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I realized today that over the course of my lifetime I've stashed away about 4.5 U.S. gallons of pennies in an old plastic water jug.

No clue what they're worth but the thing is quite heavy.

The bottom of the jug is prolly woth more than the top.
The bottom pennies prob have more copper than the top.

i think pre 82 got copper enough to sale em buy the pound an make out
if that your path.
while back there was one ole boy that use to solder that year penny to every kettle he ever made. you seen a penny an you noed that outfit was right
so im tole

It's a young man that saves pennies these days...

I have a Folger's tub beside my bed that I throw all my change in...little one, like 1 pound...last time I cashed it in, it was over $50.

goose eye wrote:i think pre 82 got copper enough to sale em buy the pound an make out
if that your path.
while back there was one ole boy that use to solder that year penny to every kettle he ever made. you seen a penny an you noed that outfit was right
so im tole

The cut date for copper vs copper clad zinc was "mid" 82. There are 1982 pennys that are copper, and 1982 pennys that are zinc.

Pennies are very close to 1 gram. Thus, there are about $4.50 in face value per pound of pennies (not sure the exact amount, but I think this is pretty close). Copper is not trading at $4.50 is it? I think it is around $3.00 a pound at the scrap yards (but I may be off).

H.

husker there was this ole boy that use to sale salat an turnups an such by the pound. he would by 50 lbs of produce but he was able to sale 60lbs off it.
so im tole

edit - i no i aint clear in my meanin most time so ill lay it out.
how much copper is in a 59 to 81 penny - 98 percent
how much do a 59 to 82 penny weigh from the mint - 3.11 grams
reason i said pre 82 i didnt want uncle jesse to get himmed up at the scrap yard cause they in the business of makein money.

so if a penny is 3.11g, then there are $1.45 face value pennies in a pound. Pennies are about 98% (I think they are that pure).

So, if that is the proper weight, then yes, pennies are worth less than the copper that is in them (or in other words, the copper is worth more at the scrap yard).

So, just take the sledge hammer out, and meld your pennies into a solid block of copper, and take them down to the scrap yard

Edit: I pulled out the triple beam, and 100 pennies (pre 82's) weigh in at 288 g), so 2.88g / penny is what I get. Thus about $1.575 in face value of copper pennies, nets you a pound of copper. These pennies were "normal wear" pennies for the dates.

H.

you all probably know destroying money is illegal.
and copper is not so easy to melt.

husker wont meanin to pick just tryin to figure out when was last time you calybrated them scales since you was only weighin out 1 gram per penny.

stoker goverment do it all the time an since its we the people i aint got
no problem putin pennys on a train track. the trick is make sure they goin slow. ha ha

goose eye wrote:husker wont meanin to pick just tryin to figure out when was last time you calybrated them scales since you was only weighin out 1 gram per penny.

stoker goverment do it all the time an since its we the people i aint got
no problem putin pennys on a train track. the trick is make sure they goin slow. ha ha

One g per penny was not weighing them, it was what I "thought" a penny weighed. When I weighed a bunch of them, which has "normal" circulation wear, they are a little under 3g.

H.

goose eye wrote:husker wont meanin to pick just tryin to figure out when was last time you calybrated them scales since you was only weighin out 1 gram per penny.

stoker goverment do it all the time an since its we the people i aint got
no problem putin pennys on a train track. the trick is make sure they goin slow. ha ha

:lol:OFF WIKI During the early 1970s, the price of copper rose to a point where the cent almost contained more than one cent's worth of copper. This led the Mint to test alternate metals, including aluminum and bronze-clad steel. Aluminum was chosen, and over 1.5 million of these cents were struck and ready for public release before ultimately being rejected. About a dozen aluminum cents are believed to still be in the hands of collectors,[1] although they are now considered illegal, and are subject to seizure by the Secret Service. One aluminum cent was donated to the Smithsonian Institution.

The cent's composition was changed in 1982 because the value of the copper in the coin started to rise above one cent. Some 1982 cents use the 97.5% zinc composition, while others used the 95% copper composition. The price of copper later returned to profitable levels.

As of August 9, 2007, the price of copper is $3.50 per pound and zinc is $1.57 per pound. At these prices, the pre-1982 copper cent contains 2.34 cents worth of copper, which makes them an attractive target for melting by people wanting to sell the metal at a profit. However, the United States Mint, in anticipation of this practice, implemented new regulations[2] on December 14, 2006 which criminalize the melting of cents and nickels and place limits on export of the coins. Violators can be punished with a fine of up to 10 000 USD and/or imprisoned for a maximum of five years.

In April 2006, the copper-plated zinc cent contains 0.8 cents worth of metal. However, the mint spends about 0.6 cents[3] to produce each cent in addition to the cost of the metal content. Presumably with the rapid rise in price for zinc, the US Mint will have to find another alternative. However, it is Congress that determines the denomination and content of coins that the Mint must produce and put into circulation. As the United States Mint produces only the coins that Congress mandates, it does not have the authority to alter or abolish a unit of currency. If directed to do so by legislation enacted by the Congress and signed by the President, the Treasury Department would again study changing or phasing out the cent. Because the demand exists and the Federal Reserve Banks require inventories to meet the demand, the United States Mint is presently committed to producing the cent at a loss.

Many people can hear the difference between the bronze and copper cents and the newer, zinc cents: simply flip the coin, giving it a good, solid strike. The predominantly copper pennies produce a ringing sound in the 12 kHz range. The zinc coins do not ring.

They got rid of our Aussie 1c and 2c pieces a couple of years ago for similar reasons

Uncle Jesse wrote:I realized today that over the course of my lifetime I've stashed away about 4.5 U.S. gallons of pennies in an old plastic water jug.

No clue what they're worth but the thing is quite heavy.

Jesse, be very careful when/ if you move that thing. I have a friend that had a plastic water jug full of coins, went to move to another house, picked the thing up and had money all over the floor of the room it was in. Slip a piece of plywood under it if ya need to move it.
Just a friendly tip.
He went ahead and cash it in for bills after that and had one hellova housewarming party from the proceeds.

might be worth looking at penny prices to collectors. If you've been saving them your whole life you're likely to have a few keepers in there. Maybe you ought to melt the pre-82 pennies and make a little pot still out of them.

lol, pot still courtesy of the US mint. I wonder if Franklin mint has collector stills

I may have missed it but there are seven varieties of '82 pennies. I have been an on again-off again coin collector for a few years. Pennies are great fun and I look at thousands of them from folks that know I like it.

The die varieties can make you some $$$ if you're into that kinda of stuff.

My plan is to save all my change until I retire and go through it looking for errors and die varieties.

Sorry, I get carried away when it comes to coins and distilled beverages.

Cheers!

Bill

[quote="cannon.co.tn"]Maybe you ought to melt the pre-82 pennies and make a little pot still out of them.[/quote]

95% Copper 5% Zinc... Dunno how much zinc might leach out, but too much can be toxic.

US Nickels might be a safer bet at 75% Copper 25% Nickel. They use nickel in stainless steel, right? Course, I could be full o' crap :-)