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Nickelless
Administrator
USA
5580 Posts |
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horgad
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
1641 Posts |
 Posted - 08/28/2008 : 07:24:35
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The law was passed way back in 74, but of course was not used until 1982.
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-----Little Quote-----
"...it announced the ban (April 18, 1974). A few months later, Public Law 93-441 (31 U.S.C. 5112(c)) granted to the Secretary of the Treasury the power to change the proportion of
zinc and copper in pennies."
-----Bigger Quote-----
The new pennies of 1982
The provisions of the Coinage Act were used once more, this time to protect the penny. The peg to gold had ended in August 1971. Many prices were rising, and on April 1, 1974, the price of copper reached a record $1.40 per pound. At the time, 154 pennies contained one pound of copper. The public’s demand for pennies rose to suspiciously
high levels. The Treasury concluded that people were preparing to melt
pennies, and it announced the ban (April 18, 1974). A few months later, Public Law 93-441 (31 U.S.C. 5112(c)) granted to the Secretary of the Treasury the power to change the proportion of zinc and copper in pennies. But copper prices stayed around $0.60 per pound in subsequent years, and the ban was lifted in June 1978 without any further action. After copper prices hit another record of $1.44 per pound on February 12, 1980, the Treasury briefly considered another ban. Then, it opted instead to change the composition of the penny.
The Mint started making copper-coated zinc pennies in January 1982.
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gatzdon
Penny Sorter Member
39 Posts |
Posted - 08/28/2008 : 08:27:21
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| Don't forget that they actually produced test pennies in the 70's prior to putting of the composition change due to the price of copper falling back down. There is an Aluminum Penny on display in the Smithsonian as one example. |
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jadedragon
Administrator
Canada
3788 Posts |
Posted - 08/28/2008 : 18:23:05
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| I was a little young to realize what happened in 1974. So is the recent melt ban actually driven by the rise in zinc prices? Seems like there must have been a time in 1982 when copper pennies were worth melting because the Treasury considered a melt ban then, but opted to change the composition to zinc. |
“The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man.” – George Bernard Shaw.
Why Copper Bullion ~~~ Interview with Silver Bullion Producer Market Harmony
Passive Income blog |
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Ryedale
Administrator
USA
523 Posts |
Posted - 08/29/2008 : 08:14:48
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quote:
Originally posted by horgad
The law was passed way back in 74, but of course was not used until 1982.
You must be logged in to see this link.
-----Little Quote-----
"...it announced the ban (April 18, 1974). A few months later, Public Law 93-441 (31 U.S.C. 5112(c)) granted to the Secretary of the Treasury the power to change the proportion of
zinc and copper in pennies."
-----Bigger Quote-----
The new pennies of 1982
The provisions of the Coinage Act were used once more, this time to protect the penny. The peg to gold had ended in August 1971. Many prices were rising, and on April 1, 1974, the price of copper reached a record $1.40 per pound. At the time, 154 pennies contained one pound of copper. The public’s demand for pennies rose to suspiciously
high levels. The Treasury concluded that people were preparing to melt
pennies, and it announced the ban (April 18, 1974). A few months later, Public Law 93-441 (31 U.S.C. 5112(c)) granted to the Secretary of the Treasury the power to change the proportion of zinc and copper in pennies. But copper prices stayed around $0.60 per pound in subsequent years, and the ban was lifted in June 1978 without any further action. After copper prices hit another record of $1.44 per pound on February 12, 1980, the Treasury briefly considered another ban. Then, it opted instead to change the composition of the penny.
The Mint started making copper-coated zinc pennies in January 1982.
Perhaps this is why so many 1974 pennies are rejected as "not copper" They could have been experimenting even while the decisions were being made. I have more 1974 coins reject than any other year from the 70's. Keep in mind the process of coinage, first a sheet of rolled feed stock is brough in, then the plachets are stamped etc. I wonder if they have higher zinc content.
Andy |
Ryedale
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"The real art of conversation is not only to say the right thing at the right place, but to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the most tempting moment."
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Tourney64
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
1035 Posts |
Posted - 08/29/2008 : 09:10:45
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| Same for me. Will the mint ever admit it? Do they even know? I don't see a major difference in weight between the 1974 coins that sort differently than other copper pennies. Is there another metal involved? They should weigh differently due to the density of each metal. An all copper cent would weigh 22% more than a zinc cent. |
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horgad
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
1641 Posts |
Posted - 08/29/2008 : 09:36:12
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"Perhaps this is why so many 1974 pennies are rejected as "not copper" They could have been experimenting even while the decisions were being made. I have more 1974 coins reject than any other year from the 70's. Keep in mind the process of coinage, first a sheet of rolled feed stock is brough in, then the plachets are stamped etc. I wonder if they have higher zinc content."
Agreed, there must be some connection...
Just think, legally the mint could go to 99.9% zinc penny today, but it wouldn't save them any money as the pennies would wear out too fast forcing them to make more. |
Edited by - horgad on 08/29/2008 09:39:09 |
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jadedragon
Administrator
Canada
3788 Posts |
Posted - 08/30/2008 : 01:47:55
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Is there any easy way to test the metal content? Would melting a known copper, a known zinc, and a reject 1974 in the name of science yield any useful info?
You must be logged in to see this link. talks about rare aluminum pennies from 1974 (most were melted again)but interestingly it proves testing was underway, leading credence to the concept that the 1974s we find reject as not copper may be an altered composition. |
“The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man.” – George Bernard Shaw.
Why Copper Bullion ~~~ Interview with Silver Bullion Producer Market Harmony
Passive Income blog |
Edited by - jadedragon on 08/30/2008 01:54:10 |
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n/a
deleted
51 Posts |
Posted - 09/06/2008 : 12:30:19
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I was reminded of this thread (eventually!!) after I had a problem calibrating my sorter :-o
I put in my copper comparison coin and was adjusting the sensitivity but it kept rejecting most coppers and accepted the zincs. Seems as though I picked up a '74 "oddball" to use as the comparison coin. Doh. Long story short, I remembered this thread!!
Now to the point- I haven't done this yet but if/when I do I'll post the results unless someone beats me to it. Since the "oddball" '74 zincs weigh the same as coppers but are accepted electrically as zinc, I figure they must be of different density to coppers. If so, shouldn't they displace a different amount of volume in water?? Brainiacs, feel free to beat me to the experiment. :-) |
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Nickelless
Administrator
USA
5580 Posts |
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Text of legislation authorizing zinc cents?
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