed. I did not use a magnifying glass as I have excellent vision up close (it's just horrible far away), but you could use one if you needed to. I then scanned the coins, and put the coppers in one hand, and did not pick up the zincs. Wheats are separated and put on the side. After the copper was gone, I raked the zincs off the ledge of the table into my hand, and these were stored for dumping later. I then placed the coppers in a $50 bag. I took me about 5 hours to do $100 watching TV and listening to music. I used to do this once weekly.
That is a huge one for me. I like Big R Radio where you can select the kind of music you like. I am a big fan of 80's music and 80's metal (go ahead and laugh) so when I have that playing in the background, it really seems like the sorting goes by faster and is fun.
I will make a comment that I am impressed if you are doing 4 boxes in one sitting without a break. I usually do 15-20 rolls here and there, and rarely even do one box in a sitting without taking a break to come on here or other forums. 
|
My hobby: collecting real money 1 copper cent or nickel at a time.
|
|
|
|
JobIII
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
1507 Posts |
Posted - 07/22/2009 : 15:34:50
|
I work with one $25 box at a time. Slap open or push out 5-10 rolls worth of pennies onto a glass plate that covers a work bench. I have 2 buckets on the floor, one for coppers one for rejected zincs. On the table i have a bag for '82, '83, '84, '95, '98-'00, pre-'96 Canadians, wheats + S-mints, (i recently gave up on the '94, '97 bags). It takes about 1.5 hours to sort a box and I will try to get through at least 4 boxes in a sitting. I'm trying to hand sort about $500 dollars a week, along side cherry picking some uncommon and rare zinc dates. The copper pennies go into large buckets and will later be sifted through for error years before being placed in rolls or litter buckets for storage.
No breaks, just an Ipod a fan and one very hot and bright MH bulb. I have a 3 inch lens that i use to search for most errors, and a child's microscope (~20 or 40 x not sure) to confirm the coins an error. Also i have an endless supply of Nitrile gloves to keep the germies from my hands.
~ JobIII |
Selling Copper cents. $0 FV available at 1.4xFV. Also interested in trading for wheat pennies and other coins Please pm me for requests or inquiries.
|
Edited by - JobIII on 07/22/2009 15:36:05 |
|
|
|
horgad
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
1641 Posts |
Posted - 07/22/2009 : 15:48:30
|
If your eyes are slowing you down, try sorting with just the scale. Also for scale sorting, you can put pennies on one at a time and watch the increments. Memorize what they should be for zinc and what they should be for copper.
For example, try to pick out a zinc penny from the pile by color alone. Place it on the scale and check the weight. Try to pick out another zinc penny from the pile by color alone. Place it on the scale and check the increase. Keep going picking out suspected zincs. If the increment, indicates that you mistakenly got a copper take the copper of of the scale and throw it somewhere. If the scale gets to full, throw all the zinc somewhere and start again.
Hope that helps. |
|
|
|
n/a
deleted
12 Posts |
Posted - 07/22/2009 : 15:54:34
|
| I don't understand why nobody claims to use the "bounce" method? When my eyes are getting tired or my neck stiff, then I just go to the kitchen counter and start bouncing them and listening for the ringing sound copper makes. It's practically fool proof. I can later sort through them for the wheats, etc. |
|
|
|
CoinHunter53562
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
1805 Posts |
Posted - 07/22/2009 : 16:08:31
|
quote:
Originally posted by HoldenSteele
I don't understand why nobody claims to use the "bounce" method? When my eyes are getting tired or my neck stiff, then I just go to the kitchen counter and start bouncing them and listening for the ringing sound copper makes. It's practically fool proof. I can later sort through them for the wheats, etc.
I have heard of this, but for me this only works with silver. With copper, my ears don't seem to be able to discriminate well enough between the two. Besides, if there is a rare date in there (unlikely but could happen), then I don't want to take the chance of doing even minute damage to the coin. |
My hobby: collecting real money 1 copper cent or nickel at a time.
|
|
|
|
JobIII
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
1507 Posts |
Posted - 07/22/2009 : 20:19:16
|
| scales and bouncing seem like such a slower method. Coinhunter you could be tone deaf. |
Selling Copper cents. $0 FV available at 1.4xFV. Also interested in trading for wheat pennies and other coins Please pm me for requests or inquiries.
|
|
|
|
cwgii
Penny Hoarding Member
USA
924 Posts |
Posted - 07/22/2009 : 21:17:52
|
my methodology........... break open the rolls into yogurt containers..250 to a cup...... i have a 2 pound and one pound cottage cheese container tops... put a bout 20 onto it. pull out the coppers. since the tops nest..... i can then flip the tails to heads.. pull the copper.
the zn go into a cottage cheese container....\\\the coppers get sorted to ,,,, 60-67, 68-74, 75-81, 82, also a penny roll for..... the wheats, 59s and oddstuff. |
|
|
|
HoardCopperByTheTon
Administrator
USA
6807 Posts |
Posted - 07/22/2009 : 23:08:14
|
When I used to hand sort large quantities I was able to get my sort rate down to 1 hour per box. Instead of using a magnifying glass and taking all that time to orient the penny to the right side and reading each date I used the digital scale. You don't have to weigh each penny individually. I would pour a roll into my hand and then weigh up to 6 pennies at a time. You can generally pick out the zincs by color from your hand to make a stack on the scale. The weight will come up in multiples of 2.5 if you are right. Then you just slide those off the scale to the right and make another stack. Coppers will come up in multiples of 3.1 when you get down to those. Just slide those off the scale to the left. You can sort a roll very quickly this way.
I also found that LED lights work pretty well for looking at pennies. They aren't nearly as hot as those incandescent bulbs. I have the type you just mount on your head that shine the light right where you are looking and a big one with 20 LED's that can be used connected to AC or disconnected and used cordless for up to 6 hours on a charge. It has both a magnetic base and removeable flexible legs so it can be mounted anywhere. |
If your percentages are low.. just sort more. If your percentages are high.. just sort more.
Now selling Copper pennies. 1.6x plus shipping. Limited amounts available. |
|
|
|
CoinHunter53562
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
1805 Posts |
Posted - 07/22/2009 : 23:44:52
|
quote:
Originally posted by JobIII
scales and bouncing seem like such a slower method. Coinhunter you could be tone deaf.
Could be, although I can hear very easily the difference between silver and clad coins. Maybe I am for the range involved with copper vs zinc cents? |
My hobby: collecting real money 1 copper cent or nickel at a time.
|
|
|
|
JobIII
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
1507 Posts |
Posted - 07/23/2009 : 02:22:32
|
I believe copper is a higher frequency.
Hoard, Your 6 coin measuring system seems flawed. What if you had 1 or 2 coins that were zn in the mix, then you'd need to find them anyways. so you still would have to do some sorting off the scale. Or am I missing the point? |
Selling Copper cents. $0 FV available at 1.4xFV. Also interested in trading for wheat pennies and other coins Please pm me for requests or inquiries.
|
|
|
|
Mikep2020
Penny Collector Member
USA
402 Posts |
Posted - 07/23/2009 : 07:02:13
|
I wrote this in another thread from a few months ago, and I still use this method and I can get through a box in about 2 hours.
This is the way I hand sort, might not be most efficent, but it is organized, maybe OCD organized. I do 1 roll at a time, dump them out on a tray, place them all date side up, move the 59-81's into one corner of the tray, and all damaged, corroded, or otherwise unwanted Zincs in the other corner of the tray. Pluck out any canadians, wheats, foriegn coins, 68'-74' S-mints and put them in a small dish for later sorting. Pluck out ALL 1982's no matter the condition into another dish for later sorting. What I have left in the center of the tray is usually around 10-20 Zincs in AU/MS/BU condition. I search for errors out of all of these, usually spend about 10 seconds on each coin looking for double dies, wide AM's off-center strikes, etc.... Sometimes I keep some BU condition zincs from the 80's and 90's just for fun. Then dump the rest in the zinc reject pile. Then I look over all the copper pennies, checking briefly for any error coins and BU condition coins. I keep a select few of the coppers depending on condition, mostly the early date 59's through late 60's that I find in excellent shape. Then continue on with the next roll.
I have 6 small plastic bowls on my sorting table that I use while sorting a box of pennies and one large zinc reject bin on the floor:
- One for all 1982's
- One for all wheat's and other foriegn coins
- One for all Canadians
- One for Copper Keepers
- One for Copper Junk
- One for Zinc Keepers
After I go through one box, I go back to the mini bins and go through all the 1982's with a scale weighting each one separating the copper from the zinc, then seperate the large and small dates, P and D mints. Tossing the worn and corroded zincs in with the rejects and the coppers in with the copper junk. I keep all excellent shape 82's in all 7 varieties, especially the 1982 D-Z-L's which are few and far between in my sorting experience. I then roll up all the copper junk and pack them back into a brinks box for storage. I then go through the wheats, foreign coins, s-mints, etc.. and put some in 2x2 holders and some go into a sorting bin with dividers, something you see at the hardware store for separating nails and screws, only I use it for pennies until I get enough for a roll.
Then move on to the next box!
|
|
|
|
HoardCopperByTheTon
Administrator
USA
6807 Posts |
Posted - 07/23/2009 : 08:08:20
|
| Job.. You can generally tell the difference visually between zincs and coppers once you have some experience. Most members here could pick out the copper penny from a group of 6. Since 80% are zincs here, you can generally eliminate large amounts of the zincs from the roll this way. As you get to the ones of questionable color you can take the amount down to 4, 3, 2 or even 1 at a time. Even if you were weighing each cent individually, you can get going at a pretty good clip.. which should be at least twice as fast as looking at each coin through a glass. Think about the time/motion of examining each penny with a glass versus clicking and kicking on a scale without trying to flip the coin to the right side, orienting it to look at the date, and examining it through a glass. |
If your percentages are low.. just sort more. If your percentages are high.. just sort more.
Now selling Copper pennies. 1.6x plus shipping. Limited amounts available. |
|
|
|
NDFARMER
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
1197 Posts |
Posted - 07/23/2009 : 08:22:39
|
| I don't know how all you guys hand sort I guess I don't have the time or patience for that. I get frustrated that my Ryedale sometimes doesn't sort faster. I guess in a way I do hand sort though because I presort my bags before I feed them to the Ryedale. But I just quickly look through them for ones with glue on them, bent ones, doubles, anything that would jam the Ryedale. But I go through a bag of 5000 in about 10 - 15 minutes. This all most cuts the jams out completely. I have run 50,000 coins through in one sitting without one jam many times. It also lets me pull out the wheats, old Canadians, and anything else that looks interesting. |
COPPER - the "poormans" precious metal!!!
SELLING - $100.00 face copper shipped to you for $189.00 machine rolled or bagged - PM me if your interested. |
|
|
|
jtm3
Penny Pincher Member
USA
187 Posts |
Posted - 07/23/2009 : 10:28:57
|
| I am also really slow it takes me nearly 2 1/2 hours but I think iI will buy the Copper Penny Penny Miser soon. |
Copper Cent Hoarding Wiki
coppercenthoarding.wikia.com
+637 posts |
|
|
|
n/a
deleted
8 Posts |
Posted - 07/23/2009 : 14:32:26
|
Hey
I haven't been around for a while. The unopened boxes are piling up.
I don't want to show my age, I still act like I'm in my 20's.
With it getting harder to see the dates I use white paper under the coins to help. Also keeps the desk clean. |
|
|
|
poordriver
New Member
22 Posts |
Posted - 07/23/2009 : 17:40:53
|
| i use a light too, one of those clip on lights thats soposed to clip on your hat...but i just hold it to the side...it help a lot reading date |
|
|
|
taijitu
Penny Sorter Member
74 Posts |
Posted - 07/23/2009 : 19:41:14
|
| Does the Penny Miser machine work well? |
|
|
|
Gr33nday43
New Member
Uzbekistan
10 Posts |
Posted - 07/23/2009 : 20:40:51
|
| That remains to be seen. When the big guys try it out we will know for sure. It LOOKS promising, however. |
|
|
|
n/a
deleted
84 Posts |
Posted - 07/24/2009 : 09:02:09
|
I developed a pretty efficient way to hand sort using a scale:
First, I made a table listing the expected number of coppers per roll by weight of the roll. For instance, a roll weighing 126 g has no coppers; a 155 g roll is solid copper. Every copper/zinc combination inbetween will have, ideally or theoretically, a unique weight. I built the table by weighing several hundered bank rolls and recording the findings.
With this table at hand, I simply weigh the roll before I crack it, noting in my mind the expected number of coppers. When I open the roll, I spread the coins out like you would with a deck of cards- you know, fan them so to speak. Then I cherry pick the coppers until I reach the expected number. As has been stated, an experienced eye can usually tell copper from the coloring and the quality of the strike. Some rolls will go slower or faster than others, but once you master the technique, I think you'll find this the fastest way to hand sort. There will be some coppers lost this way as opposed to reading every date, but I consider the speed gain worth a tiny loss rate, especially since I'm confident in my skills.
If anyone wants to try this, I'll go find my weight table and post it; you could just work out the table by adding, but I like my empirical table because it takes into account a real random sample that includes weight of paper and "should" average out the measurement error.
Keep on sorting and hoarding, boys- you're a rare breed! |
"Truth is treason in the empire of lies." -Ron Paul, from _The Revolution: A Manifesto_ |
|
|
|
oly1oly1
Penny Sorter Member
USA
81 Posts |
Posted - 07/24/2009 : 11:48:17
|
I started hand sorting by eye. This helped to recognize copper and zincs. Coppers have a deeper impression and dates are much easier to read. I then found a solid surface and took a hand full and started dropping them about 4 - 6 inches, this doubled my sort rate by listening instead of looking. I have a ryedale now but when I drop a penny or see a penny in my zinc I think looks like a copper (deeper impression) I just drop it and often it is a copper. Also if you listen you don't need to worry about 82's. I've always wondered why people had trouble with 82's being copper or zinc. Just drop and listen. Zinc is a thud, Copper is a ting.
Just don't try a ryedale because you'll wonder why you ever handsorted. |
T.O. |
|
|
|
JobIII
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
1507 Posts |
Posted - 07/24/2009 : 16:37:29
|
I'm really considering a Ryedale, but i'm doing it to get some of my life back. it'll be very ironic when the time saved with the ryedale just becomes time i spend acquiring more cents.
but i don't mind focusing completely on the special mints and circumventing the chore aspect of this hobby. Though i believe i'll still be search for zincs in the copper, and coppers in the zincs with a ryedale. Nothing is perfect but i'm leaning away from hand sorting.
~ JobIII |
Selling Copper cents. $0 FV available at 1.4xFV. Also interested in trading for wheat pennies and other coins Please pm me for requests or inquiries.
|
|
|
|
Topic |
|
Hand Sorting Steps
Forum Locked
