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Skimming silver from nickels

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Q. Recently I was in a lab when I noticed a new nickel on the coffee table. After examining it for a short period of time, I deduced that it 'felt' different than an older coin. I used a digital scale nearby and I decided to see if there was more to this than my imagination. The new mint is 4.9 g while the older coin is 5.0 g even. Could this be a sign of silver shortage or someone trying to get a few extra nickels in their pocket?

J R. Collins,
Civil Engineering Undergrad U.N.H.

J Ryan Collins
University of New Hampshire - Durham, NH, USA
2006

A. Any U.S. 5-cent coin containing silver is at least 140 years old.

Originally, the "five-cent coin, or half-dime as it was called then, had only one-twentieth the silver [of a silver dollar]. But it was so small that it was difficult for people to handle. So in 1866, Mint officials decided to make it larger by changing its content from silver and copper to a combination of copper and nickel � and the modern nickel was born."

Quarters, dimes, and half dollars have a copper core and an outer layer, the "clad," made of cupro-nickel alloy, 75% Cu and 25% Ni. Nickels are made entirely of 75-25 cupro-nickel alloy.

The present nickel officially weighs 5.000 grams. A slight variation with design wouldn't surprise me, though.
The copper-plated zinc penny weighs 2.500 g, about 20% less than the previous copper penny (95% Cu, 5% Zn).

Information from the U.S. Mint, https://usmint.gov

Ken Vlach [deceased]
- Goleta, California

Finishing.com honored Ken for his countless carefully researched responses. He passed away May 14, 2015.
Rest in peace, Ken. Thank you for your hard work which the finishing world, and we at finishing.com, continue to benefit from.

US mint nickels don't contain silver. Nickels are 75% copper and 25% nickel. The 1/10th of a gram weight difference is probably dirt and grime embedded in the older nickel. There is no shortage of silver, the digital camera market preserved silver for us for quite some time.

Mark Baker
process engineer - Malone, New York

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