For those who think this is an easy question. It's not made of copper but does have copper cladding. Pennies were made of copper at one time but the copper is worth more than the penny so it's made from a different metal now.
2006-09-16 06:57:48 · 15 answers · asked by Anonymous in Education & Reference ➔ Trivia
Years / Mass / Diameter / Composition
1864 to 1942 / 3.11 g / 19 mm / 95.0% Copper and 5.0% Zinc & Tin (bronze mix)
1943 / 2.70 g / 19 mm / Steel with Zinc coating
1944 to 1946 / 3.11 g / 19 mm / 95.0% Copper and 5.0% Zinc & Tin (bronze mix)
1947 to 1962 / 3.11 g / 19 mm / 95.0% Copper and 5.0% Zinc & Tin (bronze mix)
1963 to 1982 / 3.11 g / 19 mm / 95.0% Cu and 5.0% Zinc
1983-Present / 2.50 g / 19 mm / 97.5% Zinc and 2.5% Copper (20% lighter)
2006-09-16 10:00:35 · answer #1 · answered by Lynn Rosemary 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
What Are Pennies Made Of
2016-10-29 23:21:12 · answer #2 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
This Site Might Help You.
RE:
What is a penny made of?
For those who think this is an easy question. It's not made of copper but does have copper cladding. Pennies were made of copper at one time but the copper is worth more than the penny so it's made from a different metal now.
2015-08-18 19:57:22 · answer #3 · answered by Giffard 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Depends on the penny. When and when the penny was minted will have a bearing.
Many old pennies were of pure copper but various alloys were included to harden them as well as reducing their tangible cost by including lower cost materials. An attractive cladding over the cheapest possible base is the pennies most recent destiny.
2006-09-16 07:36:20 · answer #4 · answered by Bring back Democracy 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Today pennies aren't really made out of copper they are made out of a base material (tin or zinc) and then plated with copper. If you scratch a penny deep enough you will see the silver colored base material inside it. The reason they switched from pure copper to a plated material is due to cost...it actually got to the point where a pure copper penny wasn't worth the cost of making due to the expense of the copper
2006-09-16 07:04:08 · answer #5 · answered by mindofachild7 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Pennies are copper plated zinc
2006-09-16 07:00:53 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
The current Penny has a composition of copper-plated steel.
I'm not sure what the one-cent piece is made of.
2006-09-16 07:04:23 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
pennies from heaven a penny for your thoughts that's my 2 cents
2006-09-16 07:11:21 · answer #8 · answered by J.J. does it right 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The pennies in 1943 were made of lead.
2006-09-16 08:22:57 · answer #9 · answered by illusions 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
1982 - The rising price of copper finally took its toll on the Lincoln cent in 1982. The composition in 1982 was changed to an alloy of 99.2 percent zinc and 0.8 percent copper, plated by pure copper - making the total composition 97.5 percent zinc and 2.5 percent copper.
2006-09-16 07:14:11 · answer #10 · answered by g3010 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋