In mid-1982, the U.S. Mint changed the composition of the penny due to the rising cost of copper. Post-1982 pennies contain only 2.5% copper with the remainder being primarily zinc.
Collecting pre-1982 pennies can be a hobby that also serves as an investment in copper. The higher copper content in these pennies makes them more valuable as a commodity than their face value and post-1982 counterparts.
Melting down pre-1982 US pennies for their copper value is considered a form of defacing currency and is illegal in the United States.
The intrinsic value of the metal does not change the fact that thee coins are legal tender. Just like Pre-1965 junk silver, there are many advantages to having an easily recognizable coin compared to some melted scrap copper ingot.
Copper prices continue to rise resulting from the disruptions of several significant mining operations in recent months, such as the closing of the Cobre Panama mine in Central America. According to a report from the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), copper exports from Panama account for 5% of the country’s GDP and more than 75% of the country’s exports. market supply of copper.
Collecting copper mon the practicality and profitability of copper penny collecting depend on copper prices and the feasibility of sorting and storing large numbers of pennies.
Each pre-1982 penny weighs 3.11 grams. Since there are 453.592 grams in a pound, it takes about 146 pre-1982 pennies to make a pound of copper. A typical 5-gallon bucket will hold around 200 pounds of copper pennies, around 30,000 coins with a $300 face value.
If it were to become legal to melt old pennies like Pre-1965 silver coins, based the copper spot price being around $3.80 per pound, the melt value of a full 5-gallon bucket is around $740.
In many areas, coin roll hunting for silver coins has become more difficult due to bank service cuts and closures and overall lack of availability of coinage. There are millions of Pre-1982 pennies still in circulation with a higher copper content. Take a look through your change cup and check the dates.
A bank box of pennies contains $25 face value, or 50 standard bank rolls of coins. For any practical amount of penny stacking, you might want to consider some type of automatic penny sorting system.
For those considering stacking copper pennies as an alternative investment, there are some DIY penny sorting setups available through both eBay and Amazon. These devices operate by comparing the weight of a sample coin to those passing through the mechanism.
If you’re still skeptical about the intrinsic value of pre-1982 copper pennies, have a search through some auctions and past sales on eBay to get a sense of the growing market.